Organization & Access

The official Dewey numbers separate American history by presidential term.  This is not very helpful in a children's library.  On the left is a document explaining my reasoning, process, and the resulting schedule.  On the right is a shelf list using the new numbers, showing the impact of logical organization.  My thinking continues to evolve on this topic.

For years, I have maintained a LibraryThing account specifically to keep track of books that I like to use with, and recommend to, students and teachers.  I have developed tags to quickly find what I am looking for.  It is an ever-evolving project, and is currently in desperate need of updating.  My next steps include a diversity audit and replacing older books with current ones.  I continue to be interested in the ways that modern database structures can be used to increase multi-faceted access to information.

This link goes to my tag list.  Click on "Profile" in the upper left to see more information about the books.

Colleagues who know me well would be shocked to see genrification on this page.  I still maintain that standard library organization is the best way to teach children to become lifelong library users, and the catalog is the best way to encourage multi-faceted book discovery.  However,  my thinking is evolving and I am considering how genrefication in the the picture book section could greatly increase young students' independence in selecting books.