A B C - About Book Clubs at GRACE

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

At GRACE, we love to encourage our students to read. 

A few years ago, we started book clubs in 4th-6th grade. Last year (2014-15), we added book clubs in our 3rd grade, bringing our total to 8 book clubs on the Raleigh campus.

They continue to grow -- in 2013-14, we had 65 students participate, but last year, 2014-15, we had 105 students meeting together to discuss a book we read.

Here's a reminder of how our GRACE book clubs work:

FACILITATORS: Mrs. Walker: 3rd grade & Mrs. Gehringer: 4th-6th grade

HOW OFTEN? Book clubs meet approximately twice a month, with girls one week and boys the following week.

• A schedule will be posted in Talon for the 4th-6th grade book clubs, and Mrs. Walker will notify the 3rd graders of their meeting schedule.

WHEN?  During car pool, 2:45pm-3:15pm. We meet until 3:15pm. Then the students will be dismissed to the lobby or to aftercare.

• MONDAY - 3rd grade              TUESDAY - 4th grade 
• WEDNESDAY - 6th grade       THURSDAY - 5th grade

WHERE?  In the Raleigh library, of course!

WHY BOOK CLUB?

• Good way to encourage reading
• Good way to socialize with others in your grade
• Amount of reading done is decided by the book club
• Book club meets only 1-2 times per month and during car pool, so it doesn't interfere with lunch or after school activities
• No grades! But it might help you in reaching your AR goals (more about this later!)

WHAT DO I NEED TO DO NOW?  

• Talk with your student about it!
• Tell us if your student wants to participate in book club.
• Ordering a book club t-shirt (optional)? Get the money and size information in by next week.

OTHER QUESTIONS?

• Do I need to buy the books?  No - we have multiple copies already purchased specifically for our book clubs. However, if your child loses the book, you will need to pay for its replacement.
• Do I need to read the first book before the first meeting? No, we will hand out the books at our first meeting.
• Do I need to read every book? No, but we will encourage you to read at least the first chapter to try different genres!
• How will this help with my AR goal? All the books we read have Accelerated Reader (AR) quizzes. Students take a multiple choice quiz to test their comprehension of the books they read. Since there is a competition for prizes, they will want to read more books and pass as many AR quizzes as possible. Mrs. Lane, our reading specialist, will be sending out more information on AR in the coming weeks.

Any other questions? Contact me (cgehringer@GRACEChristian.net).

Library Adventures

Susan Walker
TK-3 Library

TK:  “Meet the Authors”

This class meets twice a month.  During the month of February, cowboys and princesses came to the library.  They heard stories, and then rode a wooden rocking horse.  The students learned about Beatrix Potter and how her stories originated as a letter to friend’s sick child over 100 years ago.  TK boys and girls heard the story read one week and watched another during their library time.  A new appreciation of her works and of Peter Rabbit continues.

First Grade:  “Adventures in Reading”

This is the year that fiction and nonfiction are used together to make reading an adventure.  Together they enhance the reading experience.  First Graders had a recent lesson on using the dictionary.  They have learned that this reference is used for the spelling and definition of words.  More teaching will take place in Second Grade.  Currently, we are reading 3 books from “My First Little House Books” series.  The nonfiction teaching is on history and geography as we learn about the Ingalls family and their move to the prairie.  People and places change over time but God stays the same.  “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). The students will choose their favorite of the three and write about it noting story elements.

Second Grade:  “R is for Reading.”

The focus is currently on biography.  A different story is read each week.  Students can make notations as the story is read.  After the four stories are read, the students will pick their favorite to write a book report in the form of a letter to one of the people.  We will learn life lessons from the lives of Thomas Edison, Amelia Earhart, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Hank Aaron.  We can learn from their lives much like we can from those in the Bible.  Nonfiction reading can be enjoyable as well as educational.

Third Grade:  “Journey through Reading Fiction and Nonfiction”

Every story has a story.  We have learned about the life of Sam Clemens and how he became Mark Twain, a favorite American author.  During the unit on immigration, we read about author Allen Say who wrote about his grandfather’s story in Grandfather’s Journey.  We will finish the month with a look at Christian literature with the classic adaptation of Pilgrim’s Progress.  We will discuss allegorical elements in this story that encourages believers to be faithful.  The life of a Christian is a journey of faith.

 Third Grade Book Club:  Boys & Girls

The book clubs have just finished their second book.  Who doesn’t like reading about the Titanic?  The book Time Voyage helped the boys experience what it would be like if we could travel back in time.  The story is part of a series that will become a favorite.  The girls dressed in their pretty dresses and brought their dolls in to celebrate the conclusion of The Doll Shop Downstairs.  This book was inspired by the founder of the Madame Alexander dolls.  Our principal, Mrs. Thompson, brought in some of her collection and told of how her mother collected the dolls.  After reading and discussing the book, students are able to successfully take the Accelerated Reader book quiz.  One student proudly said he took the test and got a perfect score.  One more story remains for both clubs when we return from the Easter break.