Teens love to socialize and feel in control. What library program could let them have fun with friends, make their own decisions and put books into their hands? A Book Swap!
What is a book swap? Exactly as it sounds. Teens bring books to the library and swap to get new ones. Each year my library goes to a publisher sale where all the books are $1. We gather hundreds of books for summer reading prizes and the collection. However, we generally have many left over that need to be cleared out before we get more.
Book Swap~
Cost: No cost! You already have books that need new homes plus students will bring more. You can also have students bring movies, CDs and games to trade.
Set Up: Place books on tables in a large room so they can be seen and browsed easily.
Program: Easy! Have teens bring books to trade for new ones. I gave each student a ticket for every book they brought. They could then turn in these tickets (1/book) for new items. As I had so many books available I told teens to come even if they didn't have anything to trade. I just wanted to get books to teens and out of my closet. Every teen that came was able to choose 2-3 books and then however many more for their tickets. (I had one girl bring 23 books but her mom told her she could only bring 15 home!)
Just add the students' books to the tables and let them browse. It was great to watch teens talking with each other and getting excited about taking books home. I did include a cooking component (we made candy sushi) as part of the book swap because I didn't know how long they would focus on swapping books. It was fun but is not necessary.
The teens loved the swap so much that they asked when we were going to do it again. I am now making this a quarterly activity as long as their interest continues. During Teen Read Week I am having a book swap for 1 hour and they can come and go as they please. I will also have materials to make bookmarks so that if they find books right away they have something else with which to engage.
A great program that draws teens to the library for books and takes little time or monetary resources.
Have Fun!
What is a book swap? Exactly as it sounds. Teens bring books to the library and swap to get new ones. Each year my library goes to a publisher sale where all the books are $1. We gather hundreds of books for summer reading prizes and the collection. However, we generally have many left over that need to be cleared out before we get more.
Book Swap~
Cost: No cost! You already have books that need new homes plus students will bring more. You can also have students bring movies, CDs and games to trade.
Set Up: Place books on tables in a large room so they can be seen and browsed easily.
Program: Easy! Have teens bring books to trade for new ones. I gave each student a ticket for every book they brought. They could then turn in these tickets (1/book) for new items. As I had so many books available I told teens to come even if they didn't have anything to trade. I just wanted to get books to teens and out of my closet. Every teen that came was able to choose 2-3 books and then however many more for their tickets. (I had one girl bring 23 books but her mom told her she could only bring 15 home!)
Just add the students' books to the tables and let them browse. It was great to watch teens talking with each other and getting excited about taking books home. I did include a cooking component (we made candy sushi) as part of the book swap because I didn't know how long they would focus on swapping books. It was fun but is not necessary.
The teens loved the swap so much that they asked when we were going to do it again. I am now making this a quarterly activity as long as their interest continues. During Teen Read Week I am having a book swap for 1 hour and they can come and go as they please. I will also have materials to make bookmarks so that if they find books right away they have something else with which to engage.
A great program that draws teens to the library for books and takes little time or monetary resources.
Have Fun!
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