Have each child draw the name of a secret classmate to be their poetry pal and choose a special poem that this child would enjoy. Poetry pal meetings can continue throughout the school year, if desired, as children share poems that they've read and written. Locate web sites, draw posters, sing songs, and develop projects to inspire an interest in reading about real people. Have students read and enjoy fairy tales, create and display projects, dress up like fairy tale characters, write riddles about fairy tail characters, and play games about fairy tales. Have children dress up as their favorite story character and parade around the school.
Children can also write clues about their character to help other students guess who they are.
Celebrate the birthdays of students' favorite authors. Authors' birthdays can be found on Alan Brown's Just for Kids Who Love Books web site. Write questions about children's books that challenge students to use different parts of the school library to locate the information. Have students work in teams to find the answers to the questions. Have a parent of each participating student sign a permission slip listing the books that the child is allowed to exchange.