Friday, November 28, 2014

How to organize your classroom library with LEXILES

Hey there, it's Kristen from Easy Teaching Tools.
Over the years, I've organized my library by genres, then by Accelerated Reading (AR) level, then AR level within genres and then nothing at all!  Oh my!  I loved it because it was so organized and made this semi-perfectionist heart smile.  But with moving schools, classrooms, and states, my little library had to be sold and I started fresh.
With the new school year, I organized my books by genres.  I even made cute genre labels to stick on my cute little baskets.  My little heart began to smile again.  But I kept finding books that were NOT in the right spot.  Please tell me I'm not the only one this happens to!
Am I shocked, not at all!  They're kids, it happens.  Plus, sometimes, I don't know if the book should go in the realistic fiction basket or the funny stories one.  If I struggle as an adult finding the best place, I'm sure my kids do too.

With lexiles being everywhere with Common Core, I decided to level my library by lexile levels.  Sure, it may limit some of my kiddos, but I know they will be reading books at their level.  And as you know, groups and levels are flexible so my little guys won't stay put for long.

  • I'll monitor their progress in reading groups
  • I'll check their AR quizzes each week to make sure that they are at their independent reading level
  • I'll use Enterprise Reading (same company as AR)
It's time to get organized so here's what you need to do to level your library as well!

Want to know exactly how to do it, click on the icon below!

10 comments:

  1. Terrific post! Your library looks great! I shared on Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/pin/245305510929292767/.

    Thanks for the opportunity to win,
    Kim
    khenry22@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is really cute. I'm not entering because I already have my library sorted by topic ("Our Country," Animals," etc and then leveled, and it is working well. I just wanted to let you know that I love my library and the way I know the kids are reading at their level too. I'd never go to an un-leveled library. It is time-consuming (I used 2 sites online and still couldn't find them all) but totally worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for sharing! I have been meaning to level my books but haven't done it yet. This would be a big help to get my library more organized and help the kids find books on their level in the classroom!

    http://www.pinterest.com/pin/472244710901403798/

    Thanks for the chance to win! :)
    Mary Love
    mhouston@ufl.edu

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have over 2,000 books in my classroom library. Almost all of them have been leveled for A/R. Now, our admins are using Lexiles so we are encouraged to do the same. I would love this packet, especially if there are little elves that will arrive to do the coding for me. I shared in on my Pinterest board and on my FB page. Thanks for offering it. https://www.facebook.com/betsy.l.brown.5

    ReplyDelete
  5. I shared it on my facebook page. I'd love to win! I need to reorganize my library and this would be so helpful! Jilliancollura@gmail.com
    https://www.facebook.com/jillian.dalycollura/posts/10100469941475621

    ReplyDelete
  6. I also shared on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/rebeccamelcher/posts/10152653657248300

    Organizing by Lexile is an interesting idea that I would like to explore more. I have noticed organizing by F&P letters confuses my second graders when they go to the school and the public library. They pick books because the author's last initial is the level they are on. beckymky@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Becky,
      We did F&P last year as well! Many teachers aren't thrilled to reorganize their library, and I completely understand! Check your e mail!
      Kristen

      Delete