Create An Inviting Classroom Library

I support a school district with improving reading				Cooney, Walter Dean Myers, Gordon Korman, and
and motivating middle school students to read, I				Jacqueline Woodson.
always interview dozens of students from each				Nonfiction: informational chapter books and picture
grade during my first two visits. I find that middle				books, biography and autobiography, diaries,
school students are candid, and these interviews				letters, journals. Black Whiteness: Admiral Bird
often spotlight students' needs and provide me				Alone in the Antarctic by Robert Burleigh,
with the data I need to work with administrators				Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by
and teachers.				Kathleen Krull, Confucius: The Golden Rule, and
David (pseudonym) was the first seventh grader				Lincoln: A Photobiography both by Russell
I interviewed on my first day at his school. When				Freeman are titles students repeatedly check out.
I asked him how I could help improve his reading,				Beloved nonfiction authors are James Cross Giblin,
he blurted: "Give me words. Oh, yeah," David				Russell Freedman.
added, "and stuff I can read." Indeed, when I				Suspense, Mystery, Horror, Romance, Series,
reviewed David's standardized testing and the				Graphic Novels, Magazines: In addition to the
Independent Reading Inventories teachers had				above categories, I also include a section on
administered in the past, David and too many				horror and suspense, romance and "girlie" books
other students at this school had weak				(my students' name for these), comics, graphic
vocabularies and were so far behind their grade				novels, and magazines. Each year students bring
level that they weren't able to read the grade				comics and magazines for their peers to check
level anthology in language arts classes and the				out. I always permit students to choose what
textbooks in science and social studies.				they enjoy and find interesting. Through book
Outside of school David read "some comics," but				talks by me and their peers, most students
not books or magazines. "Man, I don't touch				branch out from comics to books. That's why my
those," he told me.				library contains books by R. L. Stine, Stephen King,
The language arts classrooms in David's school				Carolyn Cooney, John Bellairs, and Joan Lowry
had no libraries. Moreover, the school's library was				Nixon. Authors of series that are frequently
inadequate and manned by parent volunteers who				passed from student-to-student are Gordon
were not there all the time and who lacked the				Korman and Aiden Chambers.
training and authority to order books and				It takes time to build a large and varied classroom
magazines. Readers like David, who needed				library. You can ask your PTA to raise dollars for
access to books to practice reading to enlarge				books, you can apply for grants, and you can
their vocabularies and background knowledge, lost				order titles from book clubs and use your bonus
reading ground each year. The first initiative				points to enlarge your library. Make sure that you
teachers, parents, and administrators rallied around				create appealing displays that shout to students,
was to raise money for rich and varied				"Read! Read! Read!"
classrooms libraries. I helped them understand that				Keep Book Displays Dynamic
immediate access to books, magazines, and				Books in a neat row with spines showing save
graphic novels at a wide range of reading levels in				space, but it's not an ideal display for
a classroom library would enable students to				book-browsing. Here are some strategies for
choose books that interested them, books they				enticing young readers to pick up a book:
could connect to and enjoy (Cunningham &				Create clear, colorful labels above each section
Allington, 2003). Immediate access to materials				(mysteries, biographies, etc.).
they could and wanted to read would provide the				On each shelf, place two to three books with
practice reading students needed to become				covers facing outward.
better readers.				Use your entire classroom. Set up displays on
It's wrong to assume that books and other				window sills, line some up in the chalk tray of your
reading materials are available to all children in the				chalkboard, on an extra table, on your desk, or on
United States. Moreover, differences in access to				the top of bookshelves.
books cause gaps in reading achievement. Now				Change displays every five to six weeks and
let's explore ways to make the classroom library				take a few minutes of class time to point out
not an "add on" to curriculum or a luxury item for				each new crop of books that arrives. Pique
independent reading but an embedded literacy				students' interest by sharing the genre, author,
strategy, one that promotes independent reading.				cover photo, and if you have time, read the text
Inspire Students to Read With Your Classroom				on the back or inside cover. Advertise books so
Library				they invite students to browse and explore
With schools using government approved basal				genres and authors that are new for them.
anthologies - one grade level text for all - those				When my students write about their personal
learners who need the most reading practice to				reading lives, they give high marks to classroom
improve don't have easy access to books. Like				libraries. Christa Doerwaldt notes, "I love having a
Richard Allington, I believe that readers who				library in our classroom! It has books at our
struggle need to read as much, if not more than				reading levels, and it is easier to see what books
proficient readers. That's why I believe that if				are there than in a big library." And Alice agrees
more schools put classroom libraries at the top of				when she explains that "A library in class really
their wish lists, they could make it happen and				helps me because I have so many books at the
meet the needs of all students.				tip of my fingers."
A library should be one of the first resources				Knowing students' interests early in the year can
schools buy. I want books to be central, and				empower you to help them select books that will
reading them the heart and soul of every middle				motivate them to continue to read. Also,
school classroom. Books should be the first thing				negotiate a way to keep track of books that
that catches students' attention when they enter				have been checked out. Here's a system that
a classroom, and they best serve students when				works for me.
they are arranged to "sell" themselves, not unlike				Tips for Keeping Track of Library Books
how you find them displayed in a good bookstore.				Put your name in each book.
I organize and label my books and book shelves				Record each book title in a data base on your
by genre because I find that middle school				computer.
students look first for a favorite genre - and then				Create a check-out system so students can take
for a beloved author or one recommended by				books home. I use a notebook where students
someone. I separate fiction and nonfiction genres				write their name, the book's title, the date
into categories such as realistic fiction, suspense,				checked out, and date returned. Students can
biography, nature books, and so on. Come up with				keep books up to a month.
your own ways of organizing your books that				If a student fails to return a book, I work with
reflect your students' reading interests. Here are				that student. Most of the time students return
the genres I suggest you collect:				books. However, it's wise to accept that there will
Poetry: this includes fiction written in free verse				be some books lost each year that you may
such as Dark Sons by Nikki Grimes, The Taking				have to replace.
of Room 114 by Mel Glenn, Witness by Karen				Have students shelve returned books.
Hesse, and Carver by Marilyn Nelson.				Since most schools have small to no budgets for
Short Texts: short stories, fairy and folk tales,				classroom libraries, you'll have to be creative to
myths and legends such as Kathleen Krull's Lives				enlarge your collect. Here are some suggestions:
of Extraordinary Women and Lives of the				First: Ask parents to donate books they no longer
Athletes, Her Stories by Virginia Hamilton, Heroes				need.
and Monsters of Greek Myths by Bernard and				Second: Mine those yard sales and your local good
Dorothy Evslin, and Bronx Masquerade by Nikki				will store.
Grimes.				Third: Ask your parent organization to do some
Fiction: realistic, historical, letters, diaries, suspense,				fund raisers to purchase books.
fantasy, science fiction, graphic novels and comics.				Fourth: Use book clubs and build your library with
Here are a few books my students rate as				the bonus points you receive.
topnotch: California Blue by David Klass, Crash by				Fifth: Visit local business and ask them for
Jerry Spinelli, Miracle's Boys by Jacqueline				contributions to books for classroom libraries.
Woodson, Somewhere in Darkness by Walter				Make sure that you let your principal know what
Dean Myers. A few all-time favorite authors are				you plan to do.
Richard Peck, Diana Wynn Jones, Avi, Barbara

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Create An Inviting Classroom Library

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