I have spent all summer organizing our Leveled Reader/Literacy Library Book Room. To see the before pictures, click this link. Teachers in my school started the last week in August.

Teachers were busy with workshops, meeting, room arranging and decorating.  I decided to offer Brownies in the Book Room during the afternoon before Open House.

I was busy doing reading evaluations on new students, so I left the brownies, chocolate, caramel, and whipped topping on the table.  I had decorated the Book Room like a party and forgot to take pictures. 🙁

I felt like Sally Field

Using that infamous clip when Sally Field accepts her Oscar for Norma Rae, when I returned to Book Room later in the day, half the brownies were gone and the notes were left on the table.

They liked it! They liked it! I was so excited!

Book Room Etiquette

There had been issues in the past with the check-out system not being understood, not being used, and everything ending in disarray.  I wanted to replace the original check-out system with a check-out system that was easy to use.

I figure the easier it is, the more it will be use.  I posted the Book Room Etiquette posters in two different places in the room.

book room Leveled Readers

Essentially everything in the Book Room can be divided into 2 sets: Leveled Readers and Resource Materials.  The first pockets in the Book Room are for checking out leveled readers.

Teachers add their index cards to the pocket on the box as they take the bag of books they are borrowing.

book room Resource Materials

All other materials in the Book Room (books on tape, big books, games, letters, pre-made literacy centers,  materials for gifted education, and the professional library) had a pocket and a card for check-out.

Teachers place the card from the resource in their second pocket.

I’m pretty excited about the Book Room.  I feel like my heart and soul went in the Book Room this summer, but when one of my told me MY Book Room looked great, I was quick to tell her, “It’s not MY Book Room, it’s yours.”

I mean it. My biggest hope was that teacher’s will use it!

I hope you have enjoyed my quest to build a better book room.  I could have never gotten it done during one summer if it wasn’t for friends who helped, my sons who worked, and my mom is was my “pocket put-it-on-er.”

I will say if there was a Book Room Organizer job, I’d love it!

There are so many Book Room organization ideas on Pinterest.