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Latest Forum Edition—Winter 2025
President's Message: Advocacy Work Makes a Difference
by Barb Fecteau
Barb is the LMS at Beverly High School. She enjoys crochet and swimming, but rarely at the same time. She teaches in the school library program at Salem State University.
I was going to write a message about keeping our wits about us when all those around us are losing theirs. I was going to write a message about keeping a stiff upper lip. I was going to write a message about gritting our teeth and bearing it. I had a lot of vaguely Churchillian ideas about how to be inspiring in these times of uncertainty…
But I can’t bring myself to do it. Now, I am not freaking out. I no longer let myself look at social media after dark. I read the paper version of The New York Times in the morning and then don’t consume any more news. I face the horrors in print, come close to a scream into the void, and then I move on. No: I am not freaking out. I am deeply concerned, and we should all be.
Editor's Column—The Listserv Makes Me Smile
by Luke Steere
Luke is the librarian at Wilson Middle School in Natick.
For me, trending topics on the MSLA listserv are a constant source of amusement. Hat tip to Alix Woznick of Beverly Middle School for the first big response of an uneven, uncertain, yet eventful new year: "just curious... do kids put books away backwards lately?" Instead of spines facing outward, with labels proudly serving intended purpose, cutter numbers staunchly wrapping around to the covers waiting to baffle 6th graders, it was instead the page ends which were visible, creating a rather unwholesome situation for these personified books when posted to social media:
A screenshot of offending search results.
Research Quandaries in the Age of AI
by Mark McNeil
Mark is the Library Media Specialist at Sarah W. Gibbons Middle School in Westborough.
As AI arrives in schools, teachers need to be aware of how this technology will impact the platforms and workflows media specialists use with students in the library setting. A recent survey of students and teachers showed that AI use in the past year had increased from 58% to 70% for high school students and from 51% to 67% for teachers. Yet, 66% of teachers have still not received any professional development on this technology (Merod). Library media specialists are on the frontlines of quality research, information literacy, and academic integrity in the age of AI. Below are some areas being affected by AI that library media specialists should be aware of:
Picture Books: Excellent nonfiction and informational fiction read-alouds
by Jenny Arch
Jenny is a children's librarian at the South Hadley (MA) Public Library. Previously, she was a library media specialist at East Meadow School in Granby, a school librarian at the Michael E. Smith Middle School in South Hadley, and a children's and adult services librarian at the Winchester Public Library and the Robbins Library in Arlington (MA).
As a reader who has always preferred fiction—and I know many librarians share this preference—I’ve been making an effort for years to read more nonfiction, include nonfiction in displays, and find nonfiction read-alouds for storytimes. Now, I work with mostly younger kiddos, from babies through PreK, and a lot of picture book nonfiction is pitched a bit older, so I’ve included a range here. Nonfiction picture books are an excellent introduction to new topics not just for elementary students, but for middle and high school as well.
My standards for nonfiction are strict—like Betsy Bird, I don’t like invented dialogue, and I believe there should be at least basic back matter: a helpful author’s note, a bibliography, further reading, and if relevant, photo credits, quotation sources, timeline, or map. However, I’ve also learned a lot in my reading life from “informational fiction" (books in which the factual elements remain true to life, but some elements are invented or imagined), so I’ve included some of these as well.
Medium Matters: Answers to your Questions about Comics
by Liza Halley
Liza is the Library Teacher at Plympton Elementary School in Waltham. She has loved graphic novels since reading Bone and Amulet with her son. She reads every graphic novel she can find and is a big fan of Monstress, Hellboy, and Saga. She is a founder of the Boston Kids Comic Fest.
In this Forum article, I want to answer some questions that have come up in my PD workshops and from readers of the MSLA Google group. I want to start out with a question of my own. Have you read a graphic novel lately? A work of graphic nonfiction? A graphic memoir? Here is my number one pro tip that lingers behind my answer to all and every question ever asked of me about comics: READ graphic novels. I am not asking you to give up on your Sarah J. Maas fix, or your Louise Penny addiction. I am asking you, though, to take five graphic novels from your library collection and bring them home and read them. Cover to cover. Regularly. Have fun with it. Think of it as an indulgence. Or work, if that motivates you. But read so you can support the readers in your community. Here’s what I do: Because I am EXTRA, as my sons say, I go to my lovely Arlington Public Library and grab twenty children’s graphic novels I haven’t read yet, check them out, and then on a weekend morning, indulge in a good long reading session. Try it!
New Librarian Q&A with Bob Boutin
Bob is the Library/Media Specialist at Ford Middle School in Acushnet.
How did you come to librarianship?
This is my fourteenth year in education, but only my first as a librarian. In 2020, I was a French middle school teacher. Due to COVID, I made the difficult decision to leave teaching. After a few years out of education I applied for an ESP position in Sandwich and I realized that I missed having my own classroom. As an ESP, I would occasionally sub for the librarian. Being a librarian was something that was always in the back of my mind, but I had previously erroneously believed that it was too late for me to get a license in another field. While at Sandwich, I worked to get my library license. Soon after, I accepted my current role in Acushnet.
Another Charge Down a Cataloging Black Hole—the 390s
by Gillian Bartoo
Gillian is the District Cataloging Manager for the Cambridge Public Schools.
If you haven’t read my column about fixing the 800s, you don't know that there are certain Dewey numbers or ranges that I consider “black holes” for school collections PK–8 under 15,000 volumes. I consider them black holes because books get cataloged to those shelves and are never looked at again. My suspicion is that they don’t circulate because there are so few of them in a school library collection. Subjects and topics in elementary schools are broad and encompassing and library cataloging is not, so when a book falls out of one of the bigger areas of the collection or where people think it should be, it isn’t likely to be found by browsing. (We won’t discuss the option of using the catalog. The reasons it doesn’t get used are valid, but it still hurts.) One of the easier fixes is to move some of these outliers into another class or range while still working within Dewey. I’m not talking about making up my own call numbers or recataloging huge swathes of the collection. Projects like that have their place, but they are HUGE time and money sucks and most school librarians I know don’t have the time and money to spare. So, let’s start with rescuing a few books from another black hole instead.
