Reflecting on Our First Year at The Readers’ Collective

As we wrap up the first school year of The Readers’ Collective before our summer program begins, I’ve been reflecting on how grateful I am for every family who has joined us and for the community we’ve built together along the way. I say “built together” because while The Readers’ Collective started somewhat on a whim, it has also taken a tremendous amount of work, organization, and heart to bring it all to life.

The Readers’ Collective came to be because although we knew we wanted to homeschool, we briefly tried preschool with our oldest daughter last summer. We simply wanted her to have opportunities to do activities and spend time with other children. While the preschool itself was wonderful and the director was absolutely lovely, we realized it just wasn’t quite what we were looking for.

One day I thought, “Why not create a book club for homeschooling families?” A space where children could develop a love for reading while families built meaningful connections and community. Once the idea came to me, I ran with it, much like I tend to do with many of my projects. Maybe it’s undiagnosed ADHD, or maybe I’m just not very good at relaxing, but somehow juggling ten things at once usually works out in the end, and I’m so thankful this did too.

I posted the idea on Facebook (one of the wonderful things social media can do!) and several amazing families signed up right away. From the beginning, it has been such a joy. We were also incredibly fortunate that Doozers graciously welcomed us into their space to host our gatherings, something I’ll always be thankful for.

From there, I began making everything official. Creating a logo (thanks Chloe! Highly recommend https://chloeleacreations.square.site/), building a website, finding board members (thanks Rachel for all of your insight!) and starting the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. My original vision was to offer the entire program completely free to families through grants and donations. Looking back, I realize that idea was a bit naïve. As much as I would love to provide everything at no cost, the reality was that I had been personally funding everything from supplies, website fees, and more myself. To make the program sustainable long-term, we introduced a membership fee during the second half of the year to help cover materials and operational costs.

Since launching last fall, we’ve shared countless nature walks, sledding outings, “field trip” style adventures like a Christmas sleigh ride, and of course, our weekly book club meetings. More than anything, we’ve formed genuine friendships and built a supportive community of families learning alongside one another.

This June, our summer program begins, where we’ll gather outdoors rain or shine to explore nature through books, crafts, activities, and hands-on learning experiences. While The Readers’ Collective is primarily homeschool-focused during the school year, we are opening our summer program to all families in an effort to help more children throughout Marquette County connect with nature and with one another, regardless of schooling choice.

We are also excited to begin partnering with local high school and Northern Michigan University students to serve as leaders within the summer program. In return, students will gain valuable leadership experience, résumé-building opportunities, and professional references for future jobs and opportunities. I remember how daunting it felt in high school and college trying to build experience and find references, so being able to support students in this way feels especially meaningful.

Looking ahead to fall, we are still exploring location options and planning exciting additions to the upcoming school year, including book studies and expanded field trips. If you are a business or individual with an idea, activity, or space that you would love to share with a group of families, we would absolutely love to connect with you.

Above all, I’m simply incredibly thankful for everyone who has participated in The Readers’ Collective so far. Watching more and more families join this community has been such a gift. If you are a homeschooling family interested in joining us for the 2026–2027 school year, we begin again in September. Please reach out to learn more or join our email list to be notified when registration opens.

Lastly, we truly appreciate the support of our community. Some direct ways to support our mission include monetary donations (all donations are tax-deductible through our 501(c)(3) status), donations of gently used children’s books, donations of supplies, or volunteering your time. Instead of bringing children’s books to local thrift stores, consider donating them to help grow our shared community library and programming.

To get involved, please email upreaderscollective@gmail.com.

-Madelyn