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:rant:

 

This is our third year I think in book club. Each family takes a turn picking a book and lately the books have been easy mostly b/c we have some members who are just learning to read and the moms are picking books the kids can read on their own or with just a little help. Which is fine. Before they were reading the books to the kids adn we did the discussions when we met. I was a little worried that ds9 who reads just about anything wouldn't get much out of it but he really wants to continue (honestly I think he just likes to play afterwards:tongue_smilie:) adn he never noticed the books were easy or anything. We have literature circle jobs where they summarize the story adn stuff so it is helpful for that kind of thing and I figured it is easier to practice those skills on easier books. This month was his book choice and only one other member read the darn book! I didn't make him pick an easy reader or anything- but nothing crazy for cripes sake! I figured they could read it to their kids this onceif they couldn't read it independently. He reads their books! The last person just responded that they couldn't come b/c they were double booked but were having "a more difficult time getting through this book with dc anyway, so weren't worried about it." :001_huh:Well. good. Glad YOU are not worried. I will tell my kid that when NO ONE shows up. Just kinda rubbed me the wrong way. The kids really look forward to their picks so it kinda stinks this one fell flat.

 

 

It was The Knight's Castle by Edward Eager. I guess I will have to sit down and read it to see what is so difficult for everyone to get through. Maybe it is awful; he liked it though. He was laughing his silly head off. :confused:

 

I think I am going to try to come up with a fun activity for the two people who read the book to do...and a snack. So if you have any ideas I would love to hear them. They are 7 or 8 and 9.

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My ds could not have read that book (preview at amazon) at 7, 8 or maybe 9, he is a delayed reader. If we were part of the book club we would have read it together, but if ds had been reading books on his own and then jumped to an unreadable level he might have been bent out of shape.

 

I've had to tread carefully, slowly, and sometimes painfully through his reading issues. There is a very fine line I've had to walk to preserve/instill a love of reading. My ds is finally getting to the point he's enjoying reading on his own, finally! It's taken almost five years of concentrated effort on his and my part. These are issues that we don't share with everyone, so even if we were a part of your book club, you might not know the extent of my son's reading issue. I love to read, I don't remember not knowing how to read, it has been extremely painful to watch my child struggle with reading.

 

Another issue might be the length of the book. I can't tell exactly but it looks to be close to 200 pages. Reading aloud we could have easily finished with a month, I didn't see how often your group meets. However, if he had read on his own it's feasible it would have taken over a month.

 

ETA: I hope you find out what was the difficulty with this book.

Edited by elegantlion
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:grouphug:

 

It's a good book, but not one I would have picked for the club dynamics you've described; it's simply not accessible to an early reader. FWIW, I find that making assumptions about what other parents should or shouldn't do usually results in disappointment and frustration.

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kwg,

 

Am I reading correctly that there have been longer, more advanced books read in the book club but that lately shorter books have been chosen?

 

If that is correct, I see nothing wrong with your DS's choice. I am sorry that people might be bailing on him during his month. That stinks.

 

As for activities...what about creating a family crest or shield? Or making/coloring an illuminated letter?

 

For a snack --- all I keep thinking of are trenchers. Sorry that's not so helpful!

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kwg,

 

Am I reading correctly that there have been longer, more advanced books read in the book club but that lately shorter books have been chosen?

 

If that is correct, I see nothing wrong with your DS's choice. I am sorry that people might be bailing on him during his month. That stinks.

 

As for activities...what about creating a family crest or shield? Or making/coloring an illuminated letter?

 

For a snack --- all I keep thinking of are trenchers. Sorry that's not so helpful!

 

 

Yes I just checked and the last book was 3.7 according to teacher book wizard. This one is 5.1. So the last one wasn't really an easy reader either I don't think!

 

ETA: I did not realize though that this one was 5.1. Maybe that is a big difference. But we have had advanced books before that parents read to children. I can see some points you all are saying. Thank you for your perspectives! Maybe pp was right in that we have outgrown this group for reading. I thought we could tread water for a while but now I am not so sure. I am speed reading it now lol. Maybe the harder part is some of the language, I dont know.

Edited by kwg
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This is one reason why I've chosen not to participate in Book club in our group. My DD is another "can read just about anything" kid, and tends to like a lot of fantasy books that are at the 5th-8th grade or so level. But most of the kids participating are reluctant or struggling readers who are several years older than DD, the kind of kids who, at age 8-10 find Magic Tree House an appropriate independent reading choice.

