RAR #93: How to Create a Book Club Culture at Home
Today I get to share a chapter from my new book, The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids.
This is chapter 6 (one of my favorites!), where I talk about how we can create a book club culture at home, and thereby raise kids who read for the love it. This is how our kids become “real readers.”
In this episode, you’ll hear:
- how and why to create a book club culture in your home
- why we need to read books that don’t “count” toward anything!
- how to help your kids become real readers
Click the play button below:
Listener Guide
Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast:
- 3:20 Reading books that don’t count
- 4:42 Schooling it out
- 9:20 The supreme importance of delight
- 11:48 Welcome to book club
- 18:05 Extreme measures
- 20:56 A book club culture at home
- 24:11 Food, glorious food
Links from this episode:
- Get the audio version of The Read-Aloud Family (read by Sarah Mackenzie) right here
Books from this episode:
(All links are affiliate links.)
Hi Sarah! Love this episode and desire to change my homeschool reading curriculum to more of a book club like yours. My concern is what about required standardized tests? My kids score low on their reading comprehension yearly testing. Should I be concerned about the scores?? In older grades (high school) do they continue To test reading comprehension skills for standardized tests or for SATs? Thank u!
Do you have any great suggestions for summer reading for me (mom), to continue to foster that love of learning? We just finished Echo as a family on audio, which was fantastic. And, I’m looking for a great read as we travel to England.
Thanks for sharing your love of learning and much wisdom!
Stephanie
A great book if you are going to England is How The Heather Looks. It’s an account if a family who traveled there back in the 60’s I think and went to several if their favorite authors homes, monuments, etc.
Hi Sarah,
As a teacher I’ve been really encouraged by many of your podcasts. However, in this episode I felt that you made some pretty bold claims about how teachers (as a group) approach reading education. Many teachers sacrifice their careers and fight against the system to help their students love reading instead of just teaching them to read for the tests.
Would it be possible for you to explain what your ideal of reading education in a classroom should be?
Thank you!
Recently you posted about your take on literary analysis and how you approach it with your kids. You had a list of questions to ask. I thought I had bookmarked it, but can’t find it. 😭
They’re detailed (and expanded) in chapter 11 of the book! :)
This was so wonderful!! I can’t wait to get my hands on the book!!
Thank you so much for this podcast Sarah!! I have a question.. my son is 13 and reads only when forced to. He literally sets the timer for an hour and no matter how much he’s into the book, he will not continue to read on past that hour. I don’t want it to be something he feels like he just has to check off but I am concerned that if I don’t give him a specific amount of time to read, he just flat out wouldn’t do it. I wouldn’t say he hates reading. It’s just not something he enjoys.
So do you suggest I leave the required timing on it or remove that pressure all together and just continue putting good literature in front of him and reading aloud to him, and pray of course!
I would continue to require the hour, but allow him a lot of freedom for WHAT he reads during that time. Hope that helps a little!
You are not alone!! My 12 yo daughter is the same way. It makes me nuts!! I would have thrown in the towel a long time ago if it hadn’t been for RAR!! Hang in there!