CALL NUMBERS How to find a book in the library

Where is it ? Which shelf is it on? You look for the CALL NUMBER. How do you find a book in the library?

What is a CALL NUMBER? It is a book’s address on the library shelf.

It is on a small white sticker. Look on the thin side (or spine) of a book to see the CALL NUMBER.

Letters come first. At HCT, a call number has both letters and numbers. Of course, the letters are in alphabetical order.

Do you remember the Alphabet Song ? A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

For example, “D” is for books about history. Other books on the same subject will be nearby. The letter in a call number is like a neighborhood.

Books with “QA” come before books with “QB” and so on. For example, “QA” are the letters for books about computers. Sometimes, there are 2 letters.

This is not difficult. The numbers are in normal order. But, what happens next is a little confusing. After the letters, there are some numbers.

Do you remember decimals from your math class? Look at the 3 rd line of this call number. You see a dot. This is a decimal. QA 76.H

Did you guess ? So, on the library shelf, comes before 0.22 In decimals, which number is smaller 0.22 or ?

The letter with the decimal number usually is the first letter of the author’s last name. Sometimes, there is another line of decimal numbers. QA 76.H

The last number is the year the book was published. QA 76.H

Sometimes a call number has the word “Reference” under the year. This means that the book is in a special section called the Reference Section. Reference books must be used in the library only. They cannot be checked out. QA 76.H Reference

It tells you about the AUTHOR’S LAST NAME. It also tells you WHAT the books is about. To conclude, a call number tells you WHERE a book is in the library. And, it tells you WHEN the book was published.

But, what about Fiction books ? What about Graded Readers ? WOW ! That’s a lot of information in one number.

Fiction and Graded Readers do not have full call numbers. Books in the Fiction Section are in alphabetical order by the author’s last name.

If the author is Brad Pitt, the book will be in the P section. For example, if the author is Robert Adams, the book will be in the A section.

Yellow is Elementary or beginning. Blue is Intermediate and orange is Advanced. Graded Readers are shelved by level.

A Big Secret is filed under B. For example, The Long Road is filed by L Graded Readers are then filed by the first letter of the title after “the” or “a.”

Only one more thing about finding books in the library.

This means that all A books, all B books, all C books and all D books through DH will be on this set of shelves. On the side of a library shelf, you will see some letters, for example A- DH.

Ask your friendly librarian if you have any questions. Thank you for listening.

HAPPY READING !