5 Reasons to Have a Classroom Library

There is something magical about helping students find a perfect book. Seeing their faces light up when they find a book they love, or spontaneous conversation with a classmate about a book – that’s one of the best parts of teaching ELA. I’ve even had students from previous years come back to ask for book recommendations or borrow a book. And honestly, a lot of these moments were possible because of my classroom library.

Classroom libraries seem like a lot of work. There are extra responsibilities like keeping it organized, sourcing the books themselves, and handling checking in and out. But I truly believe that the benefits outweigh the challenges. Let’s chat about some reasons why having a classroom library would benefit your students!

Reasons to Have a Classroom Library

#1 Your school library is lacking.

Every school library is different. With budget cuts and staff shortages, it’s not unusual to find a school lacking the staff or funding to maintain a school library. Some schools have even ditched libraries altogether and turned them into classrooms or media centers.

If your school does have a library, it may not be stocked with a lot of books, or it might lack the variety you’d like to expose to your students. So often the books in school libraries are outdated, or there are limited copies of the popular books. 

With a classroom library, students have quicker access to books they’re interested in, and you can source books you know students will be interested in.

#2  Access to a greater variety of books.

In my experience, school libraries usually have a great variety of picture books or books more appropriate for primary grades students. But are seriously lacking when it comes to titles suited for upper elementary students or middle schoolers. 

When school libraries are dealing with a tight budget, this makes sense, but it can be frustrating when you have upper elementary or middle school students looking for new titles to dive into.  While picture books make great mentor texts for writing, they probably won’t work best for independent reading.  

Having a classroom library allows you to provide the variety of books your students need, or fill in the gaps of what is available in the school library, if you have one.

#3 Students have easier access to books.

As ELA teachers, one of the most important things we can do is to remove barriers students face when trying to access books. If we have books in the classroom, that greatly increases the opportunity for students to read.  

If students finish an assignment early, they can go straight over to the classroom library and start reading versus trekking across the school to the school library (if you are even allowed to send students during class time).

A classroom library also serves as a great resource to use during centers. Having an independent reading center is as low-prep as it gets and encourages students to engage with their books. You can also set up a book tasting center using your classroom library books.

Classroom libraries also come in handy if you have extra students in your class due to a sub shortage. You have an immediate activity for them to do that requires zero extra copies or preparation.  

#4 You can curate the library specifically for your students.

We all know that each class is different. Having control over your classroom library allows you to choose books that your specific students will enjoy, be challenged by, or appreciate. You might purchase book series or genres you know students are obsessed with or include some seasonal favorites.

If you have several reluctant readers, you can fill the shelves with graphic novels, comic books, or even magazines. Literally, anything you know will get them reading. There are so many ways to get kids excited about reading, and your classroom library gives you a perfect opportunity to make that happen.  

I love the look on a student’s face when they find out you picked a book up at a garage sale just for them. If that’s not a relationship builder, I don’t know what is.

#5 Students see the library as an extension of their studies.

With the way curriculums are structured, it’s easy to see ELA as something we teach rather than something we use every day. We don’t want reading to just be a box we check off, but rather a meaningful part of our daily lives.  

Having engaging books in your classroom encourages students to see the library as an extension of what they learn in class. They can learn a new skill and then immediately go apply it to a book. 

Maybe you can tell, but I feel pretty strongly about classroom libraries. While they do require extra maintenance, the benefits outweigh the cons. If you’re feeling stressed about organizing your classroom library, check out this blog post!