Academic Column: Introducing Emily Remer and Higher Things
by Emily Remer
Emily is the Librarian at Michael E. Smith Middle School in South Hadley.
How did you come to your PhD program?
The year before the pandemic hit, I was feeling serious school-library burnout. I had always wanted to achieve a PhD, so I decided it was time to explore that possibility. I was accepted to the program at Simmons and began my coursework during the first full school year of the pandemic. (My student cohort included Deeth Ellis, the previous author of this column.) The focus of much of my PhD studies has been book illustration—I have prepared a research proposal on graphic novel illustration, performed quantitative research on the representation of female illustrators of the Golden Age of Illustration in modern museums, performed qualitative research on the history of the picture book community in the Pioneer Valley, and developed a course on the history of book illustration.
During my time in the program, I have worked as a teaching assistant for various courses, been a tutor, chaired the Doctoral Student Association, and taught courses in the Master of Library Science program at Simmons as an adjunct.
Library Culture and Radical Empathy
by Anita Cellucci
Anita is a past president of the MSLA and the current Library Teacher and K–12 Libraries Department Head at Westborough High School. She has recently been appointed as an AASL Emerging Leader Member Guide for 2025.
Becoming deliberately aware of others is challenging work. As educators we know that respectful and meaningful conversations promote empathy, resilience, and stronger relationships with our students and colleagues. Relationships don’t happen overnight; they need to be nurtured and intentional. To foster these kinds of relationships, we need to have grace, gratitude, and generosity. As school librarians, we have infinite opportunities to provide this for our schools.
President's Message: Advocacy Work Makes a Difference by Barb Fecteau Barb is the LMS at Beverly High School. She enjoys crochet and swimming, but rarely at the same time. She teaches in the school library program at Salem State University. I was going to write a message about keeping our wits about us when all those around us are losing theirs. I was going to write a message about keeping a stiff upper lip. I was going to write a message about gritting our teeth and bearing it. I had a lot of vaguely Churchillian ideas about how to be inspiring in these times of uncertainty… But I can’t bring myself to do it. Now, I am not freaking out. I no longer let myself look at social media after dark. I read the paper version of The New York Times in the morning and then don’t consume any more news. I face the horrors in print, come close to a scream into the void, and then I move on. No: I am not freaking out. I am deeply concerned, and we should all be. There is little to write here to mitigate the fact that the new administration put out a press release with the headline “U.S. Department of Education Ends Biden’s Book Ban Hoax.” I don’t have any advice for how to comfort our students from immigrant families who are now living in fear or our nonbinary and trans kids who are being told they don’t exist, beyond listening to what they need, helping to foster a community that sees them, and to ally with advocates around you in your hallways, buildings, districts, and communities. It's impossible to judge what the proposed freeze to federal grants and loans will do to education and libraries, but it will not be positive when looked at from this perspective alone. Instead, I want to take a look into the recent past and consider what our organization has accomplished in 2024, magnificent work that has laid us a foundation for smoothing out the uneven development of libraries that may be on the horizon. Library advocacy feels like dizzying tire-spinning. Sometimes it feels like you're not making any headway, but showing up is the work. MASS / MASC Conference Reba Tierney, Waltham High School librarian, and Luke Steere, Natick Middle School librarian, went to the joint conference of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) & Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (M.A.S.S.) in Hyannis. Our talking points were geared toward policies regarding book bans, but it also included an introduction to what our organization does. This visibility piece is crucial, and the book bans are what are on the forefront of our minds. But, according to Reba and Luke, the room wanted to talk about actually getting librarians in their buildings in the first place. Overall, the experience was great for networking but the focus of the audience was much more about sustainable programs rather than something further down the line, sound policies. Our session ran concurrently with a few others, but the presenters also mentioned that libraries enjoy a positive perception in this community, even if the districts aren’t able to put money toward establishing libraries, reestablishing libraries, or hiring full-time librarians to staff them. The MSLA’s presentation is linked here. In addition to the central issue of a lack of libraries, there was a lot of uncertainty about the political climate. Next time, Reba and Luke reported the best thing to do would be to drill down on specifics for what the ALA designates a library. Bring more organizational and collaborative efforts into our presentations to show a constellation of advocates that we use and rely on. Perhaps create a “heat map” or a continuum of what a compliant library would look like based on the ALA standards? Another idea would be to try and get two sessions or visibility in other ways, splitting the difference with a more focused, policy-based session and a more approachable, open Q & A or “support” session. SD.1769 Outreach Director, Deborah Froggatt and Advocacy Chair, Georgina Trebbe, have worked to introduce a bill into the Massachusetts legislature, linked here. An Act relative to school library standards, Bill SD.1769, was introduced by Senator Jacob R. Oliveira, representing Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester counties. The process by which one does this is, basically, being in the room. Of course, it’s a Zoom room, but taking meetings and getting meetings is how this happens. We had two different meetings with DESE officials, including one with Russell Johnston, the state education commissioner, and 9 other DESE staffers. State level advocacy, according to that meeting, is all about messaging around “Why this instead of that?” This puts any educational advocate in an awkward position, especially in a year when difficult budgetary decisions are being made. Shortly following that meeting, the bill was introduced. Basically, the bill seeks to enshrine AASL standards as part of the way libraries are staffed, run, and evaluated. The bill is based on the MSLA Policy Brief which provides data about student access and achievement regarding school libraries.This is the first step for ensuring that every school library in the state has a certified school librarian who creates a timeline for evaluating that program’s effectiveness. The next step is visibility because bills like this could languish, as other library-facing or reading-facing bills have done so for several years, some not passing into law and, eventually, not being reintroduced in the next session. However, some bills can suddenly pass if the right person or the right thing is said at the right time. Keeping Momentum and Ways to Get Involved Our next goal is to keep momentum in a number of ways: Sign up for the conference March 2–3, 2025. Such experiences are a great way to network and get involved with the organization. Plus, each year there are several conference workshops or presentations around advocacy, and the keynote speakers often touch on this subject as well. Attend Webinars and PD with library-connected groups. One hosted by The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) entitled The Power of Partnership: Enhancing School Success through Principal and Librarian Collaboration, is the first in a series. It happened on February 4. Keep an eye out for other events from them or any other groups– and if you’re comfortable and the event is participatory, name drop MSLA! Also, following the theme of the first workshop, talk to your admins! Let them know what's happening. Consider hosting legislative breakfasts– here is a Legislative Breakfast Toolkit and it is a great idea to give the MSLA School Library Standards Bill Handout and use the word “priority”. Each state representative explains to a Ways and Means committee what their priorities are. Our message needs to be “make the Library Legislative Agenda their priority”. We want to pass on advocacy to the legislators, essentially. According to Froggatt, Katie Archey Kerwood, the Library Teacher at Taconic High School in Pittsfield, hosted a Legislative Breakfast at the end of January, and involved public library colleagues as co-hosts.          Contact your legislators. You can find them on the state website and send them a letter or share any documents within this article too. Please ask them to make the School Library Standards Bill a priority. Letters templates are forthcoming from the Advocacy Committee. Help us network with other groups! We are working toward achieving the MSLA chapter for the AASL chapter award, but we want to rally other collaborators and constituents. Our eBoard member Sue Doherty has recently become an MTA liaison for us, continuing to bridge the gap between union statewide officials and librarians at school. This is but one way to do this networking, but even the smallest conversations can push us into strong connections. Ask how else you can get involved by reaching out to me at bfecteau@maschoolibraries.org. Thank you for all you do, but, most of all, take care of yourself.