 

I think DD would enjoy the activities and not mind reading the books (which she could do the night before the meeting), but it would really bother her to not have her friends want to read the books she's enjoying, especially since she'd probably be the youngest child attending, so I choose to leave her out of it.

 

Sometimes, it stinks to be the advanced kid in a group. Unfortunately, your son has found one of those times.

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That's an excellent book! It's coming up next for our read alouds, though I suppose one of my ds6's could read it if we alternated, though it would be a bit of a stretch.

 

I would get some clarity about the book choices and the purpose of the group with the other moms, honestly. I think your expectations are totally reasonable, but it sounds like the people in group may have really different conceptions of what the guidelines are for the books, the participation, etc.

 

I have really been wanting to do a book group, especially for my reader, but this sort of gap in reading abilities - even between my twins! - has kept us from trying to make it happen or from joining in to a couple of groups we've seen trying to form.

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Could just be that the other moms realized they really LIKE having books that their kids can read themselves - I know I'd be much more interested in a book club that read books my 7yo could read himself rather than ones I had to read to him (although we do plenty of that, too). My 7yo would be able to read it, but would be turned off by the length (he loves to read but sticks with shorter books unless I am reading them to him).

 

I dunno - it really just depends on the group of people. If they have read advanced books to the kids before & this is just a once in awhile sort of thing, it doesn't seem fair for them to bail out. I think maybe a meeting of minds in the moms about just what sort of books should be used would be in order. If they just won't be able to do read-alouds (for whatever reason - time, energy, etc), then they should be up-front about that.

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UGH!!! It's the age group. I've run a book club for years. I enjoy heading the group with the older children,preteens, knowing they're ALL capable of reading the books I pick out. Yes, I pick them all out but I'm fortunate that everyone usually REALLY likes them. It takes me time to research books for 8 months. I put a lot of consideration into it.

 

This year I'm running the book club for ages 6 - 8. I haven't started yet but just deciding on the books was AWFUL!!! This is SUCH a difficult age group. The leader of the homeschool group and I have gone back and forth on the selection choices. I've decided to save the more advanced, for that group, to be read and discussed at the end of the school year. The easier ones will be in the beginning, and an especially light one will happen in January since our book club meets the first week of the month.

 

I will tell you from experience, parents will NOT want to put the time into this to read the book to their kid. I would, most parents won't. I can kind of understand it to be honest. Parents of multiple kids who have multiple activities and many school subjects tend sto not want to do extra work for extra curricula. I'm not saying it's right! I know that I have turned down good opportunities for this very reason. It's always safer to go on the easier side. The most important thing to consider is the discussion topic. Make sure the kids are capable of reading the book on their own, and make sure it's a topic you think most of thekids will be happy to discuss. For this reason I choose many silly books that are classical, or books that involve animals. Those always seem to be winners.

 

I wouldn't take this personally. Your child may enjoy the subject you suggested but perhaps the other kids didn't. Especially at that age! I find silly or animals topics are usually win-win. I also try to find a truly GOOD story with an important lesson. Think Helen Keller or Louis Braille, captivating biographies written for the younger crowd.

Edited by Denisemomof4
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UGH!!! It's the age group. I've run a book club for years. I enjoy heading the group with the older children,preteens, knowing they're ALL capable of reading the books I pick out. Yes, I pick them all out but I'm fortunate that everyone usually REALLY likees them. It takes me an time to research books for 8 months. I put a lot of consideration into it.

 

This year I'm running the book club for ages 6 - 8. I haven't started yet but just deciding on the books was AWFUL!!! This is SUCH a difficult age group. The leader of the homeschool group and I have gone back and forth on the selection choices. I've decided to save the more advanced, for that group, to be read and discussed at the end of the school year. The easier ones will be in the beginning, and an especially light one will happen in January since our book club meets the first week of the month.

 

I will tell you from experience, parents will NOT want to put the time into this to read the book to their kid. I would, most parents won't. I can kind of understand it to be honest. Parents of multiple kids who have multiple activities and many school subjects tend sto not want to do extra work for extra curricula. I'm not saying it's right! I know that I have turned down good opportunities for this very reason. It's always safer to go on the easier side. The most important thing to consider is the discussion topic. Make sure the kids are capable of reading the book on their own, and make sure it's a topic you think most of thekids will be happy to discuss. For this reason I choose many silly books that are classical, or books that involve animals. Those always seem to be winners.

