Dewey System 3rd -5th

The Dewey
Decimal System

Libraries Vs Media Center

Books are grouped or
organized in a special way so
that we can easily find the
books we need in a library.

Two Kinds of Books

Books in the library are organized
into two groups:

Fiction Non-fiction

Fiction or Non-fiction?

Fiction books are books that are
make-believe or not factual.

Non-fiction books are books that
are based on facts … or are they?

NOT-fiction Books

Non-fiction books are organized by
subjects and grouped by call numbers.

Call numbers come from something
called the Dewey Decimal System.

Fiction Books

Fiction books are organized in ABC
order by the author’s last name.

FIC ADL FIC BRU FIC SHA

How are Libraries Organized?

Before Melvil Dewey invented the Dewey Decimal System, there was not
a common way to organize libraries. Books were very expensive then
and much harder to find.

Most buildings were made of wood. There were no fire codes. Fires were
common. Think of all the things in a library that would easily burn.
Librarians were more worried about fire than about how books were
organized.

Libraries kept books in buckets so they could easily carry them out if
there was a fire. The most expensive books were kept where they would
be easy to grab and rescue if there was a fire. This made it easy to save
books if the library was burning, but made it hard to find books to read.

To Dewey – this was not good. He loved organizing and he loved math.
He used these two ideas he loved to create a system to keep books
organized in the library. His system is so good – we still use it today.

Thanks to Melvil Dewey’s Dewey Decimal System, you can go in almost
any public or school library and use what you know from one library to
find books in another

Who is Melvil Dewey?

Date of Birth: 10 December 1851. Date of Death: 26 December 1931, stroke

Biography: Melvil Dewey is the founder of the library classification method now known as the
Dewey Decimal Classification System, or more simply the Dewey Decimal system. While working
as a librarian at Amherst College, Melvil Dewey developed a system of book classification which
divided nonfiction books into 10 broad categories. In Dewey's system, books were labeled and
ordered on shelves by topic, using numbers from 000 to 999. Dewey's system was a big hit! By
the time of his death, the system was being used in over 96% of all American libraries. Dewey
also helped found the American Library Association and is credited with creating the world's first
library science college.

000-99 General Works

How do we organize information?

Remember, Dewey lived a long time ago. He could never have
imagined many of the things we talk and read about today. He knew
this, so he created a special grouping for everything else that would
come along. This includes topics such as aliens and the unexplained.
Books that fit in this group have many different subjects in them.

001.9 Bar 001.944 Cox 025.5 San

Magazines and newspapers are
kept in the 000s.

050 070

100-199 Philosophy and Psychology

Who Am I? Books about Feelings and Thinking

The first section in Dewey are books that are numbered from 100-199.
The most important thing most people are interested in is themselves.
Some call this taking care of #1. Dewey started by creating a group
for books that are about who we are. This means how we think and
act. These are the things that make us human.

152.4 Joh 152.4 Tes

200-299 -Religion

How did we get here?

After we think about ourselves, many want to think about
how we got here. The next group that Dewey created is
about religion and Myths. These books try to explain how
people got on earth and why we are here.

200 BUL 222 HAY 232.91 DeP 232.91 DeP

300-399 Social Sciences

Who are the people around me?

The next thing that interests people are the others around us. Dewey knew
there would need to be a groups of people to share information with. These
are books about how people live, the things we do, and our culture
including folklore and mythology .

305.8 KUK 398.2 RIO 398.2 FIS 353.03 SPI

You can find books about how holidays are
celebrated all over the world in the 300s.

394.2 COO 394.261 ERL 394.264 GRE

Fairy tales, tall tales and folk tales
are also placed in the 300s. Why?

398.2 Bre 398.2 Whi 398.2 Osb

400-499 Language

How Do I Communicate With My Neighbors?

If we have things to share with our neighbors, we need to be
able to talk to them. This group of Dewey numbers is about

languages, how we write, and grammar.

419 FLO 428.1 Cle REF 423 SCH

500-599 Science

How can I explain the world around me?

Now that we know our neighbor and how to communicate,
we need things to talk about. Dewey made this group for

books about math and science.

523.8 JEF 551.2 SEN 597.96 BRO

600- 699 Technology/ Applied Science

What Will I Do With Science?

After we learn about numbers and science, we need to find
ways to use it. The next Dewey grouping is about APPLIED
SCIENCE. It is about how we use science in medicine and
technology.

629.224 Poo 636.7 Eva 623.7 ROB

700-799 Arts and Recreation

Time For a Break! What Will I Do For FUN?

Dewey knew that we would also want to relax and have fun.
This group is about arts and recreation.

743 AME 782.42 KAT

Books about sports can be found
in this section.

796.325 CRO 796.332 BOO 796.6 McC

800-899 Literature and Poetry

What are the stories of our lives?

(ALL FICTION USED TO BE HERE!)

After a fun break, we look at the important books we read, which we call
literature. Famous authors and famous books are important. They are so
important that Dewey gave them a special section in the Dewey Decimal
System

811 PRE 812 GIF

Fiction books used to be put in the 800s
because they are stories, but soon there
were so many fiction books that they had

to be separated into their own section.

900-999 History and Geography

What was the world like in the past? What is it like now?

In order to understand everything else, we need to answer
these questions. Dewey created a special section for geography
and history.

940.1 Hop 998.9 DON

92-Biography

Books in this group tell about real
people and their lives.

92 Wat 92 Ear 92 Swi

Reference - Information

Books in this group contain a great deal of
information about a specific topic. They are about

many different subjects.

030 Encyclopedias

031 World Almanac
(Guinness Book of World Records)

423 Dictionaries 912 Atlases

Let’s review!

What system do we use to
organize Non-fiction books in the
Media Center?

A. The Solar System
B. The Digestive System

C. The Dewey Decimal System

Who invented the Dewey
Decimal System?

A. Herman Melville
B. Melvil Dewey
C. Huey, Dewey and Louie

Numbers in the Dewey Decimal
system are known as _______.

A. phone numbers
B. prime numbers
C. call numbers

How many general groups are
there in the Dewey Decimal System?

A. 10
B. 100’s
C. 1000’s