by Danny Brassell, Ph.D.

I am teaching my first year of second grade in an inner-city school.  There are no books, and the classroom stench could wake-up a person in a coma.  Bullet holes and graffiti cover the windows.  The tile floor is crumbling, and the roof leaks whenever it rains.  Fortunately, it does not rain much, but the heater blasts constantly – even though it is 80 degrees outside.  Room 12 looks as if it has not been cared for since the 1950s.

More than anything, I want my seven-year-old students to love school.  I want them to think their classroom is cooler than Disneyland.  They need a place that offers sanctuary from the crime-infested and trash-filled streets that encompass this neighborhood.  I am a beginning teacher with very little money, but I decide that I am going to make a classroom library that will excite even my cynical principal.

Getting books.  The first thing I ask my students to do is to start writing as many stories as they can think of so that we may put their books in our new library.  After we create lots of books on our own, I walk to my local library and tell them about my classroom’s predicament.  The Friends of the Library gladly donates hundreds of outdated books and National Geographic magazines.  They also take down my name and telephone number and tell me they will call me whenever they have leftover books to spare after a book sale.  I give all of my friends empty boxes and ask them to collect used children’s books at their offices from their co-workers.  The hand-written notes from my students go a long way, and we receive hundreds of used and new books this way.  I call area newspapers and ask if they can help us, and each newspaper provides daily editions for each of my students at least twice a week.  Finally, I create a list of telephone numbers for my students to call so that they may receive free catalogs in the mail.  Soon, all of my students receive personalized mail on a daily basis from department stores, tour companies and sports teams.  They excitedly tell me about all the mail they receive, and they often bring it to school to show off to one another.

Making a comfortable environment.  In one dreary corner of the room, our class covers up the windows and walls with blue butcher paper.  The kids draw and cut out various animals that they would see in the ocean, and they glue their animal pictures to the butcher paper.  On the ceiling I have stapled a banner that says “Read With Me, Under the Sea.”  I have duct taped a carpet to the floor here.  All I had to do was ask a local carpet store if they had any extra carpet, and they have provided us with carpet samples that all of us can use to sit on the floor individually, as well as a huge piece of carpet that the store had left over from a recent construction project. 

I drive to the Salvation Army, Goodwill and Thrift Store and ask them each if they could help my classroom.  All provide me with old cushions, pillows and stuffed animals, and it only costs us a thank-you letter and an invitation to visit our classroom library.  I ask the cafeteria workers if I can have old milk carton crates, and pretty soon our library corner has nearly 20 crates stacked as bookshelves.  A couple of my students’ fathers even donate some boards and cement blocks to act as additional shelves.

Reading time.  Our favorite parts of the day are spent in the library.  I try to read aloud three stories a day there:  the students select a new book,  I always read an easy picture book and we vote on a favorite passage from a chapter book.  The students can lie on the carpet, sit with their buddies or stand up when I read to them.  They ask questions, tell me which parts are their favorites and recommend books that they enjoy.  After each read aloud, I provide students with about 10 minutes of time to find books and read on their own.

We have an old tape recorder and record player, and we play our favorite classical and jazz pieces during our free reading time.  Some students read alone, others read with their buddies and some read in small groups or next to me.  Maribel likes to read under a table with Michelle; Juanito likes to read aloud to stuffed animals.  All of my students tell me their favorite part of our class is reading books and hanging out in our classroom library.  We usually read after recess or lunch because it calms us down before returning to lessons. 

Faith in others.  Building our classroom library has renewed my faith in humankind.  There are so many generous people out in the world that never take credit for anything and never have stories written about them.  I have asked complete strangers for various classroom materials, and without hesitation I have received countless offerings of support.  To my students, I explain that it is our responsibility to be kind and do good deeds since so many good deeds have been granted to us.  To my fellow teachers, I encourage everyone to ask for assistance if they need it.  Many teachers may feel under-appreciated, but this project has taught me that teachers continue to receive the respect and support of our communities.  Our children benefit when we all work together.