A blog for school librarians, media specialists, and teachers. Find ideas for lessons, library centers, and books to read with students to support reading.
This year, I was asked to teach a library class for our 7th and 8th graders. I’ve been teaching elementary library (K–6) for a while now, but middle school is new territory for me. We’re all on the same campus, but once kids hit middle school, they kind of disappear from the library. So I was actually really excited to have a reason to bring them back in.
I spent a good chunk of my summer coming up with ideas and lessons that would get them moving and keep things interesting. For our first class this week, I did a QR code scavenger hunt, and it ended up being a total hit.
I made 30 QR codes, and when scanned, each one shows a word related to books and a few that connect to something in the library — like “pencil sharpener,” “Chromecart,” “circulation desk,” stuff like that. The students had an answer sheet with clues, and they had to scan the codes and write the correct word in the right spot.
I wasn’t sure how they’d react — middle schoolers can be a tough crowd sometimes — but they were all over it. Everyone was up out of their seat, looking around, scanning codes, finding books, and talking about what they were discovering. Not one single student said, “This is dumb” or “I don’t want to do this.” That’s a win in my book!
One group did put a book back in the wrong place, and I’m still hunting it down… but hey, small price to pay.
I’m planning to make a few more versions of this activity to use throughout the year. If you’re interested in trying it with your students, I added it to my TPT store. It’s fully editable so you can change the titles to fit your own library setup. Link is below!
One of the first things I teach at the beginning of the year is character traits. We talk about them a lot all year long, so it’s important to make sure students really understand what they are from the start. And honestly, this lesson is always one of my favorites — it’s fun, easy to connect to, and gets great conversations going.
I start by showing my character traits anchor chart that hangs on the whiteboard at the front of the room. We go over what a character trait is and the difference between inside traits (like how a character feels or acts) and outside traits (like how they look or dress).
Once we have discussed character traits I read a picture book that really shows character traits in action. I encourage them to think about the character traits as they listen to the story. After we read, I have students raise their hands and share a trait they noticed. After they identify the trait they tell me if it’s an inside or outside trait. Simple, but powerful — and the kids get it.
Here’s what I read by grade level:
Kindergarten – Grumpy Monkey We talk about feelings and how Jim shows them, even if he says he’s “fine.” It’s a great way to start talking about inside traits.
1st Grade – The Recess Queen This one always gets good reactions. We talk about how kids act when they want friends and how behavior shows what’s going on inside.
2nd Grade – Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon The kids love Molly Lou. We notice how she looks different (outside trait) but also how brave and confident she is (inside trait).
3rd Grade – The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes This one brings out some great connections. We talk about how the character feels pressure to be perfect and what happens when she finally messes up.
4th Grade – A Bad Case of Stripes Such a fun book! We dig into how the main character changes and what she learns about being herself. Lots of inside traits to explore.
5th Grade – The Paper Bag Princess This one always surprises them. We talk about bravery, confidence, and how the princess is different from what they expect.
By the end, students are usually excited to share traits, and they’re already starting to think a little deeper about the characters in books. It’s an engaging way to start working on story elements — and they don’t even realize how much they’re learning because they’re having so much fun with the books.
One of my favorite ways to kick off the school year in the library is with a good old-fashioned game of “Would You Rather”—library-style! It’s a simple, fun activity that helps me get to know the kids and gets them learning a little bit about each other too. Plus, it gets them moving, which is always a win!
I use a Google Slides version of the game that I project on the whiteboard. Each slide has a fun, library-themed question with two choices (A or B), and students move to the side of the room that matches their answer. Example: “Would you rather read books that make you laugh or books that make you scared?” Boom—movement, laughter, and instant conversation starters.
As a library teacher, I only see students twice a week, so I don’t get the same daily time with them that their classroom teachers do. That’s why I try to be intentional about relationship-building right from the start. This game gives me a peek into their personalities and interests in a low-pressure way. And honestly, it’s just fun to see what they pick!
It’s also great for helping students learn about their classmates. They get to see who shares their love of fantasy books or who’s also into listening to audiobooks instead of reading print. It’s quick, interactive, and gets us all smiling and talking—exactly how I want the year to start.
If you’re looking for a simple way to connect with students and build community in your library space, give it a try. The Google Slides version I use is available in my TPT store if you want to grab it and use it with your own classes. You might just learn who would rather read a book that smells like cookies or read a book that makes noises when you turn the page—and that’s important stuff to know.
Summer is my time to relax and decompress from the busy school year. I think it’s so important to recharge after a busy, hectic, stressful school year. I spend the first part of my summer resting, binge-watching favorite shows, and enjoying time with family and friends doing all the fun summer things.
