Blind Date With a Book: 19th Century Edition!

This week we had a great library lesson with a Year 10 English class where we introduced them to 19th century novels in a (hopefully) fun and interesting way.
Along with their English teacher, the Library Assistant and myself created a list of books that we thought would be appropriate for their age.
We wrapped the books up in butcher paper, tied a string around then and a wrote a few words on them to provide hints as to what they were about.

I also made bookmarks using Canva to advertise the event and to promote the library by putting our Instagram and Twitter handles on the back.

I made a PowerPoint presentation and when the students came in the Library I did a quick, 30-second rundown of each book. I described the plot, basic themes and why it was a great book for the students to read.



When the presentation was over I played the song "Try Me" by James Brown.


I told the students that when the song was over, they had to have chosen a book from the tables.


Students poured over the books, trying to figure out what the hints meant, hoping to get ones that had piqued their interest during the presentation.

When the song ended, everyone had chosen a book. Then on the count of three, everyone opened the wrapping to reveal their books.


It was really great to hear their reactions as their books were revealed. In the end we allowed for three students to swap their books with others we had in a reserve pile since they were truly not happy with their choices.


It was a fun program that I will definitely be trying again.