Weeding: The Same in Libraries and Gardens

 Occasionally libraries need to weed their collection. I was recently working on weeding the collection at one of the elementary schools I am student teaching at. My cooperating teacher was trying to get the teacher resource rooms cleaned out a bit. We got rid of all the VHS tapes since they have become an obsolete format and we got rid of the professional books that the teachers never come to check out. The picture you see on the left is the cover of a book we discovered. The book was from 1984, and if you view the page below, you will realize how much this book needed to be weeded. This book was outdated, it really only addressed the female side of this issue, and it was much too wordy for any child to be expected to sit through. It may be a worthy topic of discussion, but there has to be a better book out there. I shared this book with my boyfriends mom and with my own mom. They both said that there needed to be a more child friendly book available, and a book for little boys. If you would like to view more of this book check it out on Google Books.

Beverly Cleary- Introduction into Chapter Books.

My second graders are ready to move on to more complicated chapter books. We want to begin reading books that are harder than Junie B. Jones and Magic Tree House Books. My cooperating teacher suggested Beverly Cleary books. I suggest not using them. After reading the beginning of a number of her books we realized they were very dull because they were written in the 50's. I have decided to finish the Beverly Cleary author study with some Beverly Cleary games on her website and a booktalk about the Ramona books. I still want these books to circulate after all! The book talk will involve viewing the trailer for Ramona and Beezus movie. I will talk about the Ramona books and read a short section to them. After this, I will introduce the students to the Laura Ingalls books. I might do a book talk like the Ramona books, or  I may just begin reading the books to them. I need to look the books over before I decide. I think the Little House books will work out nicely because there are also easy Laura Ingalls books which I can put in their book baskets, and there is an online extension for computer lab time.

Shelf Markers

I am currently student teaching at an elementary school. My cooperating teacher keeps telling kids to use shelf markers. These are paint mixing sticks that have been decorated with fun designs. I could not figure out what these shelf markers were used for, but I just did and I think they are amazing. The students look on the shelves for books and when they take out a book they put the marker in that spot. That way if the student decides not to take that book they will know where it came from and put it back in the correct spot. Anyone have other methods for students putting books back on the shelf?

Book Baskets

I have recently come across a new strategy for use in the elementary media center. Primary students come into our media center and go through a lesson with the media specialist. At the end of the lesson students are directed to go to their tables for book checkout. At the tables are book baskets with age appropriate books for students to look through. Kindergartners are not allowed to look through the shelves on their own. They must choose a book from the book basket to check out if they are able to check out a book. First and second graders are allowed to choose books from the shelves, but if they have a book out and are unable to checkout a book they must choose a book from the book baskets to read during checkout time. I am not sure how I feel about this method. I like the way that it works for the first and second grade students because it ensures that all the students have reading material during checkout time, but I am afraid that the way this works with the kindergartners may be limiting their choices and keeping them from learning about the set up of the library. The nice thing, however, is that the students are not running wildly throughout the library searching for a book. They are also sure to pick books appropriate for their age and may come across books they hadn't seen otherwise. What are your thoughts on the matter?