 

I wouldn't take this personally. Your child may enjoy the subject you suggested but perhaps the other kids didn't. Especially at that age! I find silly or animals topics are usually win-win. I also try to find a truly GOOD story with an important lesson. Think Helen Keller or Louis Braille, captivating biographies written for the younger crowd.

 

If you're willing to share the books you choose, I'd love to see them!

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I'm so sorry it's working out like this for your son. I know as an adult how disappointing (and somewhat insulting) it is when no one reads the book you pick for the adult book club! Hard lesson for a kid.

 

I do think some of the pps are correct in maybe getting a bit more clarity on what is expected. If you continue, maybe put some guidelines in places (number of pages, reading level range, etc.). Make sure they are books kids can read themselves since the parents won't always follow through.

 

I hope you have a good meeting with the kids that do come! Looks like a great book and I'm putting it on my list!

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My ds could not have read that book (preview at amazon) at 7, 8 or maybe 9, he is a delayed reader. If we were part of the book club we would have read it together, but if ds had been reading books on his own and then jumped to an unreadable level he might have been bent out of shape.

 

I've had to tread carefully, slowly, and sometimes painfully through his reading issues. There is a very fine line I've had to walk to preserve/instill a love of reading. My ds is finally getting to the point he's enjoying reading on his own, finally! It's taken almost five years of concentrated effort on his and my part. These are issues that we don't share with everyone, so even if we were a part of your book club, you might not know the extent of my son's reading issue. I love to read, I don't remember not knowing how to read, it has been extremely painful to watch my child struggle with reading.

 

Another issue might be the length of the book. I can't tell exactly but it looks to be close to 200 pages. Reading aloud we could have easily finished with a month, I didn't see how often your group meets. However, if he had read on his own it's feasible it would have taken over a month.

 

ETA: I hope you find out what was the difficulty with this book.

 

This is SO important to consider. There are delayed readers. Easier is always the better option with this age group.

 

I didn't pick up on the 200 pages, I only looked at the age group with Amazon and was done. If this book is in fact 200 pages, that's way too much for a book club. For my age group I made sure that ALL books were 100 pages or under, saving the larger book or two for the end of the year. Even then, the larger books had many, many pages filled with pictures.

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I think it is unkind of your ds's friends mothers to refuse to participate with a book your child chose when he has participated with their kids. However it sounds like this group is a bad fit for your son and I would continue playing but maybe find a new club for reading, if your ds desires a book club experience.

 

I don't mean to disagree with you, personally, but having led a book club for various age groups, I have to disagree with you for the age group the OP listed. This, to me, is the most difficult group to lead.

 

I would stick with this book club for at least a couple more years. It changes drastically once the selections get to the age of 9 - 12. Still, I hate to see young kids sitting in older kid's groups. They may read the book well, but the age discrepancy truly does show most of the times during the discussion period.

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This is one reason why I've chosen not to participate in Book club in our group. My DD is another "can read just about anything" kid, and tends to like a lot of fantasy books that are at the 5th-8th grade or so level. But most of the kids participating are reluctant or struggling readers who are several years older than DD, the kind of kids who, at age 8-10 find Magic Tree House an appropriate independent reading choice.

 

I think DD would enjoy the activities and not mind reading the books (which she could do the night before the meeting), but it would really bother her to not have her friends want to read the books she's enjoying, especially since she'd probably be the youngest child attending, so I choose to leave her out of it.

 

Sometimes, it stinks to be the advanced kid in a group. Unfortunately, your son has found one of those times.

 

I just want to say that SOMETIMES, not always, an advanced reader does NOT equate to an advanced person who is able to discuss the topic at an older aged group. Sometimes it does, but I always feel that it's better to keep the child at the age group they're assigned to simply so they're with other kids their age. I don't always agree with this but mostly it holds true. Another thing important to consider is the child simply being in with their friends. I may find a book club fluff for my eager reader, but SHE is more than happy to be a part of it simply to have fun with her friends. THey will eventually get on to harder books and more mature topics. I'd rather she grow with her age group.

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Even for an all adult book club, it's a bad model to have "my turn to pick" because then (1) people get very personal and defensive about their picks and (2) you have to wade through some real garbage reads.

 

Maybe you all need to meet (adults only) and talk about where you are going with the club and whether this method of book selection is really working.