Editor's Column -- The Listserv Makes Me Smile by Luke Steere Luke is the librarian at Wilson Middle School in Natick. For me, trending topics on the MSLA listserv are a constant source of amusement. Hat tip to Alix Woznick of Beverly Middle School for the first big response of an uneven, uncertain, yet eventful new year: "just curious - do kids put books away backwards lately?" Instead of spines facing outward, with labels proudly serving intended purpose, cutter numbers staunchly wrapping around to the covers waiting to baffle 6th graders, it was instead the page ends which were visible, creating a rather unwholesome situation for these personified books when posted to social media: A screenshot of offending search results. There was the usual silly-dramatic response to Alix's initial post, commiseration, and pondering, all of which could be simply summed up in the emoji “ As always, the outpouring of support from the membership contained both tangible solutions or seeking to understand trends. Some offered up wonderful ideas of a drop cart to give these "browsed-for" books a place to live— a sort of visible purgatory of the once-desired book— or a program of student volunteers who can help reshelving efforts. Others felt more philosophical, citing a loss of haptic understanding: students are not handling books as much anymore so they lack an awareness of the importance of proper shelving. Still more cited the book-as-object in terms of age— students wanted to see the oldest book in the library, but not necessarily read it. There also bloomed a subtopic about excitement around “big books” which, ironically, raises similar discourse around shelving. (As another aside, the most troublesome for me are those small books— like Messner's History Smashers dwarfed by expository books on the American revolution— or thin books— the uber cool What goes on inside your brain? series I had to order in paperback and is now lost in a dense forest of Eyewitness books.) The most likely reason for the problem was presented by Abington Middle / High School Librarian Tricia London. It was TikTok, the recently whirl-winded social media platform that was banned and then resuscitated by President Trump, who “signed an executive order granting TikTok a 75-day extension to comply with a law that requires a sale or ban of the platform” (Hoskins). You'll recall it was also the nexus for devious licks, a post-COVID phenomenon of social media dares which inspired violence, theft, and property destruction at schools. The reverse shelving also happens on TV, as mentioned by retired member Mary E. Braney, library consultant. Design and lifestyle blogger and HGTV host Jasmine Roth reveals it is simply copyright as a reason you see so many page-out books on shelves on television. She goes on to say that the creamy neutral color achieved with pages-out ends up being an aesthetically pleasing visual element preferable to a bunch of gaudy spines. Roth explains, "I think while it may not be practical for such a large bookcase if you need to access the books often, the pages facing outward do look nice here on the blue paint color." I've linked this below, and invite you to check out the salad of comments that follows the article, supporting our efforts to use books for reading. I read just this morning about those who "practice the refined art of what the Japanese call tsundoku—buying books and not reading them" (Kjellberg). For me, there's a huge comfort knowing this "problem" has a name, and indeed that sometimes these things just need to be named and reframed. Happy New Year, and thank you for reading this month's slate of ideas to think about, apply to your practice, and smile about, keep posting and keep talking. Photo by Bruce Cramer, Madison Park Technical Vocational High School Works Cited
Research Quandaries in the Age of AI by Mark McNeil Mark is the Library Media Specialist at Sarah W. Gibbons Middle School in Westborough. As AI arrives in schools, teachers need to be aware of how this technology will impact the platforms and workflows media specialists use with students in the library setting. A recent survey of students and teachers showed that AI use in the past year had increased from 58% to 70% for high school students and from 51% to 67% for teachers. Yet, 66% of teachers have still not received any professional development on this technology (Merod). Library media specialists are on the frontlines of quality research, information literacy, and academic integrity in the age of AI. Below are some areas being affected by AI that library media specialists should be aware of: Reviewing Literature for Research Students will likely have access to AI tools supporting research in different ways. Elicit and Consensus were a couple of the early AI research websites to appear, offering shortcuts such as summaries, analysis, and citations. In December, Google announced Deep Research, which unveiled a 1-million-token window, meaning it can digest over 770,000 words in one intake and provide summary reports (Sullivan). Traditionally, research has involved students having to search and identify a range of resources to read, watch, or listen to. Even curated, pre-selected resources given by a teacher can be shortcutted by students. If a student doesn’t want to watch a full video or read an article or book, they can enter it into a large language model and receive key points summarized in any form they want. How will we maintain process and integrity in research with tools that can perform most of these steps for students? Creating Proper Citations MLA citation guidelines have already been developed for crediting AI for text outputs and generative images, but does this traditional format go far enough to address how AI was used? Several potential issues emerge when using an MLA format to cite AI. First, the citation requires the original prompt, but AI outputs are never the same when re-prompted, making it challenging to verify the original sourced information. Second, crediting AI can subtly condition students and teachers to legitimize it as a reputable source of information. This is risky, given that large language model outputs can often provide false or misleading information. An emerging alternative approach for crediting AI is disclosure statements. The author provides a written description of what tools were used and how much AI was involved. This can provide more clarity for the evaluator rather than simply providing citations with prompts. Searching for Information Recently, Google has introduced AI-generated summaries that appear below the search bar after a query is submitted. These summaries are generated by AI, which searches the web and then provides a summary of what it found. They are placed before the website results, so the user doesn’t have to sift through the list of links. Google, Perplexity, and ChatGPT now each have their own versions of this type of search. There have been notable mistakes in generative summaries, where outputs have provided incorrect or even dangerous recommendations to users. For example, users have received confident responses from Google summaries that suggested how