Dewey Decimal Classification System

Dewey Decimal Classification System Sherry Bergen Gail Blanchard-Helton Becky Nicholson Maureen Strain Modified by Jerry Wendelin

Symbols to Help You Click on this symbol to move on. Click on this symbol to go back. To return to the lesson from a web site, click on the X in the upper right hand corner of the browser. X

Throughout this tutorial you will be given choices. • These will appear as underlined words which areblue. • Make your choice by clicking on these underlined words.

Let’s find out about Melvil Dewey and the Dewey Decimal Classification System! Who was Melvil Dewey? What is the Dewey Decimal Classification System?

The Dewey Categories • 000-099 - General Works • 100-199 - Philosophy and Psychology • 200-299 - Religion • 300-399 - Social Sciences

More Dewey Categories • 400-499 - Language • 500-599 - Natural Science • 600-699 - Applied Science and Technology

Still More Dewey Categories! • 700-799 Arts and Recreation • 800-899 - Literature • 900-999 - Biography, Geography, and History

000-099 - General Works 100-199- Philosophy and Psychology 200-299 - Religion 300-399 - Social Sciences 400-499 - Language 500-599 - Natural Science 600-699 - Applied Science and Technology 700-799 - Arts and Recreation 800-899 - Literature Dewey Categories at a GlanceClick on each Dewey Decimal category to find out more about that category. • 900-999 - Biography, Geography, and History

000’s GENERALITIES The 000’s include facts and “books about books.” Examples are reference works, encyclopedias, newspapers, magazines, almanacs, etc.

100’s PHILOSOPHY & PSYCHOLOGY The 100’s include books about great ideas and thinking. Examples are books about emotions, feelings, and human behavior.

200’s RELIGION The 200’s include works on different religions. Examples are the Bible, and books about different religions, mythology, stories of creation, and beliefs.

300’s SOCIAL SCIENCES The 300’s include works about law, education, customs, and everyday life. Examples are books about government, careers, transportation, festivals, legends and folk tales.

400’s LANGUAGE The 400’s include books about communication Examples are books about words, sign language, dictionaries, and books in other languages.

500’s NATURAL SCIENCES The 500’s include books about all different kinds of things found in nature and books about mathematics. Examples are books about numbers, planets, weather, light, and animals.

600’s APPLIED SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY The 600’s are books about how we use things in nature to make other things, they include farming, animal husbandry, food preparation, health, buildings, inventions, and transportation. Examples are books about pets and pet care, cooking, technology, medicine, engineering, and space exploration.

700’s ARTS & RECREATION The 700’s include books about art, music, and amusements. Examples are painting, architecture, music, dancing, sports, and games.

800’s LITERATURE The 800’s include poetry, drama, collected works, and journals. Examples are plays, poems and rhymes, and published diaries.

900’s BIOGRAPHY, GEOGRAPHY, & HISTORY The 900’s include works on countries, explorations, real people, historical events. Examples are biographies, books about wars, cultures, travel, and state books.

TIME OUT FOR PRACTICE! For each book title, decide in which Dewey Decimal category it would belong. Click on what you believe to be the correct answer. GOOD LUCK!

The Webster Collegiate Dictionary would be found in the • 000’s • 100’s • 200’s • Baseball Talk for Beginners would be found in the • 600’s • 700’s • 300’s • Haiku: The Mood of Earth would be found in the • 400’s • 800’s • 900’s

GREAT JOB!!! YOU KNOW YOUR DEWEY!!

OOPS!! LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW AND TRY AGAIN!!! 000 - General Works 100 - Philosophy and Psychology 200 – Religion 300 - Social Sciences 400 - Language 500 - Natural Science 600 - Applied Science and Technology 700 - Arts and Recreation 800 – Literature 900 - Biography, Geography, and History

Melvil Dewey designed a system that changed the way we organize books in a library.

Dewey was born on December 10, 1851 and his family was poor but hard working. His full name was Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey, but he liked to save space and shortened as much of his name as he could. Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey

Dewey was a student assistant at the Amherst College Library when he came up with his system in 1873.

Up until then, books had been given numbers that told exactly where to put them on the shelf. Whenever the shelves were moved or they became too full, all the book numbers had to be changed. Dewey thought there had to be a better way.

He studied this problem for months. Finally, while he was listening to a speech, the idea came to him. Instead of the book’s number telling the location of the book in a library, the number would be based on what the book was about.

He published this system in 1876 but his name was never on it until 1932, a year after his death.

Besides developing a system for books, Dewey also began the very first Library School-- at Columbia University --and helped establish the American Library Association.

Dewey really lives up to his nickname of “Father of the Modern Library.”

Imagine going into the library to look up a book on space or dogs or China and having to look through EVERY book that was there. You would have to start at one end of the room and look at the spine of every single book. It would take days !!

Instead, you know there is a section of books that all deal with animals or outer space or countries and the librarian can help you find it in just a few minutes.

Every book in the library has a number--like an address--- that tells you where to find the book you want. 5005 398 STI

Unlike street addresses though, the numbers allow books on the same subject to be placed near one another.

The idea of grouping books according to their content came from Melvil Dewey. His system divided all the books into just 10 main categories. Each of these categories is divided into 10 smaller groups and each of those groups is divided into 10 even smaller groups. All of these groups are assigned a number. 241.3 364.1 672.9 892.7

Because his system is based on dividing groups of books into 10s and because the Latin word for 10 is decimal, his system is known as the Dewey Decimal System. Once you know a book’s number and you know where those numbers are kept in your library, you can find your book in minutes!!! Wasn’t Mr. Dewey great??

There’s Always more to do with Dewey!!! • If you want, you can • get more practice choosing Dewey categories • get more details about the Dewey Decimal system • play games and solve word puzzles about the Dewey Decimal system • take a quiz about the Dewey categories • get more information about Mr. Dewey THE END

GREAT JOB!!! YOU KNOW YOUR DEWEY!!

OOPS!! LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW AND TRY AGAIN!!! 000 - General Works 100 - Philosophy and Psychology 200 – Religion 300 - Social Sciences 400 - Language 500 - Natural Science 600 - Applied Science and Technology 700 - Arts and Recreation 800 – Literature 900 - Biography, Geography, and History

OH NO!!! LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW AND TRY AGAIN!!! 000 - General Works 100 - Philosophy and Psychology 200 – Religion 300 - Social Sciences 400 - Language 500 - Natural Science 600 - Applied Science and Technology 700 - Arts and Recreation 800 – Literature 900 - Biography, Geography, and History

SORRY!!! LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW AND TRY AGAIN!!! 000 - General Works 100 - Philosophy and Psychology 200 – Religion 300 - Social Sciences 400 - Language 500 - Natural Science 600 - Applied Science and Technology 700 - Arts and Recreation 800 – Literature 900 - Biography, Geography, and History

SORRY!!! LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW AND TRY AGAIN!!! 000 - General Works 100 - Philosophy and Psychology 200 – Religion 300 - Social Sciences 400 - Language 500 - Natural Science 600 - Applied Science and Technology 700 Arts and Recreation 800 – Literature 900 - Biography, Geography, and History

Dewey Decimal Classification System