Not your parents’ book club

By AIDA KARIM
news@readthereporter.com

In our era of endless distractions, the value of reading has never been more apparent. Education Station Founder Marcia Seif has made it her mission to give children the joy of reading.

According to Seif, she started her tutoring business 48 years ago. She was inspired to start Education Station when her second-grade son began struggling with reading. Pretty soon another parent asked if she could help her child and “then the ball just started to roll.”

Seif said when her students walk through her “garage of knowledge,” it makes her realize how important her job is. Even her former students from when she first started bring their own children now.

Seif said she started her summer book club 21 years ago.

“My goal was to help kids grow the love of reading through a book club,” Seif said. “It was always packed, but then the pandemic hit and I noticed that the desire to just pick up a book wasn’t there.”

Seif told The Reporter she noticed kids give up reading entirely this past summer.

“I would ask, ‘What are you reading for fun?’ And they’d look at me with a blank face and say, ‘Mrs. Seif, I’m not reading anything. I don’t have time to read. I’m doing sports.’ They couldn’t give up 15 minutes a night.”

Seif said children and parents shouldn’t underestimate the value of reading. She always tries to tell her students that reading takes them on an “adventure,” improving their vocabulary in the process.

“I’m finding that my high school kids, my ninth graders and my 10th graders, aren’t as versed in vocabulary as they should be, and it’s from not reading,” Seif said.

According to Seif, this year’s book club revival as “Literary Leaders” challenges the traditional format.

She said, “We will bring out the creative side of each of those kids, from leading discussions to publishing reviews in the newspaper.”

According to Seif, publishing their very own review will give kids an opportunity to develop critical literary analysis skills at a young age. Students will learn not to just tell audiences about a book, but show it through examples and evidence in a story.

Seif said she wants the children to have fun and engage meaningfully through activities like “theater” where students would bring in props from home and reenact scenes from their novel.

“It’s just not a book club,” Seif said. “They are not just reading silently and answering questions. They’re growing a toolkit of skills that will continue to benefit them the rest of their lives.”

There is still time to get your children involved in this program. Education Station is registering new students until Oct. 17. The cost is $125, including all materials, for four weeks.

You can find more information on how to join online at tinyurl.com/LiteraryLeadersInfo.