Classroom Library
How Do I Organize My Classroom Library?
I have taught Grade 6 for six years, and the way I shelve my classroom library has changed less than you would think. Most of my books are sorted by genre, with a few sections for a popular author when I own a lot of their books. Here is how that works in my room, what still goes wrong, and what I'd tell a new teacher.
How it works in my room
I keep my library on a bookshelf. Most of my books sit in plastic book bins with a low, sloped front so the spines show. It helps, but I don't know by how much.
Students go up during silent reading, or when they have finished their work, and look through the bins to find a book. I like the bins because they keep like books together. A student who liked one mystery can find more in the same place.
I also have library helpers. Their job is to keep books in the right bin. It is a popular job.
What I haven't solved
Bins hide what you own. A student can't see the whole library at a glance, and neither can I. I haven't found a good compromise between tidy bins and a library that looks like a library.
What still goes wrong
- Books end up in the wrong bin. Even with helpers.
- Books go missing. I can't find them, and I can't always tell whether they are lost or just checked out.
- I don't know who has what. My sign-out sheet works for about three or four months, then it falls apart. I wrote about why in tracking classroom book checkouts. I compared the apps that are out there in classroom library apps compared.
- I don't really know what I own. I once bought a second copy of a book I already had. That is one of the reasons I built Dewi. I wrote about counting my shelves in the 299-books post. Here is how cataloguing a library with a classroom library scanner app works.
What I'd tell a new teacher
- Organise by genre. It is the easiest thing for students to understand.
- If you own a lot of books by one author, give that author their own section.
- Don't bother with a sign-up sheet. Mine never lasted the year.
This comes from one classroom, mine, not from a rule. If something else works in yours, tell me on the Dewi Facebook page.