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Middle School Reading Assembly · Grades 5–8 · 40–45 Minutes
The reading assembly your eighth graders won’t roll their eyes at.
- Grades 5–8
- 40–45 minutes
- Read Across America or Halloween
Poe, Stoker, Shelley and the Brothers Grimm — the genuinely unsettling end of the canon, told through magic. It’s the classics, and it’s the one assembly they talk about at lunch.
Check my dates See the books it’s built on
Or call me directly — (716) 940-8963. That’s my cell.
The problem
Reading assemblies are a hard sell at thirteen.
The trouble with a reading celebration in a middle school is that reading has already become a thing done to them. It’s the homework. It’s the log they have to get signed. By seventh grade, a lot of students have quietly filed “books” under school, and school under obligation.
So an assembly that opens by telling them reading is fun starts three points down.
This one doesn’t mention that reading is fun. It just is one.
I built this show around the part of literature that middle schoolers would actually pick up voluntarily — the frightening end of it. A man drinks something he made himself and turns into somebody else. A creature is assembled out of parts and comes to life. A monkey’s paw grants three wishes and every one of them goes wrong. These stories have been keeping thirteen-year-olds up at night for a century and a half, and there is a reason for that.
Nothing in this program apologizes for being a little dark. That’s exactly why they stay with it — and it’s the whole trick to getting a room of middle schoolers to take a book recommendation seriously.
The literature
Built on books that are already on your shelves.
This isn’t a spooky show with a couple of book titles dropped in. Each piece of the program is wrapped around a work of literature that middle schoolers are assigned, or soon will be:
- The works of Edgar Allan Poe
- Dracula — Bram Stoker
- Frankenstein — Mary Shelley
- The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde — Robert Louis Stevenson
- The Monkey’s Paw and other classic short stories
- Grimm’s Fairy Tales — the original versions, which are far grimmer than anyone remembers
Which means your English department gets something out of this too. When a class opens Frankenstein in November, a lot of the room has already met it — and met it as something worth being interested in.
There’s no blood. But there is plenty of “Ewww,” and a few moments where they’ll jump.
Grades 5–8 · 40–45 minutes · nothing you’d have to explain to a parent
What happens
What happens in the room
I’ve taken the plots of these stories and wrapped them around magic that is strange, bizarre, and occasionally properly unsettling.
- A chosen page from Dracula vanishes — and turns up somewhere it has no business being
- An unusual cure for a disease has the room laughing while being thoroughly grossed out
- Students have their minds read as they freely choose words from well-known books
- Psychokinetic activity, demonstrated in a way that ends with a shock
- A cell phone gives away exactly what one student was thinking
- An old Poe story turns into a routine with poisoned cups
The middle school version travels with its own backdrop and banners — a deliberately different look from the elementary reading show, because a fifth grader can spot a set built for second graders from the back of the gym.
When to book it
Two seasons, one show
Read Across America
The obvious slot — a literacy celebration that the older half of your building will actually turn up for. Early March fills first.
October and Halloween
The other natural home for it, and a much easier sell to students. Same literature, and nobody has to call it a reading assembly.
Any time of year
It works cold in January just as well. The stories aren’t seasonal — they have simply been borrowed by one season.
If your building is K–8
One visit. Two shows. The whole building.
You don’t have to choose which half of the school gets the reading assembly, and you don’t have to bring me back a second time. I run back-to-back programs in one visit — and in this case they are genuinely two different shows, right down to the backdrop.
Grades K–4
I Love To Read
The elementary reading program, pitched for the little ones. No horror in it at all.
Grades 5–8
Horror In The Library
This program — the classics, at the end of the shelf they’d pick themselves.
Booked together, the pair costs a good deal less than two separate visits — one drive, one setup. Ask me for the two-show number when you get in touch.
Middle school building only? “Horror In The Library” books happily on its own. · See the elementary version →
Get the details
Send me your dates and I’ll send you everything.
Fill this in and I’ll email you the full information for “Horror In The Library” — and for “I Love To Read” as well, if you’re a K–8 building. I answer these myself, usually the same day.
What lands in your inbox
- The full program outline for “Horror In The Library,” grades 5–8
- How it gets reluctant readers asking for books by name
- How the day runs — I arrive, set up, and I’m gone before the buses
- A quote for your building, based on your date and where you are
- The K–8 two-show day, if you want the whole school covered in one visit
Enough to print, forward, and walk into your next committee meeting.
