Another way to look at the Numbers in Nonfiction

There is a recipe for making a nonfiction call number. numbers (for the subject) first three letters of author’s last name

This is about the numbers in a nonfiction call number.

The Dewey Decimal System is a tool used to sort books into groups or categories

10 general groups for sorting all of the subjects General means broad, lots of subjects will fit into each group.

Here are the 10 general groups for sorting books in the Dewey Decimal System: 000s-General Works 100s-Philosophy 200s-Religion 300s-Social Studies 400s-Language 500s-Science 600s-Technology 700s-Arts and Leisure 800s-Literature 900s- History/Geography

This seems like a lot to remember, but don’t worry you’ll learn it all quickly. So let’s get going !!

000s-General Works Books in this group have many different subjects in them. For example: Encyclopedias 031 or a Book of World Records 032 This is also where books on unexplained subjects are found. Ex: The Loch Ness Monster 001.9

100s-Philosophy Books in this group tell about how we think and feel.

200s-Religion Books in this group tell about various religions or stories from the Bible, Torah, or Quran.

300s-Social Studies Books in this group tell about how people live together. holidays and customs government, military

Fairy tales and folk tales are also placed in the 300s. Many were written to teach a lesson about behavior and.. That’s social studies.

400s-Language Books in this group are about different languages or grammar. noun verb adjective

500s-Science & Math Books in this group are about natural laws and things from nature.

600s-Technology This group has books that are about man-made things.

700s-Arts and Leisure Books in this group are about things we do for fun.

800s-Literature Books in this group are stories, plays, or poetry. This is the group fiction books were put in long ago when The Dewey Decimal System was first invented.

Today we have too many fiction books in our libraries to organize them in this way. So fiction books are kept in a separate section and have their own way of being organized. You know, in ABC order, by author !

900s- History/Geography Books in this group tell about events of the past and countries of the world.

Biography- 920 Don’t forget this group. It contains books about famous people’s lives. Some libraries have a separate section for Biographies.

Knowing these big groups will help make it easier to find the books you want in the nonfiction section.

Remember, nonfiction call numbers are placed in number order first, so that means all of the books about the same subject end up near each other on the shelf. That’s Smart !!!!

Let’s See What You’ve Learned Call numbers help us find the books we want!

1.What is the recipe for a nonfiction call number? (See if you can remember first. Then click to the next slide for the answer.)

Numbers (for the subject) First three letters in the author’s last name 1.What is the recipe for a nonfiction call number?

2. What system tells us what numbers go with each subject?

Dewey Decimal System 2. What system tells us what numbers go with each subject?

3. Who is responsible for inventing the Dewey Decimal System?

Melvil Dewey 3. Who is responsible for inventing the Dewey Decimal System?

4. Mr. Dewey matched a number with each _____________. a) author b) subject c) title

4. Mr. Dewey matched a number with each _____________. a) author b) subject c) title

5. Most school libraries use the Dewey Decimal System. a) false b) true

5. Most school libraries use the Dewey Decimal System. a) false b) true

Most public libraries use the Dewey system too! Public libraries are different from school libraries. They serve the whole city or county. Multnomah County Library is an example of a public library.

See? You remembered quite a bit, I’ll bet! Good job! Now pat yourself on the back and let’s move on to our next slideshow!