The Dewey Decimal Classification System

Do you seek assistance while in the library?

Section IItem Categories and Classifications

Most students have had many opportunities to check out books from the Media Center. Are you familiar with the layout of the Media

Center at your school?Do you know how the books in the media

center are organized?

Dewey Decimal System The Media Center

has a great way of organizing books so that you can easily find them.It’s called the Dewey Decimal Classification System, or DDC for short.

Melvil DeweyCreated the classification system for

organizing books in a library.The Dewey Decimal Classification

System is over 100 years old and is used worldwide.

Main CategoriesFictionNon-FictionReference

Fiction Books are classified as Fiction when they tell a

story using fictional (not real) characters or events.

Fiction books are identified by a Dewey call number consisting of the prefix FIC and the first three letters of the author’s last name.

Twilight is classified in Dewey as a Fiction book. The call number for this book is “FIC MEY”. The author is Stephanie Meyer. Twilight is the story of a young girl who falls in love with a vampire. The book is written for the purpose of entertainment and is not based on true information.

Non-FictionBooks are classified as Non-Fiction when they

give factual information. The call number for non-fiction books always

contains a numerical Dewey classification number consisting of three numbers and the first three letters of the author’s last name. Non-Fiction Dewey call numbers range from 000-999.

Hereditary Diseases is classified in Dewey as a Non Fiction book. The call number for this book is “616 BRO”. The author is Fern Brown. This book gives factual information about several hereditary diseases of the human race and is based on research conducted by medical professionals.

Reference

Reference materials are works that can be used to gain basic information about a topic. Reference works contain many articles of information about many different subjects.

The Dewey call number for a Reference work always begins with the prefix REF and ends with a numerical classification within the range 000-999.

The World Book Encyclopedia 2009 is classified in Dewey as a reference work. The call number for this item is “REF 031 WOR”. This item is a multiple volume set arranged in alphabetical order.

Practice: click on the check mark to reveal the answerQuestion Answer

1. The book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley about a homemade monster would be classified in which one of the following Dewey categories?

A. BiographyB. FictionC. Reference bookD. Story Collection

Question Answer

2. A book in the media center that tells all about snakes based on scientific research would be classified in which Dewey category?

A. Non-FictionB. FictionC. ReferenceD. Biography

Question Answer

3. The World Book Encyclopedia, a reference work, would have which of the following prefixes on its spine for cataloging/shelving purposes?

A. B B. SC C. FICD. REF

Question Answer

4. The Dewey call number for fiction books begins with which of the following prefixes?

A. BIOB. FICC. REFD. SC

Question Answer

5. A book with the Dewey call number FIC ALL could be written by which of the following authors?

A. Davis, JeffersonB. Adams, JohnC. Allboom, MichaelD. Zahner, Jane

6. The book titled Taber’s cyclopedic medical dictionary with the call number REF 610 TAB would belong to which Dewey classification?

A. FictionB. Non fictionC. BiographyD. Reference

Question Answer

At this point, please join the media specialist at the display table to practice your new skills.

After you complete your practice, simply click the return key to continue to Section II.

Section IISearching for items using the computer

Alexandria

The Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) is the online system you can use to search for materials in our media center. The name of our OPAC is the Alexandria Researcher.

Choices

If you will notice, there are six search option categories.

1. Author2. Title3. Subject4. All Words5. Series6. Call Number

Please look at the top of the window. It is advisable that you select

simple search unless you are knowledgeable of advanced search options.

Simple

Author Search

If you want to search for a specific author, you simply type the author’s name beside “search for” and click on the author button

Author Search Results

When you click on the author button, you will see a list of books in our media center by the author you selected. In the second column you will see the format (book, video, equipment, etc), and in the third column, you will see the “in or out” status and the call number. The “in or out” information is based on whether the book is “in”, on the shelf available for check out or “out”, already checked out by another patron.

Title Search

Enter a title and click the “Title” button.

Subject Search

Enter the subject and click on the “Subject” button.

All Words Search

Enter words of interest and click on the “All Words” button.

Series Search

Enter the name of a series and click the “Series” button.

Call Number Search

Enter a call number and click the “Call Number” button.

Return to Main Menu

You can always return to the main search menu by clicking on the “back” button.

Help Buttons

If you click on the yellow question mark in the upper right corner, Alexandria Researcher will take you to a help desk.

Advanced Options

Alexandria Researcher does offer advanced options. However, this is an instructional

module for the basic functions. Please let the media specialist know if you have additional

questions.

Follow the directions on the Alexandria Researcher Practice Handout provided by the media specialist.

After you complete your practice, simply click the return key to continue to Section III.

Section IIILocating items within the layout of the media center

Media Center LayoutRemember there are three main sections within

the media center where you can locate materials.The Fiction section begins with books cataloged

FIC AAA and ends with books cataloged FIC ZZZ.The Non-Fiction section begins with books

cataloged 000 AAA and ends with books cataloged 999 ZZZ.

Reference works are shelved exactly like Non-Fiction but are generally shelved separately from them for ease of use and because reference books typically cannot be checked out from the media center.

Basic Example of Floor Plan

Fiction

FIC AAA –FIC ZZZ

Non-Fiction

000 AAA – 999 ZZZ

Non-Fiction

000 AAA – 999 ZZZ

Reference

REF000 AAA – 999 ZZZ

Reference

REF000 AAA – 999 ZZZ

Follow the directions on the Media Center Layout Handout to see if you can locate the designated books.

When you have completed your skills practice, click enter to proceed to the next slide.

Congratulations! You have completed the tutorial.You should notify your teacher or the media

specialist that you are finished so you can complete your assessment.

If you feel that you need to review, you can click on the replay button below to start the tutorial over.

You can view bibliographical information by clicking the return key

.

BibliographyClip art retrieved April 17, 2009, from

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx

Alexandria screen captures retrieved April 1, 2009, from Alexandria Librarian (Version 5.5.5) [Computer software]

Question 1 AnswerB- Fiction

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Question 2 AnswerA- Non-Fiction

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Question 3 AnswerD- REF

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Question 4 AnswerB- FIC

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Question 5 AnswerC- Allboom, Michael

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Question 6 AnswerD- Reference

You have completed your practice test. Click on the arrow to continue to the next activity.