[LM_NET] HIT: Elementary Library Clubs

[Toni Buzzeo <tonibuzzeo@TONIBUZZEO.COM>]

Hello Colleagues,

Now that the holiday weekend is past, I'd love a few more responses, but
here's the current hit.

    ORIGINAL TARGET: I'll soon be writing an article about library clubs in
elementary schools for LibrarySparks and I'm hoping that a few of you might
be willing to share
your experiences.

What is the focus of your club?
What are the grades of students who participate?
How are members chosen?
What is the purpose of your club (what do members do)?

I'd love to hear your experiences, your success stories, your cautions, and
your advice. And of course, as always, let me know if I may quote you.

 HIT:

Modeled after Steven Layne's club we have a first read club.  When I have a
number of new books I hold a first Read club meeting, anyone can 'join' at
any time and come only when they are available.  It is open to grades K-5.
 I have found more success holding K-2 in one meeting and the 3-5 at another
meeting.

I introduce the new books with a few book talks or author introductions and
then students have time to choose a book from the new collection to read.
 Students have 1-2 weeks to read the book (depending on length of book)and
hand it back with a rating out of 4 stars and a 1-5 sentences review.

A lovely plaque is put in the front of the book Stating that this book was
First Read by ____________on _______.  The review then is typed up and put
on the shelf by the book.  Students love to look back later and see their
names and the names of their friends in the books that they were the first
to read.

This club is also open to teachers, many read the books aloud to their class
and the plaques read This book was first read by Ms. Ottenbriet's
Kindergarten class in April 2010.

Great success and the one Club that can include all the grades (K-5) in my
school.



***

Our library club was designed as a service club, not a book club.  It seems
to be an easy mix-up people make.  While we talk about books, it is in the
context of working in the library.  The attached application form outlines
what our club is all about.  I was originally hoping for about 8 kids to
sign up, but have been amazed two years in a row now when the number is
closer to 28!  While there is a formal application process, anyone who
applies is in.  There is one other way that students can get into Library
Club---a student was caught shoplifting from our book fair and her
consequence was to join the Library Club to "pay back".  She was lucky
enough to gain a new circle of friends, a sense of usefulness, and better
self-concept.

Library Club kids are allowed to come into the library before school starts;
quite a privilege.  There is a morning check sheet of things that need to be
done (computers on, wipe tables with Clorox wipes, sharpen pencils, make
sure books are displayed on top of the shelves, etc.  Then, if there is
time, they can each shelve 5 picture books or fiction books.  The morning
crew is usually made up of a group of 6-10 girls who love this little
special time/place that is theirs.  The Club kids also come in during recess
or after lunch time.  Their only real obligation is to come in at least one
time a week.  Never a problem.

The Library Club kids also do most of the window displays and bulletin
boards.  They need to clear the topic/approach with me and I help them
however they need it, but they love doing them!

The most favorite thing they do is to serve as advertisers and presenters at
our "Eastern Choice Awards" which we do for National Reading Month.  Here's
the link to this years show:  http://easternchoiceawards.weebly.com/
By far, this is the most fun for the kids!

In the spring, we walk to one of the high schools which happens to be next
door for a field trip, and the kids get a tour of the high school library.
 They look for similarities and differences and find it pretty interesting.
 The thing they dislike about this, however, is that in our building they
are the 'big kids', but when they walk next door, they are not. :)

At the annual Awards Ceremony, they each get a certificate indicating their
involvement.

I have to say, the Library Club has been more fun than I even hoped it would
be.  It is a little extra work, but it is also very helpful in the little
things they do that I don't have to.  The sense of ownership that the
students develop is the best part and something I hope they carry over into
their future years in school, academic and public library use!



 ***

I have two clubs in my library.  One is Frostwood Book Club and the other is
Tech Club.



Book Club

*What is the focus of your club?* Read after school as a group, enjoy and
delve into conversation about a book. This last year we read Ghollywhopper
Games and The Puzzling World of Winston Breen
*What are the grades of students who participate?* 4th and 5th Grades
*How are members chosen?* By application, teacher and parent approval
required
*What is the purpose of your club (what do members do)?* We read, have a
socratic style discussion about the book, discuss on a book club wiki, skype
with the author (twice this year), have Oprah style interviews with
characters in the book (acted out), create wordles on the internet about
characters, create book reviews on our library macs using Photo booth.



