6 Steps to Creating a Family Book Club

One of my absolute favorite family traditions that we’ve started with our kids is Family Book Club Night. We typically do this in the months of January and February, but you can really start it any time of year.

For us, as the winter months roll in and the days get shorter, it can be challenging to find fun and engaging activities for the whole family. Our idea to can keep everyone entertained and help foster a love for reading is starting a family book club night. By setting aside time each week to read together, you can create a special bonding experience and help your children develop critical reading and comprehension skills.

Here’s how you can start your own family book club night:

1. Choose a Book: The first step in starting your family book club night is choosing a book to read. Depending on the age of your children, you can select a picture book for each week, chapter book, or novel that everyone can enjoy. I typically do some research throughout the year, and choose a chapter book that I know even our littlest will be engaged with. Some of the books that we’ve done in the past are:

   1. Sweet Home Alaska

   2. Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

   3. The Great and Only Barnum

   4. Sideways Stories from Wayside School
      

2. Schedule the Time: Pick a specific day and time for your family book club night and try to stick to it. Setting a regular schedule will help everyone prioritize this activity and ensure that they are prepared for the discussion and special activities. In all honesty, the first year we did Family Book Club Night with our kids, we stuck pretty closely to our day & time – but as the kids have gotten older, and schedules get busy, we have to adapt. It’s more important to stick with the book, than to have it on the same night every week.
   

3. Someone Reads Aloud: During the book club night, have Mom or Dad read aloud to the family. This can be a fun and engaging way to bring the story to life, and it can help younger children follow along and understand the story better. Plus, it can be a relaxing and enjoyable experience for everyone to sit back, relax, and listen to a story together.
   

4. Special Activity: To make family book club night extra special, include a fun activity or craft related to the book you are reading. For example, if you are reading a book about animals, you can make animal masks or draw pictures of your favorite animals. These activities can help reinforce the themes of the book and keep everyone engaged and excited about the story.
   

5. Snack Time: No family book club night is complete without a special snack to enjoy while you read. Depending on the book you are reading, you can create a themed snack or just pick something that everyone loves. For example, if you are reading a book about winter sports, you can make hot cocoa and cookies to enjoy while you read. There have been some nights when I can tie the snack into the chapter of the book, like in Sideways Stories from Wayside School, we had ice cream on the night we read the chapter about creating flavored ice cream for each student.
   

6. Read on Your Own: After book club night, encourage your children to continue reading a chapter (or a few) on their own throughout the week. This will help them build good reading habits and keep the story fresh in their minds for the next book club night. Plus, it can be an excellent opportunity to practice their reading skills and develop their comprehension and vocabulary. I usually look at the book and break it out into 5 or 6 weeks worth, so that might mean that I’m reading 3 short chapters aloud each week, and they’re reading 3 short chapters on their own each week. It all depends on how long you want the book club to last. We help the littlest ones to read throughout the week by reading aloud.

Starting a family book club night can be an excellent way to spend quality time together and encourage a love for reading in your children. By following these tips, you can create a fun and engaging experience that everyone in the family will look forward to each week. So, grab a book, a snack, and get ready to read!