We all want students to independently use the library. Oftentimes, one of the biggest hurdles in elementary libraries is students being able to find the books they want on their own. Once they do have those books in hand, they are ready to check them out. So why not teach them how to self checkout in the library?

There are sincere concerns about allowing students to check in or checkout books on their own. A lot of elementary librarians worry that the books won’t actually get checked out. If those books aren’t checked out, then there is a high possibility that those books will be lost. Lost books create additional work for elementary librarians who already have tight schedules. I mean, who has time to look for lost books?

Those are all legitimate fears. But, there is a way to make self checkout successful in an elementary library.

Why Start Self Checkout?

If teaching elementary students to self checkout in the library is worrisome, then why even bother doing it? There are a few good reasons that made me start.

1. Students love feeling like they are part of the process. Knowing how to do something official like checking out books on their own makes them feel grown. When students are invested in the process, they will take it seriously and do their best!
2. One reason that many elementary librarians teach self checkout in their library is for the sake of time. Many school librarians do not have an assistant, and/or time, to process books. Their schedule may be jam packed, their may be no transition time in between classes, and they may not have any library management time scheduled. The school librarians that do not have an assistant, large class sizes, and/or limited class time frequently switch to self checkout. The reason? To give themselves more time to help kids find books they’ll love.
3. Oftentimes, adults underestimate what kids are capable of. When it comes to checking books in or out, most children can do it by themselves. Children as young as 5 and 6 are capable of doing this by themselves and they are frequently the most enthusiastic.

Tips for a Successful Library Self Checkout System

A library self checkout system is only as successful if it is taught well. Depending on the age of the students, it does take time and practice for them to learn. Over the years, there are a few things that I have found that make self checkout a success in an elementary library.

• Know your students. Intermediate grade levels, 3 and up, are definitely capable of self checkout. But so are students in the primary grades. The key is in knowing when is a good time to introduce it to that particular group. For example, one year I had a group of Kindergarteners that nailed self checkout. The second graders, not so much.
• Don’t make it mandatory. If there are kids that struggle with multi step directions, even with visuals or checklists, don’t force them to participate in self checkout. How would you feel if you were forced to check yourself out at the grocery store and you weren’t comfortable with it?
• Start with self check in. I learned this the hard way. It is important that students start with scanning the barcode and listen for that tell tale sound of a successful check in. You can have students scan them with the barcode scanner, which they love! Or you can set up tablets for students to scan the books on. Whichever you choose, it’s important they become familiar with scanning the barcode and knowing when there has been scan success.

Getting Started with Self Checkout

Before teaching students the process, self checkout does need to be setup in Destiny. When setting it up, be sure to choose that you want check in enabled. If it is not, then the self checkout account will not be able to check in books. And starting here is key!

After setting it up, you get to decide how or where students will checkout their books.

Some Library Media Specialists create a self checkout station. The station may be a desktop or laptop and a scanner. Some have a couple of these stations.

Others set up iPads or tablets to create a self checkout station. They download the Destiny app onto their devices, set it up for student use, and voila! Portable self checkout stations!

Tips for Self Check In

Once the technical stuff is all good to go, teach kiddos how to scan their books well. One of the trickier things with this is them identifying the correct barcode to scan. Once they know that, they are ready to check in their own books.

Definitely have a place for students to place the books after they have been checked in. I like having a cart nearby for them to pop the books on. A bonus is that then there are books ready to be shelved, or borrowed by other readers.

Self check in does not require a library card or patron ID. This makes it an easy place to get started.

More Tips for Self Checkout

Once students are comfortable with checking in books, they’re ready to learn how to check them out on their own. Before they can, you need to decide how students will enter their patron information. Many school librarians print out their library cards. When printing out student library cards, you will want to make sure to:

• Tick off boxes to include the bar code, patron id, and student picture.
• Print the library cards on colored card stock so they last the entire year.
• Have a system and space for storing and retrieving library cards. Calendar pocket charts are pretty handy for this!
• Create a video and put up a QR Code to that video that will reteach self checkout as they need it. Some kids don’t borrow books every week and may need reminders.

Take Self Checkout Further

After most of your students are comfortable with self check out, self check in, and the library organization teach them how to shelve books. A lot of kids can do this. Some of the actually remember where they borrowed their books. Some of them flock to the same section week after week. And if you genrify your library, the organization makes it even easier for them! They seldomly put them on the wrong shelf and it is a huge time saver for you!