Boo! to the Magic Wand Book Club

This afternoon was the third meeting of The Magic Wand Book Club... and I now have 40 students signed up. Totally amazing... especially when I was initially hoping to get at least a dozen interested in joining the group.

I brought in Halloween books and mystery stories for the kids today... separated on tables for each of the grades (4th, 5th, and 6th).  I will do the same for next Thursday, and ask the students to choose their books just based on the covers alone, without reading the summaries on the fly-leaf or the back covers.

Some of the students who originally signed up were not there today, so I'm wondering if those few kids have already decided to un-join the group, after hearing that they really have to read the books they choose and then tell the rest of the group a little bit about the story.

They all seem excited about the little decorated notebooks that they are using for the Book Journals. I see them diligently writing the titles and authors into those journals, and at the end of the term there will be 'real' Book Journals for those students who really get into the record-keeping part of their book adventures.

I brought in one of my favorite memoirs today ("Life Is So Good" by George Dawson) to share with the students.  I read a few key paragraphs from the book and explained a little bit about Mr. Dawson's life... grandson and great-grandson of slaves, he didn't learn how to read until he was 98, and he was so excited about finally being able to read that he agreed to write his life story, along with the help of Richard Glaubman, an elementary school teacher.  Mr. Dawson's #1 rule was "Make a difference, just make a difference in this world... do whatever you can for someone else."  The students were as quiet as mice when I was telling them about Mr. Dawson, and one little girl asked me if she could borrow that book and take it home to read.  I explained to her that it was my one and only copy from my own library, but I would get another copy of the book and give that one to her to read, and I would make it available for anyone else in the Book Club also.  I have already found and bought a good copy of "Life Is So Good" on eBay, and I will indeed bring it to the school for that student to read.

That little girl asking to read Mr. Dawson's book was certainly the highlight of today's Book Club for me. Although, if you asked the students... four kids got to pick out their hand-carved wood 'magic' wands today, and I'm sure that was the high spot of the afternoon for those students.

What a great day.... I can hardly wait till next week... I have lots of Halloween surprises for those kids!