If you are anything like me, then you are always looking for books for your classroom. Whether the books are for your class library, for book bags/bins, or as read-alouds, it seems like you never have enough books. Or you go to a workshop or conference and someone talks about a super cool book and you’re sad because you have never even heard of that book and suddenly need it like…now! Here is my list of the Best Places to Buy Books for your Classroom for Cheap!
I first heard about this one this Summer during the national I Teach K conference. During one of the sessions, the speaker talked about the book, My Mouth is a Volcano.
I had never even heard of this book, but it sounded like a great book to read during the first week of school, to combat yelling out. Another one of the books that I didn’t have, but had a great review was Miss Mingo and the Fire Drill.
This sounds like a perfect book to help explain to kindergartners how fire drills work and to not be afraid. Throughout the duration of the conference, I wrote down enough books to fill an entire page and wanted, no NEEDED every one of them! I ended up finding these books, plus a bunch of others through WalMart.com. They had the best prices and a fabulous selection! Here is a snapshot of my shopping cart and a few of the books that I purchased.
If you are looking for other options to buy books, then here are several different ones to choose from.
Gently Used Books For The Classroom
Yard Sales
Rummage Sales
Used Book Stores
Discard Pile at your local library
E-Bay
Grown-Up Donation
Goodwill/Salvation Army/St.Vincent DePaul–Thrift Stores
New Books For The Classroom
Wal-Mart
School Book Fair
Ross, Marshalls, TJMaxx as well as Burlington or any other discount store are great sources for new books. I always check out these places when I go shopping and have found many academic and fun books to add to my classroom library. You never know what gem you will find!!
My favorite so far is Amazon. I find that they are very competitively priced–and you can get them pretty much right away!! I have created a book list from Amazon. Click below to go to store.
Helpful Funding Ideas For Classroom Books
And don’t forget to make a wish list for grown-ups at Back to School night, Open House, and any event that brings a grown-ups to school.
And last but not least is to ask for funds from your PTA or PTO.
Do you get books from anywhere else? I would love to hear where you buy books for your classroom. Please leave me a comment, so I can add it to the list!!
Looking for more inexpensive ideas for the classroom? Check out my Easy DIY Microwaveable Kool-Aid Play-Doh or these FREE downloadable Alphabet & Sound cards.
**Affiliate links within post.
I’m a homeschooling mama, so we are always on the lookout for great deals on books too. One of my favorite places to pick up children’s literature is http://www.paperbackswap.com. You create an account and post books you want to get rid of. when someone requests a book from you, you mail it off and earn credits that can be redeemed for fabulous new books! All the books are used but are in EXCELLENT condition. There are thousands of titles to choose from and the inventory is always changing because people are always posting new stuff. You should definitely check it out if you haven’t already!
We love looking at Goodwill and Salvation Army for kids books. We can often times find educational books too which are great for teaching (homeschool mom here) or for reference as I build lessons.