One of the things this former middle school English language arts (ELA) teacher loves about homeschooling is that now when I am engaging kids in a book, I get to carry that theme from the book through absolutely everything. It’s fantastic.
Because I used to only teach ELA, I was limited to keeping these great stories to just my English classes but now, I’ve got no restrictions and I love it. Even if you’re not homeschooling, engaging a lovely story as a family is still a great idea, and a fun way to do that is through a family book club supper night.
All you need to get started is a book that is appropriate for all ages in your home. You can either use a novel that you may need to read aloud, depending on your children’s reading abilities (or just for fun), or you can just choose a simple picture book. Make sure you read the book in plenty of time before your scheduled book club supper.
For your supper, have fun with the theme. Start off with table decorations and a soundtrack. If you, for instance, picked up the novel How to Train Your Dragon, you’d be working with a Viking theme. Get a rough table, maybe exclude the utensils and find some awesome Nordic music to play.
Get the family involved in researching what types of foods the Vikings may have eaten and prepare those for your supper. If you’re up for it, challenge your family to come in costume or for a less demanding option, wear your hair in a Viking style (think awesome braids).
The best part of a book club is discussing the book in more depth and learning what each person got out of it, what they enjoyed and what they didn’t. It’s a great time to also pull attention to the writer’s craft.
It usually helps, though, for someone, or everyone, to brainstorm some discussion points to help direct and get the conversation rolling. For a little more fun, create themed charades clues to play after dinner.
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