The Benefits of a Themed Library System in Kindergarten

When I first started teaching, I was stuck on how to organize my library. Some teachers organize by reading level, others by theme, some by genre and I wasn’t sure what would be the best way to organize for my kindergarten classroom. After thinking about it, I decided to organize my library by theme and I am so grateful I did because it’s been the perfect system for my room. Here are the benefits I’ve found to having a themed library system in kindergarten.

The Benefits of a Themed Library System in Kindergarten

Students Search by Interests

When your library is arranged by theme, students pick out books that look interesting to them. In kindergarten, most students can’t read so they pick books to look at the pictures. By organizing books by theme, kinder students find reading to be fun because they’re not worried about the words but what the picture shows. This way of organizing can spark a student’s curiosity to the world of reading. There’s a lot of power in choice and arranging your library by theme gives them many choices!

They’re Exposed to Many Different Words and Vocabulary

Organizing by theme exposes students to many different words and vocabulary. When books are arranged by level, a student who reads at an “A” might only see words like The cat sat on the mat. This is great when students are starting to decode and recognize sight words but it’s not great for vocabulary. Early on in the year, I teach my students how to read through pictures. I also teach them that in a story the pictures match the words. So a student interested in volcanos might pick a book with a volcano on the front cover and be able to match that the word is volcano because it starts with a “v” sound. A themed library gives students of all levels a chance to broaden their vocabulary.

Eliminates Competition

A library organized by theme eliminates competition in reading. I absolutely do not support telling kindergarten students their reading levels. This can make low readers feel horrible about themselves and high readers feel like their better than their peers. With such a reading range in the lower grades, it’s best to keep their reading levels between the teacher and the parents. When you organize books by theme, it doesn’t matter if an “A” level book is in with the “G” level. It also doesn’t matter if an “A” level reader picks the “G” level book. In kindergarten, I believe it’s so important to just get them exposed to books and words. There’s a time and a place for leveled reading (guided reading/literacy centers) but your library is not one.

Tips to Organizing Your Library

Color Code Your Themes

I put colored stickers on all my books as well as the bin that those books go in. This makes it so kindergarten students are able to keep the books organized. Each week, a student gets to be the librarian. When they’re the librarian, they take the books from our purple bin (where students put books their done with) and put them away according to their colored sticker. Students love a chance to help and kindergarten students are very capable of keeping things organized, you just have to give them the tools!

Separate Non-Fiction and Fiction

Non-fiction and fiction is something we talk about often in kindergarten. Students learn about real stories and fantasy. I find that it’s best to separate these types of books since they are very different.  I  have non-fiction bins for animals, science, social studies and math books.

Save Seasonal Books for the Season

To add excitement in your library, only put your seasonal or holiday books out when the holiday is near. My students love when I change our seasonal books. They know right away because I have a hanging bookshelf that holds all those holiday books. I put them on top of our bookcases as well. This puts them on display and makes them special.

 

There are many ways to organize your classroom library but I’ve found so many benefits to arranging my library by theme. How is your library organized for your students?

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