#Classroom library books how to#

This trend occurred across all ages from young readers to experienced readers, and in classrooms from elementary to high school. Researchers have discovered that students with access to a class library read 50 to 60 percent more than students without that access. Why are classroom libraries so effective? Students are simply more likely to read if more books are easily available. They’ve also been shown to boost reading levels. As Amato says of the Project LIT community, “While we come from elementary and high schools, urban and rural districts, we’re unified in our belief that this is the work that matters.Classroom libraries are amazing resources to improve literacy skills, like reading comprehension and language skills.

#Classroom library books how to#

Through networking with like-minded colleagues, teachers can learn how to better inspire their students to read independently, creating or enhancing a culture of choice reading among those students.

Advocate for policies and practices that will help students become lifelong readers and leaders.

Create opportunities for students to connect with peers around the country in reading groups.

Inspire and support one another through sharing of lesson plans, resources, strategies, and book recommendations.

Teachers in the network also seek local grants, Amato says, and share with each other their successes and resources for winning grants.īeyond bringing more books to classrooms, Project LIT teachers and students collaborate to do the following: According to Amato, some of the ways the teachers in the network collaborate include recommending books, swapping or sharing books, and boosting one another’s projects. Currently, there are nearly 1,000 chapters across 47 states. Those who join Project LIT and set up a chapter at their school connect with a community of educators across the country who are ready to offer support and inspiration.

In his words, Project LIT is “a growing group of passionate teachers and students who are committed to flooding our schools and communities with diverse books.” On his journey to provide his students access to more and better books, in 2016 Amato started a grassroots network of teachers and students that he named Project LIT. This acknowledges the gift, and also works to continue the connection and community building. When funding or book donations come in, Amato says, teachers should be sure to have students write thank you notes and consider taking photos of students reading or posing with the books. Amato strongly suggests that teachers searching for budget-friendly books also visit First Book, a nonprofit that works to bring books and other educational materials to children in need.

When I was teaching, I would share my wish list with friends and family and ask them to buy books for my classroom library in lieu of birthday gifts. You can make an Amazon wish list with all the titles so it will be easy for folks to select a book and send it your way. Next, get your book list out to family, friends, and the community. Asking is step one, Amato explains, and you may be pleasantly surprised. Schools often work to find money in their budget to purchase books. Meet with your principal or school leadership team and share your vision for bringing more classroom library books to your school. You want to identity the most relevant and relatable books for your students. Dedicate classroom time to researching and discussing the suggestions. “All students deserve access to great books,” Amato says.Īmato offers the following advice for fellow teachers looking to bolster and diversify the book collections in their classrooms.įirst, work closely with your students to make a list of “fly off the shelves” books.

His quest-which was ultimately successful-was to stock his room with more diverse books, ones that reflected the identities and lives of the students whom he was teaching. Jarred Amato, an English teacher at a public high school in Nashville, made it a mission to greatly expand his classroom library several years ago. The urban public school where I worked did manage to keep a steady supply of books, but book deserts are a sad reality at under-resourced public schools where libraries have been closed and funding cuts have reduced the flow of independent-reading books into classrooms. My school supplied only modest funding for this, so if teachers wanted to have the newest high-interest books in our classrooms, we had to accomplish this task mostly on our own-a scenario that, unfortunately, isn’t out of the ordinary. During my time as a high school teacher, one of the greatest challenges was keeping my classroom library fresh-the process of acquiring the latest books while also replacing lost and worn-out ones.