Book Club Toolkits

Welcome to the Girls Leadership Girl & Grown-up Book Club!

 

To get your group going:

1. Gather 3-5 Girl & Grown-up pairs – we recommend no more than 6 pairs total so that everyone has time to participate. Use the sample Book Club Invitation below to get started.

2. Choose a location – your home, a library, or community center. Some clubs had picnics outside! For your first meeting, download Magical Mad Libs to choose your club’s name and design your club’s rules.

3. Choose a book and download the toolkit. Our book selections are designed to go in order, but you can read them in any order you’d like! If you’d like to read a book of your own, use the Open-Ended Discussion Questions for Any Book.

 

Sample Book Club invitation

Subject: Will you join me (and girl’s name) for a Girls Leadership Book Club?

Email: 

(Girl’s name) & I are doing the Girls Leadership Book Club and their book choices and meeting guides are supposed to be amazing! You need to do this with us.

How – Sign up for the free Book Club emails from Girls Leadership. They provide the book list and a place to download their toolkits, with everything we need to hold the meetings.

Sign up here – girlsleadership.org/bookclub

What – Get together at one of our homes (or a library or community center) once a month or so, using the toolkits with meeting guides, activities, and discussion questions provided by Girls Leadership. For the first few books the grown-ups will lead the discussion, but by the end of the year, the girls can be in charge of the meetings.

When – (let’s pick an evening or weekend – meetings take 2hrs max)

Food – We need to figure out the food. Because what is a Book Club without eating?

Toolkits – listed by grade level & theme

 

Grades 2 & 3

 

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Yearly Theme: Identity + Self-awareness for Grades 2 & 3

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: El Deafo by Cece Bell
  • Skill Focus: Celebrating individuality and uniqueness

Download El Deafo Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

Download Drita Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Book Uncle and Me Toolkit

 

Meeting 4

Download toolkit for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

 

Meeting 5

Download toolkit for The Jumbies by Tracey Baptiste

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Yearly Theme: Advocacy + Action for Grades 2 & 3

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Izzy Barr, Running Star by Claudia Mills
  • Skill Focus: Sports and Play

Download Izzy Barr Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Jada Jones: Rock Star by Kelly Starling Lyons
  • Skill Focus: Nature and the Outdoors

Download Jada Jones Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Brave Girl Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

Download Hamster Princess Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Riding Freedom by Pam Muñoz Ryan 
  • Skill Focus: Transcending Societal Roles

Download Riding Freedom Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Ruby and the Booker Boys by Derrick Barnes 
  • Skill Focus: Taking Risks to Change Their Lives for the Better

Download Ruby Booker Toolkit

 

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Yearly Theme: Mindfulness + Self-compassion for Grades 2 & 3

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Year of the Book by Andrea Cheng
  • Skill Focus: Empathy and Inclusion

Download Year of the Book Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Babymouse: Queen of the World! by Jennifer Holm & Matthew Holm 
  • Skill Focus: True friendship and True belonging

Download Babymouse Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Dyamonde Daniel Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The Great Cake Mystery by Alexander McCall Smith 
  • Skill Focus: Taking Action

Download The Great Cake Mystery Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Lola Levine Is Not Mean by Monica Brown 
  • Skill Focus: Being True to Yourself

Download the Lola Levine Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

Download the Mya Tibbs Toolkit

 

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Yearly Theme: The power of voice for Grades 2 & 3

Meeting 1:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking to a crowd/ in public

Download Clara Lee Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Skill Focus: Brave conversations/ apologizing

Download Keena Ford Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up in a relationship
  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Upside Down Magic by Sarah Mlynoswski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins.

Download Upside Down Magic Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up for those who need help (activism)

Download Malala Yousafzai Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up when the stakes are high/ “speaking up” through our actions
  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.

Download Number the Stars Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up as self-expression/ finding one’s voice

Download Inside Out and Back Again Toolkit

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Yearly Theme: Community + Relationship skills for Grades 2 & 3

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review: Year of the Dog by Grace Lin.
  • Skill Focus: Building Community

Download Year of the Dog Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review: Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins. 
  • Skill Focus: Curiosity, Getting Past First Impressions

Download Rickshaw Girl Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Click here for a book review: My Name is Maria Isabel by Alma Flor Ada.
  • Skill Focus: Growing Ideas Through Sharing

Download My Name is Maria Isabel Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Click here for a book review: The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz.
  • Skill Focus: Apologies and Forgiveness

