Mrs.

Quinn’s Classroom Library

Sabrina Quinn

Reading is a very important and personal skill for me, now as an adult as well as

when I was a child. I have had the opportunity to reflect on my own literacy development

and was surprised; as I acknowledge for the first time that I came from a multicultural

background. Having experience having a bi-lingual background as a young student, I

developed my classroom library to be interesting and helpful to my E.S.O.L. student’s

needs. Reading was a skill I acquired through good teaching as well as classrooms that

were filled with wonderful books and teachers that loved to read. I want to create the

nurturing, print rich environment for my students that I was lucky enough to experience

in elementary school; so I tried to remember the classroom libraries that I experienced

and influenced my love of reading. I have included several titles that clearly have made

an impact on my reading and incorporated new favorites that many students respond

positively too. I have taken into account that many of my children will come from homes

that may not have books or parent that can read English or any types of stories to them

and I must do a good job to bring quality literature to these students.

As a future educator I take the job of create strong, empowered readers out of

my students very seriously. I feel that every struggling reader, no matter how far behind

in grade level reading, is capable of catching up to their peers and becoming excellent

readers. I myself was a struggling reader and not only caught up quickly to my peers,

but went on to become one of the strongest in my class; my secondary education years.

I plan on modeling my love of reading and passing that onto my students every day and

will read to my student daily as well as incorporate wonderful books in all subject areas

of my lessons. I know that reading aloud in itself will not create good readers; as
Johnson points out “Reading stories does not in itself necessarily promote literacy:

however the research suggests that certain methods, environmental influences,

attitudes and interactive behaviors apparently enhance the potential of the read-aloud

event for promoting literacy development.” (Johnson, 2009 p.405) What this mean for

me is that I have to model the importance of reading, and the excitement and fulfillment

that can be achieved when completing a quality book reading. Many students that do

not enjoy reading have never achieved success at reading or have had negative

experiences. My job is to recognize those students and understand their literacy

personalities to help them achieve success and enjoyment in reading. Johnson advises

that “by providing a rich and evolving classroom library and providing a variety of

supported and independent literacy context, all students can become motivated,

engages reader and writers.” (Johnson, 2009 p.434)

My library list is created to not only include recognizable favorites, but to also

include new titles and books that children may not have read before. I have selected

many different genres and grade levels; taking into account the zone of approximate

development of my readers. In creating this spreadsheet list and researching possible

title to include, I discovered that I must think of every possible type of student and grade

level that I may have in my future class. I first though about how my book baskets would

be organized and laid out as a beginning teacher. I then considered how I would like to

include more curriculum based books and easy reading books, but would also want to

have chapter books to read to my students as well; as I think it is important to introduce

young children to the classics early. Because of time constraints, I limited my list to fifty

choices, so I found myself being very selective in my choices. I understand that creating
a quality library takes time and resources and needs to be adapted often to the literacy

personalities that are in the current classroom.

I really enjoyed this assignment and plan on adding to the list often. The question

I asked myself through this process was; if I could only take fifty books with me to my

classroom, which ones would I include? This is my essential list of a variety of levels

and genres that I would start on library on It will change often as I become more familiar

with the new children’s books that are available, but these are my fifty must read and

must have books that I would put together today, some are my favorites other are books

that were introduced to me by other, but all are quality books that I would feel good

having my students read in my classroom.

Yea Grade
Title Author Publisher Category r ISBN Cost Level

Green
Eggs and Picture 196 39480016
Ham Dr. Seuss Random House Rhyme 0 8 8.99 K - 3rd

Hop on Picture 196 39480029

Pop Dr. Seuss Random House Rhyme 3 x 8.99 K - 3rd
Sammy Picture 200
The Seal Hoff, Syd Harper Collins Family 0 64442705 3.99 Pre K-1
The
Giving Silverstein,S Classic 196 60256656 16.9
Tree hel Harper Collins Family 4 9 Pre K-3
Boy:
Tales of
Childhoo Autobiograp 199 01424138 3rd-
d Dahl, Roald Penguin Group hy 8 1X 6.99 7th

Charlie
and the
Chocolat 200 14241031 6.99
e Factory Dahl, Roald Penguin Group Fantasy 7 4 k-2
We're Rosen, Simon & Picture 200 7.99 Pre K-2
Going on Michael Schuster Family 3
a Bear 68985349
Hunt
A 31236754
Wrinkle L'Engle, 200 6
in Time Madaleine Squarefish Fantasy 7 6.99 4th-6th

Island of
the Blue Houghton Classic 201 54732861
Dolphins O'Dell,Scott Mifflin Harcourt Adventure 0 3 6.99 4th-7th

Seaward Historical 200 68984860

Born Wait, Lea Aladdin Fiction 4 9 5.99 3rd-7th
Izzy,
Willy- Voit, Simon & Realistic 200 14169033
Nilly Cynthia Schuster Fiction 5 99 6.99 7th-9th

Willa and Del Negro, Marshall Folktale 200 07614523 16.9

the Wind Janice Cavendish Multicultural 5 2x 5 K-3
Eating
the Houghton Picture 199 15224436
Alphabet Ehlert, Lois Mifflin Harcourt Alphabet 3 0 6.99 Pre K-3

