Classroom Library

Teachers love books! Every classroom I have been in has a classroom library. Teachers spend lots of money and collect books through the years. There needs to be a system in place to keep track of them. Start a spreadsheet that lists the title and author of the books you have. You could even add a column for AR book level and AR points. This gives you an inventory of your books. Develop a checkout system. One teacher I know has a file box and creates an index card for each book he has. He files them in alphabetical order. When a student checks out a book, they put their name and date on that book's card. When they check in the book, he crosses their name off. He puts the check out cards in a separate section at the front of the file box. He can tell at a glance how many books are out. Periodically, he checks these cards to see if anyone has kept a book for more than a month. Another teacher I know also has an index card for each book, but she keeps the card in the book. If a student checks it out, they put their name and date on the card and give it to her. She files it in a small card file. When they return the book, she crosses off their name and puts the card back in the book.