Download The Night Fairy Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review: El Deafo by Cece Bell.
  • Skill Focus: Growing Ideas Through Disagreements

Download El Deafo Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review: Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke.
  • Skill Focus: Taking on the Role of Leadership

Download Zita the Spacegirl Toolkit

Grades 4 & 5

 

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Yearly Theme: Identity + Self-awareness for Grades 4 & 5

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Blended by Sharon Draper
  • Skill Focus: Celebrating individuality and uniqueness

Download Blended Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

Download George Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Planet Earth is Blue Toolkit

 

Meeting 4

Download toolkit for Merci Suarez Changes Gears by Meg Medina

 

Meeting 5

Download toolkit for Hurricane Child by Kacen Callender

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Yearly Theme: Advocacy + Action for Grades 4 & 5

Meeting 1:

Download Gabby Garcia Toolkit

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: BE PREPARED by Vera Brosgol
  • Skill Focus: Nature and the Outdoors

Download BE PREPARED Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams Garcia
  • Skill Focus: Activism

Download One Crazy Summer Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

Download Love Sugar Magic Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis 
  • Skill Focus: Transcending Societal Roles

Download The Breadwinner Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Front Desk by Kelly Yang 
  • Skill Focus: Taking Risks to Change Their Lives for the Better

Download Front Desk Toolkit

 

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Yearly Theme: Mindfulness + Self-compassion for Grades 4 & 5

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan
  • Skill Focus: Empathy and Inclusion

Download Amina’s Voice Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Gaby Lost and Found by Angela Cervantes
  • Skill Focus: True friendship and True belonging

Download Gaby Lost and Found Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich 
  • Skill Focus: Resilience

Download The Birchbark House Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

Download The Blossoming Universe Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Pérez 
  • Skill Focus: Being True to Yourself

Download The First Rule of Punk Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Stella by Starlight by Sharon M. Draper 
  • Skill Focus: Taking a Healthy Risk

Download The Stella by Starlight Toolkit

 

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Yearly Theme: The power of voice for Grades 4 & 5

Meeting 1:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking to a crowd/ in public
  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia.

Download One Crazy Summer Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Skill Focus: Brave conversations/ apologizing

Download President of 5th Grade Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up in a relationship
  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson.

Download Roller Girl Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up for those who need help (activism)

Download Jane Goodall Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up when the stakes are high/ “speaking up” through our actions

Download The War That Saved My Life Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Skill Focus: Speaking up as self-expression/ finding one’s voice

Download Brown Girl Dreaming Toolkit

Grades 6, 7 & 8

 

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Yearly Theme: Identity + Self-awareness for Grades 6, 7 & 8

 

Meeting 1:

Download Good Trouble Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

Download Moon Within Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Other Words for Home Toolkit

 

Meeting 4

Download toolkit for Sanity and Talullah by Molly Brooks

 

Meeting 5

Download toolkit for Blackbird Fly by Erin Entrada Kelly

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Yearly Theme: Advocacy + Action for Grades 6, 7 & 8

Meeting 1:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Patina by Jason Reynolds
  • Skill Focus: Sports and Play

Download Patina Toolkit

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Lumberjanes by Nate Stevenson and Grace Ellis
  • Skill Focus: Nature and the Outdoors

Download Lumberjanes Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

Download Marley Dias Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The Serpent’s Secret by Sayantani Dasgupta 
  • Skill Focus: Proving Yourself

Download Serpent’s Secret Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper 
  • Skill Focus: Transcending Societal Roles

Download Out of My Mind Toolkit

 

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson 
  • Skill Focus: Taking Risks to Change Their Lives for the Better

Download Piecing Me Together Toolkit

 

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Yearly Theme: Mindfulness + Self-compassion for Grades 6, 7 & 8

Meeting 1

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova
  • Skill Focus: Empathy and Inclusion

Download Awkward Toolkit

 

Meeting 2:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Full Cicada Moon by Marilyn Hilton
  • Skill Focus: True friendship and True belonging

Download Full Cicada Moon Toolkit

 

Meeting 3:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye 
  • Skill Focus: Resilience

Download Habibi Toolkit

 

Meeting 4:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson 
  • Skill Focus: Taking Action

Download The Chains Toolkit

 

Meeting 5:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz 
  • Skill Focus: Being True to Yourself

Download The Hired Girl Toolkit

Meeting 6:

  • Click here for a book review and how to get it: Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith 
  • Skill Focus: Taking a Healthy Risk

Download The Flygirl Toolkit