Dear Teachers: Thank You for Spreading Virtual Book Love

I haven’t been able to go anywhere, but books bring me places.

Books keep me company.

Whenever I’m feeling sad, I head to the LOL basket or my favorite funny series.

I have learned about places I want to visit when this is over.

I like talking with my friends about the books we are reading together.

Books help me escape to places far, far away.

Fantasy books help me forget everything.

Sad books help me get out my feelings.

I have learned to make a lot of things this year with books.

There is always a book ready to go so I keep reading.

I like that you can listen to books too.

I listen to podcasts when I’m cleaning my room or walking my dog.

I read magazines – I never did that before.

Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I find a quiet spot and a book. It helps a lot.

I read more this year than I ever have before.

I look forward to reading.

I have changed as a reader this year.

It used to be something I had to do, now it is something I love to do.

One year ago today, I wrote my first blog post about virtual classroom libraries.  This time last year, so much was new and unknown.  I longed to create a virtual space for readers to connect with one another and for teachers to connect them to books.  A space where we could design, organize and reorganize baskets of books to reflect our students and our curriculum.  A space where students could have agency to discover their reading identity and author their reading lives. 

As I reread all the letters, emails, and chatbox messages I have collected over the year, I realize the kids brought this idea I longed for to life in ways I never could have envisioned.  They requested, recommended, and helped me revise.  They created, reorganized, and found ways to collaborate.  They read, reread, and invited me to discuss.  They truly developed their reading lives.

Today I share the fourth update to the virtual bookroom. There are more series baskets, podcasts, author baskets, fantasy titles, poetry, and favorite character baskets.  Honestly, I debated if I should update the virtual bookroom. So many schools are returning in-person and I want students to have access to paper texts.  I want them to hold books in their hands.  I want them to search through baskets and find the perfect book in their real school and classroom library.  I question if this resource will be necessary for the coming months. 

Whenever I have a question about what kids need, I tend to ask them.  So, I reached out to kids to see if they thought I should update the virtual bookroom.  Is this a resource they think they will continue to use?  The answer was an overwhelming YES!

I use it at home.

I use it on the weekends.

I use it in school when I want to read the same book as my friend.

I use it to read with my friend who is staying remote – I miss her.

I use it when I finish my books in school and I can’t choose new books yet.

It has Cat Ninja – I would miss Cat Ninja!

There are so many topics to read about – my classroom library doesn’t have all those topics.

I love King and Kayla and West Meadow Detectives – we don’t have those at school.

I love having audio and video books – we don’t have those in the classroom.

 I like all the options and how there are always new books.

Suffice it to say … they were convincing!   I will continue to update and revise.  A few readers even pointed out that summer is on its way and they loved using the virtual classroom their teachers curated for them last summer.  We all know the research that supports the importance of reading and access to books over the summer for our students.  So, if they’ll read it, I’ll keep curating the bookroom for teachers to use with their students.

As I look forward to rejoining teachers, librarians, coaches, and students in-person in the upcoming weeks, I will always remember the connections I made around the world this past year through virtual books.  I have always known the power of connecting with others through books, but this year surpassed my prior experience.  Books brought us together in ways I never could have envisioned a year ago and I could have never done this without the tireless work, dedication, energy, optimism, and love of teachers.  You show up day after day.  You work endless hours.  You love your students.  You laugh when everything goes wrong. You model creativity and problem-solving. You made it possible.  Thank you for partnering with me to spread book love – we were truly #BetterTogether.