My Classroom Library: The Sequel

So, you have may have read my post about my classroom library. You can see what I use and how I organize them all here. It has been so great to hear from so many people! I love seeing all kinds of library ideas and how unique they are.

As it seems to go this time of the year, Back To School brings lots of new: new supplies, new backpacks, new rooms..... new grade levels!

After three years in first grade and seven years in second, this year I am moving to third grade! And as all of you know, with a new space comes new challenges opportunities. This means I made some changes to my classroom library.



A common comment I heard about the way I organize my classroom library is "Wow, you must have so much space in your room!" Really, I didn't. The photo looks much bigger than in person.

However, this year, I have even less space. One of the greatest things about using the three-drawer Sterilite tubs is the flexibility I have in arranging the space how I want it. Well, this year, I put it to the test!

After spending an entire day rearranging furniture with no luck, I finally accepted the fact that I wouldn't be able to fit my library in the space I was used to. So, the first change I made was transforming my three-drawer tubs into four-drawer tubs. As if these needed another way to be awesome, you can pull each section apart.

You will feel like you are breaking them. You aren't!

Just pull up on the white parts and they will snap apart. They can then stack together like Legos. I did have a few extra tops left over, so I threw them in the closet and closed the door found a perfect place to store them nicely.

I pulled enough apart to add a fourth drawer to each stack. I also packed away some drawers I knew I wouldn't be using this year. All in all, I reduced the space from 14 stacks to 11 stacks. It does make them taller, so be sure the topmost drawers are not heavy! Having bigger kiddos this year, I felt comfortable going higher.

The other big change was that I decided to run them in one straight line across the back wall of my classroom. This opened up enough space for me to comfortably fit in student desks while still having a defined space for our library.

With older kiddos, I also added more chapter books. Some of them are within the leveled drawers, and some of them are on top in green baskets sorted by series. This year, I was also able to use the label pockets from Target that I love so much!

BUT, since the baskets are tiny, I made smaller labels and just cut the pockets. Now they all look uniform. You can grab the half-sized editable labels for free here {or the full sized editable labels here}.

Read about the drawers and labels I use as well as how I organize them here.

I'm excited about the new space I've created and I can't wait to see how it goes. The important thing is that my kiddos have lots of books to dive into all year! Happy 17-18 School Year!