Modernizing an Archaic Classroom Library

Funded Jun 23, 2023

My students are loving the new reading space that has been created in our classroom through your generous donation. Not only do my current students love it, but past students have stopped by and mentioned how jealous they are that we did not have this space available when they were in this room.

Most of my students are struggling readers and will verbalize daily how much they "hate reading." Making a space that is more comfortable for them and offering flexible seating options with the stools, has helped immensely when it is time for independent reading. The stools have also helped all students feel included during groupwork or partner time. If all four seats at a table are taken, students can grab a stool and pull it up to wherever their partner is sitting and immediately start working as a team.

A huge part of the battle of getting my students to read starts with picking a "just right" book. My 8th grade classes took on the project of finally organizing all of the books in our library by genre with our new bookshelves. Each genre is labeled with its own color, making the books much more accessible to my readers. It takes them less time to find a book, and the process is less overwhelming when they know which section they want to pick from. The new books that were donated definitely generated some excitement around the library, and books were chose to be displayed on the top of each section.

There is definitely a "buzz" around our new reading space because of your generosity and the items you donated!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Anacone