Would rather just talk it through? Call or text (716) 940-8963 — that’s my cell phone.
Why I built this one
I loved reading scary books when I was this age.
When other kids my age were reading magazines, I was reading Stephen King’s The Stand, and Salem’s Lot. Later it was Clive Barker and Dean Koontz. By college I’d found the past masters — Lovecraft, Mary Shelley, Poe.
It was all so glorious.
Helping people find that is one of my main reasons for doing this job. You can probably tell — I have three different school assemblies themed to reading, and about a dozen library programs.
This is the one I’d have wanted at fourteen.
Proof
What schools and librarians say about Cris Johnson’s programs
Middle school and high school first, then the libraries — the library quotes are for this exact program run for teen audiences. Same show, same material, a different room.
“Cris is really great with the kids… He is both entertaining and informative. We have had him two years in a row and the kids really enjoy Cris’ programs. Outstanding!”
Carm ProctorPrincipal
Jefferson Middle School, Jamestown, NY
“Great control of the audience with an appropriate message!”
Dan BraceyPrincipal
Washington Middle School, Jamestown, NY
“Cris was able to keep an audience of young children along with their teachers captivated for 45 minutes. The show was well presented, dynamic, tied to reading and very entertaining. His upbeat show along with his sense of humor and timing provide an excellent program for students. I would recommend this program for schools without hesitation!”
NancyJean OsbornPrincipal
Byron-Bergen Central School, Bergen, NY
“It was totally entertaining and fun to watch. The kids were really involved and they loved it. It was really fun to see their personalities come out and their creativity. I would LOVE to recommend this program to other schools.”
Liz BannerTeacher
Brockport High School, Brockport, NY
“Fantastic program! One of the BEST young adult programs we have ever had. ALL of the teens were extremely engaged and fascinated with Cris’ combination of storytelling and historical knowledge.”
Tim RyanYoung Adult Services Librarian
Sully Branch Library, Rochester, NY
“The tweens and teens definitely thought the act was creepy and cool! This show featured a lot of historical mysteries that a lot of kids did not already know, so they got a LOT out of it!”
Merrie Haumann
Ahira Hall Memorial Library, Brocton, NY
“Cris was great to work with, very professional and personable. I liked that he plugged librarians and books!”
Tina DaltonYouth Services Librarian
Cuba Circulating Library, Cuba, NY
“Cris is very energetic and funny. The kids and the teachers were very impressed. They LOVED it! One of our sixth grade teachers said it was the BEST assembly presented at this school in 20 years!”
Amy MckentySchool Librarian
St. John of Rochester School, Fairport, NY
“It was phenomenal.”
Scott MoorerPrincipal
Chestnut Intermediate School, North Olmsted, OH
“Excellent.”
Holly BrinkClass Advisor
Sherman Central School, Sherman, NY
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Easy to host
I make this the easiest thing on your calendar.
- I bring everything. Professional sound system included, at no extra charge, however big your gym is.
- Its own backdrop and banners, built for middle school rather than borrowed from the elementary show.
- Your space is fine. Gym, cafeteria, auditorium, cafetorium, stage or floor level.
- Fully insured, with a certificate sent ahead if your district needs one.
- Follow-up materials for teachers, so your English department can pick it up.
- I hit 45 minutes. Schools plan around that number, so I treat it as a promise.
The no-risk part
If your students aren’t amazed, you don’t pay — and I donate $500 to your PTA or PTO.
In over 20 years of full-time performing, not one school has ever taken me up on it.
Book it
October and early March both sell out.
Those are the two weeks everybody wants this show, and there are only so many of them. The schools that get their first-choice date are the ones that call months ahead.
Call or text me at (716) 940-8963 — that’s my cell phone — or email [email protected]. You’ll be talking to me, not an agency.
Middle School Read Across America Assemblies for Grades 5–8 in the Northeast
Getting older students excited about reading takes a different approach than it does in the lower grades, and this program is built for it. Middle schools across New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey book it for Read Across America, for October, and for literacy nights. Reading-celebration dates fill quickly — reserve yours ahead of the rush.