After an awaited time, Brewer Book Bunch, a student-created and led club, has begun again. Brewer Book Bunch members meet in Mrs. Banats' room to have meaningful conversations about books they read and love.
With everything that happens in daily life, it might be difficult to maintain consistency or pay attention to hobbies that you love. Having meetings twice a month on Tuesdays gives members time to attend to their everyday activities, while having a safe space to look forward to.
“It can be challenging to keep up with reading when we are all so busy! We're hoping that making the meetings twice monthly instead of every week will make this easier,” Mrs. Banat said.
Being inside this club is not only about sitting in silence while reading, but it's more of an interactive club. You get to form meaningful and lasting relationships, not only with the members of the club but with the host as well.
“My favorite memories from the club have been laughing together, eating candy, and talking about characters,” Banat said.
Having a variety of members in the club means many different genres that are waiting to be picked each month to be read.
At the first meeting, we introduced the club and the advisor. The members had the opportunity to introduce themselves to new members and talk to the returning members as well. We opened up this meeting with each member making a list of the books they would like to read.
“The first meeting went really well! I was excited to see how many new faces came to join us. It's always fun getting to hear students, and I enjoyed listening to everyone talk about what they hoped would be chosen,” Banat said.
Our second meeting will be on October 7th, and this is when the real excitement begins. In this meeting, all members take part in a drawing where each member adds a few options for the first book we’ll read in the year.
“We've also done the opposite, where we have pulled titles out that we weren't going to read until we got to the last book title, and that was what we chose,” Banat said.
Even though this is a club that revolves around books, it also holds a great sense of community. With members who get to experience the memories that we form in Book Bunch, it builds long-lasting friendships outside of the club.
“I see a lot of students from Book Bunch who stay friends outside of the organization,” Banat said.
We also get to know the sponsor, Mrs. Banat, differently. We have a chance to form a relationship with her that differs from an ordinary teacher-student relationship, and foster a friendship with Mrs. Banat over a shared hobby.
With many members, there might be a slight switch-up with our reads; it will open new opportunities for readers to go out of their comfort zone and try new genres.
“When we are deciding which books to read, everyone gets a voice,” Banat said. “We try to read different genres so we aren't trapped within just one.”
It’s an exciting time when we meet for the first time after a while of not seeing each other, and we begin talking about all the different books that we are interested in reading with each other.
“I feel so lucky to be the sponsor of such a phenomenal group of young people. I love getting to read good literature with some awesome students,” Banat said.
The first meeting of this year’s Book Bunch club was a success. Walking into a room filled with readers created an atmosphere full of anticipation for what this year might hold.
“I knew exactly when the first Book Bunch meeting was being held because I could hear the excitement,” Ms. Urbina, who shares a wall with Banat, said.
This year, the Book Bunch club will have a bigger community. Members from last year came back to the club with even more friends to join in the fun.
“I'm thrilled to have so many new members in Book Bunch this year! The more, the merrier. All readers are welcome,” Banat said.
“I'm able to get to know some of the students I teach in new ways, and I also get to meet other students on campus who are not in my class. I really enjoy getting to build and nurture these relationships with young people that are focused on our common interest: reading,” Banat said.
As the year progresses, we are planning to read around six books within the club. We are hoping to create a fun atmosphere that encourages readers to come discuss books and form friendships.