many rocks they should eat and how to use glue to help cheese stick to pizza (PBS). While most mistakes are not this obvious, the reality is that students will likely be reading these convincing summaries as valid outputs. Google Scholar is also not immune to AI-generated information, which can be inaccurate. A recent report found many scientific papers were flagged for using GPTs, or custom AI-powered programs designed to generate tailored text and information based on specific inputs and user needs. Not every paper found on Google Scholar is peer-reviewed or written by credentialed authors, which could lead to faulty evidence, deliberate misinformation, and bad science (Schultz). AI Power and Digital Divides AI could also increase the digital divide among schools and students. Individual school districts or parents might be able to provide children with AI tools that give them an advantage in work completion and quality. Recently, an 8th-grade ELA teacher had students generate AI images for mock book covers using a free image generator in Canva. While observing the class, the teacher noted that one student was using ChatGPT4’s image generator, DALLE-3, which is part of their $20 per month subscription. When asked, the student mentioned that a parent had an enterprise subscription through work and provided it to family members. How will schools combat these divides where a demographic of students may have access to a set of AI tools that cannot be provided to all students in a district? This divide could grow in 2025 with the rise of "Agents" in the next phase of AI development. "Agents" or "Agentic AI" can essentially complete multi-step tasks for users and even take over their computers to do so. Anthropic’s Claude was among the first to demonstrate examples of how agents work, with one user asking it to plan a hike on Google Maps and schedule it for a specific time and day (Anthropic). One can imagine the next phase may involve students asking agents to conduct research, cite sources, and write a paper in one shot. At this point in AI’s development, there are more questions than answers for school leaders. Many teachers are weathering the storm brought by AI and buying time until there is more clarity on policy, use cases, and how education should adapt to this new world. Library media specialists can be school leaders in AI literacy by staying informed, experimenting with tools, and sharing their knowledge with administration and staff. Works Cited
AI Use Disclosure I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT4o (https://chatgpt.com/) to improve the readability and wording of my draft. I uploaded the text of my essay draft through ChatGPT4o’s projects feature, and I entered the following on January 23rd, 2025:
The output shared some suggestions for improving the consistency, wording, and format of my work. I made some suggested changes to rewording and consistency, but did not follow through on other suggested changes to things like formatting. |
" [eye roll].
Academic Column: Introducing Emily Remer and Higher Things
by Emily Remer
Emily is the Librarian at Michael E. Smith Middle School in South Hadley.
How did you come to your PhD program?
The year before the pandemic hit, I was feeling serious school-library burnout. I had always wanted to achieve a PhD, so I decided it was time to explore that possibility. I was accepted to the program at Simmons and began my coursework during the first full school year of the pandemic. (My student cohort included Deeth Ellis, the previous author of this column.) The focus of much of my PhD studies has been book illustration – I have prepared a research proposal on graphic novel illustration, performed quantitative research on the representation of female illustrators of the Golden Age of Illustration in modern museums, performed qualitative research on the history of the picture book community in the Pioneer Valley, and developed a course on the history of book illustration.
During my time in the program, I have worked as a teaching assistant for various courses, been a tutor, chaired the Doctoral Student Association, and taught courses in the Master of Library Science program at Simmons as an adjunct.
What are you working on right now?
I am currently working on my dissertation proposal, which I plan to defend over February vacation week. The working title of my dissertation is “A Phenomenological Study of the Higher-things Experience of Adults with Children’s Picture Book Illustration.” It will be a qualitative study that explores the profound and pleasurable experiences that adults have with children’s picture book illustration that has been removed from the picture book context and is presented as art. I plan to useThe Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art (Amherst, MA) as a primary location for the research, and the R. Michelson Galleries (Northampton, MA) as a secondary location.
The courses that were most formative for my studies and research were Theories of Information Science (which really surprised me, because I am not a theories person) and Qualitative Research Methods. It was during these courses that I developed my research methodology and theoretical/conceptual lens and was introduced to one of the authors of the most influential academic paper I read during: “Information and the higher things in life” (Kari & Hartel, 2007). This paper focuses on researching positive or profound experiences in LIS rather than problems or mundane issues. It was a life-changing paper for me to read, because I felt like it gave me permission to research happiness and joy (which I’m a big fan of); it has become the conceptual lens for my dissertation.
Kari and Hartel’s discussion on researching higher things, which are typically “positive human phenomena, experiences, or activities that transcend the daily grind with its rationality and necessities” reflects a paper on positive psychology by Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000), in which they consider the need to examine what makes life worth living and to move away from persistently focusing on problems.
Focusing on “higher things” serves many purposes, including:
Prevent mental health disease
Influence work performance
Being fully human
Achieving “selfhood”
Make life meaningful
Shape identity
Add purpose to life
Kari and Hartel state that this kind of focus – on the positive and profound – can help prevent problems in our LIS profession, make our discipline more relevant to the whole person, and help people achieve what is best in life through information. And though their focus in on LIS research, it is also applicable to our daily interactions and professional demeanor as school librarians.
Works Cited
Kari, Jarkko, & Jenna Hartel. (2007). “Information and higher things in life: Addressing the pleasurable and the profound in information science.” Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(8), 1131–1147.https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.20585
Seligman, Martin E.P., & Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. (2000). “Positive Psychology: An Introduction.” The American Psychologist 55 (1): 5.
