Every time I think about re-vamping or just organizing my classroom library, I think I have a small panic attack. Being that I am a newer teacher with not a lot of rich resources in my classroom, I am always worried that my library just is not good enough for my kinders. I am one of those teachers that frequents my local library because I want my students to have an appealing and wide variety of books to choose from. I will admit that there is some organization to how my put books into my book baskets, and for that, I am a little proud. I organize my baskets by topics. What ever we are studying that week (or few weeks), some favorites that I know my students would enjoy reading (Pinkalicious, If you Give a Mouse a Cookie, 5 Little Monkeys, etc.), magazines, and some "just for fun books". Even though my classroom is small, and my library is smaller, I do feel like my students have a good selection of material.
I have my books already separated into their red book baskets and my students know where the book baskets are located and are encouraged to read books as an early finisher activity. My classroom has a reading center available as a center choice, and I have noticed that when students are allowed to choose their own center, they like to choose the reading center because they enjoy the books that are in there. I am excited about the fact that this school year, my students enjoying reading books and get excited for independent reading time. Seeing them excited makes all the weekly library trips all worth it!
What a great suggestion for others, Rachel. I too added books from the library to my classroom library early in my career. It was a way to provide for my students what I had not yet collected. I like the way you are using your classroom library multiple times throughout your day, too: early finishers, center time and independent reading! Wow!
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteCreating a classroom that not only is inviting for students to visit but is also stocked with a variety of high interests, just right books organized for easy access is a tall order but one that is worth the investment when it comes to motivating our students to read. Like Claire, I appreciate the ways you are using your classroom library throughout your day! Thanks, Dawn