CLASSROOM LIBRARIES Sandi Novak Why was the topic, Classroom Libraries, selected? I can think of at least 3 reasons. First, in order to increase IR in the lives of all children, we need to examine a number of factors with the first being access to books. Second, the CCSS #10 lays out the expectation that students will “read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.” While this standard does not explicitly state that IR must occur during the school day, it does make IR a requirement at all grade levels. And, it specifies WHAT students should be reading – complex texts from a variety of genre. Third, all 8 of the schools in the MIRS project found out that they needed to provide enhancements to their classroom libraries. Over the next 45-minutes, you will learn about: Some research that supports the need for students to have access to texts from their classroom libraries How to assess whether your classroom libraries are meeting the needs of students through the use of a classroom library checklist Some of the characteristics that comprise effective library areas that encourage independent reading What you might think about after you receive the data from the classroom library checklist Sandi Novak

Allington & Cunningham, 2007; Krashen, 1998 IMPORTANCE Students are likely to spend more time reading when they are in classrooms with adequate classroom libraries ▪▪▪ Allington & Cunningham, 2007; Krashen, 1998 Students with ready access to books in their schools and classroom are far more likely to read than students who don’t have this access (Kim, 2003).

RESEARCH Large school and classroom libraries and access were strong predictors of high scoring countries High income areas have 4,000 times the number of books available to them Rich literacy environments and a teacher’s use of instructional strategies and materials that go beyond the basics of teaching reading can compensate for less than ideal home environments CONCLUSION: Because more and more students today do not have access to books at home, it is paramount to level the playing field by providing books in classrooms Elley (1992) looked at reading achievement of children in 32 countries and found 2 things about high scoring countries: 1) had large school and classroom libraries and 2) provided students with greater access to books at home, in community libraries, and in school. Krashen, Lee, and McQuillan (2012) found that access to books in school and public libraries was a significant predictor of 4th grade reading scores on both the 2007 NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) and the 2006 PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) an international reading assessment of 4th grade students in 14 countries. Access to books is not the same for all children. Socioeconomic status dramatically impacts access. Neumann (1999) found that high income students have access to 4,000 times the number of books of low-income students. There are a number of factors that may contribute to this statistic: children in high income areas have more books in their homes, more access to books in public libraries, and more opportunity to find books in grocery stories or community book it is paramount to level the playing field by providing books in classrooms. Because more and more students today do not have access to books at home, Snow and other researchers in 1991 found that rich literacy environments and a teacher’s use of instructional strategies and materials that go beyond the basics of teaching reading can compensate for less than ideal home environments.

BASALS No basal reading series contains enough reading material to develop high levels of reading proficiency in children Allington 2006 Basal readers are used in 80-90% of classrooms (Baumann, et.al., 2000) In my school district, we adopted our last basal series about 15 years ago. But, when we went through a curriculum adoption in 2006, we had representatives from a number of companies give presentations about their programs, resources or offerings. One of the presentations by a company with basal readers described that all students read the on-grade level anchor text selection within the basal. Then there were accompanying below level and above level readers for students to read around a similar theme as the anchor selection. They suggested a new anchor story could be introduced each week. Rather than adopting another basal series, we broke with tradition in 2006 and ended up spending about $2M, all of our curriculum resources, to enhance every classroom library within the district. Richard Allington advocates that reading text from a basal reading series does not contain enough reading material to develop high levels of reading proficiency in children. This does not mean that schools cannot use basal readers; but, it does mean that schools should consider supplementing basal reading with trade book resources. Students prefer reading trade books to basals (Ivey &Broaddus, 2001) Despite increased emphasis on reading instruction, only 18 minutes of 90 minute instruction is spent in actual reading (Brenner, et.al., 2007) For silent reading periods to produce significant comprehension gains for all readers, teachers must monitor, intercede, reteach, and assess students individually (Block & Pressley, 2007)

WHERE TO BEGIN INVENTORY Size of library Variety of genre Range of reading titles Current titles added regularly Cunningham and Allington (2006), Routman in 2003 and Tunnell and Jacobs in 2008 suggest that effective library areas have certain characteristics that encourage voluntary reading. The first thing a school can do to find out if you are Core Ready and have set the proper environment to promote independent reading is to inventory each classroom library in your school using a checklist. The original checklist in Moss and Young’s book contains 22 characteristics that I have compressed into 10 for our work later this morning. But in your handouts you will have an adapted inventory checklist you can take with you and use in your schools. Each of the characteristics contained on the checklist has been identified either through research or best practices. It’s important to understand why these items are on the list so we’ll go through a few of them together.

NUMBER OF BOOKS MATTERS Guthrie (2000) – many trade books in classrooms predicted gains on statewide reading, writing, and science tests Krashen (2004) – having more books in the classroom leads to more voluntary reading and higher achievement There is no readily agreed upon formula for an adequate number of books in a classroom library. Richard Allington reported that in a fourth grade classroom you probably need 500-1000 titles to find books for 90% of the kids. He recommends between 700-750 for primary grades and 400 for upper grades. Fountas and Pinnell recommend a total classroom collection size of 300-600 SUGGESTION: Begin with a goal of 300 in each classroom. When you achieve that goal work to increase by X% each year This is probably your first priority in addressing your students’ access needs. In order for students to read widely from different genres that are appropriate to each student’s reading level and interest, you need a large collection of books.