Picture Books: Excellent Nonfiction and Informational Fiction Read-alouds
by Jenny Arch
Jenny Arch is a children's librarian at the South Hadley (MA) Public Library. Previously, she was a library media specialist at East Meadow School in Granby, a school librarian at the Michael E. Smith Middle School in South Hadley, and a children's and adult services librarian at the Winchester Public Library and the Robbins Library in Arlington (MA).
As a reader who has always preferred fiction - and I know many librarians share this preference - I’ve been making an effort for years to read more nonfiction, include nonfiction in displays, and find nonfiction read-alouds for storytimes. Now, I work with mostly younger kiddos, from babies through PreK, and a lot of picture book nonfiction is pitched a bit older, so I’ve included a range here. Nonfiction picture books are an excellent introduction to new topics not just for elementary students, but for middle and high school as well.
My standards for nonfiction are strict - like Betsy Bird, I don’t like invented dialogue, and I believe there should be at least basic back matter: a helpful author’s note, a bibliography, further reading, and if relevant, photo credits, quotation sources, timeline, or map. However, I’ve also learned a lot in my reading life from “informational fiction” - books in which the factual elements remain true to life, but some elements are invented or imagined - so I’ve included some of these as well.
A Seed Grows (2022) by Antoinette Portis: Bold colors, simple text, and brilliant design (the pattern on the endpapers; the gatefold that allows the sunflower to grow in height) combine for a perfect read-aloud for the youngest readers. When I read this at storytime, I incorporate movement too: we curl up small like seeds, then stretch our “roots” and “leaves” and grow toward the sun. Back matter includes Parts of a Sunflower Seed, What the Seed Needs to Sprout, Parts of a Sunflower Plant, Life Cycle of a Sunflower Plant, and More to Explore. (See also: Hey, Water (2018), a Sibert Honor book.)
Fabulous Frogs (2015) by Martin Jenkins, illustrated by Tim Hopgood: Bold and bright, this book works on two levels: There is simple primary text (“This frog is huge…these frogs are tiny”) and supporting secondary text for slightly older readers who want more frog facts. The creators’ love for frogs shines through: “[Jenkins and Hopgood] wanted to get as many frogs as possible into this book, so here are a few more, just for fun.” There is an index, and a few websites for more information. Full of fascinating frog facts!
What Can You Do With A Toolbox? (2018) by Anthony Carrino and John Colaneri, illustrated by Maple Lam, introduces many tools (including some too big to fit inside a toolbox) and their uses. Each tool and its related task is in a close frame, but savvy readers might guess that the end result is a playground. There’s no back matter, but I’m giving it a pass because the language and illustrations make it such a good read-aloud for a younger audience. There’s a safety-first message as well; before any tools are used, adults and kids alike put on safety glasses, hard hats, work gloves, and boots.
Whose Footprint Is That? (2019) by Darrin Lunde, illustrated by Kelsey Oseid: This book has a guessing game built in! It’s a great read-aloud because it invites participation. There are enough clues that some answers are easily guessable, while others are surprising. The question “Whose footprint is that? is repeated, with a picture of the footprint and a hint: an illustration of part of the animal in question, and some text (e.g. “It was made by running on snow”). The page turn provides the reveal and some additional information (“A snowshoe hare has big feet. The feet keep the hare from sinking in the snow”). The final question asks, “Can an animal change its footprints?” Yes, a human can - “by putting things on their feet.” There’s a matching activity to determine which type of footwear (ice skate, snowshoe, high heel, etc.) made each print. (See also: Whose Egg Is That? and Whose Poop Is That?)
The Noisy Puddle: A Vernal Pool Through the Seasons (2024) by Linda Booth Sweeney, illustrated by Miki Sato: The mixed media collage art is so outstanding that this book is worth sharing one-on-one, but it works in storytime too; in fact, it’d be a shame not to read aloud, as the rhyme is so good, and there are plenty of sound words and active verbs. This would be a brilliant choice to read before a nature walk. Back matter includes more information about these “noisy puddles” through each season and how it’s “all connected,” as well as labeled illustrations of some of the wildlife in the book (e.g. spotted salamanders, painted turtles, wood ducks), and selected sources.
Ready, Set, Run!: The Amazing New York City Marathon (2023) by Leslie Kimmelman and Jessie Hartland: Primary text provides a through-line, but there are plenty of “Extra!” facts you could include or not, depending on the listeners’ attention span. The illustrations include the sometimes-humorous signs that cheering racegoers hold up (in Brooklyn: “You are NOT almost there”); a double gatefold shows runners taking off at the beginning of the race. Back matter includes an author’s note and selected sources; there is a map of the race route before the title page. Readers whose interest is piqued by the topic might also like picture book biographies Her Fearless Run (2019) and Girl Running (2018), about Kathrine Switzer and Bobbi Gibb, respectively.
Pizza!: A Slice of History (2022) by Greg Pizzoli: Most kids love pizza, so you’ve got some immediate buy-in, and Pizzoli’s palette of “four spot colors: sweet-tomato red, fresh-basil green, greasy-cheese yellow, and charred-crust black” is captivating. But this book is also calzone-stuffed with surprising pizza facts (although, regrettably, no back matter at all, not even source notes or further reading), from the history of pizza to the amount of pizza we eat in the U.S. each second (350 slices). Pizzoli reviews different types of pizza, different toppings around the world, and invites the readers to answer what pizza is like where they live. Interesting and engaging.
A few more series/authors to consider: Kate Messner and Christopher Silas Neal’s “Over and Under” (e.g. Over and Under the Snow), Dianna Hutts Aston and Sylvia Long’s collaborations (A Rock Is Lively, A Butterfly Is Patient, etc.), John & Hayley Rocco’s “Meet the Wild Things” series (Hello, I’m A Pangolin, etc.), Jason Chin’s science and nature-focused books (e.g. Redwoods or Coral Reefs), and Candace Fleming’s Giant Squid, Honeybee, Polar Bear, and Narwhal: Unicorn of the Arctic.
