Using Book Clubs to Teach Nonfiction in Middle School

When you think of the traditional middle school nonfiction unit, it’s probably with all your students reading and analyzing the same nonfiction text at the same time. There is definitely nothing wrong with doing this (in fact, I teach many lessons this way), but it’s not the only way to teach nonfiction! I love using book clubs to teaching nonfiction in middle school!

Over years of teaching, I have found that my favorite way to teach nonfiction – and the way that my students enjoy the most – is to apply nonfiction knowledge through book clubs. At first, this can seem a little chaotic and confusing, but with a little practice, your students will be more engaged in your reading units and show more advanced content knowledge.

What are book clubs?

Book clubs are a more informal cousin to traditional literature circles. In literature circles, students are typically reading the same books at the same pace, and they have assigned roles within the group.

In a book club, students can be reading different books and move through the books at different paces. The goal is for students to guide each other through applying the skills they have learned.

So, how do you set up book clubs and use them effectively to teach nonfiction? Here is my step-by-step guide to using book clubs for your next middle school nonfiction unit.

Step One: Let students select a nonfiction book.

You can make book selection as easy or as intricate as you would like. For the ultra-simple version, give students time in class to select a nonfiction text. This may be at the library or using class novels. 

If you want to put together an exciting day in class, try out a book tasting! During a book tasting, students get to try out different novels in order to determine which books interest them. I always called my book tastings “Starbooks”! (You get it?) During Starbooks, I make sure my desks are in groups and put several books at each table (in this case, nonfiction books for the upcoming unit).

Students then begin to look at each book. They might preview the cover, read the summary, and even a couple pages from the book. Then, using the Starbooks menu, they write down a couple notes about the book and give it an interest rating, such as five stars for very interested in reading.

I know it can seem overwhelming to have every student reading a different book, but don’t be afraid to give your students that freedom! We will talk more about how it will work.

Step Two: Teach a mini-lesson over a nonfiction skill.

Now that students have selected their books, you can begin your nonfiction unit. This is where using book clubs to teach nonfiction comes into play. Make note of the skills you need to cover and review throughout the unit, such as author’s purpose, text features, and text structures. I always like to create a tentative map of how I will work through these concepts.

Each day, you will introduce or review one of these nonfiction skills with students through a nonfiction mini-lesson. Don’t overthink it! These are the same lessons you would teach if you were working through the same text as a class. In fact, you may have a mentor text that the whole class uses and analyzes together.

During this mini-lesson, you want to introduce any vocabulary needed, make notes, teach the material, and practice the material together. This will likely take anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the amount of material you need to cover. 

You want to leave your students time to practice and apply independently or with their groups, so break a lesson up over several days if needed.

Step 3: Have students apply the nonfiction skill in their book club.

This is where the book clubs come into play. Assign students to nonfiction book clubs. You can choose students who work well together or make groups based on student strengths. Remember, these are not literature circles, so students don’t need to read the same book at the same pace, or have a specific role in the group.

Instead, when students get together with their book club, they will keep each other focused on the task and lean on each other for support with completing the task. Think of it like independent work but with peer support.

To apply the skill, present students with a reading response prompt. These prompts will challenge students thinking and get them to dig deeper into their text.

For example, after a mini-lesson on key concepts, you might have your students answer the following reading response questions:

• How does your author illustrate and elaborate the key individuals, events, and/or ideas?
• How do the key ideas relate to or connect to the central ideas of the text?

Using the book club method to teach nonfiction, your students will have several opportunities within a week to apply skills with guidance during the mini-lessons and apply the skills independently in their book club. 

I think you will also find that your students are more engaged in what they are reading, so they are able to better analyze and engage with the text. If a student finishes a book before the unit is over, simply have them choose a new one. (Also, give them a high-five!)

Want a ready-to-go middle school nonfiction unit that utilizes book clubs? This Nonfiction Interactive Notebook Unit for Middle School has everything you need to explore nonfiction with your middle school students. It includes 24 lesson plans and resources, mini-lesson outlines, reading response prompts, over 30 reading response examples, reference pages, and digital notebooks.

This unit covers all of the key standards for nonfiction, so your students can master author’s purpose, central idea, text structures, test features, and more! You can check out the entire unit here!