Teen book club encourages enjoyment in reading

Posted on March 07, 2022

Teens who attend the IPS Impact Academy at the Resource Treatment Center are part of a book club, just for them. This club, specifically for teens needing mental health and psychiatric treatment services, also provides them with free books.

Kirsten Weaver, a Library Programming Specialist who works with teens, shared, “We are not just instilling a love of reading in teens who may have never read or owned a book before, but they are taking that love of reading and sharing it with others, with parents, siblings, friends and even staff in the facility they are currently in.”

A teacher at the facility said, “The themes of the novels speak to my students, and many for the first time, find enjoyment in reading for pleasure. Every year without fail, including this year, I have several students say that this was the first time they finished a book, let alone enjoyed it.

“From an academic perspective, book club has helped build my students’ comprehension skills, fluency skills and their ability to connect to a text. They have improved their ability to make inferences and predictions, and not only make a claim but support it with evidence from the novel.”

This program was made possible through a generous gift from Bonnie and David Ross.