Written by Jamie Martin of Simple Homeschool
It never dawned on me when Give Your Child the World released that we’d find ourselves doing the Read the World Summer Book Club again this year–but here we are!
Back by popular demand, it’s the 2nd Annual Read the World Summer Book Club. Once again we’ll explore the world this summer, one book at a time!
This year will be less formal–perfect for adding just a touch of gentle learning to lazy summer days while your littles slurp popsicles or take a break after playing in the pool.
And we’ve made it even easier to participate! Here’s how it will work:
The Calendar
Give Your Child the World contains eight chapters of booklists–one for each area of the world.
Our club will devote one week to each chapter, but this year we’ll kick things off earlier, meaning that if you have to skip a week for a vacation or other reason you’ll still have plenty of time to finish by summer’s end!
Here’s how it will break down:
- June 5th – Multicultural Week
- June 12th – Africa Week
- June 19th – Europe Week
- June 27th – North America Week
- July 3rd – Middle East Week
- July 10th – Asia Week
- July 17th – Latin America Week
- July 24th – Australia, Oceania, & Polar Regions Week
All of your kids can take part, no matter their age. My book includes book recommendations for ages 4-12, but teens are welcome to join in with picks of their own. And if your younger kids listen in as you read-aloud, that counts too!
Yes, but what will we do, exactly?
Your easy, peasy, summer breezy goal is to read one book each week from a different part of the world, according to the calendar above. Simple, right?!
Last year we had families who took this to a whole other level, carting home a huge stack of books from a new region each week, but that’s not at all necessary to take part.
Do what works for you! There are over 600 book recommendations in Give Your Child the World to choose from.
The Printables
Last summer we released the printables week by week, but this year you’ll get everything right away via email–yay! I hope that makes it easier for you to get organized and prepared ahead of time.
You’ll also get links to the extra materials for each week (recipes, video clips, etc) as soon as you register, meaning you can go ahead and shop for ingredient lists or make additional plans before the club officially kicks off. Hooray for even less summer stress!
The downloads book club members will receive:
- regional maps to use each week,
- a low-maintenance log for your readers to keep track of (and rate) titles,
- coupons to keep your family members motivated,
- and a certificate you can print out at the end of the summer as a souvenir!
The Hashtag
Last year we had such fun with the #GiveYourChildtheWorld hashtag on Instagram, and I loved seeing the books you chose and all you learned.
It brought a sense of community to our online club and I hope you’ll share this go ’round as well!
Books Are Better Shared
We have a few weeks before we officially kick things off on June 5th, so now’s the perfect time to invite a few friends to join us!
Last summer it warmed my heart to see families joining together to read, cook, share, and explore the world. Or maybe you want to share this post with your co-op so anyone who’s interested can get involved, too.
A chance to give back!
This past winter as part of our Heal the World Book Club, club members asked friends and relatives to pledge a small amount for each book they read. All the money went toward the education of child trafficking survivors in the Philippines (via Love146, where my husband serves as CEO).
If you’d like to add an outreach component to your summer book club, we’d love to have you! The fundraiser will remain open through the end of August for anyone who’d like to take part–any amounts raised in excess of our initial goal will create a scholarship fund for trafficking survivors who dream of attending college.
Just connect with friends or relatives, explain what you’ll be doing, and invite them to pledge. Then follow up at the end of the club, and pass on this direct link where they can easily give: https://donate.love146.org/bookclub146
How to Sign Up for the Book Club
There’s no cost to be a part of this summer’s club–you just need your own copy of Give Your Child the World to use as a reference and you’re all set.
If you still need to order Give Your Child the World, the paperback has been sold out on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, AND Book Depository due to all the interest in the club! (Wow, so grateful!)
Here are the quickest options to consider:
- The Kindle version is the easiest, cheapest, & quickest way to get your hands on the book right away! (You can access it with the Kindle app even if you don’t have an e-reader.)
- iTunes – If you don’t have a Kindle, but do have a Mac – this is also a great electronic option!
- Barnes & Noble is currently showing it’s back in stock online (yay!), and you can also enter your zip code to see if it’s in stock at a store near you!
Or, if you’d rather wait for the paperback:
- Amazon estimates they’ll have it back in stock in early June if you want to order now
- Christianbook.com – Still have the paperback in stock
- Rainbow Resource – Just got a few copies back in
- Zondervan – A safe bet since they never run out of copies!
While you wait:
If you are waiting on your book to ship from somewhere, you can access two free chapters of the book (including the Africa list) in the sample on this page to get you started! And you can find a few multicultural book suggestions on Instagram here and here!
Register for the book club now and you’ll receive an email with immediate access to all the printables and other links you’ll need for the whole summer!
