I
found this chapter to be really reinforcing for my classroom library. After reading this chapter it confirmed a lot
of what my classroom library looks like and has, and it also posed a lot of
questions as well. Lately, I have been
really struggling with getting my low readers “just right” books. I find myself getting very frustrated when a
few of my low students tell me “I finished this book!” or go get a new book
every single day for independent reading.
The thing that drives me crazy the most is when students abandon a book
and gets a new book each day. After
reading this chapter, and thinking over the past couple of weeks, I have
thought about rearranging my book bins in a different way for students like
these in order to help them find books on their level, and that they can
enjoy.
As a first year teacher I feel like
I have a lot of books. I have a lot of
picture books, nonfiction books, and chapter books. I think the wide range of choice the students
have in my library is very appealing to them, as Routman talked about. This summer when I came to set my classroom
up, my classroom library was one of the very first things I began working
on. I got all of my bins set up and
labeled the way I wanted, and started filling them in with different
books. However, now I am second-guessing
how I labeled my bins due to the fact that it is kind of hard for (all)
students to find books on their level.
In this chapter Routman talks about not labeling your bins by level
though, so I am a bit confused on how to help my students find “just-right”
books when they need help.
I think my classroom library is
definitely organized and appealing for my readers, but it also needs some
improvement on helping my students to thrive and become better readers.
Leveling and classroom libraries is definitely a tug-of-war at times. Essentially your library has to be accessible to your students. If you find that they are having a hard time getting just right books, then they may need additional support. Making changes in your library may be one way, but instruction on choosing books may be helpful too. This can also become a goal for those particular students during conferencing. Please let me know if I can provide some assistance in any way that you and your students may need since their book selection will determine their success with independent reading time and their growth.
ReplyDeleteClassroom library organization is a challenge because it is always evolving! I personally found that students used my library the most when I organized it by category/topic/genre, not level. Some of my lower readers had areas of expertise (like sharks!), and they could read far more advanced books in those areas because of their prior knowledge. Also, some of my struggling readers had trouble picking books they liked based just on levels. Knowing that one of my students was obsessed with Curious George or with magic allowed me to direct them to those bins, and once they got hooked on reading, the rest was history. :-)
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