Setting Up Your Classroom Library

It's that time of year again! While school is out, teachers are busy thinking up a classroom of their dreams for a fresh start come September. I'm happy to share with you how I set up my classroom library. I've received many questions about where I purchased the products I use in my library and I hope to answer them by sharing some links with you. I hope you feel inspired to create a special space of your own by the end of this post!

This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. I receive a small income each time someone makes a purchase using some of my links, which helps to support the blog.

Reading is such an integral part of first grade! Not only is first grade when students progress through the most reading levels, it's vital in establishing a love of reading! In order to instill this passion in my students, my goal was to create a safe, comfortable and most importantly, an inviting space for my students. Each year, it's clear the library is their favorite spot in the classroom!

BOOK BINS FOR YOUR LIBRARY

Book bins have been by far the biggest investment in my classroom! My second year of teaching, I chose a color scheme (brights on black) and decided to invest in a significant number of bins and I couldn't be happier! Since that year, I now have bins with all the same colors. I know how pricey they can be and how much it can add up, but I truly believe a well organized library makes such a statement in your classroom! My advice to everyone is when you find a color and style that you like, buy in bulk!



Really Good Stuff is home to some of the most durable bins! Not only do they have a variety of colors, they have many styles and sizes to suit your needs. The specific title of the larger Really Good Stuff bins used in my classroom are the "Book Baskets, Large Rectangle With Label Holders - 5-Pack Neon." I also use the "Durable Book And Binder Holders With Universal Label Holders - 5-Pack Neon " tall book bins, turned backwards. This particular style is good for maximizing space, while maintaing a clean and organized look.  



In attempt to add a budget friendly element to my space, I purchased a large number of book bins from Dollar Tree. Unfortunately the colors and specific style I use in my library are currently no longer sold. Dollar Tree does tend to switch the color schemes and styles pretty frequently so I recommending checking their website on a consistent basis. As of now, their "Colorful Square Slotted Locker Bins with Handles" are closely match to my style and color scheme. However, they are significantly larger and more square than those seen in the picture.

FURNITURE FOR YOUR LIBRARY

The next most important investment would be your shelving. It allows your books bins to appear neat and organized. I suggest white to make your color scheme really pop! The two larger white shelving pieces in my library happened to be in my classroom when I started teaching at my school. I truly believe they are hand built shelves from many years back that I painted white. However,  I have had to add additional furniture to accommodate my growing library.

When shopping around I found two options that I loved. I have purchased white shelving from Amazon that you can find here, as well as a similar model from Walmart. The Amazon shelving price was teacher budget friendly and includes a 2 or 3 shelf option, allowing you to adjust it to the height of your choice. This was perfect when accommodating to different book bin sizes. 

In addition to shelving for the books bins, I have seen teachers use unique furniture pieces to create a unique reading space. The reading bench found in my library is actually a vertical cube organizer that is laid down on it's side to create a horizontal bench. It can be found here online at Walmart for $50. It is the "Better Homes and Garden 4 Cube Organizer" and is also available with a 3 cube option if you're tight on space. I find it to be very sturdy; strong enough to hold at least 3 or 4 adults. It also doubles as storage and organization for my "teacher only books" (a.k.a. my mentor texts and read alouds). When purchasing the bench online, it includes the option to add fabric bins for the cubes. They come in a set of 2 and are perfect for all your storage needs! 

BOOK BIN LABELS FOR YOUR LIBRARY

Now that you're familiar with suggestions for where to purchase your book bins and shelving, you'll need gorgeous labels to jazz things up! Many of you have already asked me where I have purchased the book bin labels seen in many of my Instagram posts. You can find the library labels in Maria Gavin's store here on Teachers Pay Teachers. She is the genius behind Kinder Craze. It includes themed, seasonal, leveled (DRA, AR and Guided Reading) and editable labels in your choice of black or white. The product details in her store include an in depth explanation for how to customize labels and download matching fonts. Maria is so professional and so thorough that any product you purchase from her will be amazing!

I strongly encourage you to print the tables on white cardstock and laminate them for extra durability. This will prevent the edges from curling or fraying. You can find the cardstock that I used here on Amazon. It includes 250 pages for only $10! 

