How I Organize My Middle School Classroom Library

My classroom library is the heart of my classroom, it is my pride and joy, it is what makes students and sometimes even other teachers stop and say, wow, this is where the magic happens. With close to 1500 books, my classroom library took time to build up, but is a necessity because my school was built without a library. Because of its size and because it is the only place my students can access books within the school building, the organization of my library is something I've given a lot of thought.

As you are thinking about your own classroom library, whether you are just getting it started or you are looking to overhaul your current organization system, keep in mind that you want to do what is going to work best for you and your students. The organization of your classroom library should be manageable, sustainable, and help your students find books they are interested in reading. What works for me or another teacher may not work for or be best for you or your students.

Step 1: Choose An Overall Organization Method

In my experience, there are three main ways to organize the books in your classroom library. You can organize by alphabetical order by author’s last name, which is similar to how public libraries and bookstores are organized; organize by genre, which is helpful for students who know what kinds of books they like to read; or organize by color, which is very visually appealing. Read on for some considerations for each option.

(A note: while organizing by level might be appropriate for an elementary classroom, middle  school students are not typically as routinely assessed for their reading level and may not be aware of what it is. Organizing books this way in a secondary classroom might be shaming for students at lower reading levels. However, you should make sure that your collection has books in it for a range of reading levels.)

Organizing Alphabetically By Author

This organizational method will make it easy for students to return books and help them become more aware of who their favorite authors are. Think about:

• Do you want fiction and nonfiction to be separate sections (both alphabetized), or if you are going to mix them together? 
• Will you have separate sections for graphic novels, books series, etc. that way libraries often do or will they all be part of the general mix?

Organizing By Genre

This organizational method can be more difficult for students to return books correctly and can lead to students focusing on one section of your classroom library rather than browsing it in its entirety. Think about:

• Which genres to categorize your books into?
• Will you have sections for books in different formats (graphic novels, verse novels, short story collections) or if those will all be included within their genre? 

Organizing By Color

Just thinking about this possibility makes my head want to explode and I wouldn’t recommend this method unless you have a very small number of books whose covers you can easily visualize. Think about:

• Are you familiar enough with the books in your classroom library to be able to locate them when recommending a book for a student?
• How will students be able to locate books since books by the same author, books in the same genre, and even books in a series would be separated in this method?

What I Do In My Classroom Library

I’ve done different things throughout the years depending on the number of books I’ve had in my collection, and the ages, needs, and interests of my students, but my current overall organizational method is to organize by genre. For middle schoolers, organizing this way helps them more quickly choose a book they are likely to be interested in. This year I am going to alphabetize within each genre to make books easier to return and to help students start to recognize which authors they enjoy. I also don’t want them to be totally confused when they visit the public library or a bookstore. 

Step 2: Choose One Or More Suborganization Method

After deciding to organize your classroom library by alphabetical order by author’s last name, by genre, or by color, you should consider which, if any, "suborganization" methods would benefit you and your students. This could include using stickers, labels, signs, posters and bins. Read on for some considerations for each option.

Stickers

Stickers can be placed on the books’ spines to clearly identify the first letter of authors’ last names or to highlight the genre that the book falls into. Either will make it easier for students to return books to your shelves. Think about:

• Do you have the time and materials to create a sticker system and adhere stickers to all of the books in your classroom library?
• Is your current classroom library organization working for you and your students? (Because taking stickers off is more work than putting them on)
• Are all of the books in your classroom library your personal property? If not, do you have permission to use stickers on them?

Labels

Labels can be placed on bookshelves to mark which letters or which genres are shelved there, which again can make it easier for students to return books. As you have less shelves than books and removing labels from shelves is easier than taking stickers off books, you may find this method of suborganization easier to implement. Think about:

• Do you have the time and materials to create a label system and adhere labels to all of the shelves in your classroom library?
• Is your current classroom library organization working for you and your students? (Because taking labels off is less work than removing stickers, but is still work)
• Are all of the bookshelves in your classroom library your personal property? If not, do you have permission to use labels on them?

Signs And Posters

Signs and posters can be used in similar ways to labels, but are larger and attract more attention. Signs could be placed on the shelf alongside books or hung from the ceiling above a bookcase to indicate the letters or genres that belong there. Posters could be attached to the sides of bookcases or on bulletin boards. If you are organizing by genre, signs or posters could also include definitions of the genre and examples of books students might find in that section. Think about:

• Do you have the time and materials to create signs or posters and set them up in your classroom library?
• Do you have permission to hang materials from your ceiling or attach things to the walls or bookcases if they are not your property?
• Where will you place your signs or posters to create the most clarity for students?
• Do you have space on your shelves to add signs or are they already packed with books?
• What information and images will you include on your signs or posters?

Bins

Bins can be used for so many different purposes in your classroom library. You might decide to use bins to group books by the same author together, especially if you are organizing by genre and the author writes across genres. Bins can be used to draw attention to series of books or to hold books in special formats like graphic novels, verse novels, or short story collections. Bins can also be used to group books about popular topics like sports or animals. You may decide to use bins to spotlight monthly themes like books by black authors for Black History Month or books that address mental health issues for Mental Health Awareness Month. Think about:

• How will you group books into bins: by author, series, special format, popular topics, monthly themes?
• Do you have space on your shelves for bins or could you fit more books by placing them directly on the shelf?
• Are your book experiencing more wear and tear being in bins? Would placing them upright on the shelf keep them in better condition? 
• Are students frequently browsing your bins or would the books be more visible on your shelves?

What I Do In My Classroom Library

Because I have a large collection of books, putting stickers on my books is more work than I’m willing to do. I do have signs to indicate the genres of different bookcases and I do use some bins. Right now, I have a bin for nonfiction graphic novels in my nonfiction section (my fiction graphic novels are on shelves because there’s too many of them) as well as bins for verse novels and short story collections. I currently have bins for sports books and animal books, but might do away with those since they weren’t browsed much last year. 

Finally, I have bins for checked out books, returned books, and my book hospital. The bin for books that are checked out is for students who can’t be trusted to remember to bring books back and forth from home. The return bin allows me to make sure books are being returned to the proper place; a misshelved book can be difficult to locate in a larger classroom library. Books in need of repair end up in my book hospital bin; spines can be reinforced or torn covers repaired with some clear packing tape.

Final Thoughts

There’s a lot to consider when deciding on how to organize your classroom library. Put books in alphabetical order or into genres? Stickers on books or labels on shelves? Bins or no bins? But there is no right or wrong way to organize your books, and it is completely fine to try one method out, decide it isn’t working, and try something new. What matters most is that your classroom library is organized in a way that is appealing and accessible to the students currently in your room. 

Looking for activities to help introduce your students to your classroom library and its organization? Click here to keep reading.