Thanks everyone for the ideas about rotating classroom collections. Below is the
original TARGET along with the responses I received:
"I'm trying to think through some possibilities for a new rotating classroom
collection that I'm going to start in the fall. Does anyone have a special set of
books that they circulate to classrooms successfully? Successfully meaning the
books don't disappear at a high rate? If you do or have any ideas how to make that
happen, please let me know. I'll post a HIT.
More info: I have a set of about 400 specifically hi-lo books that I will be
circulating in middle school classrooms in sets of 20 - 100 books (depending upon
need in a particular classroom) for a period of 6 - 8 weeks at a time (and then
getting them back and swapping among classrooms for another 6 - 8 weeks, etc.). We
did an initial loaning period of one month at the end of this year, since we
received the books in April. I asked teachers to NOT let students take the books
out of the classroom this time around so we could see how successful we can be at
keeping the books. We've lost about a dozen in one month. I don't think I'll be
able to continue asking that they not allow students to remove the books from the
classroom, as they need to be reading them more than
that. I'm looking for ways to keep as many of these books as we possibly can, in a
school where we lose lots of library and textbooks all the time. I appreciate your
thoughts and ideas!"
RESPONSES:
One strategy I've used for keeping books is to have students leave collateral--an
ID card, a key chain, a hair clip, a piece of jewelry, a favorite personal book,
etc. This works very well for me.
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We did something similar using crates with 20-25 hi-lo books. In each crate we
included a laminated list of titles for that crate. We checked the books out to the
teacher for 6 weeks. We suggested to teachers that the students do not take them
home and that in each class they assign a student to be the classroom librarian who
makes sure that all books are back at then end of each class. This worked well with
only a couple of books missing at the end of the year. This is of course does not
take the place of library checkout, it only adds to the classroom collection when
students need a book to read and can't get to the library because of a time
constraint.
-----
We lend out a classroom collection to a few of the classes, where the teachers are
really good about explaining to the kids the importance of returning their books.
Some of the other classes do not get a rotating classroom collection because so
many of the books disappear.
In our special ed class (where the reading levels are very low) the teacher assigns
each student a folder, and at the end of the reading period, the book goes in their
corresponding folder. This works well, as most of kids in that class have a home
life where keeping track of the books is next to impossible.
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I am not sure I can help you, but I will describe a program we have at our school
that I am now responsible for book exchange. It is the 100 Book Challenge leveled
reading program, and each classroom gets a set of baskets each containing 30 books
at each student's "independent" reading level. They keep the baskets as long as
they like, but when desired, they can bring them to the library during a set time
daily to exchange. Each basket had 30 books when it left the library. They count
the books in each basket before they come, and put a "post it" on the top book
indicating how many are in the basket. They get the same number of books back.
For example, if they return a GG basket containing 24 books, I take a new basket
(of 30) GG books, remove 6 books from it, place those 6 books in the basket they
returned, and give them the new basket containing only 24 books. Next time they
come in, they may have found 4 of the books, so they will have 28 to exchange (or,
sadly, they may have lost another 2!) Some teachers are better than others at
making sure each basket contains 30 books! If the students keep losing books, they
have fewer and fewer to choose from when it's silent reading time. (They never
get to get 30 back unless they find them and return them, or replace them with
books of their own at that level). It isn't perfect, we've lost a lot of books
over the course of the year, but teachers who are vigilant about making sure they
bring them back before they get new ones lose fewer books! I have also discovered
that teachers who exchange the baskets more often seem to have lost fewer over the
course of the year, since they are more likely to realize that some are missing.
-----
Thanks again,
Nancy
Nancy KapLon, MLS
Librarian
The SEED Public Charter School
Washington, DC
nkaplon@seedschooldc.org
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