Secrets for the best book fair ever

The book fair is a popular fundraiser for the library media center. Here are some book fair ideas to make your next one a smooth one.

Are you a school library media specialist? Are you carrying a flyer on a clipboard, extra change in your pocket, and caffeine in your oversized mug? Are you wearing comfortable shoes, like seriously, the most comfortable ones you own? 

​Do you have a week’s worth of slow cooker meals in your freezer?

If you answered yes  to all of the questions above, it must be book fair week!

You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Follow these time-saving and sanity-saving ideas.

​
​The book fair is my favorite library fundraiser, right behind the readathon. The students get excited, the teachers get excited. And, of course, we get books! It is a great school fundraiser when done well. When done poorly, however, it can be a nightmare. I have chaired over 20 book fairs, so when I say I know how to run a book fair, I know how to run a book fair. Make no mistake, I’m tired by the end of the week, but I’m also happier and much less stressed now than I used to be because I have streamlined the process so much. I have always used Scholastic Book Fairs, but I think many of these tips will apply to any on-site book fair.
​

Helpful book fair ideas

Take pictures of the cases to know what sells.

​Before the fair:

• Start preparing as early as you can. Scholastic has a timeline on their website for 4-6 weeks. You may not need 6 weeks, but doing a little bit at a time avoids the headaches of scrambling at the last minute.
• When the book fair rep calls and wants to sit down for a few minutes to chat about your upcoming fair, meet with him or her! Between Bradley back in Texas and Lorie in North Carolina, I have gotten some great display ideas and time-saving tips. 
• Get more rolls of change than you think you will need! Until recently, I always ran short by Thursday and depended on that one child who has been saving change since his first birthday to bring in his life savings in exchange for some books. Elementary-aged students do this more often than older students.
• Decorations? I don’t have the time to do what Scholastic shows in their book fair planner guide. If I had the money for all of those supplies, I wouldn’t be holding a book fair. That said, I do use some credit to buy themed decorations from Scholastic. Make it festive. Hang things from the ceiling. Hold a “guess how many” contest. Better yet, ask students to help.
• Consider traffic flow. If you don’t have ropes, use cones, chairs, crepe paper, tape on the floor, whatever you have, but figure out a way so that the line does not snake through the actual fair and block the merchandise. 
• Take pictures of the displays and cases before the fair starts. Refer to these when you find a hole where you sold the last copy of something by accident.

---

True story.

Volunteers:

• Get help! Not the medical kind, although if you don’t follow this #1 rule, you may need it by the time you’re done. I mean, get other people to help you! PTA/PTO, other staff in the building, responsible students, whoever you can. I have offered free books (purchased with Scholastic Dollars) for teachers who help. Teachers will do almost anything for free books.
• When recruiting volunteers, use an electronic signup. I have used Sign-Up Genius in the past, but Scholastic now has one available. Include options for parents to do at home or on their own time, like count flyers out for classes or put up signs. Signs can be put up around the school over, say, a three-day window, so advertise for “a parent to put up signs between Monday and Wednesday of next week.”
• Get help for the set-up and take down. Setting up the display takes the most time. I try to schedule it all during school hours because I have a family life and guard it carefully. This is for the school, so I do it during my work hours.
• You know how littles will bring $5 but choose $50 worth of books and toys? Ask for parents to be personal shoppers during the PreK, K, and 1st grade classes. It is hard to help the littles make good choices when five bring money at the same time but there are only two adults in the library. Personal shoppers are gold!

---

Download the order tracker, receipts, shelf-talkers, and nametags.

​
​During the fair:

• Stay on top of your stock and reorder. I used to live about 3 miles from a warehouse, so UPS delivered reorders the next day. Now they take a couple of days. Therefore, I try to keep the last of an item in stock for show and ask students to order. Scholastic is good about providing financial forms and bookmarks and such, but I created my own order tracker. You can download a copy of it here, along with special order receipts, out-of-stock shelf talkers, and volunteer nametags. I made them in color because when 8 students stand in line and need to get back to class 5 minutes ago, something colorful is easier for me to find in a hurry. It is a PDF, though, so you can print in black and white.
• I also made “out of stock” shelf-talkers, included with the order tracker. Very handy.
• Keep these things at the registers: rubber bands (to roll up posters), extra pens, zip baggies for change. Even middle schoolers don’t always have a place for loose change.

After the fair:

• Complete the financial forms as soon as possible, within 2-3 days. The sooner you pay the book fair company, the sooner you can spend your profit, and the sooner you complete the whole fair.

So you drank the caffeine, made all the change, and ate all of the freezer meals. Hopefully, you still have your sanity. Go home, grab an adult beverage, and put your feet up. You’ve earned it. Then plan the next one.

---

Ain't no tired like book fair tired.