Bookworms: Beezus and Ramona

We had our first Bookworms (mom and me book club) activity of the summer on Friday!
Officially, we were just supposed to discuss the first chapter of "Beezus and Ramona", but I included activities from several of the Ramona books.
Since our book club is all ages (ranging from 18 months to 11 years), we go about it a little differently. Instead of sitting in a circle and having a discussion, I come up with a few different discussion questions and activities to go along with them and the kids can think/talk about the questions as they play.

My "brick factory" was a giant ice cube I made with a large tupperware container. I put it in the wading pool with some rocks and the kids smashed it to bits.

I set out our BYU vs Utah checkers set in a corner on the deck to go with this discussion question.

I unrolled a long sheet of butcher paper and provided crayons for the kids to draw the longest picture in the world. This was just when they were getting started, but it turned out so cute!

I put together a little sensory bin with sand, shovels, and a little steam shovel. This was mostly for the little kids like Juno.

I made these tin can stilts a few months ago during a crazy big afternoon thunderstorm that was terrifying my kids. It's amazing how such a simple, free toy can capture a child's imagination!
Well, there you have it--my Ramona party. It was so much fun to plan and so much for the 20 or so kids that came.
And now a word on Ramona. I love the Ramona series. Something I really admire about it is the way Ramona's parents are so down to earth. They love and support Ramona, but they don't make excuses for her, they don't solve her problems, and they let her learn from her mistakes. As a parent, it is so easy to want to protect your kids from everything, even (maybe especially) from themselves. Maybe our society has changed, maybe it's because now everything is instantaneous and broadcast all over the web, but it's one thing I really love about Ramona: it reminds me to accept that my children will make mistakes and to let them make mistakes.
What books are you reading this summer?