Nonfiction and informational fiction resources
Bird, Betsy. “31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Nonfiction picture books.” School Library Journal blog. December 27, 2023. https://afuse8production.slj.com/2023/12/27/31-days-31-lists-2023-nonfiction-picture-books/
Bird, Betsy. “31 Days, 31 Lists: 2024 Informational Fiction for Kids.” School Library Journal blog. December 23, 2024. https://afuse8production.slj.com/2024/12/23/31-days-31-lists-2024-informational-fiction-for-kids/
Paul, Miranda. “Creative Nonfiction and Informational Fiction Picture Books.” https://mirandapaul.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/CreativeNonfiction_InformationalFiction_Handouts_MirandaPaul.pdf
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal. ALSC. Accessed 12/26/24. https://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/sibert
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal Awards Shelf. ALSC. Accessed 12/26/24. https://alsc-awards-shelf.org/directory/results?booklist=3
Stewart, Melissa. “Resources for Reading and Writing Nonfiction.” 2020. https://melissa-stewart.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2_Look_at_Info_Fiction.pdf
For older kids (Kindergarten and up)
When Beavers Flew
The Gardener of Alcatraz (2022)
Hooray for DNA! by Pauline Thompson and Greg Pizzoli (2023)
Wombats Are Pretty Weird by Abi Cushman (also Flamingos) (2023)
Supermoms!/Superdads! Animal Heroes by Heather Lang and Jamie Harper (2024)
The Oboe Goes Boom Boom Boom by Colleen AF Venable and Lian Cho (2020)
All the Way to the Top
Evidence! How Dr. John Snow Solved the Mystery of Cholera by Deborah Hopkinson and Nik Henderson (2024) (see also: The Great Stink)
The Shape of Things by Dean Robbins and Matt Tavares (2024)
Milkweed for Monarchs (2024)
Eclipse by Andy Rash (2023)
Stranded! (2023)
At Home with the Prairie Dog (Keystone species)
Zero Waste/Green City
How to Eat in Space
Fungi Grow
Make Way for Animals!
The Hole Story of the Doughnut
Sleep: How Nature Gets Its Rest
I Ship by Kelly Rice Schmitt (2023)
Yoshi, Sea Turtle Genius by Lynne Cox and Richard Jones (2023)
Not A Bean / Not A Monster by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez
The True Story of Zippy Chippy
A Vaccine Is Like A Memory / Your One and Only Heart by Rajani LaRocca
Medium Matters: Answers to your Questions about Comics
by Liza Halley
Liza Halley is the Library Teacher at Plympton Elementary School in Waltham. She has loved graphic novels since reading Bone and Amulet with her son. She reads every graphic novel she can find and is a big fan of Monstress, Hellboy, and Saga. She is a founder of the Boston Kids Comic Fest.
In this Forum article, I want to answer some questions that have come up in my PD workshops and from readers of the MSLA Google group. I want to start out with a question of my own. Have you read a graphic novel lately? A work of graphic nonfiction? A graphic memoir? Here is my number one pro tip that lingers behind my answer to all and every question ever asked of me about comics: READ graphic novels. I am not asking you to give up on your Sarah J. Maas fix, or your Louise Penny addiction. I am asking you, though, to take five graphic novels from your library collection and bring them home and read them. Cover to cover. Regularly. Have fun with it. Think of it as an indulgence. Or work, if that motivates you. But read so you can support the readers in your community. Here’s what I do: Because I am EXTRA, as my sons say, I go to my lovely Arlington Public Library and grab twenty children’s graphic novels I haven’t read yet, check them out, and then on a weekend morning, indulge in a good long reading session. Try it!
OK. Here we go:
How do you do a read aloud with a graphic novel?
Read alouds with graphic novels are so much fun because you can involve other folks in the room as readers - be it your students or other adults if you have any in the room. Ideally though, your students are doing all of the work. Recently I have been running a comic club after school, and we always start off with a read aloud so I can teach students about the ins and outs of how comics are made. As we read, we look at the use of panels, the way facial expressions work to move the story, the way movement happens on the page, the dialogue boxes, the emanata and whatever else comes up. 
You can do this too! As usual, start with the end in mind when choosing your comic - what do you want your students to know? Sometimes I want to introduce the concept of, just generally, how do we read comics anyway? I firmly believe students need to be taught how to read comics in every grade! Assume at least five students in every class have NEVER READ A COMIC in their lives. Why? Because, for one, not everyone does read graphic novels, even though circulation is off the charts. And some students naturally pick up on all the visual reading comics offers, but many do not. Slow it down, teach them step by step the language of comics, how to see everything in a panel that could be happening. Depending on your unit, your time, your objectives, you might want to start with a wordless comic like Andy Runton’s Owly books or Shaun Tan’s the Arrival. Maybe you read a page or two. Another suggestion: give students time to practice on their own in your presence. For instance, I’ll do a graphic novel read aloud and then have students look through comics on their tables in the library with an objective: find a panel you think is really interesting and talk about why with your classmates. Or, put a sticky note on places you see emanata. Find a speech bubble that shows emotion with the coloring or drawing style. Here is a list of a few graphic novels I’ve loved reading with students: Otto’s Orange Day (Cammuso and Lynch), Babymouse (Holm), Squish (Holm), Comics Squad stories, Magic Pickle (Morse, graphic novel version), Little Mouse Gets Dressed (Smith), King of the Birds (Gravel).
How can I get my students to choose graphic format books that are not the top titles?
To get a bit philosophical for a moment, I know we all want students to branch out and be exposed to all different kinds of amazing books, but above all else, I want to trust and respect students’ reading choices. I view the library check out time as a sacred space for student choice. Not all teachers agree with me. I keep thinking about the Kindergartener who loves to check out Harry Potter. That little tiny kid carrying a huge book proudly under his arm. Does that not say it all to you? Why not? I know, the teachers in my school have strong opinions about this which I generally disagree with, honestly. .png)
How many students really get to have autonomy over anything else in their lives? We could discuss this for a long time, but, getting back to the question. My first answer is, if in whatever grade they are in, students need to check out only Wimpy Kid, or only Raina Telgemeier, for the most part, I deeply believe in that choice. (Don’t ask how many times I’ve read The Wind in the Willows, the Arthurian Legends, The Three Musketeers, and The Count of Monte Cristo). I also love reading widely and I’ve read many, many graphic novels that I think the students would love also, if they gave it a chance. So, here are my tips for encouraging students to branch out: Use signs and displays to draw students in. Have you seen the Book Wrangler’s “If You Liked, You Would Like” signs? Create some of those for your students specifically about graphic novels. Or plan several book displays that really get students to look at books that are often ignored. I am the biggest fan of the Akissi and Ariol books and I do a lot to show those off to students, hoping to convert a few students into the fold. Another idea, do book tastings. Spread your not-so-circulated graphic novels on the table and make students (ha) read three pages of five books and the back cover/inside flap before proceeding to check out. Or even better, enlist some brave souls who read widely and ask them to booktalk about some of their favorite graphic novels that are not Amulet, Babysitters Club, or [you fill in the name].