Around mid-July, I start to slowly shift back into school mode. I don’t go full speed, but I begin doing little things that help me feel more prepared for the new year. I’m always reading new books so I can have fresh titles to share with my students in the fall. As I am reading I am adding books to my Amazon wishlist. This helps me have my first book order partially completed before I even get back to school.
One thing I try to keep up on is making sure that my Donors Choose page is updated. If I’m lucky enough to have a project funded, I try to post a new one right away. So far this summer, I’ve had two projects funded and I’m so thankful for the kind people who made that happen. This means I have created two new book projects and posted them. I usually try to keep at least two live book projects going at a time. There is also a match day coming up so I am working on adding two extra projects…just in case. It is definitely worth the time to create and post projects to add books to your library.
Another thing I focus on in the summer is my Teachers Pay Teachers shop. I try to keep a running list of ideas I have throughout the year and focus on getting them completed over the summer. During the school year, there’s just not enough time to get everything done, so summer is the perfect time to add new resources, write blog posts, and get my shop ready for back-to-school shoppers.
In early August, I like to go into school for a day or two to get my bulletin boards done before our in-service days begin. Once the meetings start, there’s barely time to do it all. I enjoy being back in the library, getting things organized for the first day and enjoying the peace and tranquility of my library. I sharpen pencils, refill crayon totes, replace broken erasers, and tidy up cupboards that got a little wild at the end of the year and just try to get to those little things that will make the first day run a bit smoother.
I know that working over contract hours is controversial to some. Even though I try not to let school take over my whole summer, I’ve learned that a little prep now saves a lot of stress later. This fall will be year 33 for me, and that’s one thing I’ve figured out over time—being just a little ahead makes a big difference in how I feel the first week of school. We all have to do what works best for our own situation and for me a few days doesn’t seem like I am overdoing it or giving too much of my time.
I hope you’re enjoying your summer break. Take care, relax, and recharge—you’ve earned it!
The first week back in the library is always exciting, and this year will be no different! We will spend the first visit talking about library rules, book care, and how to be respectful and responsible with our library materials. We will also go over basic classroom rules focusing on being respectful, responsible, and safe. It’s so important to set the stage for a great year of reading, and that all starts with knowing the basics.
For each grade, we will read a different book related to library skills and book care. I read a different book to each grade level so that they are not getting the same books year after year. With the younger kids we will read about how to treat books gently, and older grades discussed things like where books live in the library and how to find what they need. After reading, we always have a great discussion about the key points from the book, like why it’s important to keep our books in good shape and return them on time.
Then comes the best part: the first checkout of the year! I love that everyone gets to check out books on day one—yes, even the Kindergarten students! Some like to make them wait or limit them to books they keep in class but I let them check out and take home. These young readers are just as excited to take books home as the older kids, and in fact, they are often the best at bringing them back because parents seem to be more involved and on top of returning weekly.
The first day is always full of energy, excitement, and a lot of book love. It’s a great way to kick off a year of reading, learning, and growing in the library! Looking forward to another fun and productive year ahead.
St. Patrick’s Day isn’t just about wearing green or hunting for four-leaf clovers—it’s also a fantastic opportunity to share stories that bring the magic of Ireland to life. Read-alouds are a great way to engage kids and ignite their imagination while introducing them to the rich culture and folklore of this festive day.
Whether you’re reading about leprechauns, shamrocks, or the legend of St. Patrick, these books offer a perfect blend of fun and learning. Not only do read-alouds help improve literacy skills, but they also create lasting memories and spark conversations about Irish traditions.
Some fantastic St. Patrick’s Day-themed read-alouds that I share with my students include:
How to Catch a Leprechaun by Adam Wallace – A playful, rhyming story about mischievous leprechauns and clever traps.
The Night Before St. Patrick’s Day by Natasha Wing is a festive and fun twist on the classic “Night Before Christmas” rhyme. The story follows two children eagerly preparing for St. Patrick’s Day.
Fiona’s Luck by Gail Gibbons – A charming Irish folk tale that reimagines a classic legend with a delightful twist. Follow along as Fiona outwits the leprechauns with her quick thinking and courage.
The Luckiest St. Patrick’s Day Ever! by Teddy Slater – A delightful story that follows a young boy named Sean as he celebrates St. Patrick’s Day with his family. Sean believes this will be the best St. Patrick’s Day ever, but when his plans to find a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow don’t go as expected, he learns that true luck comes from the love and joy of family and friends.
