This is me in the middle of moving things around.
Luckily I have some awesome student helpers that assisted me in the switch. Having stickers on the books already made it pretty easy.
Here is what a finished shelf looks like with signs made from the sticker design.
Here is another shot of the graphic novel section.
The sections in our library are Adventure, Fantasy, Graphic Novel, Humor, Manga, Mystery, Picture Books, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Sports, Thrillers. My library helpers and some of die-hard visitors that have continued to come in these last few days already love it. I can't wait to show all of the students when schools commences in the Fall.
Congrats! Student helpers are THE BEST, aren't they? I couldn't have done it without their help. Time to sit back and watch the kids go wild over it!
ReplyDeleteYea! You will be so glad you made the move.
ReplyDeleteYES! Your students will love it! I guarantee circulation will increase too! (btw, love your library!)
ReplyDeleteI love your signs made from the stickers! I have already genreized my fiction section and would love some signs like these. How did you make these? Thank you
ReplyDeleteI snagged the image from the website where I purchased the stickers. Then blew them up on our poster maker. It is probably breaking copyright, but I spent LOTS on the stickers for my entire library so I didn't feel too bad.
ReplyDeleteI have been noticing some differences in our District catalog as I add new titles. I wondered what was happening. Great job, Tamara. Once again, you are sacrificing a sacred cow in the name of patron accessibility.
ReplyDeleteI am intrigued by this whole idea. I would love to hear an update on how the students respond to it throughout the year and if it impacts your fiction circulation. Did this affect how the titles are cataloged? If so what software does your school use and how did you change/alter your records?
ReplyDeleteI'm slowly adding genre at the end of the record, like FIC ABC Fantasy. We use Follett Destiny. I'll keep you posted when the kids return. Thanks!
DeleteI have had my fiction divided by genre for several years. (Middle School). the students LOVE it! I ordered genre stickers for the spines, but in Destiny I simply added a three letter abbreviation for each genre: FAN for fantasy, REA for realistic fiction, SCI for science fiction, ROM for love stories, etc. A call number in Destiny for the Hunger Games would look like this: SCI F COL v. 1
DeleteYES YES YES!! I'm so excited for you! Definitely crazy moving everything around, but so worth it! Everyone's going to love it!
ReplyDeleteAre you keeping the books in alphabetical order by author within the genres? What about books that can be considered in more than one genre? How do you choose which one to use (ex: books that are science fiction AND fantasy)
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to decide if I want to do this for my library.. I really like the idea!
I do keep them in alpha order within genre. Sometimes it is hard to chose genre. I try to pick the one that really defines the book. For example, if it is a ghost story set in the 1800s I go with thriller and not historical fiction. I also ask a few students where they would expect to find it. I'm sure I have some In places you might not chose but I just have to go with it and help kids find it if they are confused.
ReplyDeleteI love this idea! I am wanting to steer away from Dewey also but have my Head Master and Lower School director pretty sold on it. Where can you find the signs you made. I may just create signs for certain areas of my nonfiction collection...example animals, weather, rocks, body, etc.
ReplyDeleteI copied the image from the library supply company where I purchased the stickers I put on the side. Then used our poster maker to make them big. I wanted the signs to match the stickers. Good luck as you consider switching. My principal was actually excited because he said he had never understood Dewey:)
DeleteThe only part of genrefying that was/is difficult for us was choosing the genre. Magical realism books really make our heads spin! But finally, we decided the decision didnt have to be permanent, so when we got stuck on a book, we both read the back and looked on goodreads and just MADE THE CHOICE and slapped the sticker on it. Then, we gave ourselves full permission to change it later if we got more information and we didnt have the right fit the first time.
ReplyDeleteWe also started by labeling every fiction book before moving a single one. I was then shocked when it took us less than two weeks to move them. I seriously thought it would take most of a school year.
Is there a way to see the pictures from this post? I know it's old, but I am a brand spanking new librarian at the HS level trying to increase circulation. One of the options I was considering was sorting by genre. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
ReplyDelete