Back to School for Middle School Teachers, Middle School Language Arts, Middle School Reading

Classroom Library Organization for Middle School

Linda Asaro
August 4, 2023

This is the third part of a mini-series on back-to-school tips with a focus on classroom library organization.

Classroom setup can feel overwhelming and laborious for language arts teachers. One of the most difficult yet satisfying areas is setting up your library corner. In my last blog post, I talked about setting up your classroom and the importance of a classroom library. If it’s set up correctly, it will be functional and inviting. If you need help with some easy tips to improve your classroom library organization, then keep reading!

blog post on classroom library organization — Read here for tips to easily set up your middle school classroom library.

Potential Problems with Classroom Library Organization

I also understand that you might be thinking of all the reasons you really can’t manage a classroom library. I get it, I really do. You might not even have a decent amount of books, which is, let’s face it SHAMEFUL.

When I hear about teachers struggling to get books, I mean BOOKS, people, I just can’t wrap my head around the priorities! Don’t get me started. I have a friend who constantly buys her own books, yet her school is building on to their gym and putting in a weight room. Believe me, I am all for a weight room, but we need some balance here.

I am going to have to operate under the assumption that you feel that kids reading a variety of books is important, and it’s your job to get them to see the joy in this. I know we shouldn’t assume, but if you don’t think that, I venture to say that you are in the wrong line of work. And kids going to libraries is a thing of the past, so it’s up to us as their language arts teachers to expose them to the joy that a space that contains books can bring.

I also have to operate under the assumption that you have some books already. The books that you have in your library corner should be a good variety, and we will discuss that in a different blog. Here we will focus on the physical space and organization. Let’s dive in!

Step 1 Classroom Library Organization: Choose Your Space

When I set up my room, I first set up my student desks. I went into detail about this in my last blog post, but a main point was that desks go up front, near the locus of instruction, which for me is my white boards. The back of the room is therefore dedicated to some group work tables and my library corner. Because the desks are up front, the only space for my library corner is to the back. I am lucky because I have built in book shelves, so this was the obvious choice for me.

So look at your room as a whole. Do you have book shelves? Are they built in? Moveable? Where will your desks go? I have dedicated a quarter of my room for my library corner, and it is a space where kids can go to snuggle up and read and also to write.

And yes, middle school kids do still love that idea of being cozy. My kids clamor to get in there, and it is because of they way I design it and they way I inherently treat it like some sort of nirvana, and it rubs off on them.

When you pick your space, consider these three things for classroom library organization:

Keep it near bookshelves if possible – if you don’t have bookshelves and again, what in the world are we doing in these schools, people! You could use makeshift shelves with cubbies, crates…anything to house books. And speak up! Your principal will hopefully help you with this. For me, I wanted low bookshelves, and I was allowed to send out a staff email asking if anyone had any that they weren’t using and guess what? I got 3 of them. And my principal placed an order for another. I know you might not be in this situation, but it is worth a shot. I really believe that unfortunately, we have to be advocates for our own rooms and kids. Just be sure to do this in a super respectful way without saying “I need”. Better to say “My kids need” So for example, “My kids need a better-organized library and more room for books. Is there any way that you can help us with this?”
Keep it away from the locus of instruction
Keep it away from the door if possible

Step 2: Define the Space

I highly, highly recommend defining the space not only figuratively, but literally. I use a rug and low bookcases to section off the space. Be sure not to put anything that is too high. This is for obvious reasons…it can be dangerous and we don’t want kids hiding back there.

Bookcases for Classroom Library Organization

If you don’t have low, moveable bookcases, you are going to again have to get creative. Perhaps you have low cubbies. When I taught kindergarten, I had this massive space for my library. I actually purchased low garden fencing to block it off. I was a bit insane back there and was obsessed with my room but I will tell you, it was adorable. And I had this garden of books theme, but you, know, kindergarten…so it was all good.

Like I said, something simple like crates can work. And if it’s looking sad, talk about it at back-to-school night because sometimes parents, depending on where you work, might be happy to donate something. I mean, you don’t want to sound desperate, but there is nothing wrong with telling parents that your library corner is a work in progress and that if they have any low bookshelves or cubbies to donate, you would be happy to give them a good home. Definitely run this by your principal, who might then say he/she can order something for you.

A Rug Will Define the Space

I also highly, highly recommend a rug to define the space. My beautiful rug was obtained through a PTO mini-grant. I am the master at looking for resources and if you look hard enough, there is usually some way to get at least some of what you want, especially at the beginning of the year. My rug has little books bordering it. I was a bit concerned at first that it would look juvenile, but it really didn’t as everything surrounding had a very middle-school vibe.

Try for Extra Furniture

Then on the fourth side, I put a couch. It is a school-grade couch, meaning that it was vinyl but looked like leather so it could be cleaned. I got it when our principal asked if we had any “big ticket items” for the budget and I wrote an email describing how this was going to enhance literacy in my room. I can be very convincing. Sectioning off the library corner in this way makes it very functional.

There is obviously a nice gap between the couch and the low bookshelves so you can easily enter. I also put my large rocking chair in the other gap by the wall. The kids love love love this space. It probably takes up about a quarter of my room and it is right in the corner.

