FREE 8-Week Virtual Book Club Camp
***IN BETA***
Calling all rising 5th-8th graders:
Join us for a FREE 8-week online camp this summer, full of reading adventures and making friends. We’ll run Book Campaigns and hold a Book Election, do a little Literary Learning, and build Reading Toolkits to help take the bookish adventure beyond the summer!
~ Heidi M.
My Vision:
This is NOT a typical book club. My goal for each reader is to learn HOW to love reading; or, if already an avid reader, deepen and enrich their existing love of reading. I’m working to develop an approach to the academic—and very human need—to connect with the written word, while honoring the reality that each of us does this in our own unique ways. I value the benefits that come from discussing materials everyone in a cohort has read AND the reality that far too often, readers are turned off of a text or reading in general when required to read specific texts on a specific timeline. The discourse around this dilemma is evolving, as are our educational models, but we have so far to go. This beta course is an effort on my part, as an individual educator and advocate, to begin my own formal work toward answering this need in our students and our society. A love of reading fosters a love of curiosity, learning, and critical thinking. It grows empathy and helps us to understand ourselves and the world in which we find ourselves. Research is beginning to reveal to us just how connected reading for pleasure is to all aspects of life as human beings, how essential it is. My overarching goal is to bring books to people and people to books, to cultivate the habit of thinking deeply and connecting with others through reading, and to simply enjoy the rich wealth of written word available to us in this fraught, but full of possibility, Age of Information.
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Book Club
Camp Details
Ages 9-13, Rising 5th-8th graders.
Monday-Sunday, 6/16/25—8/8/25, final week ends on Friday.
2-4 synchronous zoom meetings scheduled by survey after enrollment, to foster social connection.
FLEX: primarily asynchronous but interactive. We will use discussion boards and other virtual activities to encourage engagement with books, peers, and teacher.
Students will be grouped into cohorts of 5-12. If you would like to be in the same group as someone else, please note that on your enrollment form.
Students will need computer and internet access. We will be using Google classroom, docs, and forms; as well as Zoom, Libby, Canva, YouTube, Kahoot, and more. No paid accounts are required.
This course is in beta and free of charge to committed participants.
We’ll be using a list of middle grade books—check those out here—as a starting point for our exploration. These books will be candidates in a Book Election, in which students research the titles, then campaign for the one(s) they most want the whole group to read and discuss together.
You can read more about what we’ll be covering here.
Daily active engagement will vary from student to student, with ample opportunity for expansion.
Text 818-419-0078 with questions.
MEET YOUR BOOK GUIDE
Hi, I’m Heidi! You can call me Heidi, Ms. Heidi, or Ms. M. I’m a life-long bookworm but also know what it’s like to get stuck in a reading rut. Like so many students, I stopped reading for fun for years after leaving school. Gradually, I rediscovered my love for reading. Then I became a parent! And not long after that, I learned that I was a neurodiverse person and had a neurodiverse kiddo. Over the past decade, I’ve spent a lot of time as a homeschool mom, sometimes to one kid, sometimes to both. In 2017, I started running book clubs for kids off and on, and my passion for books and connecting people to the joy of reading has been growing ever since. I’m so excited to be offering this camp and can’t wait to meet you (if we haven’t already met) and explore all things books and reading!
“A book is proof that humans are capable of working magic.” ~ Carl Sagan, Cosmos
“A book, too, can be a star, a living fire to lighten the darkness, leading out into the expanding universe.” ~ Madeleine L’Engle
Summer 2025 Booklist—subject to change
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by Ruta Sepetys, Steve Sheinken
Publisher recommended age 10 and up
“Break out your Enigma machines! Sepetys and Sheinkin have written a thrilling World War II code-breaking adventure filled with ciphers, secrets, and spies.”
~ Alan Gratz – New York Times bestselling author of Refugee
“With broad appeal to both WWII and mystery enthusiasts, this highly recommended title is a first purchase for all libraries serving tweens and teens.” ~ SLJ
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Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston
Publisher recommended ages: 8-12
★ “A magical world readers will want to visit, blended with contemporary themes. An excellent middle grade fantasy.” —School Library Journal (starred review)
★ “This thrilling debut…confronts privilege and prejudice even while delving into a world of wonder, humor, and adventure…a sure-to-please winner.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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by Caroline Starr Rose
★ A young wilderness lookout confronts family expectations and her fear of fire… Believable emotions, gripping action, and skillfully incorporated information about climate change and wildfire management make this a relatable and engaging read. A girl-versus-nature story that shines with evocative verse, a compelling protagonist, and a brisk plotline.
—Kirkus, starred review -
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by Donna Barba Higuera
SLJ: Gr 5 and up
***Winner of the 2022 Newbery Medal***
"Deftly blends Mexican folklore with science fiction in this thrilling and emotional post-apocalyptic novel."
~ Shelf Awareness, Starred review
"This is the work of a true cuentista: gripping, euphonious (“The wind carried it off far away into the stars”), and full of storytelling magic."
~ Publisher’s Weekly
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A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
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by Aimee Lucido
★ “As Emmy learns Java, the language and structure of programming seep into her poems. Music and code interweave…. and readers will cheer to see them work collectively…to create something beautiful.”
~ Kirkus, STARRED review
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by Erin Entrada Kelly
***Winner of the 2025 Newbery Medal***
“A teen time traveler from 2199 visits 1999 and befriends an endearing, anxious tween boy in this wholesome and splendidly entertaining middle-grade novel about embracing the unknown. Kelly has written one of the kindest boys in children's literature.”
~ Shelf Awareness
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by Brian Selznick
Grades 5-8
“—engrossing, intelligent, beautifully engineered and expertly told both in word and image—” ~ The New York Times
“This book was a joy, a challenge, and a puzzle to put together. I hope you enjoy meeting Ben and Rose, and joining them on their thrilling, dangerous and unexpected adventures in New York City.”
–Brian Selznick -
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A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
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New List Item
A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
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New List Item
A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
-
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New List Item
A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
-
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A Good Book by a Good Author
“Really really great book with magic and suspense and mystery and sequels and good characters for fans of all things fantasy and middle grade.”
~ Book Clubber
Camp CONTENT SCHEDULE, subject to change