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Thanks for all responses: I run a book club for my 6th grade girls. We meet once a week in the morning before school. I have tried many versions of book clubs, depending on the girls I have had. Usually, each girl submits a short list of books with a summary etc. and as a group we read the summaries and vote on all the titles for the year. I then forward this list to our local library and she sets up a schedule to interlibrary loan the books. Using this system is great for cost and allows us to read current books that still may be out in hardcover. One of the girls is responsible for picking up and returning the books. We have assigned a question to ponder while you are reading the book and one girl is in charge of the discussion, with the focus on discussing the question. I started a book club about 3 years ago. My high school is in an economically depressed area and many of our students are afraid to be known as readers. It's been a struggle, but I think each year our students are getting better and better - more open to their own education. Anyway, I first tried to start it to meet after school and that did not work. The students who were willing to join were so involved in so many other things that it was near impossible to get them to come to our meetings. I waited a few months and then started one to meet at lunch time. I enticed them with food providing them with lunch (pizza). It wasn't long before I had an average of 30 students in the club - 15 at each lunch. I chose the first book and for our organizing meeting I presented them with a number of things to vote on - such as: should a member be allowed to come to a meeting without having read the book? (No), how were we going to choose our books? (vote). One of the things that I told them from the outset was that I wanted them to have fun with this. My goal was to get them to read and to try to open up a few new worlds to them - and again to have fun with it. My feeling is that they already get the serious stuff in English class. Not that we don't read good serious books, just a sampling: The Lovely Bones (they LOVED it!), The Kiterunner, Never Let me Go (Kazuo Ishiguro), Persepolis, and on and on. I found as time went on that we were having a difficult time choosing. So this year I started this year off having chosen all the books for the year. I posted the schedule (it was not written in stone as we had to modify it several times), with the book titles in the hope that some of the kids would buy one or two themselves. (Didn't happen). The first few years, I funded everything myself. I would only buy maybe 3 or 4 books and try to get them circulated around. I also urged them to use our local library and county library. It worked okay, but more and more we ended up getting people who would hog them and consequently, not everyone would get a chance to read them. Last year I started doing fundraisers - bake sales, and using other organized fundraising companies. Now I order multiple copies (about 10) from B&N and keep a very strict waiting list and it's working like a dream. At the very beginning, I had done some research on book clubs from the Internet and pulled the stuff that I liked and that I thought would work here. It was very helpful. I think also that perhaps what works for me might not work for you. Anyway, good luck! I hope it will be as rewarding for you as it has been for me. Also if you have any questions, suggestions, or comments, I would love to hear from you. I feel as though this club is constantly in flux - every year we change a bit to suit new members and new personalities, and every year I seem to get new ideas and themes. Hope this helps! I started a book club last year. We have an early release on Wednesdays where the students get out half an hour early, and departments meet. The library is open for quiet study and the gym is open for gym makeups. We meet during that time once a month. The students pick the books at the meeting for the next month. I have made suggestions, but they can make suggestions as well and make the final decision. Because it is a small group we have been able to get around extra copies. I've borrowed books from the other high school in the district and the middle schools. With the small group we have had the faster readers take the books home first and then pass them on to the slower readers. A couple have gone to the public library as well for copies. Hope this helps. My principal pays for the books, and organized it to be after school even though we have no busses. It was a pretty crazy endeavor- but the kids love it. We meet Monday and Thursday after school from 3- 4:15. I picked the first book, he picked books he remembered liking from when he was a 4th grade teacher too. There are two other teachers that meet with us most of the time. Since December we've been studying Maine and coastal plants/animals/landforms etc. We're all going to Maine to a youth enrichment farm in May for 5 days- 5 adults/teachers and about 15 kids. We raised all the money ourselves through asking businesses for donations and holding benefit concerts, fun nights and bake sales. We're in the poorest county in New York State and some of these kids might not get to Maine or the ocean in their life without this opportunity. It's really crazy but really awesome! "It's what you learn after you know it all that counts."--Harry S. Truman LHS Mission Statement: "The art of caring, the mission of excellence in studies, and the pride in achievement ensure success for all. Logansport High School---a school of champions." Tedine "Teddy" Soule, Librarian Logansport High School P. O. Box 549 Logansport, LA 71049 318-697-4338 tsoule@desotopsb.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law. You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book. To change your LM_NET status, e-mail to: listserv@listserv.syr.edu In the message write EITHER: 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL 3) SET LM_NET MAIL 4) SET LM_NET DIGEST * Allow for confirmation. * LM_NET Help & Information: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ * LM_NET Archive: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/ * EL-Announce with LM_NET Select: http://lm-net.info/ * LM_NET Supporters: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ven.html * LM_NET Wiki: http://lmnet.wikispaces.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------