go to the library | Always Your Librarian

Welcome to a new blog series: GO TO THE LIBRARY WITH _____. Today’s guest library visitors: ANNA & ELSA of FROZEN fame.

Ever wonder what would happen if Anna & Elsa came to your school library? No, they wouldn’t make it a frozen tundra of ice and desolation. But they would come in singing their most famous song: Let it go! Let it go! And in the library, those lyrics refer to one thing: weeding the collection.

Let. It. Go.

Let go of the old, tired books – especially those with outdated information.

Let go of the old award-winner that hasn’t circulated in too many years.

Let go of the books that may have been acceptable at one time but aren’t now that we know better.

Let go of the books that perpetrate stereotypes of Native people.

Let go of titles that are beloved by you but not your students (this is, after all, their library).

Let go of the practically brand-new but hasn’t been read since purchased over 10 years ago.

Let go of duplicates that were super-popular in a previous year but aren’t today.

Let. It. Go.

Why? Here we go:

Duplicates are easy to weed. An idea: gather up extras from other libraries in your district to create a set for a literature circle or book club. The fine librarians in my former district have done this with state book award nominees, and their classroom teachers now have an extensive set of books to utilize when creating book groups/lit circles.

Check to see the stats. If not all 4 are consistently being used: weed 2. Why? Shelf space is at a premium!

It’s also easy to weed outdated books. Check the copyright date. Check the historical/scientific accuracy. Be willing to do research if needed. When uncertain of outdated material – and if I’m in a weeding groove – I like to put these books on my cart to look at on a later date.

Map of the USSR? Weed!

Books that perpetrate stereotypes? We know better. And we should – and can – do better. Take them off the shelf. Not sure if the book is okay? Check with the experts. Debbie Reese does a fabulous job on her blog recommending (or not) books that feature Native Americans. Think about it: if WE don’t do better in this regard in the library, how can we ever expect classroom teachers to do better?

In the elementary years, most students are ages 5-11. Consistently keeping titles in our libraries that haven’t circulated in as many years as our students have been alive is crazy.

Past award winners, while typically worthy of purchase and shelf space, are not immune to weeding. Shiny stickers do not always equate to children who want to read them…especially if the sticker was awarded over a lifetime ago and the book hasn’t circulated during their lifetime.

And those beloved books of your heart– the ones that you cannot bear to weed? Advertise them, use them in lessons, booktalk them. If the beloved books don’t find an audience, let them go (and try not to feel guilty). But you might find that a beloved book of your heart does find a reader – and the joy you’ll feel by connecting a child with a book you love will far surpass simply keeping the book on the shelf because you loved it.

Channel your inner Anna & Elsa: weed the collection, and let it go. When you’re finished, you’ll be left with something far better than a weeded library collection. You’ll have space for new books. You’ll have tidier shelves with the best, most relevant, most engaging titles ready to be easily found by students. And you, the librarian, will be armed with hands-on knowledge of your collection, what books need readers, and what books need to be purchased.

Before…

and After

Cheers, y’all! –arika

PS: Want to know my process for weeding? Having run every report under then sun, I now forego them in favor of one method: I scan EVERY SINGLE BOOK by hand. I want to see its circ stats, who checks it out (students? One teacher every year?, Someone from another building?), the condition of the book, the cover image (hey, we all judge books by covers). After taking all of this into consideration – and many times, in under 10 seconds – I then make a call on if it stays or goes. Sometimes I offer up duplicates or really nice books to other libraries. Sometimes I offer them to classroom teachers. Mostly, though, I delete them, box them up, and send them off to the appropriate people (in US schools: the district usually has a used-book sale; in international schools, Better World Books). The best idea, though, came from my dear mentor Sandy Koehn: weed on 3 or 4 year cycle (FIC, Nonfic, E; FIC, 000-599, 600-999, E). This prevents frustration and burnout while promoting organization and methodical work.