If you haven't already treated yourself to a personal laminator, I highly recommend it! It's perfect for finalizing projects like this! I use a Scotch laminator that you can find on Amazon here for only $29, which also includes 20 bonus laminating pouches. The package of 100 or 200 Scotch laminating pouches have been at an all time low this summer. Check out their new low prices here to stock up! 

Maria has shared that she uses hot glue to attach the laminated labels to the plastic bins. The hot glue does not melt the bin and is easy to peel off in the future incase you need to change the label. 

As if Maria's labels weren't perfect enough, there's also an extra special feature!! It includes a sticker template for each book bin label to print on Avery labels and place on the books in that bin. The picture on the sticker matches the picture on the bin label. This allows for continued organization all year long for both students and teachers. Her template is set up to print on Avery 5160 labels that you can find here on Amazon. 

I hope I was able to answer all of your questions and inspire you to begin shopping for your own library. If I happened to miss something, please feel free to comment with any questions below. Happy shopping! :)

Classroom Reveal

I have been absolutely overwhelmed and blessed with the amount of support I've gotten from readers this past year. So many of you have reached out about my classroom and asked questions or decor advice. You have given me the experience of a lifetime!

I feel it's important that you know before continuing on that it truly takes a village to create my classroom each year. Behind the scenes there are many people who come together to make this possible. Friends and family members help me laminate, cut and even take pictures.  I wouldn't have been able to do it if it wasn't for them and I am forever grateful for them for making all my classroom dreams come true! You know who you are. xoxo

Like most schools, at the end of each year, we are required to pack everything, stack up our bins and take everything off our shelves so that the furniture can be removed from the classroom to be cleaned and floors washed and waxed. I'll admit, it was a difficult thing for me to do last June after spending so many weeks setting it up last summer. I had felt like I finally found a classroom set up that suited my teaching style and a color scheme that allowed me to return to school each morning ready to start the day! That's why you may find most things in my classroom reveal will appear the same but if you take the time to notice the small details, some changes are there. :) 

First up, my desk and small group meeting area. These bins featured here are from Big Lots. They can be found each summer during their college line release, but are not usually restocked. You know what that means, when you buy them- go big or go home! Last year I wasn't able to get all the styles in the bright colors. I was late to the party haha! The green and pink bins on the lower shelves are actually spray painted. I was pleased with the coverage but I have a feeling there will be some chips by the end of the year.

I'm also sure you're wondering where these gorgeous supply labels are from. My good friend Maria Manore Gavin is a creative genius and has a true eye for design!!! They come in an editable pack (also available in white and brights) and can be found here.   

I was excited to add some additional teacher storage to my desk area. Is it just me or does it feel like you have constant piles of paper everywhere you turn, no matter how organized you think you are?  Everything now has it's own specific place. Well, at least for now.... :)

If you're looking to create a space like this, my tip for you is think about your use and practicality. The bins that you will have easiest access too are those on the top. Therefore I chose to store things I am frequently using throughout the day. 

Each year my good friend Chandra Jayne's Teacher Anchor becomes an absolute staple in my classroom!! You'll always find it within reach at my desk. This year's color scheme truly brings out all the colors of my teaching supplies (it started ever since I was a kid and has kind of become an addiction at this point ha!).  More than it's beauty, The Teacher Anchor's effectiveness and practicality is something you can't even put a price tag on. I highly recommend you check out her products over here a C. Jayne Teach !

My favorite spot in my classroom is most definitely my library! It's a place that feeds into my teacher soul and allows me to "get lost in a book." This year I was lucky enough to be able to add to my library space. Previously I had computer tables behind my library. This year, the computers and tables were removed in exchange for Chromebooks. WIN- WIN! :) I ended up pushing my library back closer toward the cubbies and extending the shelves along the wall.

How the bins are organized in my library has stayed the same. The top shelf is home to all the holiday/seasonal book bins (Fly Guy and Mo Willems in the picture to the right has since been moved). The middle and lover shelf are the leveled and chapter books. The shelves to the left feature the theme book bins.

The organization of the additional book bins also comes with purpose.