Then when you have my book in hand, choose your titles for the upcoming weeks according to the calendar above. Request them from the library or order your copies so they’ll be ready when you need them.
And just like that, a great summer is served…
Again, here’s the form to register for the book club! And heads up: Make sure you check your Promotions folder in Gmail and your spam/junk folders if you don’t see the email soon after signing up as they seem to get flagged there sometimes! Mark it as “Not Promotions” so you won’t miss future updates! Email Kara here if you still can’t find it after searching.
Weekend homeschool links
Fun! Will there be any new activities or videos from last time for those of us who are doing it again?
Hi Marni! This year we are using the same materials from last year, but we hope you can explore any of the links you didn’t last year or research to find your own since we’ve announced it much earlier than before. So glad to have you following along!
Awesome, thanks for doing this again! I bought your book last year but my kids were a bit too young then, and now I’m going to be home with them and starting homeschooling this summer/fall — excited to participate!
Thank you so much for making everything available up front. It really helps my mama brain plan our summer weeks better.
This sounds great. I’m all signed up. We will do this with some friends who live locally.
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Fun! Have the book and happy to be part of the club! I recommend the Anna Hibiscus books about a little girl from Africa. They can be purchased from Usbourne books BUT might be available elsewhere. Definitely worth the search;) Jamie I am very interested in your husband’s organization. My husband is Filipino. Trafficking is something I’ve become more aware of and interested in learning about ways to help. So, again, thank you! We’ve been at public school but plan to return to homeschooling next yr. I will be reading anything you share. Love your articles and suggestions. Jamie
How amazing! I bought your book to inspire me while I plan my co-op class for next fall. Is it ok if summer book club members reuse some of the materials in the fall with our homeschool friends?
Of course!
Hi Jamie
Thought about you yesterday when we got a brochure in the mail learning about the people that live in Democratic Republic of Congo and them hearing about Jesus. Do you have any books from that region in your book? The kind of people that live there are called Mbuti Pygmy.
Thank you!
I just went to order your book and it says they aren’t shipping for 2-4 weeks. Is this true ????
Erin, I’m astonished but Amazon sold out of copies because of the enthusiasm over the book club! They are working to get more in as soon as possible, so I don’t know if it will really be 2-4 weeks or not, but you could get the Kindle version if you don’t want to wait or Barnes and Noble still has it in stock here (and also in many stores): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/give-your-child-the-world-jamie-c-martin/1122965061?ean=9780310344131
Can I purchase one book and have it available for more than one child and do read alouds? I have several kids. Thank you!
Definitely, Carie! The book doesn’t contain the read-alouds themselves; it just points you in the direction of the best books for each region.
Hi Jamie! I love this summer reading program! I host a summer reading club every year and this year, we are going to be following along with YOUR program and I have asked all my participants to register on your site. I sent you an email about book giveaways (a variety of children’s atlases, Illustrated Fables from Around the World, etc.) that I would like to donate to your readers.
Thanks, Lauren! So happy to have you. I’m not offering prizes this year, but I’m so grateful to have you participating!
what are the rules to participate? will the books be discussed among other readers in this group? or is it more independent project? thank you!
It’s independent, aside from sharing via social media/Instagram so you can see what others are doing, Irina!
When I told my son about this yesterday, he was so excited he didn’t want to wait another week! So we are heading to the library today to get started.
This warms my heart, Crystal! So happy to have you joining in.
Thanks so much for doing this! I bought the book. Excited to start it soon with my boys!!
I’m trying to register, but it won’t let me click on the required fields for whether I own the book or which list I’d like, help!
Hi Heather! I’d recommend trying with another browser, and/or restarting your computer and trying again. If you still run into trouble just email me with your info needed to register, and I can do it manually: jamie@simplehomeschool.net
We’ll be doing this in July and August, after we get home from a trip to visit family on the other side of the country. Can’t wait!
I’ve tried to sign up twice now and I haven’t received an e-mail confirmation. I’ve checked junk mail as well. Not sure what I’m doing wrong?
Hi Sarah! Sorry that you’re having trouble! Send an email to my VA Kara – ksawrites@gmail.com and she’ll help you out and get you set up!
Me too! Have tried for 2 days to sign up, but won’t seem to go through. I’m going to send an email to the address you gave to Sarah above. Hope that’s ok.
I signed my kids up this weekend but never received an email with the printables to go along with it. Just wondered if there was a delay or if I maybe did something wrong. Is there someone else I should contact with questions about that?
Yes, Keira! Have you checked your Promotions folder and/or spam/junk? If you find it there, mark it as “not spam” so you won’t miss future updates! If you still can’t find it, email my VA Kara – ksawrites@gmail.com for help!
where is all the “sharing ” going on? on the pinterest?
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