I am so glad you are here! Today I will be sharing how to find picture books for FREE. I remember when I was a first year teacher and peering into other's classrooms to sea of book spines. I want to tell you IT IS OK not to have every book ever published. Yes, that last line was really for me. #sorrynotsorry. This past weekend, I shared my top tips for finding picture books on Insta Stories and I received an overwhelming response with other ideas. It was pretty bookfully awesome. Picture books can be like Waldo, but if you look on Ramona Recommends she will find you ways to READ for free.
Head to your public library and ask the children's librarian to help you. They are a wealth of information. When I was little, I was a total Matilda with picture books. I could sit there for hours reading different books. Tell the library staff you are a teacher, they will most likely let you check out more books. #thisiswhyweteach
If you google "Where is my public library?" all the closest libraries in your city will auto populate.
Check out Youtube for someone reading the picture book that is geared for your lesson. My colleagues and I do this all the time because they do not have all the titles I recommend for us to use. Here are a few picture book read alouds on youtube that we use in 5th grade.
Storyline Online is a free website of actors and actresses reading popular picture books. It is kinda of amazing. They do a great job with selecting diverse texts with an array of characters.
Epic is an online warehouse of ebooks that is FREE for teachers. I have not used it yet, but I hope to dabble this school year to find different ways to reach my 180 picture book goal this year. You can also import books into Google Classroom- how awesome is that!
You can search by reading level, AR, or Lexile Level. OR! The Best way--> just search by topic! They have an incredible non-fiction section.
Check your school library. This is usually the place that has older titles. Can anyone say The Lotus Seed? *Amazon affiliate link My favorite -->teachers can check out as many books as they want #librarydayeveryday This year my students are going to be strongly encouraged to pick out one picture book a month or more to share with their family. Then maybe! We will do a picture book museum, oh my gosh. I need to start writing this stuff down. #cuethenotesapp
Scholastic is so good to schools and book people. They are such a warm and welcoming company that spreads bookful joy everywhere. I learned from one of my readers that Scholastic gives book money to anyone who volunteers at their Scholastic Warehouse sales. What a great idea. I can see this in my future. #whitehairramonashelvingbooks If you want to learn how to get involved open the magic HERE. I believe they also have some great deals for NEW teachers. Check with your school librarian for more info!
One of my favorites is to ask your colleagues. Think of all the years of teaching at your school. Think about how many picture books are located in the primary grades and upper grades. One person has to have The Lotus Seed. *Amazon affiliate link #thisbookeveryoneusesforreadingskills
Ask for gift cards to Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Share this printable with new teachers to help them know how to get books for their classroom for FREE! Open the Magic HERE!
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