What We Do
Every SPARKS session blends great books with hands-on STEM projects and art activities — designed to spark curiosity, build confidence, and make learning genuinely fun.
What Makes SPARKS Special
Every session is built around student interests — and before each one, something exciting arrives at the door.
Open Your Packages!
Before every session, SPARKS mails a package straight to each student's door — books, craft supplies, STEM materials, all ready to go. Opening the box together is one of the best moments of every meeting.
How Book Club Works
Each 45–60 minute virtual session follows a rhythm that keeps everyone engaged from start to finish. No grades, no pressure — just learning and community.
1. Welcome & Ice-Breaker
We open with a fun question that gets everyone laughing and talking. Sometimes silly, sometimes thoughtful — always welcoming.
2. Reading & Discussion
Shared read-aloud plus discussion questions — comprehension-based and real-world. Students can participate even if they haven't finished (or opened!) the book.
3. Hands-On Project
Art, coding, science experiment, or craft — each activity is chosen to reinforce the book's themes and connect ideas to real life. This is what they mail the packages for!
Activities We've Done
Here's a taste of what sessions look like. Every year is different — because every group of students has different ideas.
Romeo & Juliet → Venetian Mask Craft
Students read an age-appropriate adaptation of Romeo & Juliet, analyzed how the setting shaped the story's meaning, then created their own "Venetian" masks inspired by Verona, Italy — reinforcing the story's cultural context through hands-on art.
Literature + ArtGirls Who Code → Scratch Coding Project
After reading Girls Who Code, students jumped into a beginner coding project in MIT Scratch — translating the coding the characters did in the book into real, working code they built themselves. A true book-to-STEM bridge.
STEM · CodingClimate Book → Mini Herb Garden
For a climate-themed book by a teen author, students each chose a personal carbon-reduction action to try at home (like only running the dishwasher when full), then planted their own mini herb garden to see simple, meaningful environmental stewardship in action.
STEM · EnvironmentCrenshaw → Surreal Painting
After reading Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate, students created their own surreal paintings — imagining a dream that couldn't exist, combining images that don't go together. Art and empathy, all in one activity.
Literature + ArtMessage in a Bottle Writing
Students imagined putting a note in a bottle and tossing it into the sea — writing about their goals, any warnings for the future, or advice for their past or future selves. Deep, reflective, and surprisingly moving.
Writing · ReflectionFriendship Novels → Friendship Bracelets
Students read friendship-themed novels, then made two friendship bracelets each — one for themselves and one for someone else. At the next session, they shared who received their bracelet and why. Community building in action.
Social-Emotional + CraftBooks We've Loved
We choose titles with brave, curious, and complex characters — books that students see themselves in, and books that surprise them.
Diverse Voices
We prioritize authors and characters from a wide range of backgrounds, so every student can find themselves on the page — and discover someone new.
Interest-Driven
Books are chosen to match the themes and topics students are excited about — coding, climate, friendship, justice, and more. When students are interested, they engage.
Discussion-Rich
Every book is chosen for the conversations it sparks. Questions are both comprehension-based and open-ended — so everyone can participate, no matter where they are in the reading.
A sample of books we've read together over 6 years:
We Keep It Fun
Every session starts with an ice-breaker to get everyone smiling. Here are a few examples of the kinds of questions that kick things off:
Would you rather... 🤔
A Peek Inside SPARKS
Real slides from our book club sessions — a glimpse of the discussions, activities, and energy that make SPARKS special.
Want to Be Part of It?
Sign up for the club or support our work — every bit of help means we can show up for more students.