Schedule Kids in to Use Your Library Corner

I actually have to make a schedule of who gets to work in the library corner during reading/writing workshop times. The kids love being in there! Keep it to a simple schedule and post it. I do let 8 kids in at a time and cycle them through the week, with a random day on Fridays. It works well and I don’t mind the extra bit of work to schedule it. I want them to associate the library corner with all positive vibes.

If there are other work times during the week I do just pick randomly on class dojo…you put kids’ names in and it chooses them randomly. I found that scheduling them and doing a random selection not only helps me, but it further indicates that this is a special place because you have to actually wait your turn to use it.

Next: Decide on Book Organization

Once you have your space and your bookshelves or crates or whatever you are using, you’ll want a system for your books. with your classroom library organization. When I first got in my first big order of books, I decided to do it the way it’s done in a real library, by genre, and then within that alphabetizing by author’s last name. Going by genre was perfect…but putting in books by the author’s last name was a disaster.

I don’t know what I was thinking. Kids would be looking up the author’s last name at their desk and then forgetting it by the time they got over to the library. It was actually absurd. So I kept the genres but alphabetized them by title. I didn’t use the words “the” or “a” when alphabetizing, so for example a book like The Outsiders would go by O, not by T. I also do book clubs, so I have sets of books and I obviously keep them all together.

Consider How to Take Out Books for Classroom Library Organization

Index Card System

So taking out books…I made this way more complicated than it needed to be when I first started. My first method was to use an index card system. I put in little library envelopes in the back, put in the book info, and then they filed the card in a file box when they took it out. Then they had to put it back in.

I know it sounds simple but honestly they would forget to take it out or put it back, and the cards ended up on the floor…if you teach any grade then you know that this is your reality. And it took so long to do and wasn’t worth it in the end.

Digital Book Check-Out System

I also spent a ridiculous amount of time creating an online book checkout system. It was so laborious that I actually “hired” my daughter to help me. I used booksource, which is an online library book check out system. Then the same type of problem occurred; kids forgot to sign it out, and they forgot to digitally return it. Honestly I don’t know what is going on with this generation, but they are way too stimulated and don’t always focus on the rules.

But I have to say that it was absolutely worth doing because they could browse digitally as well. So if we were starting a new unit say, on historical fiction, they could browse the books online as a homework assignment and find 3 of their top choices.

Booksource is awesome, but again, so, so time-consuming. It is something that you will want to do little by little throughout the year so if you are doing it, I would do one unit at a time. I actually put descriptions for every book…I used Goodreads for that. I also assigned every single book a digital number, so if you borrowed, say a copy of The Book Thief, I knew which copy you took so you would have to return it.

My solution: Hybrid of digital and manual book checkout

In the end, I continued to use booksource but I also just kept a Google doc and quickly recorded kids’ books and numbers by writing it down when we started a new unit. Then when the unit was over I just called their names, and them to return it digitally and physically in the right space.

I also keep a crate for book returns so I, or a helpful student, can return books to the proper location. I find that grabbing a couple of kids during homeroom and asking them to do it works well. I’m not sure there is a perfect system for a classroom library, but this works for me.

Last Step for Classroom Libary Organization: Aesthetics and Decor

Now for the fun part…the decorative touches. I would say not to worry about this at the beginning, and that you can just do this as the year goes along. There are some things to consider.

First, I absolutely love my bean bag chairs. I have two of them and the kids love them. Again, this was part of my PTO grant. I do remember buying beanbags from Walmart when I taught first grade and they were cheap. I’m not suggesting that you use your own money, but I am guilty of this as well and I know when I have to have it, I have to have it.

I purchased really cute pillows with book designs on Amazon because I just really wanted them. If you do purchase pillows, you definitely want something where you can take them apart and wash the covers a couple of times a year.

Lighting is something that I love to use to create ambiance. The multicolor medusa lights were something I purchased and I don’t regret it at all because it just sets a vibe. I also have a little lamp that I was going to discard from home and put on the bookcase. Little battery-operated candles from Dollar Tree were another small indulgence. I do not like the harsh lighting of overhead lights, and I try to use lamps some of the time. The kids love it as well.

Little “I love reading” signs and posters will set the stage. These are things that I collect along the way, and some are actually gifts from kids. You don’t need a lot here; a couple will suffice.

A must for Decor: An Interactive Reading Bulletin Board

The one thing I would definitely recommend is some sort of reading bulletin board. If you read the last two blogs, you know that I hate setting up bulletin boards, but we obviously need them. So my qualifications for bulletin boards are that they are interactive, functional, and last the whole year. Check out my interactive bulletin board; it can be used throughout the entire year.

interactive reading bulletin board for your classroom library

I like to have kids put up reading reviews on a bulletin board that they just add to all year. So as they finish a book, they do a review and post it. I have a TPT product that has all the lettering, décor, and reading reviews included so you will be all set for the year.

free language arts bulletin board letters for subscribers only — This is a paid product, but it is free for subscribers!

You definitely want to look into this product because it will make your life easier and serve a great purpose in your room. Kids can look at each others’ reviews when deciding on their next book.

Other than that, keep the décor simple. The books are the star of the show, so you don’t need much to make it come to life, other than of course your eager little readers.