Start a Picture Book Book Club!

As the meme shared during church today advised, “Remember to drink lots of water and stay indoors between 11:00 AM and November 1st.” When you’re done laughing, and the reality of what we’re in for over the next few months has started to sink in, consider this fun family activity that can be done completely indoors: a picture book book club!

While picture books are mostly written for younger readers, the really good ones have a lot to offer to adults as well, so don’t count your family out if you don’t have small kids at home. And if you’re not sure which ones are the really good ones, check out the Pragmatic Mom blog; she’s created lists by grade level. You can also ask Jen – she knows lots of great picture books too!

Once you’ve chosen your first book, decide whether everyone will read it independently ahead of time or you’ll read it together as a read aloud. If you choose to read it aloud, you can get a jump start on the discussion part of your book club! Stop and ask questions as you go – prediction questions and inference questions are great – and then dig in afterwards. Ask questions that let your group members make connections to their own lives or to other things they’ve read or seen, or share things they’re wondering about now that the story is over.

Don’t forget to prepare snacks for your book club; this is a great way to entice any family members who are less enthusiastic about reading together, and is another opportunity to deepen your connection to the book! Your snacks can be themed around the book, like Snowy Day with a hot cocoa bar, or What Can You Do with a Paleta (a delightful bilingual book about popsicles) with actual paletas!  And there’s always gummy “book worms” as a fun sweet treat.

There’s one more piece you can add to your picture book book club that is distinct from a regular old book club: a craft! Choose something that connects to the theme of the book or grab some art supplies and have everyone create a piece that represents their favorite part of the book.

Enjoy this lovely combination of staying cool, spending time together, and fostering a love of reading in your whole family. And please share your picture book recommendations with us as well! Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.