So Simple!

 

 

I have a good size classroom library. Actually, the picture above was taken at the beginning of the year, and since then my book collection has grown. By a lot.

But not all of the books get read. The new ones do. So do the graphic novels. Or the popular series like HEROES OF OLYMPUS or BABYMOUSE or NERDS or others.

I do weed my library every now and then, but for the most part, I don't part with books.

Recently, I browsed my own classroom library and came across my Boxcar Children books. I realized my students weren't reading these at all, and having just reread Surprise Island, I thought I neee to do something about that.

So I grabbed a couple of them, and talked to my class about them. I hadn't prepared anything. I just told my students why I thought the books were interesting. I read the first page. Then I surveyed my class about them. I found out that very few of my students had seen the books even though they had been in the library since the first day of school! (They tend to reach for the newer ones and ignore the rest.)

After I talked about a few of them, the results were immediate. Several students walked up and pulled a few Boxcar books out and took them to their seats. One student asked if she could go to the library to see the whole collection. By the end of the day, half of the collection had been checked out.

Students won't be aware of  the literature until we tell them about it. We can't expect them to read it just because it's on the shelf. Some books will need our "stamp of approval".

I will champion all good titles to my students. And I will continue to buy the new titles as much as my budget allows. But I also promise to keep older favorites in circulation and book talk their goodness so that readers don't miss out on a great potential read!

What favorites are being overlooked in your library? How do you promote them?