Book Club

What

"First rule of book club is there's no book club!" (kidding). Book clubs are small, preferably heterogeneous groups whose members meet to discuss a book that they have all read or listened to. Through sharing their thinking, they build a richer understanding than any one student could gain from independent reading alone (FountasandPinnell.com, 2020). This page provides an overview of how we'll conduct book clubs in my courses.

Why

As an instructional context, book clubs:

• Deepen readers' appreciation and understanding of a common text

• Extend students' thinking as they process and interpret the perspectives and opinions of their peers

• Expand students' ability to express their ideas orally using academic language

• Provide an authentic context for applying norms for listening and speaking (FountasandPinnell.com, 2020).

Learning Objectives

Students who fully participate in book club should be able to:

• • • form and articulate deeper insights from the books they read, gain more profound "takeaways" from having read the books

    • more ably apply lessons and ideas from the books to their own lives and organizations

    • initiate and lead discussions to exchange ideas and co-create richer understandings of the books

Instructions

• Read the descriptions of the books we're reading in class this semester for book club;

• Choose a book you want to read for this assignment by using the embedded google form below; at this point it's safe to assume you'll get your first choice - I don't want to disappoint!

• Get the book and read it in advance of your scheduled session

• Participate as an active discussant during your in-class session.

• Evaluate yourself and your peers in that particular session.

How

Students will choose from a list of books selected by Professor Armstrong to read for the book club. Student book club discussions will be organized around specific books; for example, students who read "The Hard Thing About Hard Things" will all participate in the discussion. Other students should participate as active listeners for that particular day. Specifically:

• The instructor Introduces selects the books for the class based on their relationship to lecture and workshop topics and assigns the titles and dates for discussion to the class. Students form into book club groups based on their subject matter and schedule preferences.

• Students read the books individually and independently before book club discussion.

• On assigned dates of book club discussion, students who have signed up to participate assemble in class for a discussion. Discussion is facilitated by the teacher, but the goal over time is for students to initiate the talk, respond to others in the group, and add to each other's ideas using evidence from the text or personal experiences to build a rich understanding.

• Group Evaluation – At the end of the discussion, students self-evaluate their book club on characteristics such as turn-talking, preparation, and contribution to insights about the readings.

Assigned Readings

The readings are assigned to align with specific topics in lecture and class. More on this as we approach 8/19...

1. Session 1: September 1 (Hamilton, Duckworth); Session 1 - Outline of SOME questions from the readings - MGTX82 Fall 2020; Adaptability and perseverance

2. Session 2: September 22 (Jones, Loomis & Baehr)

3. Session 3: October 13 (Brown, Meisel & Sonnenberg)

4. Session 4: November 3 (Horowitz, Belsky)

Assessment

You will participate as an active discussant in one of four book club sessions during the semester. You will be evaluated by your discussion participants for your grade based on (1) preparation, (2) quality of contribution, and (3) ability to add to other's ideas and contributions.

Resources

HOW TO TAKE MORE EFFECTIVE NOTES ON THE BOOKS YOU READ, SEPTEMBER 8, 2020, Unmistakablecreative.com.

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Book Club Session Recordings

Read and View - Related to Book Club Sessions