Radix Elementary School

Grades PreK–4 • Williamstown, New Jersey 

The Radix Family Book Club fosters a sense of community between home and school. The program’s goal is to develop the love of literature within children, striving to instill in them the desire to read for pleasure, while strengthening the parent-child bond. Monthly meetings are held in the school’s media center, October through March. The media and reading teachers meticulously select literature that fosters the development of good character. At the initial meeting, the Book Club process is explained to the participating regular and special-needs children and their parents; voluntary members must understand their responsibilities in order for the Book Club to be successful. Each month, the media specialist introduces a new book through a Book Talk; sometimes the author actually speaks to the group about their book through streaming video. Members receive an activity to complete as each child reads the book over the next month with their parents at home. At the following monthly meeting, the group shares their personal reactions to the book. Children and their parents make connections between the school’s core values, the literature, and their personal lives.     

cgehringer@monroetwp.k12.nj.us