What argument can I give my administration when they refuse to let ELA teachers teach graphic novels?
First task, don your cape - mentally or physically - as you gather your resources to make your case. Give yourself a superhero name that feels super duper empowering. Say to yourself, I - Her Royal Penguin the Panel Protector, Myna of the Medium, or Cougar of Comics - am the voice for the voiceless, I am the hero of the medium, the avenger of all doubters.
Ok, great. Now you need resources. I would begin with Capstone’s infographic (with links to the articles cited here) “Graphic Novels Are Real Books.” This infographic offers important points about classroom inclusivity and reaching all readers (higher and lower) while addressing specific pedagogical areas that are important in an ELA classroom (e.g., metaphor, symbolism, irony).
Next, let’s talk about awards. Many graphic novels have won the highest literary awards in the nation and in the world. Perhaps this might be a selling point to your administrator. As an example, in the past decade, these four graphic novels have won Newbery Awards:
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El Deafo by Cece Bell (2015 Honor)
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Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson (2016 Honor)
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New Kid by Jerry Craft (2020 Medal)
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Mexikid by Pedro Martin (2024 Honor)
Beyond the Newbery, if you take a glance at this link here and this one here, you will see that graphic novels and nonfiction books have gone on to win the Hugo, National Book, Kirkus, Printz, and Pulitzer Awards. They’ve won the Booker Prize (UK), Costa (UK), the Walkley Awards (Australia), Singapore Book Awards, and the Governor’s General Literary Award (Canada). Many administrators can be convinced that an ELA teacher should teach an award winning book in their classroom. (Not all, I know, but it’s worth a try).
Finally, I want to share a short slideshow with you. You can copy this and add to it to present to your administration about why comics deserve to be included in the classroom. The slideshow offers suggested books on a wide range of topics, infographics on why comics are essential reading, research that shows most graphic novels offer higher vocabulary than prose novels geared toward the same audience, and discusses the visual aspect of comics in creating an inclusive classroom.
I hope these questions and answers are helpful to you as teachers, leaders, and readers. Please reach out to me anytime to ask questions, share resources, and support each other.
New Librarian Q&A with Bob Boutin
Bob is the Library/Media Specialist at Ford Middle School in Acushnet.
How did you come to librarianship?
This is my fourteenth year in education, but only my first as a librarian. In 2020, I was a French middle school teacher. Due to COVID, I made the difficult decision to leave teaching. After a few years out of education I applied for an ESP position in Sandwich and I realized that I missed having my own classroom. As an ESP, I would occasionally sub for the librarian. Being a librarian was something that was always in the back of my mind, but I had previously erroneously believed that it was too late for me to get a license in another field. While at Sandwich, I worked to get my library license. Soon after, I accepted my current role in Acushnet.
How would you explain the importance of a librarian to a nonlibrarian?
Librarians do so much more than just keep track of books. In addition to research skills, we also teach students online media literacy. The world has changed tremendously in the last few years, and librarians are tasked with keeping up with new technology and teaching their students how to be responsible and use good judgment on platforms and websites.
What are you working on right now?
I’m currently organizing and updating the collection. The catalog needs a lot of TLC, and most of my non-planning and non-teaching time has been dedicated to this task. I’ve been adding new books and weeding old books that haven’t circulated in the last few years. At the beginning of the year, the average publication date for our titles was 1998; I’m working on lowering the average age to bring our library into the 21st century. It’s been a very long and arduous process, but going through every single book has helped me gain more knowledge about where the library has been and where I can take it in the future.
What is going well?
I’m lucky to be in a supportive district that values the school library. My students are very engaged in our library centers, which is inspiring me to look more into MakerSpace-type lessons. I’m also communicating a lot with our staff; I’m letting them know what projects are ongoing in the library, and I’ve been seeking their input into what I can do to make the library more inviting. I’ve received a few compliments on how I’m making the library a more welcoming place for both students and faculty.
What is the most challenging thing so far?
Honestly, learning the names of all of my students! Our classes meet once a week, and I still need to look at my seating chart to check students’ names. Also, it’s challenging being in a location with a lot of foot traffic; I’m used to having my own classroom and being able to close the door during my prep. I’m getting used to being in a prime location, and I’m enjoying seeing most of the student body on a weekly basis.
What's the most unexpected thing about your new job?
When I walked into my library for the first time, there were unorganized books everywhere. I had to spend a couple of weeks before school started to get it in better shape. This ties a bit into the previous question, but with so much that needed to be done, it was a challenge to prioritize tasks.
What are you reading or watching?
I’m currently reading The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley. It’s her debut novel. Sci-fi fascinates me because it puts characters in situations that wouldn’t normally exist.
What do you hope the MA School Library Association can do for you?
I’ve already used the MSLA forum a few times, and I appreciate everyone’s help and advice. I know I have a lot to learn about being a school librarian, and the help I’ve already received has been invaluable. Everyone has been very patient with my newbie inquiries. I hope to continue connecting with my colleagues across the state and improving my librarian skills.
Library Culture and Radical Empathy
by Anita Cellucci
Anita is a past president of the MSLA and the current Library Teacher and K-12 Libraries Department Head at Westborough High School. She has recently been appointed as an AASL Emerging Leader Member Guide for 2025.
Becoming deliberately aware of others is challenging work. As educators we know that respectful and meaningful conversations promote empathy, resilience, and stronger relationships with our students and colleagues. Relationships don’t happen overnight; they need to be nurtured and intentional. To foster these kinds of relationships, we need to have grace, gratitude, and generosity. As school librarians, we have infinite opportunities to provide this for our schools.
