Reducing what's in the bookcase

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Classroom Management Chatboard

Reducing what's in the bookcase

by marjoryt

Apr 7, 2011

I move among classrooms, and my only storage facility is my rather small office. Since I don't work well in cluttered environments, every item is carefully weighed for its viability. Recently I got rid of the full size bookcase and have a former DVD cabinet taking up a portion of the space. Obviously there aren't as many books! A coworker asked me how I could "get rid of perfectly good books?" Here's my response:

There are good books, and there are useful books. There is also information; and information can be found in several places: from a book, from a computer's hookup to the internet, and from my cellphone's hookup to the internet. If I can find information via my computer or my cellphone, book form leaves. No longer in my office: A dictionary (available on my computer and on my cell phone). MLA style guide (I have sections downloaded on my computer and have access to current style guides on the internet). Instructor's manuals for my textbooks (downloaded on my computer a...See MoreI move among classrooms, and my only storage facility is my rather small office. Since I don't work well in cluttered environments, every item is carefully weighed for its viability. Recently I got rid of the full size bookcase and have a former DVD cabinet taking up a portion of the space. Obviously there aren't as many books! A coworker asked me how I could "get rid of perfectly good books?" Here's my response:

There are good books, and there are useful books. There is also information; and information can be found in several places: from a book, from a computer's hookup to the internet, and from my cellphone's hookup to the internet. If I can find information via my computer or my cellphone, book form leaves. No longer in my office: A dictionary (available on my computer and on my cell phone). MLA style guide (I have sections downloaded on my computer and have access to current style guides on the internet). Instructor's manuals for my textbooks (downloaded on my computer and available in the website). Employee manual for my job (updated version available on the website). Old editions of my current textbooks (I'm only using the latest edition, so I give the old editions away). Old editions of textbooks for courses I don't teach any more (the textbooks won't be used again). Old lesson plan books (kept as a computer file, faster to locate information). Telephone book (use the internet to look up). Sample books sent by publishers (I'm not going to use them, so I get them out). So, what's in the current bookcase? Textbooks for courses I currently teach or will be teaching in the next year. Test bank (doesn't come as a download - really bad publishing idea). Cleaner for my white board. Kleenex. Matches. On the top shelf, a candle and a bowl or hard candy for visitors.

Have I missed my 1979 edition of my college American Literature books? Not a bit. How about the 7 sample textbooks sent in hopes I'd adopt one? Nope. My old teacher's edition of McDougall,Littell's 8th grade English? Well, just a little, but I hadn't opened it in 4 years, and the elementary education student who received it used it to build a fabulous lesson plan during student teaching - it's gone to a better home. I think I look up more words with my cell phone than I ever did with that Webster's Collegiate tome.

What have I kept, just not in the bookcase? My small collection of old teacher editions; it's down from 20 to 8. I probably use 4 of them every year, and the others are for right now sentimental objects.

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