Pete the Cat: The Great Leprechaun Chase by Kimberly and James Dean – When Pete hears about a leprechaun who might have hidden a pot of gold, he decides to go on a chase to find it.
Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola – A humorous Irish folktale about a lazy man named Jamie O’Rourke. One day, Jamie’s wife falls ill, and it’s up to him to grow a potato for their dinner. However, Jamie’s laziness leads to a surprising outcome—a giant potato that he can’t handle on his own.
Green Shamrocks by Eve Bunting – Rabbit is growing shamrocks in a pretty yellow pot–he’s getting them ready for St. Patrick’s Day so he can wear them for the parade! When his pot of beautiful green shamrocks goes missing, he goes searching . . . will he find them in time?
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Clover by Lucille Colandro – A fun twist on the classic “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly” rhyme, with a St. Patrick’s Day theme.
The Luckiest Leprechaun by Bryce Dallas Howard – A story about a young leprechaun named Finn who is known for his luck. Despite his good fortune, Finn feels a little lonely and longs for a true friend to share his luck with.
So, gather around, open a book, and let the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day fill the room with joy and excitement through the magic of storytelling.
Are you looking for some fun book activities to use with students? Here are a few that I use:
I love having library centers available for students to use after our read aloud or lesson. Library centers can provide another opportunity for students to practice library skills, writing, reading comprehension, vocabulary development, and much more under the disguise of playing games.
I have talked about Shark Bite! card games to practice book genres in another post so if you are interested feel free to check that one out. This time I wanted to share some fun matching games that are very popular with my students.
Book Genre Puzzle Matching Game
For this library center you will need to create some type of small puzzles that have book genre name, definition, and a picture to represent the genre if possible. Cut them into puzzle type pieces for students to spread out and then put back together matching the definitions with the genres. My students like to compete to see who can match the most. They also can be played individually with the student just trying to match all the correct genres to create the puzzles.
Book Genre Memory Matching Game
This one is great for students who love to play the memory game. Create cards with a picture representing the genre on one and the definition of the genre on another. These will be the matching cards students will try to match. Students will turn the cards face down on the table and then take turns trying to find the matching cards. Once all of the cards have been matched the one with the most matches wins.
Both of these activities are a fun way for students to practice book genres. Providing many options for library cents will help keep students from becoming bored which can then lead to behavior issues or disruptions. I
If you would like some premade matching activities you can find them on my TPT page.
As we choose picture and chapter books to share with our students via read alouds or on our shelves, it is important to remember that they can be powerful tools to help shape young minds. In this mission to provide books that serve as windows and doors to all of our readers it is imperative we bring books with strong male protagonists to our young readers.
Positive Masculinity Representation
Providing books that have male characters who display empathy, kindness, respect, and emotional intelligence shows boys that it’s okay to show vulnerability and caring. These qualities can help bring a more rounded view of masculinity, possibly countering stereotypes that may limit emotional expression or compassion in boys.
Diverse Role Models
When boys encounter a variety of male characters with different experiences, personalities, and backgrounds, they learn that there is no single way to “be a man.” These characters can range from adventurous heroes to thoughtful leaders to young men struggling with mental or physical illnesses all broadening their understanding of who they can be.
Problem-Solving and Resilience
Male characters who overcome challenges, whether through intelligence, perseverance, or teamwork, help teach boys resilience. Seeing male characters work through difficult situations fosters a growth mindset and a belief in their own ability to solve problems.
Encouraging Emotional Expression
Books with male characters who express and process their feelings in healthy ways help boys understand that emotions are natural and should be acknowledged, not hidden or pushed aside.
Supporting Positive Relationships
Male characters in picture and chapter books can model positive relationships, whether with family, friends, or peers. Boys learn about friendship and the importance of mutual respect in these interactions.
Cultural and Social Awareness
Male characters in diverse settings and stories provide important lessons in cultural sensitivity and social awareness. They can show boys how to interact with people from different backgrounds, teaching acceptance and empathy from a young age.
Promoting Gender Equality
By featuring male characters who support and respect female characters, picture books can also model gender equality. Boys learn early on that valuing others and working together is important, regardless of gender.
In short, male characters in picture and chapter books can be essential role models who teach young boys about emotional health, problem-solving, empathy, resilience, and equality. The lessons they impart can significantly shape boys’ development into well-rounded, compassionate, and self-assured individuals.
There is much more to being a library teacher than simply reading a book. With all the duties we have in the library, on top of lesson planning, there are times when it can seem overwhelming trying to figure out what to teach next. Yesterday was one of those days for me. So, I went back to my planner (I use Planboard Chalk because it is free and easy to use) and looked at what I did last year in January. I found this easy lesson for Arnie the Doughnut that the kids loved. Remember lessons don’t always need to be a complex dog and pony show. It is okay to share a good book and then give students something fun to do that ties into it that doesn’t take a lot of prep work.
