Book Club

About two weeks ago we had our last "official" meeting of our book club.  We read a short, informative book on Marie Curie.   We managed to read it in one sitting but it was packed with information, that I didn't even know!  (Not all that surprising really.)  This year we read biographies so I learned a lot, right along with the kids.  (One of the reasons I love to homeschool.)

Anyway, we met out at a local state park.  The kids did their presentations and we even included a science expo for some of the kids who were unable to do our homeschool science fair this year.  After the expo we ate lunch and then SWAM.  It was such a great day.  So relaxing and just so encouraging to be around like minded moms and their kids.

My reasons were four fold when I decided to start a book club.  First, we don't belong to any type of co-op, so I wanted to do something regularly with the same bunch of families.  Second, because we don't belong to a co-op, one of the things my kids "miss out on" is the opportunity to get up and speak in front of peers and others, so this filled a need.  Third, it gave me a great way to stay in touch with a bunch of women that I love.  And to watch their children grow right along with mine.  Lastly, it gave us a really great reason to read a bunch of books we might not normally have read.

I a lot of time last weekend working on book club stuff.  This year's focus is going to be on children's classics.  Although I hate to call them children's classics because many of them I have not read and are just as interesting to the parents!  These are the books we are going to read:  Anne of Green Gables, Iron Men, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, A Christmas Carol, The Swiss Family Robinson, Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates, At the Back of the North Wind, My Side of the Mountain and Theras and His Town.

We are going to start off by having a summer club meeting at a state park about 45 minutes away and we will read Black Beauty.  The park has a spring fed lake and swimming and diving areas.  Field trip, relaxation, socializing, reading and learning all rolled into one.  Right in the middle of summer!

We love, love, love book club.  Below is a picture of all of the kids who participate (minus two teenagers).  The ages range from a about 6 months to 12 . . .