Jitterbug Hicks, Farr, Straus & Picture 200 37433685 15.9

Jam Barbara Giroux Family 5 7 9 Pre K-3
Don't Let
the
Pigeon
Drive the Picture 200 07868198 14.9
Bus Willems, Mo Hyperion Press Humor 3 8x 9 PreK-1

Pigeon
Wants a Picture 200 14231096 14.9
Puppy Willems, Mo Hyperion Press Humor 8 00 9 PreK-1

Little Alcott, Historical 198 14039069

Women Louisa Penguin Group Fiction 9 3 8.99 7th-9th

Little Alcott, Historical 200 45152935

Men Louisa Penguin Group Fiction 4 9 4.95 7th-9th
Where
the Wild Sendak, Picture 198 Pre K
thing Are Maurice Harper Collins Adventure 8 64431789 8.95 -3

Who Will
go to
School Ruhman, North-South Realistic 200 73581907
Today Karl Books, Inc Fiction 4 6 6.95 PreK-1
Freeman, 197 14051738
Corduroy Don Penguin Group Picture 6 6.99 Pre K-3
 Dorro, 199 14056226
Abuela Authur Penguin Group Multicultural 7 5 7.99 K-3
Yankee
Doodle
America Minor,Wenda US History 200 39924003 16.9
1776 A-Z ll Penguin Group Alphabet 6 9 9 K-12th
Cloudy
with a
Chance
of 68970749
Meatball Simon & 198 5 Pre K-
s Barrett, Judy Schuster Picture 2 6.99 3rd

The Boy
in the
Striped World 200 38575153 9th-
Pajamas Boyne, John Random House History 7 2 8.99 12th
Harold
and the
Purple Johnson, 198
Crayon Crockett Harper Collins Picture 1 64430227 6.99 Pre K-3

The Bee Polacco, 199 69811696

Tree Patricia Penguin Group Picture 8 8 7.99 Pre K-3
Because
of Winn Dicamillo, Candlewick Realistic 198 76344323
Dixie Kate Press Fiction 8 6.99 4th-6th

Realistic 200 15843001

Keepers Watts, Jeri Lee &Low Fiction 0 32 8.95 3rd-5th

The
Sandwic Abdullah,Ra 201 14231484 16.9
h Swap nia Hyperion Press Picture 0 7 9 Pre K-2

The Chandler-
Boxcar Warner, Whitman,Alber Realistic 198 89750852
Children Gertrude t& Company Fiction 9 7 4.99 3rd-5th
Diary of
a Wimpy 200 81099473 13.9 3rd-
Kid Kinney,Jeff Abrams Humor 8 9 5 7th

Johnson, Simon & Realistic 201 14424034

Heaven Angela Schuster Fiction 0 2x 7.99 1st-5th
If You
Give a
Mouse a Numeroff, 198 60245867 16.9 Pre K-
Cookie Laura Harper Collins Humor 5 9 3rd
Tales of
a Fourth
Grade Realistic 200 14240881
Nothing Blume, Judy Penguin Group Fiction 7 6 5.99 1st-5th
Pete's a Steig, 200
Pizza William Harper Collins Humor 3 60527544 7.99 K-3rd
Ants at
The Dahl, Picture Counting 200 14048192 Pre K-
Picnic Michael Window Book 6 15 7.95 3rd

Little By Stewart, 200 54506163 12.9 Pre K-

Little Amber Scholastic, Inc. Humor 8 6 9 3rd
Hot Simon & 200 68984816 17.9
Shots DeMarest Schuster Non-Fiction 3 1 9 K- 5th

All by Mayer, 198 30711938

Myself Mercer Random House Humor 5 6 3.99 K-3rd

A Chair
for My Williams, Realistic 198 68804074
Mother Vera Harper Collins Fiction 4 8 6.99 K-3rd

Are You
My Eastman, 196 39480018
Mother? P.D. Random House Humor 0 4 8.99 K-3rd
The
Apple Pie
That 14169124
Papa Thompson, Simon & 200 01 15.9
Baked Lauren Schuster Picture 7 9 K-3rd
My Little
Sister
Ate One Grossman, 199 51759600 16.9
Hare Bill Random House Humor 6 8 9 K-3rd

Most
Loved Downey, Picture 200 80372728 15.9
Monster Lynn Penguin Group Family 4 3 9 K-3rd

William Morrow Realistic 198 68803825 16.9 Pre K-

The Quilt Jonas, Ann & Company Fiction 4 5 9 3rd

Bud , Not Curtis Realistic 199 44041328

Buddy ,Christopher Random House Fiction 9 1 5.99 4th-6th

Simon & 200 68982953 15.9 Pre K-

Olivia Falconer, Ian Schuster Picture 0 1 9 1st
There
Was a
Old Lady
That
Swallowe Humor 200 43963906 Pre K-
d a Fly Arnold, Tedd Scholastic, Inc. Rhyme 7 9 5.99 3rd
I Know
an Old
Lady
Who
Swallowe Jackson, Humor 199 52545645 Pre K-
d a Pie Alison Penguin Group Rhyme 7 7 6.99 3rd