If you want to work in a library, volunteer or paid, you must know how to organize library books. All books throughout the library are organized using the Dewey Decimal System or the Library of Congress Classification System. Many universities and specialty libraries use the Library of Congress Classification System, but most public libraries organize books using the Dewey Decimal System.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Organizing Books Based on the Dewey Decimal System
Step 1. Learn how the Dewey Decimal System works
Learning the Dewey Decimal System is not difficult because it is rationally laid out and built on a decimal base. In essence, each book category has a category number (an integer, such as 800) and a decimal number to the right of it. These numbers can be found on the back of the book and are called calling numbers. This system consists of 10 classes which are further divided into 10 subcategories and each category has 10 subdivisions. The ten main classes of the Dewey Decimal System, namely:
- 000-Computer, information and general science
- 100-Philosophy and psychology
- 200-Religion
- 300-Social Sciences
- 400-Language
- 500-Science
- 600-Technology and applied science
- 700-Art
- 800-Literature
- 900-History and geography
Step 2. Remember that the purpose of dial numbers is to group books by subject similarity, and this consists of at least two parts:
Class number (000 to 900) and decimal number. The class number is an integer and the decimal number is the number next to the period.
Step 3. Learn how the classification is detailed again
This is an example of how to find or organize books on American fictional literature written between 1861 and 1900. (The general classification for literature is “800.”)
- Look at the number after “8.” The number “1” indicates the book is classified under “General American Literature.” The second number after “8” informs the division; 811 is American Poetry, 812 is American Drama, 813 is American Fiction, 814 is American Essay and so on.
- Look at the first number after the dot; this number gives an even more specific classification. A book with the dial number “813.4” means it is American fictional literature written between 1861 and 1900. The longer the digits of the number, the more specific the subject of the book.
Method 2 of 2: Ordering Books According to the Library of Congress Classification System
Step 1. Study the 20 Library of Congress classifications to separate science areas
Each class is assigned a symbol of one letter of the alphabet.
- A General
- B Philosophy-Religion-Psychology
- C History (Civilization)
- D History (not America)
- E American History
- F Local American History, Latin American History
- G Geography and Anthropology
- H Social Science
- J Political Science
- K Law
- M Music
- N Art
- P Language and Linguistics
- Q Science and Mathematics
- R Medicine
- S Agriculture
- T Technology
- U Military Science
- V Marine Science
- Z Bibliography and Library Science
Step 2. Read more about how each class is divided into subclasses using a combination of letters and numbers
Similar to the Dewey Decimal System, the more numbers and letters used in a dial number, the more specific the book's classification-and the easier it is to find or organize. The dial number “PS3537 A426 C3 1951,” represents the book “Catcher in the Rye,” by J. D. Salinger published in 1951 (the last four digits of the dial number.)
Tips
- The dial numbers of the two systems are always read from left to right, top to bottom.
- All library books, regardless of the classification system used, are arranged from top to bottom and from left to right.