Tech Club



*What is the focus of your club?* Explore technology using new Macs in the
library, flip cameras, and web 2.0 tools
*What are the grades of students who participate?* 3-5th grades
How are members chosen? Application with parent approval
*What is the purpose of your club (what do members do)?* We have learned to
use web 2.0 tools such as animoto.com producing our own videos,
www.wordle.net creating collages of words (created one for each school staff
member for Teacher Appreciation Week, creating our own cartoons on cartoon
making sites.  We have also explored media literacy and our responsibility
of being net citizens.

These club were great because of the amazing students in them. I will just
give you the blurb I put in Texas Library Association listserv about the
wonderful clubs I have had the absolute privilege of having.



"I have had after school book clubs for several years.  This year was
actually my favorite.  We read Gollywhopper Games together.  We read the
book and have a socratic discussion. I teach them how to bounce conversation
with each other, paying attention to each other and really listening to
their thoughts. In years past, I have had them break up into smaller groups
to read and discuss, but this year, they wanted to stay together in a large
group of 21 students.  After Gollywhopper Games, we read The Puzzling World
of Winston Breen.  We skyped with the author twice. It was such an epiphany
for me to watch this deep interaction take place between the students and
the author.  At TLA I spoke with several authors that were very excited to
skype with students, especially book clubs.  I have done a lot of different
activities through the years with book clubs. We made a newsletter one year,
produced an Oprah type interview with Oprah interviewing the characters in
the book, made videos of our favorite scenes acted out, and used wikis to
bounce conversation about the book.  I am a librarian at a fantastic high
level school this year with some very eager students who love to read and
discuss. But I have also had book club with some very at risk students at a
high need school.  Book club is great for keeping them hooked on a book and
giving them fluency practice.  I used series books in the higher need
schools because the hook is set to make them want more in the next book
(Harry Potter, Spiderwick, and Series of Unfortunate Events).  This year I
am planning on reading a fantasy book with my third graders and possibly the
new Rick Riordan book for my older students. It has also worked well to have
a  book club mom who organizes snacks. This is essential as they are usually
tired and hungry after school. This year, we had a party after each book. It
is a celebration when we finish a book together. Book club is the highlight
of my week in being a librarian.  I don't think I would ever be without it."



Here is a shorter paraphrase on why I think it has been successful.



"Book club is such an exciting venture where students can freely delve into
a book without the rigid structure of a school setting.  Students are
excited to bounce conversation and do projects that deepen their
understanding and really make the reading experience come alive for them.
Tech club gives them

the opportunity to explore with technology using web 2.0 tools to create and
explore."



I had 21 students this year.

***



I don't know if this really qualifies as a book club, but I will share my
information. One of the 5th grade teachers and I started the BLT Club
(Books, Lunch, and Talk). 5th grade students only signed up on Monday and
attended during their regular lunch time on Tuesday. They brought their
lunch (no cafeteria food), their library book, and a blanket/pillow if they
wanted too. The students came to the library and could sit at tables or on
the floor any where in the library. They opened their books and started to
read while they ate their lunch for 15-20 minutes. Then the students got
into groups with the two teachers, or in small groups. We gave them a
reading skill (characters, author's point of view, plot, problem, etc.) to
discuss in their group. The students also had to tell about what the book
was about (main idea) and what they had read that day (summarization). After
30 minutes total, we cleaned up and they went back to class. The teachers
also participated along with the students. We started out with 6-8 students
and got up to 32. We even had 6th  graders from the previous BLT group
wanting to join us. The other teacher and I are planning on extending the
group this coming fall.

***


Here's a link to part of my library webpage that describes our Book Clubs.
 Some of the students make video book reviews as part of their club and I
post them on our library blog.  I've included a link to that, too.  If you
need more info or have questions, don't hesitate to email.

Webpage:
http://www.coldspringschool.net/Classrooms/jpedersen/Mrs.-Pedersen/Library-Book-Clubs.html

Blog Book Review example:  http://csslibrary.wordpress.com/2010/05/

 --
Toni Buzzeo, MA, MLIS <mailto:tonibuzzeo@tonibuzzeo.com>
Maine Library Media Specialist of the Year Emerita
Buxton, ME 04093
http://www.tonibuzzeo.com
Adventure Annie Goes to Kindergarten (Dial 2010) BRAND NEW!
No T. Rex in the Library (McElderry 2010) BRAND NEW!

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