Village School

Book Tasting. Reservations Only

“Book Tasting. Reservations Only” read the sign on the door as the Aloha Pineapples filed into their classroom one Fall morning. They were greeted by the sight of a full-blown book café and their teacher, Ms. Aisling, transformed into ‘waitress’ for the morning.

In teacher-speak, it was a “mini room transformation.’ Aisling had ‘set the stage to engage’ — decorating the room, dressing up as a waitress and even playing background café music.

Students perused the six ‘tasting’ tables, each introducing a different genre of books from the classroom library – biography, historical fiction, series books, and others. They were armed with a menu and an opportunity to ‘taste’ books at each table. After a few minutes exploring a particular table, ‘café customers’ completed book tasting notes, describing one of the books from the table that they might be interested in reading. By the end of the tasting, students had developed a list of books to try out this school year.

The remainder of their café time was spent reflecting on books, discussing their newfound interests with other ‘patrons’, and building excitement for the year to come. At closing time, it was time to say “aloha” to Aisling’s café and a memorable book tasting event.