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I checked the sample, and the reading level is quite advanced. That said, if the parents agreeds as a group to let the kids pick a book each month, then the other parents should do it as a read aoud if their kid's reading levels are a little lower. I agree with the person above that maybe the parents should have more input on the choice of books.

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Oct: One Morning in Maine by Robert McClosky

Nov: Louis Braille: The Boy Who Invented Books for the Blind by Margaret Davidson (activity will be a lesson in braille!)

Jan: Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLahan

Feb: The Littles and the Big Storm by John Peterson

Mar: Owls in the Family by Farley Mowhat

April: George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl.

May: Mrs. Piggle Wiggle by Betty McDonald

 

 

Ok, so I chose these books months ago. I normally use MANY more books with animals. Some books that captivated the readers were Rascal, Where The Red Fern Grows, Old Yeller, Summer of the Monkey, Misty of Chincoteague. Those were all books I used for the 9 - 12 group.

 

Some of the books listed above for the younger readers are listed as a 9 - 12 age group. I not only thoroughly disagreed with this, I ran all of them by the homeschool group leader and I've decided to keep all selections to less than 100 pages until the very end of the school year.

 

The age levels are RIDICULOUS. The ages typically listed are 4 - 8 and 9 - 12. Most books an 8 year old will read will NOT be appropriate for a 4 year old. Even most books I see labeled for ages 6 - 8 still seem to be more appropriate for a younger child. This age group IS very difficult as far as selection/discussion matter goes. It only gets easier from here.:001_smile:

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Even for an all adult book club, it's a bad model to have "my turn to pick" because then (1) people get very personal and defensive about their picks and (2) you have to wade through some real garbage reads.

 

Maybe you all need to meet (adults only) and talk about where you are going with the club and whether this method of book selection is really working.

 

I agree 100% but I don't think the adults only meeting would work out either. I've tried that.

 

The only way that I've found it to work out right is to pick the books myself before the homeschool group even starts. I find that the book club is always busier in the beginning of the year but gets lighter after the holidays, usually ending with a bang.

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Oct: One Morning in Maine by Robert McClosky

Nov: Louis Braille: The Boy Who Invented Books for the Blind by Margaret Davidson (activity will be a lesson in braille!)

Jan: Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLahan

Feb: The Littles and the Big Storm by John Peterson

Mar: Owls in the Family by Farley Mowhat

April: George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl.

May: Mrs. Piggle Wiggle by Betty McDonald

 

 

Ok, so I chose these books months ago. I normally use MANY more books with animals. Some books that captivated the readers were Rascal, Where The Red Fern Grows, Old Yeller, Summer of the Monkey, Misty of Chincoteague. Those were all books I used for the 9 - 12 group.

 

Some of the books listed above for the younger readers are listed as a 9 - 12 age group. I not only thoroughly disagreed with this, I ran all of them by the homeschool group leader and I've decided to keep all selections to less than 100 pages until the very end of the school year.

 

The age levels are RIDICULOUS. The ages typically listed are 4 - 8 and 9 - 12. Most books an 8 year old will read will NOT be appropriate for a 4 year old. Even most books I see labeled for ages 6 - 8 still seem to be more appropriate for a younger child. This age group IS very difficult as far as selection/discussion matter goes. It only gets easier from here.:001_smile:

 

thanks!

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Thanks! I am not sure I can switch how we pick the books now but I will think on it. The kids really look forward to it. Perhaps though the moms can get a list of books or something. I usually choose a handful and give them to ds and out of those he picks one. I should have picked up on the 200 pages. I saw it looked thicker but did not even look. I forgot! I bet that was a huge turn off.

 

I have enjoyed reading the other perspectives too so thank you for sharing!

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My ds could not have read that book (preview at amazon) at 7, 8 or maybe 9, he is a delayed reader. If we were part of the book club we would have read it together, but if ds had been reading books on his own and then jumped to an unreadable level he might have been bent out of shape.

 

I've had to tread carefully, slowly, and sometimes painfully through his reading issues. There is a very fine line I've had to walk to preserve/instill a love of reading. My ds is finally getting to the point he's enjoying reading on his own, finally! It's taken almost five years of concentrated effort on his and my part. These are issues that we don't share with everyone, so even if we were a part of your book club, you might not know the extent of my son's reading issue. I love to read, I don't remember not knowing how to read, it has been extremely painful to watch my child struggle with reading.

 

Another issue might be the length of the book. I can't tell exactly but it looks to be close to 200 pages. Reading aloud we could have easily finished with a month, I didn't see how often your group meets. However, if he had read on his own it's feasible it would have taken over a month.