DIVERSE GENRES Range of nonfiction text with a variety of informational text and text structures Contains an assortment of magazines, electronic texts, newspapers, graphic novels and other text formats Balance of nonfiction/fiction Range of reading levels & complexity In order to become successful readers, students need exposure to a variety of genres. In many classrooms, if not most, access is largely defined by state-adopted basal readers that have traditional provided students with exposure to a narrow range of text types (Moss, 2008). Let’s refer back to the checklist. Four items on the checklist contain items about diverse genre. They are listed on this slide. Why is it important to respond to each of these items? Explain the difference between looking for balance of nonfiction/fiction as compared to finding out if the classroom library has a range of nonfiction text with a variety of informational text and text structures. How does the range of reading levels and complexity fit in this section?

TEACHER SURVEY Understanding & Use 97% have good or expert understanding of having students read self-selected books 77% have students read DAILY using self-selected books 88% have students select books from a wide, diverse collection of books at least 2 times per week 41% have a minimum of 300 books 59% have a range of reading levels & complexity 40% have a balance of fiction & nonfiction 11% contains assortment of magazines, graphic novels… Approximately 200 teachers in 8 schools completed a teacher survey about their understanding of key characteristics of strong IR cultures. This survey also inquired about teachers use of these identified criteria. To indicate their understanding, teachers were asked to rate themselves using a 5-point scale: 1 No understanding, 2 limited understanding; 3 developing understanding; 4 good understanding; 5 expert understanding. 97% have good or expert understanding of having students read self-selected books We can then compare teachers’ understanding with what they reported as their use of an important characteristic. To indicate their use, teacher were asked to rate themselves again using a 5-point scale: 1 rarely or never use or do; 2 use or do 1-2 times a year; use of do 1-2 times per month; use or do 1-2 times per week; use or do daily. 77% have students read DAILY using self-selected books One can also compare the data on the teacher survey to the classroom library checklist. 88% have students select books from a wide, diverse collection of books at least 2 times per week 41% have a minimum of 300 books 59% have a range of reading levels & complexity 40% have a balance of fiction & nonfiction 11% contains assortment of magazines, graphic novels… In my former work as a district leader, we tried to triangulate data – get it from a number of sources. You could add in the Walkthrough data which gives information about IR on a given data to paint a picture of what students read during the day to be the third leg of the stool. This data is something to ponder. If you go back to your school and administer the classroom library checklist you can think about your results in a similar way. To grow independent reading in schools, students need access to a wide, diverse collection of books.

CLASSROOM LIBRARY ACTIVITY Classroom Library Checklist (work with partner) Complete Classroom Library Survey during the scheduled time for your table Individual Student Needs addressed (Work individually) Choose a name of a fourth grade student from table Read student’s IR history and Lexile Level Find 1-3 books and bring them back to your table Set up activity: Describe thinking process of creating the library and read directions. Debrief the classroom library checklist activity: I am going to poll the responses you had to just 5 of the ten areas by having you hold up a red card if you responded by answering “no;” yellow for “making progress,” green for “yes” A minimum of 300 books in the classroom collection (YES) Range of nonfiction text with a variety of information text and text structures (YES) Range of reading levels and complexity (YES) Library is organized in multiple ways (by level, genre, authors…) (YES) There is comfortable seating or carpeting (YES) To dig deeper into the collection of the library we need to examine the book selection more closely. The best way to do that task is to think about a typical group of fourth grade students. This is a typical fourth grade class of 27 students with diverse reading levels and interests. We want our classroom collection to help students develop a love for reading and to experience growth as readers. Raise your hand if you were able to find at least one book for the student you had on the name card. Stand up if you were not able to find a book for the student described on your index card. What prohibited you from finding a book to fit this student?

Review the data and think about the school’s needs DATA ACTIVITY Review the data and think about the school’s needs What is the status of your school’s classroom library collection? What areas may you need to address? What is your first priority? What additional information do you need? Next, the 8 principals from the MIRS project are each sitting at a table and prepared to assist with this next activity. Each of these principals had teachers complete the Classroom Library Checklist and can talk to you about that experience. You might want to know about the status of their schools’ classroom library collection, areas that need to be addressed, how they established priorities to address those needs, and any additional information they need in order to make decisions about providing access to a diverse collection of books. We are going to reconvene in about 20 minutes as a large group. You can either stay here or find another place to go.

EQUITY means everyone has access to just right books contained within a rich, diverse collection of books in the classroom library. EQUALITY means everyone has access to a rich, diverse collection of books in the classroom library. I used to think it was a teacher’s responsibility to create, build, and add to a classroom library. But, as I got into classrooms across my school district of about 350 elementary classrooms and saw how some of the schools with more affluent populations had better access to more books and how classrooms even within those schools with affluent populations differed in the size of their classroom libraries, my thinking changed. I guess at the time I was working through equality and equity issues as they apply to classroom libraries, but just now can articulate the difference. To me: EQUALITY means everyone has access to a rich, diverse collection of books in the classroom library. EQUITY means everyone has access to just right books contained within a rich, diverse collection of books in the classroom library. Sandi Novak. February 2014.

FLUID JUST RIGHT Could a book… that’s easy to read be just right for a child working on fluency? above a child’s level be just right if he has extensive background and/or is highly motivated to read it? be just right for a child working on comprehension if the words are easy to read, but the content is challenging? that’s easy to read be just right for the child who needs to build background knowledge on a specific topic? Just right books does not mean to lock students into reading books from their corresponding Lexile Levels. So, going back to the previous slide on equality and equity, I told you my thinking has changed. My new thinking is that if we are concerned about providing equality and addressing equitable practices within our schools, we can no longer rely on teachers to personally fund their classroom libraries. That new thinking would require me as a leader to take action. I believe that’s why every one of the 8 principals involved in the MIRS project has started to address classroom libraries.

NEXT STEPS How will this information be used at your school? How can Scholastic help address the needs within your school?