Most school libraries limit who is allowed to check out books and other materials to the students and school staff. Because resources are limited, some schools put a restriction as to how many books can be checked out at a given time. This restriction may change with the age of the student. For instance, a kindergartner may be allowed to check out only one book, while a fifth-grader may be limited to five.
Because students are borrowing books and materials that belong to the school, they need to understand that they are responsible for what they check out. An elementary school library policy should inform students and teachers that they are are responsible to return items on time and in the condition they were received, as others may be waiting to use the material. Many schools will suspend library privileges until overdue items are returned. If items are lost or damaged, the person who checked them out, or his parents, will be responsible to pay the library for the items before more materials may be checked out.
Most elementary school libraries have reference materials available for students and teachers to use in the library. Most schools will not allow these materials to be checked out or to leave the library. The exception to this rule is if a teacher must borrow the material for classroom-only use. The checkout time on these materials is likely to be a few hours to a day, as reference materials must be available to the student body. Reference materials include encyclopedias, dictionaries, maps and academic manuals.
Many elementary school libraries have a policy for conduct while in the library. If a student becomes disorderly or disruptive, her teacher or parent may be contacted and she might be asked to return to the classroom. Elementary school library policies should include time limits at media centers. Media centers include televisions, DVD players and computer stations. Because these items are limited, a library should limit students' time at these stations.