I'M BORED: Summer Reading Club - Debbie Ridpath Ohi (Twitter: @inkyelbows)

****Update May 18, 2013: If you give me 4 weeks' notice, I'll send you fun I'M BORED stickers and bookmarks for your group in time for your event! To make a request, please fill out this contact form and choose the I'M BORED option. Quantities limited.

I'M BORED SUMMER BOOK CLUB PARTY KIT

For parents, grandparents and guardians: Hosting a Summer Book Club party for young readers can help foster an early love of reading. To help, I've provided this fun I'M BORED Summer Book Club Party kit. Related: see my list of useful resources for those interested in starting a book club for young people.

For booksellers, librarians and schools: Feel free to use any of these materials for your own Summer Book Clubs or Book Party. Most of the tips below pertain to home book club parties, but note that much of this page can be adapted for any book, not just I'M BORED.

Write letters to the illustrator! If you write to me as a group (all your letters/drawings in one envelope) and let me know you had an I'M BORED Summer Book Club Party, I'll write back with fun doodles. Details here.

What will I need?

- A copy of I'M BORED, bought or borrowed.

- A snack. Try to include a potato-themed item like Sweet Potato Chips or Homemade Potato Chips.

- An activity, game or craft related to the book. Read below for suggestions.

Any tips on how to organize the event?

Try to limit your group to a few pairs of parents/guardians and their children, or no more than around 10 people overall. This will help keep chaos to a minimum and encourage the sharing of ideas and discussion among members of the group.

Print-ready invitation

If you prefer to create your own invitation and themed book club party materials, feel free to use a high-res version of the I'M BORED Summer Book Club Party graphic (JPG and PNG formats available). Please note that copyright of this image remains with the illustrator; if you plan to use it for a larger commercial event, please contact Debbie Ridpath Ohi first.

Set up a comfortable reading area:

The more you make the Summer Book Club area feel like a party, the more exciting it will be. Have comfortable cushions on the floor for people to sit on, or have children bring their own special "reading rug" for personal lounging. (From BHG.com)

Optional - Print out the following:

I'M BORED-themed posters and bookmarks

IDEAS FOR READING THE BOOK:

Here are some ideas for reading I'M BORED, depending on the age and personalities of the young readers.

- Have an adult read the book aloud to the group.

- Pick one young reader to read all the Potato parts and another to read all the Little Girl parts. This could be done on a second reading, after children are familiar with the story.

- Have one adult read all the Potato parts and another read all the Little Girl parts, with two children (the Potato and the Little Girl) acting out what's happening in the story.

ACTIVITY IDEAS:

See the I'M BORED Bonus Activity Page for print-ready activity sheets, including coloring pages, young artist and young writer activities.

Have children create their own potato stamps. Print-ready activity sheet & instructions.

Read aloud some Potato Facts and then have a Potato Trivia Quiz with prizes.

Draw a comic about I'M BORED: 4-panel comic template for younger readers | 9 panel comic template

Draw a picture of what you like to do when you're bored: Activity sheet

How to draw the Little Girl from I'M BORED: Activity sheet

Add different faces to these Potatoes: 4 potato sheet

Drawing Challenge fun: can you turn these circles into 20 different faces?

Also see the I'M BORED For Young Artists and For Young Writers bonus pages for more activities and tips.

Related audiovisual content:

How I'm Bored Was Created: includes photos and related activities.

I'm Bored videos: includes the book trailer music video and a video of how the illustrator draws the Potato.