Library Shelving Training

How to put books back on the shelves correctly…every time!

Why re-shelving correctly is so important In order to find a book in our collection of more

than 15,000 books, the books need to be where we expect to find them.

Even being off a shelf or a few books can make a huge difference in whether or not you can find a book. Think about it like your house. It has an address and you expect it to be there every time. What if it was moved a few houses to the left or right? What if got moved to another street? Could you still find it? Most likely, but it would be more difficult, and might take longer. What if it was moved to another city? And a house is much bigger than a book!

So where do books go?

Fiction FIC followed by the first 3 letters of the

author’s last name These go in the Fiction section

Non-Fiction Numbers followed by letters

The numbers are part of the Dewey Decimal system. The letters are the first 3 letters of the author’s or

editor’s last name/group.

Exceptions!

Manga Books741.5 series, these go in the Manga

collection Biographies

92 series, these go upstairs Other Languages

If the book is printed in another language, they go in the Multi-Language collection

Dewey Decimal System000 GENERALITIES

000 Computers, Loch Ness, Bigfoot, UFO’s, Aliens 020 Internet 030 Encyclopedias & Almanacs060 Museums 070 Newspapers 100 PHILOSOPHY130 Ghosts & the Supernatural150 Optical Illusions, Feelings 170 Emotions, Values, Animal Rights

200 RELIGION220 Old Testament Bible Stories 230 New Testament Bible Stories290 Mythology, World Religions 

300 SOCIAL SCIENCES 300 Social Issues - immigration, racism, World Cultures 320 Government 330 Careers340 Court System, Famous Trials350 Military Equipment - tanks, submarines 360 Drugs, Environmental Issues, Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts 370 Education, Phonics 380 History of Transportation 390 Holidays, Scary Stories

400 LANGUAGES 410 Sign Language420 Dictionaries, Grammar 490 Hieroglyphics  

500 SCIENCE AND MATH 500 Science Experiments

510 Mathematics  520 Stars, planets, astronomy530 Physical Science - force & motion, electricity, magnetism540 Chemistry, Atoms & Molecules550 Volcanoes, Earthquakes, Weather 560 Dinosaurs, Prehistoric Animals 570 Forests, Deserts, Mountains, Oceans, Evolution 580 Plants & Trees590 Animals & Insects

600 APPLIED SCIENCE600 Inventions

610 Human body, Disease

620 Space ships, Trains, Cars

630 Pets

640 Cookbooks, Organizing, Sewing

650 Careers, Secret Codes

670 Paper Making

680 Woodworking

690 Building  

700 ART710 Art Appreciation, History of Art

720 Architecture

730 Origami

740 Drawing, Crafts, Sewing, Knitting

750 Painting

760 Print Making

770 Photography

780 Music

790 Sports, Games, Magic, Camping, Fishing 

800 LITERATURE810 Poetry, Plays, Jokes & Riddles

820 Shakespeare

900 GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY900 American History by Decade & Century

910 Explorers, Atlases

920 Flags

930 Archeology, Ancient Civilizations

940 Knights, Castles, World War I & II, European Countries

950 Asian & Middle Eastern Countries

960 African Countries

970 North & Central American Countries, Native American Tribes, American History, States

980 South American Countries

990 Pacific Islands, Australia

How to keep it all organized Start by sorting your cart

into Fiction and Non-Fiction sections. Separate Manga,

Biographies, & other Languages

Alphabetize your Fiction books.

Order your Non-Fiction books by number and author if needed.

THEN, put books back.

While you’re at it…

While you re-shelve books, take a minute to check that the books are in correct order. A few minutes a day of checking the shelves will save lots of trouble for everyone!

Let’s see what you learned…

Question #1What is the call number for Manga books?

A: 714.5 B: 909.2 C: 741.5 D: idk

INCORRECT!

Sorry, but that answer is not correct. Please try again!

Correct!

The answer is C: 741.5. All Manga books are kept on this shelf.

Question #2

Where are the biographies kept?A: UpstairsB: DownstairsC: On the main floorD: Somewhere…uh…

INCORRECT!

Sorry, but that answer is not correct. Please try again!

Correct!

The answer is A: Upstairs. Biographies include call numbers 92 & 920. 92 is really just a shortened version 920. 92’s are filed first, followed by 920’s.

Question #3

Which of the following would go first if you were putting away Fiction books?A: FIC MORB: FIC ALPC: FIC ALLD: FIC AAR

INCORRECT!

Sorry, but that answer is not correct. Please try again!

Correct!

The answer is D: FIC AAR. Keep in mind that the FIC tells you what section the book belongs in, but the next 3 letters tell you what order it goes in.

Question #4

Which of the following books would go first?A: 031 ARMB: 010.99 PERC: 210.3 ALLD: 973.2 ZEM

INCORRECT!

Sorry, but that answer is not correct. Please try again!

Correct!

The answer is B: 010.99 PER. Think about Non-Fiction books the same way you do for comparing decimals in math.

Example: 003.1 < 030.1 Or: 199.25 > 19.999 Or: 398.2 < 893.2 The lowest number will always come first.

Question #5

Which of these would go first?A: 398.2 POLB: 398.2 ANDC: 398.21 AARD: 398.2 MAR

INCORRECT!

Sorry, but that answer is not correct. Please try again!

Correct

B: 398.2 AND is correct. 398.2 comes before 398.21, so you know that 398.21 is definitely not correct. Of the other 3 you just put the authors in alphabetical order. Good work!

Take your time!

The best way to be sure the books are put back in order is to take your time putting them back.

Remember—organize your cart first, reshelve the books, and scan shelves as you work. These 3 steps will really help!