In honor of National Reading Group Month, we asked Books on the Nightstand readers and listeners to tell us a bit about their reading groups. Caroline Rose wrote in to tell us about her group. As the mother of a second-grader and a fifth-grader myself, I immediately wished that I had a Caroline in our life. Thank you, Caroline, for sharing your incredible work with us!

Caroline says:

I’m a former upper-elementary/middle-school social studies teacher in Lousiana, former because I’ve decided to focus on writing full time. I couldn’t walk away completely, though. I feel too strongly about promoting books and I wanted to continue my relationships with my students. Having started a historical fiction book club with my older students last year, my fabulous principal has let me design my own after-school program, extending down to third grade.

I meet with third grade by themselves and have paired fourth with fifth and sixth with seventh. The third graders are moving into chapter books and mid-grade novels for the first time, and I wanted to share things I loved as a girl — Ramona, The Boxcar Children – as well as new classics, such as Sarah, Plain and Tall, and The Whipping Boy.

The fourth and fifth grade will focus on historical fiction, old and new, from Pedro’s Journal (a story about travels with Columbus) to Karen Cushman’s ‘49er novel, The Ballad of Lucy Whipple.

The sixth and seventh grade will focus on historical fiction, with some ancient world (The Bronze Bow), medieval (Crispin: Cross of Lead), and modern (The Yearling) thrown in.

Kids need to see adults excited about literature! They need someone reading alongside, learning what topics interest them, suggesting titles, thinking through storylines/settings/characters with them. I have come to know my students in a deeper way through this process. Kids are born readers and need the place to experience story with others.

Full lists are on my blog, Carolinebyline.blogspot.com.

Caroline, I couldn’t agree more about the importance of adult reading in the life of a child. Thank you so much for telling us about your group. In fact, I’m going to grab a copy of The Bronze Bow for my fifth-grader; she’s very interested in the ancient world, and Elizabeth George Speare was a favorite author of mine when I was that age. Thanks for the recommendation!

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