Hosting a Family Read-In

Families often seek ways to spend quality time together and administrators regularly seek ways for families to have positive interactions with the school. At the same time, school librarians seek new ways to encourage, promote, and motivate readers. Hosting a Family Read-In is a way to successfully combine all these needs, put the library on the community forefront, and have fun doing it. All it takes is a book, a committee of volunteers full of enthusiasm and ideas, and an evening date on the school calendar. Once started, it can become a tradition for families, and younger siblings in the family can eagerly anticipate the time when they are old enough to sign up.

PLANNING

Throughout the Family Read-In adventure, a child and significant adult spend time together reading the same book and then register to attend a party themed around that title.

A game plan should include a simple timeline and checklist of basic steps to take and tasks to complete. It is also important to recruit supporters and volunteers to ensure a winning program with longevity.

▶Select a title. Choose a recent publication that is available in paperback and meets the audience target age, interests, and reading level. Select potential titles based on recommendations from staff, professional reviews, and fellow school librarians, as well as personal readings. Narrow the selection to two titles and invite staff and students to help make the final choice. Once the final selection is made, collect as many copies as possible from the school library, used book stores, and paperback book vendors such as The Distributors (http://www.thedistributors.com/schools.html).

▶Ask for volunteers. Send out a plea to staff for volunteers to help with the Family Read-In Committee. It is also possible to include parents and students. Allow for people to help with any phase of the planning, set-up/clean-up, party events, donating snacks, even advising and proof-reading. Give all committee members a copy of the book, a pad of sticky notes, and a pen. Provide a deadline for reading the book and ask readers to look for powerful quotes, themes, characters, foods, and events in the story that might lend themselves to silly or serious activities for home or the party.

▶Create publicity. As with any big event, a registration process is needed in order to plan properly (see Figure 1). This will require advance sign-up and advertising to promote the program. Create a registration form, signs, posters, and videos. Consider developing a commercial to post on the school/library website, use as a screensaver or in digital photo frames, and to use during school events and student news productions. Easy-to-use, free programs are available to educators, like Animoto (http://www.animoto.com/Education) or Microsoft Photo Story or Moviemaker (http://www.microsoft.com/education). Check out sites like Tech4Learning (http://www.pics4learning.com) for a copyright-friendly library of images.

▶Develop enriching home activities. Students thrive on social interaction and families want to spend positive time with their young person. Help create such an opportunity by working with the committee to develop suggestions for activities to do at home related to events, themes, and characters of the book. A few items included in every home packet should be a cover/welcome letter, anticipation guide bookmark, finding a favorite quote, and bookmark design form for both the adult and child. These bookmarks can later be published and distributed through the library. The home packet works double duty as a reminder of the upcoming celebration.

▶Customize a party. Plan a party to last one and one-half to two hours. The party attendance is like a wedding; expect 70-80% of registrants to attend, so plan supplies and activities accordingly. Create a check-in desk with name tags and an agenda. Break the party into four parts: craft, activity, book discussion, and a snack to conclude the evening. If the group is large, break the large group into three smaller groups and have the groups rotate amongst the craft, activity, and discussion. Work together as a committee to create an activity and craft that is fun and uses the talents and resources of the school and committee. For example, for Wendelyn Van Draanen’s Flipped, a papier-mâché egg ornament was decorated with markers, feathers, glitter paint, and other small craft baubles. During Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games, participants competed at six “training” stations, including stamina (jump rope), balance (one-legged, arms-out balancing), problem solving (puzzles), and others. Book-related snacks for After Ever After, by Jordan Sonnenblick, were oranges, oatmeal cookies, candy hearts, and “cheesy” foods. Book conversation happens throughout the evening, with the guidance of volunteers and also at a dedicated time with a discussion leader. Guided questions, developed in advance, can help get the conversation started.

▶Evaluate and plan for the future. If doing a Family Read-In every semester, have the fall registration form ready for spring at the fall party. It is powerful for attendees to have so much fun together and then want to sign up for the next one before they leave the first party. Ask attendees to complete a simple, short survey before leaving or email it out to participants afterward using a free online survey tool like SurveyMonkey. Find out what was successful and what could be improved related to the registration process, home activity kit, the actual party events, and suggestions for future Family Read-In titles.