a library intervention {part deux}.

Last Friday, we hosted a little library intervention of sorts. Can I just say how much the little muffins L-O-V-E their new library?! Considering we went from this...

..to this...

...they were quite sure that Santa had come back for Round 2 on this 77 degree February day. That's not to say their ooh's and aah's weren't justified (and music to my infected ears) - it did take quite a bit of effort for this transformation to happen. But you already know how it came about, so let's get into today.

The little nuggets stole my heart again, y'all. In an effort to keep our library pristinely organized, we were helping our friends check the spine, title page, or cover for the author's last name, debating if Dr. Seuss books should go under "S" or "G" since his real name was Theodor Seuss Geisel, I mean...if that doesn't make your heart melt like a popsicle on the 4th of July, I don't know what will. All of that to say, they did a smashing good job adjusting to our new little system and they are so excited to have a lovely little library again!

But I still had one more project up my sleeve to make our intervention complete. When I took you on a tour of the superhero room, you might have noticed that at the very front of our room, we have some open-faced, book display cases.

Do you see them? Right underneath our ActivBoard and dry erase board, next to our coin posters. They are just some wooden display cases that have been in the school for years. I had been using them as an extension of the library with no real purpose - just one more storage area for books. But today, I decided that these could be used more as our "favorites" section of the library - to house the books that my kids are CONSTANTLY going after as well as our class-created books. I felt that if I pulled these selected books out of the library area and into a separate part of the room, it would not only prevent a scrum at the Reading Loft entrance, but it could also draw attention to our favorite authors and series that are absolutely perfect fits for our little reading levels.

So I pulled our most popular books and series from the library and created signs for the shelves so the kids would know where the books belong when they are returning them.

I attached the signs to the wooden "seat belt" with zip ties for extra security, and fifteen minutes later, we had some beautifully labeled display cases (don't mind the fact that Sheila Rae the Brave ran away when it came time for her close-up).

Now each little shelf is clearly labeled, with series title or author and a picture for easy reference!

I used DJ Inker's Doodler's Stitch font for the labels and Thistle Girl clip art for the science book picture.

• it took no more than 15 minutes to accomplish.
• it gives the kids a quick and easy reference for knowing where to find and return the books.
• it creates another "mini-library" area for the nuggets to explore.
• it highlights age-appropriate, reading-level-friendly books.

I think that our little library intervention is finally complete! Halle - to the - lujah indeed! Happy Tuesday like a Monday y'all!