Library Science: Wednesday Huakaʻi!

This week we will be visiting one of our Kauai libraries for a huakaʻi with papa ehiku and papa ewalu. Some of you are regulars at the library, with your cheerful little red library card all chewed on and your name all rubbed off of the back. Some of you might never have been before!

You can enjoy the library on simple or complex levels. You can use if for advanced scholarly research: each library in the state is connected so that you can request any book in the entire statewide system, and you can get access to scholarly journals online. Or you can just let your eyes scan the shelves, noticing glossy magazines, bright cd covers, enticing book covers. You can go in looking for a specific piece of information, or you can go in open to finding something new.

Before we go, there are some things about the library that will be helpful for you to know.

First, all of the materials in libraries are very well organized. Imagine the millions and millions of books that exist in the world. Libraries have to be equipped to store and find any of those materials almost instantly. Most libraries use The Dewey Decimal System to organize their materials. Click on the list to see the amazingly long list of genres the Dewey Decimal System uses to categorize books. If you familiarize yourself with this system, youʻll be able to find whatever you need at any library in the country.

Here is a simple overview of the system.

1 Class 000 – Computer science, information & general works 2 Class 100 – Philosophy and psychology 3 Class 200 – Religion 4 Class 300 – Social sciences 5 Class 400 – Language 6 Class 500 – Science 7 Class 600 – Technology 8 Class 700 – Arts & recreation 9 Class 800 – Literature 10 Class 900 – History & geography

from "List of Dewey Decimal Classes." Wikipedia. Oct 25, 2012. Accessed Nov 5, 2012.


Each book will have a number printed on its spine with the dewey decimal number on it, and the first few letters of the author's last name. You can easily find books by understanding how to order numbers (Math and English, together at last!) and how to alphabetize words.

The library is organized by genre. Sometimes if I am looking for specific information, I have better luck finding the section of the library with the genre I want than looking for specific books listed in the online catalog.

Something very exciting about the Hawaii State Library system is that we can now check out audio books and electronic books for electronic reader apps. You can also log in to your library account through the website, order books, renew materials, and check on due dates.

Here's a link to the State Library website. If you have a library card but haven't logged in before, your pin, is the last four numbers of your phone number.

See you at the circulation desk!