Thanks so much for the encouragement and ideas you sent. Once again, this list is a
wonderful professional resource.
Original post:
I'm working on presenting the idea of a Barnes & Noble book fair to my principal.
If any of you wonderful colleagues have done this before, what sort of events have
you done to get people into the store? We're looking at the possibility of having
jazz choir, show choir, pom and cheer squads perform, and possibly a student art
exhibit. Any other ideas? I will post a hit.
Responses:
I am new to the librarian position in my school, Sarah, but we have an annual
Barnes and Noble book fair hosted by our Home and School Association, with profits
going to our elementary school library. Events over the weekend it is held (for
multiple schools at the same time) have included:
band students performing for half hour or so (definitely brings out their parents
and grandparents)
read aloud by principal and other teachers
With middle school, you would have more options for groups to perform.
Good luck.
____________________________________________________
We do our book fair at B&N and I love it! Last year I got close to $1,000 to spend
on the library. Anything that will draw in kids and the families will work. We
had Hawaiian dancers, choir, a magician, one teacher does belly dancing, singing.
People will come to see their kids perform, then will make purchases. We were also
lucky enough to have our book fair in December and were able to run the gift wrap
booth. They supply all the materials. We can't charge, but we can accept
donations. That was another couple hundred for us.
____________________________________________________
Sarah, we have all the events you listed but in addition we have teachers sign up
for a slot to read a story to students. I am in a K-8 school and the little ones
love it, but it works especially well for the junior high because they get such a
kick out of seeing their teacher "try to deal with" little ones.
PS are the proceeds going to the library? Our PTO gets ;the money from B&N night
because I get the book fair money. You should clear that up before it becomes a
surprise!
____________________________________________________
I don't have any other ideas to get people to attend your Barnes and Noble book
fair, but I have had two of them. They were great! Profit was less than with
Scholastic, but so easy (they do almost everything for you). We took our profit as
a B&N gift card, and it was wonderful to be able to use it throughout the year for
the extra books that I didn't have money in the budget for. The staff at Barnes
and Noble was very helpful,
I am the librarian at a small Montessori school, but the activities you mentioned
(choir, band, art exhibit) all sound like they would get students and parents to
visit the store during the fair.
____________________________________________________
Our PTA had one, but it wasn't as successful as our Scholastic fair. We had a
poetry jam, a preschool bedtime story, etc. You could also try a poster contest,
tee shirt design contest, puzzle contest, scavenger hunt, etc.
Hope this helps!
____________________________________________________
I have done Book Fairs at B&N for about 3 years now with great success! My media
center has received on average $1,000 for the weekend. It seems like a lot of work
but in the end it is worth it--especially if the CRM at your store is good and can
provide some ideas and guidance.
I have chosen to do one activity per day. On Friday night I always have a poetry
slam featuring mostly 8th graders but a few brave 7th graders join in. We do it
open mike style in the cafe and the kids love it. I pick a hammy 8th grade boy for
the MC and then the kids get up to do original pieces or choral pieces or classic
pieces that they like.
I kick off Friday with an appearance by the principal and/or vice principal who
introduces the poetry slam etc.
On Saturday morning, I usually have an arts/crafts activity along with story
hour in the children;s dept. I enlist the help of student council members etc to
man the craft and the reading and we target our elementary building for this. We
drop of flyers at the K-3 building encouraging them to come and hear a story, do a
craft, have a snack etc. The elementary teachers have been a great help in getting
the little kids to show up.
If the timing is right, I ask the High School Theatre Group if they would like
to come to the store on Sat pm and plug their upcoming production. They usually
come in costume and do a scene which is always a big hit. They pass out flyers
promoting their production and it brings lots of people in. Win-Win
On Sunday afternoon, my 6th grade LA teachers have been willing to bring their
classes in to perform Reader's Theater. It is not mandatory so we usually have
about 30 participants which works out fine. This requires some teacher involvement
but they are willing to give a couple of hours for a good cause. It is a neat way
to showcase the 6th graders outside of school.
Nearby all of these events, I have a table set up with required reading titles
that need to be purchased, and also a table of "wish list" books that teachers have
requested for their classrooms.
Hope this helps. If you any specific questions, I would be glad to continue the
discussion. Good Luck--hope it is a success!
____________________________________________________
You are right on track for activities to draw parents and students into the store.
We have also read several popular books, allowed children to read poems or stories
they have written, or have short skits about reading by the students. Anything you
do to involve the students of your school will bring out parents.
Sarah Loch
Library Media Specialist
Carl Albert Middle School
Midwest City, OK
sloch@mid-del.net
See what I'm reading now:
http://www.shelfari.com/salamanders_scribe/shelf#firstBook=0&list=6&sort=dateadded
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