Hello,
Winter is finally gone and people are beginning to work in their yards and gardens. A lot of weeding is just beginning. If you haven’t weeded your library lately, it might be time to do some weeding in your library. A yard doesn’t look nice with many weeds in it crowding the books, and the same with a shelf of books that is crowded with outdated books. Let’s give our bookshelves some room to breathe and weed out books that have served their time and now need to be retired.
I started with my largest section – the stories. You might be using the Dewey number 813 for these or you might have the label ‘FIC’ for them. Here’s what I did to help me make decisions as to what to keep and what to discard.
WEEDING THE 813s
First, I printed a list of all the titles in this section. This is easy to do if your library is automated. On my list, I have the call number, the title, the year published (if available), the number of times the book has been checked out, and the year it was last checked out. At my desk, I used a ruler and only looked at the last use column. I highlighted each book that had not been checked out since 2014. I chose that date by making a judgement call on the amount of time a book just took up space in my library. Then I took my list, a pencil, and a book cart and went to the shelves. I looked for each book whose title I had highlighted. I picked up the book in my hands and I looked for these things:
1. CONDITION OF THE BOOK. Was it grimy, dirty, worn cover, torn pages, or missing pages?
2. INSIDE TEXT. Is it tiny print? Any illustrations or photos? Are the photos black and white and tiny or larger and colorful? Is the text attractive to children?
3. CONTENT. Is this story interesting or boring? Would I read it aloud? Do I know this story at all? Do I WANT to read this book myself? Do I think my students would enjoy the story? In addition, do I think I can ‘sell’ this to students?
4. Last Date Used. What was the last time this book was checked out? Why is it not being used?
As I held each book, I considered all of these things. I stacked the books into stacks for discard, for mending or cleaning, to take a second look at and skim or read, or for out of place. (Some had been shelved incorrectly.) I also made judgement calls on whether or not to keep the book anyway. Some of my judgement calls included the following scenarios:
a. Uncle Arthur’s series books haven’t been checked out a lot, but I still feel it is valuable to our SDA school library. Keep.
b. Do I really need five copies of Paul Harvey’s books (not checked out since 2007)? No. Keep one or two and discard the others.
c. Do I need duplicates of this book? Usually the answer is no. Discard the one in poorer condition.
d. Does an elementary school need a copy of The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady from 1906? It was checked out last in 1995 and only once. No. Discard.
e. Do I need a battered copy of The Incredible Journey last checked out in 2005 and checked out 2 times? This is a hard one. After all, it IS The Incredible Journey! I saw that movie as a child and loved it, but sitting on the shelf for 13 years and not being touched? Also, in poor condition? My answer was NO. If I DO need a copy, I can get a nice new copy and book talk it.
f. What about discarding a Newbery Medal Winner that hasn’t been used since 2007? Keep. I keep all medal winners and honor books. If the book is in poor condition, I get a new copy. These will always be in print.
g. I have over 200 poetry books with few checked out. Do I need duplicates? Probably not. I got rid of any duplicates. There were a few big thick ones clearly meant for adults. Choose one that I feel may be used, and discard the others. Five copies of Stevenson’s Child’s Garden of Verses? Nope. Pick the one or two (or three) that have lovely illustrations.
It takes much longer to tell it than to actually do it. Once I got started, I moved right along and was able to get a shelf of about 50 – 60 books done in about 20 minutes. Remember, I am ONLY looking at the books that haven’t been read for the last 4 or 5 years. The rest stay on the shelf.
As I am in the weeding process, I also try to remember that there will be some books that are worthwhile even if they aren’t used often. If a book has been donated by someone in the community, we usually keep it. If the topic of the book is something that is in the school curriculum, I usually keep it. One book I pulled due to low usage was a copy of Monkey Island by Paula Fox. Last check-out date was 2014, but it had been checked out 15 times which is a lot. I took it home to read and realized it was a book about homelessness, and decided to keep it. I will make a note in the computer on the list of subjects for that book and when someone searches for homeless people, we have a story to fit.
At any time, I do not hesitate to keep a book that is shelf-worthy no matter what the last date used is. I also don’t worry about tossing a book if I feel it is no longer useful to our school or curriculum.
Let me know if you have any questions about weeding the library. You can also look at my blog sdalibrarian.blogspot.com for previous posts on weeding. Check out March 2015 – May 2015 where I give hints on weeding each Dewey section. You can also check out October 2016 and January 2017 for more weeding information.
Don’t get discouraged. This is an ongoing process. Set small goals and do what you can to make your library attractive and inviting to students and parents.
Have a great week.
Audrey