 

ETA: I hope you find out what was the difficulty with this book.

 

I could've written this with one of mine. And one of mine sounds like OP's son.

 

One way that our group handled the boys' book club was to have each child read his own book selection and then do a report of sorts about it. Sometimes the child would do a project or artwork about the book. It was different than a discussion group but the questions after each book often led to a bit of discussion.

 

It was how we handled the spread of reading abilities that were (and often are) evident in elementary-age kids. The girls' group held at the same time followed the more traditional style.

 

Anyway, hope your (OP) son found a few kids who had knowledge of his book to discuss with him.

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:grouphug:

 

It's a good book, but not one I would have picked for the club dynamics you've described; it's simply not accessible to an early reader. FWIW, I find that making assumptions about what other parents should or shouldn't do usually results in disappointment and frustration.

:iagree:

 

It's an older book with a sparkly new cover that is almost deceiving. The cover looks like the book could be easy, but Edward Eager is an old author.

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One way that our group handled the boys' book club was to have each child read his own book selection and then do a report of sorts about it. Sometimes the child would do a project or artwork about the book. It was different than a discussion group but the questions after each book often led to a bit of discussion.

 

Oh, hey, I remember we did this with oldest's book club back when he was 5-7. That book club did some neat things! I loved the way the kids really listened to each other and asked good questions about their friends' books. I also remember that a number of children ended up reading books based on their friends' recommendations. It was a win-win situation.

(lovemyboys, you didn't happen to be *in* that book club I'm talking about, did you?) :D

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We would be happy to read the book and set up a Skype book club!

 

Think Google+ Hangouts... it's free even for group sessions, so it would be ideal for online book groups.

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Knight's Castle is a great book, and I've read it to my younger kids, but I can see why it might be hard for kids that age to read to themselves - it's a bit on the long side, and it is based on Ivanhoe and Robin Hood, so the comprehension level is higher too. It would be a good choice for 10-13 year olds, but for the ages you're describing it is probably too difficult. Sorry about the disappointment though.

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It was The Knight's Castle by Edward Eager. I guess I will have to sit down and read it to see what is so difficult for everyone to get through. Maybe it is awful; he liked it though. He was laughing his silly head off. :confused:

 

I think I am going to try to come up with a fun activity for the two people who read the book to do...and a snack. So if you have any ideas I would love to hear them. They are 7 or 8 and 9.

 

Both of my kids liked this series, but 8yo LOVED it...I think she was 7 when she read most of the series, but she was hooked when we got one of them free from a summer reading prog. (She was 6...I don't remember if I read it aloud or not.)

 

I don't know what to say about the book club except that it stinks! :grouphug: Hopefully your ds enjoyed the book enough that he won't notice too much that no one else read it. :001_huh:

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I think it is unkind of your ds's friends mothers to refuse to participate with a book your child chose when he has participated with their kids. However it sounds like this group is a bad fit for your son and I would continue playing but maybe find a new club for reading, if your ds desires a book club experience.

 

:iagree:

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We would be happy to read the book and set up a Skype book club!
We could do a Skype book club too! (If we could get the timing right.)

 

About the OP, I would have hoped that if there was an issue with the book someone would have brought it up when you notified them of your choice, not just not show up on the day or make an aside comment shortly before the day. If someone had said early on it was going to be difficult for them, that would have given you a chance to choose something else.

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I wanted to post an update!

 

Thank you to those who said we could do a skype book club meeting! That is so sweet! And may be something interesting to consider. The meeting went very well today with just the 2 kids; they both presented their projects, talked a little about the book and then worked on the activity I brought for them to complete. I had a bunch of boxes and duct tape, and that kind of thing and after going over the parts of a castle they made a castle. It worked out very nicely adn was not something I would have done if a lot of kids had been there b/c that would have been chaos and usually they are anxious to play after discussion. Ds was sad not too many were coming at first but had a good time at the meeting and is in good spirits now so all is well. I am going to go over how we pick books with the parents and see if they are unhappy with it or if it was just a mix up or what.

 

I think our "discussions" are lacking personally but suspect it has to do with the ages of the kids more that anything. That and none of the moms can figure out how to ask questions that bring up good discussions! I read Deconstruction Penguins but it doesn't work that way for me irl..lol. I would love suggestions on that since it sounds like a few of you have had book clubs with children 6-9.

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