The top shelf of the addition features author book bins, while the lower incorporates characters. I feel it's important students have access to learn to "shop" for books by theme, season, just right level, character and author. 

These library labels also include a matching sticker to place on the books in each bin to ensure student organization. They are one of my favorite products purchased on TPT and can be found in Maria Manore Gavin's store here. Trust me, they are worth every penny!!  

They can also be purchased in white. *Please note they do not include the author and character labels however, it does include an editable template for you to create your own.

My library area is usually my meeting area for reader's and writer's workshop, as well as shared literacy, science and social studies. Therefore I have a chart stand that doubles as a white board. Some weeks I co-teach science/social studies so I find it's important to include enough space to add a space for teachers (or students who share) to join me up front (stool to the right). The stool is from TJ Maxx.

Since our reader's and writer's workshop monthly curriculum units usually go hand in hand, I find it's effective to group it together as one larger bulletin board.  It allows more space for anchor charts and posters.

My  writer's workshop area also includes my writing process posters. This is used as a class clip chart as we move through the writing stages each unit. The pack includes many color schemes to suit your theme. You can find them in my store here!

My library area is separate from my student book bins for reader's workshop. I find this to be effective when we transition from our mini lesson at the mat to independent reading around the room. Students can easily and *quietly* retrieve their bin. The student book bins labels can be found in Learning in Wonderland's store here. 

With the additional wall space from my library being pushed back, it also allowed extra counter space for me to display themed books. 

 I'm really excited for this space! There are so many possibilities with the extra shelf space. It is also home to our writer's workshop paper choices and writing supplies. Once again, student materials are removed from our meeting area to allow for a smoother and quieter transition from the mini lesson.

If you've been following along since the beginning, you know I'm a HUGE fan of math workshop. I am alllll about making math fun and engaging for our little learners. In order to make this successful in your classroom, you need a special space. I have created a student centered "number corner." Here you will find plenty of anchor chart space and math posters, manipulatives, games, tools and models. 

 I spend a lot of time allowing students to explore this space before moving into teaching into the rules and routines for using our number corner. The key to making it effective in your classroom is clean and clear organization. Share with your students the names on the labels and the purpose for where things are. Don't be afraid to mess it up one day to model how things should NOT look and have them work together to put things back in their place. This will build their comfort with this environment so that students know where to find things. Be sure to encourage them to get and return materials on their own.

The pink bins are our math tubs. To the left are where I store games and math models in pocket protectors. The games featured here can be found in a Math Game Bundle in my TPT store.  They are my most frequently sold product because they are easy to prep and can be used all year long! The small teal bins to the right are where students can find their "tools." I printed Reagan Tunstall's Math Tools on colored cardstock and laminated for durability. They have lasted from year to year and are the perfect support for our little learners! The teal bins and drawers are home to math manipulatives. The labels can be found in Amy Groesbeck's store here.

Many of our math routines are also seen in calendar. If you're looking to find our more about how I run calendar in my classroom, you can find a post on it here. Many of the materials here can also be found in Maria Manore Gavin's store.  What I love is that it includes many different size and colors options for you to create your own calendar space.

To the left you will find my objectives board. You can find these resources over at Amy Groesbeck's store on TPT here. It also is where I am trying out a new class goal setting system, also in her store here. 

 Next to calendar you'll find my FUNdations space, along with student material bins. As I mentioned last year, I attempt to spice up the FUNdation decor as much as possible. If you teach it, you know what I mean and I'm sure you may fee the same way. Guilty... :) It is not pictured here but I include and interactive word wall pocket chart for students to be able to take and return word cards as need.
















If you're wondering how I run and organize my classroom community supplies, view my post here.

Student seat sacks are my savior! They are going on their third year here and are holding up well! Don't worry, they are washed after each year. 

I have created editable name tags to match my theme to use in my seat sacks. They can be found here! They can be scaled to size if you're looking for additional uses for them as well. 

By accident, I was playing around with the size and printed the name tags too small BUT found that they actually made great cubby tags. I wouldn't have ever thought of using them for that purpose but was pleased to see how they came out.  They were printed on card stock and laminated for durability. If you're still reading this and not just window shopping through pictures, I truly appreciate all your support!!!!

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