GENREFYING: HOW IT CHANGES

YOUR LIBRARY FOR THE BETTERGuadalupe Colin

Library Assistant

Francis W. Parker School

STANDARDS

• By the end of year, read and comprehend informational

texts, including history/social studies, science, and

technical texts, in the grades 2-3 text complexity band

proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end

of the range. (ELA Reading Informational Text 10)

• By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature

[informational texts] at the high end of the

grades 2–3 text complexity band independently and

proficiently. (ELA Reading Informational Text 10)

WHY GENRES?

• Genres will transform

your collection

• Non-fiction texts are

essential for common

core standards

• Dewey is not easy

WHERE TO START

• Decide what section to genrefy

• Buy supplies (tape & labels)

• Decide how to genrefy (classification)

• Nothing is set in stone

METIS

METIS

• Facts/Concepts

• Machines

• Science

• Nature

• Animals

• Pets

• MakingStuff

• Arts

• Sports

• Ourselves

• Community

• USA (Then & Now)

• Countries (Then &

Now)

• Languages

• Traditions

• Tales

• Verse

• Humor

• Mystery

• Adventure

• Scary

• Graphic Novel

• Memoir

• Fiction/Picture stories

• Beginning fiction

• Middle level fiction

METIS NONFICTION

• Facts/Concepts

• Machines

• Science

• Nature

• Animals

• Pets

• MakingStuff

• Arts

• Sports

• Ourselves

• Community

• USA (Then & Now)

• Countries (Then &

Now)

• Languages

• Traditions

• Tales

• Verse

• Humor

• Mystery

• Adventure

• Scary

• Graphic Novel

• Memoir

• Fiction/Picture stories

• Beginning fiction

• Middle level fiction

MORE GENRES

• Mythology

• Mystery (not fiction)

• Insects

• History

• Animals

SUBGENRES

• Find specific books

easier

• Collection more

manageable

• Take into consideration

the kind of books

students ask for

EXAMPLES

Pets

• Dogs

• Cats

• Hamsters

• Gerbils

Animals

• Giraffes

• Wolves

• Otters

• Rabbits

Ocean

Animals

• Dolphins

• Fish

• Whales

• Manatees

IN THE CATALOG

Example of genre and sub-genre

• How-to: Crafts

• Facts: Spies

• Community: Families

• Machines: Boats

DESTINY

FOLK & FAIRY TALES

Genre and subgenre

• Folk & Fairy Tales: Cinderella

• Folk & Fairy Tales: Grimm Brothers

• Folk & Fairy Tales: Latin America

DESTINY

• Mighty Little Librarian blog recommends

batch update

• Catalog was inaccurate

• Scan and change every book

BATCH

UPDATEDestiny

BATCH UPDATEDestiny

Figure 7

CURRICULUM

When creating genres

keep the curriculum in

mind

• History: Middle Ages

• Folk & Fairy Tales:

Japan

• History: Ancient Egypt

LABELING

• Covered Dewey call number

• Kept last name of author

• Metis offers labels

• Labeling by sections makes the process less

confusing

CATALOGING

• Scanned every book

• Changed call number

• Did not keep author’s last name except for

Biography and Poetry

• Labeling and cataloging took the longest

SIGNAGE

• Signage for genres

• Signage for subgenres

• Signs on bookshelves

• Guide for genres

FOLK

&

FAIRY

TALES

RESPONSES FROM

STUDENTS• From January 2015 to present:

• Nonfiction: 2,164

• Fiction: 2,544

• “Kids are thinking ‘I want to go right to this section and read the books

I like’”…”It was important to learn the Dewey Decimal System but it’s

confusing and genres are an easier way to find the books we like” -

Third Grader

• “The idea of genres is genius, students know where everything is” -

Fourth grader

RESPONSES FROM

FACULTY/STAFF

• “Shelving is so much easier” - Library Staff

• “I can count on finding related books next to

the one I’m looking for” - Teacher

WORKS CITED

• Depolo, Steven. Asian Girl Reading a Book Next to Painting of Girl Reading Book Grand Rapids Children's Museum.

Digital image. Flickr. 11 June 2011. Web.

• Herzog, Brian. Library Street Signs. Digital image. Flickr. 8 June 2012. Web.

• Kaplan, Tali Balas, Andrea Dolloff, Sue Giffard, and Jennifer Still-Schiff. "Are Dewey's Days Numbered?: Libraries

Nationwide Are Ditching the Old Classification System." School Library Journal. 28 Sept. 2012. Web. 14 Mar. 2015.

• Kaplan, Tali Balas, Andrea Dolloff, Sue Giffard, and Jennifer Still-Schiff. "Metis: Library Classification for Children."

Metis Innovations. Web. 14 Mar. 2015.

• Knott, Matthew. Pyramids. Digital image. Flickr. 10 Apr. 2006. Web.

• LaBar, Martin. Monarch Butterfly on Butterfly Weed. Digital image. Flickr. 25 Aug. 2006. Web.

• Michael. Chicago Bulls. Digital image. Flickr. 29 July 2009. Web.

• Whitehead, Tiffany. "Ditching Dewey: Catalog Changes." Mighty Little Librarian. 12 Jan. 2014. Web. 14 Mar. 2015.

• "English Language Arts Standards." Common Core State Standards Initiative. 1 Jan. 2015. Web. 14 Mar. 2015.

• Spies. Digital image. Flickr. 18 Nov. 2011. Web.