Arnie the Doughnut by Laurie Keller
I love this book and so do the kids. I use it with my first grade classes and they are always asking if we can read it again. For this one I simply went and found a free coloring sheet online. I typed in “Arnie the Doughnut coloring sheet” and found this one by Scholastic. It was perfect.
Since my admin wants the library to be “a class” I try to add more to their lesson than just a coloring sheet. Since we were reading about a doughnut I chose to use a worksheet that started with the letter D. Again I searched for free letter D worksheets and found one I liked. Then I simply printed the coloring sheet and the letter D worksheet back to back. And just like that I had a fun lesson (and educational) to go with the book.
Potato Pants by Laurie Keller
Once you find a good book it is then easy to find other books by the same author to use in your library lessons. Laurie Keller has written so many good books it is easy to keep going with her books and add more fun lessons to your classes.
Potato Pants is always a hit. I also use this one with my first grade classes but it could easily be used with younger or older students. There are tons of fun ideas you can use with this book to have kids decorate and make potato pants. Some people use actual potatoes and put fabric on them. Some use pictures of a potato and add fabric clothes. I choose to use an activity where kids color the clothes on their potato and other fruits and vegetables in a coloring page format.
The activity I like to do for this one takes a couple visits but the students have a blast working on it. I found this lesson idea on Facebook from the Clever Librarian. No cost other than your time to draw some fun looking fruits and vegetables. Don’t worry if you are not an artist, I definitely am not, but found it easy to draw these funny looking pictures from the students to color. It does take a bit of prep work to make the little Potato Pants coloring pages but once you do it one year, save the template and then you have it for years to come.
Once you have drawn your different fruits and vegetables on the coloring pages. Staple the edges along the long side of the paper to make a book. Cut the pages in half but not all the way across. This way the top and bottom can fold open and then the outfits are interchangeable for the different fruits and vegetables. My classes love showing each other how they colored their pants for the different pages. It is definitely an activity worth adding to your lessons.
Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller
Do Unto Otters is a wonderful book to use for an SEL lesson. We can never give students too many reminders about how to treat others kindly and with respect. After we read and discuss this book I use my Google Slides reading Companion activity. Prep time for this lesson is super easy. All you have to do is add it to their Google classroom, make a copy for each student, and assign.
This lesson is a tech related lesson so students get to practice library skills and some basic tech skills at the same time. As students go through the lesson they will do predictions, story elements, and write three ways they can be friendly, considerate, kind, honest. Then at the end they can use the scribble line tool to solve a maze. This is just another way to keep students engaged and learning in the library.
I have give you three books by Laurie Keller to use but you can find more and use some simple ways to add fun and learning to your library lessons. I hope these ideas were helpful to you as you continue your journey to make your library a special place of learning and fun.
Are your library centers starting to get a bit stagnant? Looking for new ideas on how to make centers fun and educational? Well, don’t worry, I have you covered. Time to add another fun game to your bag of tricks with Shark Bite! This is a perfect way for students to practice library skills in centers while having fun.
Shark Bite! is a fun card game that is perfect for elementary library centers. The game is similar to Kaboom! but with some more intense action cards to add to the fun. The goal is to get as many cards as possible by naming the book genre of each but some of the cards work for or against the students. If they pull an Octopus card they have to put a card back, an Angler Fish card they switch hands with another player, and a SHARK BITE card means they have to put all of their cards back in the bucket/pile. The library breaks out is excitement when they pull these ocean animal cards and have to give up their cards or switch hands.
How to Play Shark Bite
Print out the cards ( I like to use card stock and laminate to make them last) and put them into a bucket or pile.
Player draws a card, reads the card, and then chooses which genre that book or story would be placed.
If player gets it right they keep their card. If they get it wrong the card is placed back in the bucket or pile.
If a player draws a card with one of the ocean animals they have to follow the instructions for that animal.
The game continues until all of the cards are gone.
The student with the most cards at the end is the winner.
I have one student act as “Expert” to hold the answer key and make sure everyone is getting the correct book genre.
As you can see, this game can be done with any concept, just switch book genre with one of the other library related Shark Bite! cards.
Secret fact about the game…IT NEVER ENDS. Eventually, somebody gets a Shark Bite! card which means they have to put their cards back in the bucket thus adding to the cards in the bucket over and over again. For library teachers this means students are engaged and learning the full 10 to 15 minutes of the library centers rotation.