These opportunities can be easily overlooked. If we are not mindful of how they are manifesting in our space, we may get caught up in behaviors that work against these ideas. We can also get caught up in the idea that we are “too busy” to pay attention to the present moment. And yet, when we don’t do this it quickly becomes apparent within the energy of our space and within ourselves. We are all guilty of feeling rushed, frustrated, overworked, and under-appreciated. The question becomes, “How can I change my mindset to slow myself down and shift from deficit thinking to abundance and growth?”Author Regie Routman explains that, “gratitude and generosity need to be part of our curriculum and to ground our important conversations…or it just might be that teaching with empathy and leading with our hearts is the best gift we can give these days…”.
I believe that every interaction is important. A negative interaction can be the reason that a student will not come back into the library. Doing a daily reflection on norms that have evolved in the library space has become one way that I check in on whether or not these norms are actually demonstrating my intentions for the library. I begin these check ins with taking intentional breaths and a one minute body scan to see where I may be holding stress in my body. I gently allow the stress to flow through me and set my intention for the day. An intention can be as simple as, “I will be mindful of my interactions today” or something else that is a pain point in our professional work. Starting my day in this way ensures that I am in a mindset of generosity.
“Practicing radical empathy is another way to show love. Being deliberately aware of other people’s realities, actively noticing and listening to another person’s situation with understanding and taking action to support that person goes beyond just empathy to what is called radical empathy.”
Regie Routman, author, The Heart-Centered Teacher: Restoring Hope, Joy, and Possibility in Uncertain Times
There are some simple ways we can begin this practice and help our para educators:
- Begin each day and every interaction with joy
Treat everyone kindly
Make eye contact and say hello to every student and staff member you see each day
Check your bias— are there students who are more noticeable to you? How can you shift your perspective to hear all voices and "see" each person? —honor and hear all voices
Notice student demeanor and pay attention to subtle differences
Other things to think about to enhance or create inclusive space:
Write grants and/or collaborate with town/city entities to be able to keep items on hand for students such as personal care items, snacks, school supplies
Enhance your space with displays and signage that provide mirrors, windows, and glass doors for students and staff
Ensure that administration and counselors/clinicians are collaborators in the endeavor to create a safe space for students and their wellness
Think about the language you use when you describe readers to other educators: instead of using "reluctant reader" or "struggling reader" try using "self identifies as non-reader":
Take time to have formal conferences with students about their independent reading identities and habits.
- Help develop readers in the same way we encourage student athletes - practice is necessary to grow skills.
- Independent reading is all about respecting our students’ choices and providing the time and space for the “flow” in reading to manifest.
- Krashen, in the article, The Purpose of Education, Free Voluntary Reading, and Dealing with The Impact Of Poverty, states that “reading for pleasure produces 'flow,' the state we reach when we are deeply but effortlessly involved in an activity (Csikzentmihalyi, 1991). In flow, the concerns of everyday life and even awareness of the self diminish and even temporarily disappear - our sense of time is altered; nothing but the activity seems to matter."
As these uncertain times unravel, if we practice heart-centered approaches in our libraries, we will continue to be a safe and brave space for our students and colleagues. Remaining mindful of who is “seen” and “listened to” will also help us to restore hope, joy and possibility within ourselves.
by Gillian Bartoo
Gillian is the District Cataloging Manager for the Cambridge Public Schools.
If you haven’t read my column about fixing the 800s, you don't know that there are certain Dewey numbers or ranges that I consider “black holes” for school collections PK-8 under 15,000 volumes. I consider them black holes because books get cataloged to those shelves and are never looked at again. My suspicion is that they don’t circulate because there are so few of them in a school library collection. Subjects and topics in elementary schools are broad and encompassing and library cataloging is not, so when a book falls out of one of the bigger areas of the collection or where people think it should be, it isn’t likely to be found by browsing. (We won’t discuss the option of using the catalog. The reasons it doesn’t get used are valid, but it still hurts.) One of the easier fixes is to move some of these outliers into another class or range while still working within Dewey. I’m not talking about making up my own call numbers or recataloging huge swathes of the collection. Projects like that have their place, but they are HUGE time and money sucks and most school librarians I know don’t have the time and money to spare. So, let’s start with rescuing a few books from another black hole instead.
If you do decide to move a few books from one Dewey section to another, you should commit to doing it for every subsequent title that comes in cataloged to that section. That’s consistency, which is a hallmark of a well-cataloged collection. If you’re going this route, write it down somewhere and train yourself to check your notes when you get new books in. It’s good practice to keep track of these changes and it’s a lot easier to remember to look at a page of notes than to remember a bunch of call number changes when you’re unpacking a new shipment of vendor cataloged books or working your way through a stack of uncataloged ones.
My black hole of choice today is the 390s. I will be leaving holidays and folklore where they are because they tend to be big, known, go-to sections in school libraries, and moving them is more bother than it’s worth. You can consolidate within those areas by cutting the numbers shorter if you want, but moving them somewhere else entirely is not advisable.
390 is “Customs, etiquette and folklore” and the general instruction for the range is “Class here folkways ; interdisciplinary works on ceremonies, on rites” (DDC23, v.2, p.345). It’s a weird little area in Dewey to begin with, and aside from holidays and folklore, there just aren’t a lot of titles published for children that land here. At the end of this column, I’ll leave a table where I suggest some alternatives to these numbers. They are by no means the only places these books could go, but ones I think most “logical” and “general.” I’m going to also try to give more than one option for each number as it depends on the rest of your collection and how that’s organized. I highly recommend looking deeply at the place where you’re going to move a book to before you recatalog so you don’t end up sending it to another black hole or a place where it really doesn’t make sense within your collection. And remember there is always the option to move other books into the 390s rather than moving 390s out.
In general, if the subject concerns a specific area or country, a book could be moved to 9XX (technically geography and history, but in our world tends to get thought of as geography, history, and culture combined. The exception being, of course, the United States). Many of these same books could also move to 305.XXX… (social science of groups where the X’s denote specificities of those groups, ad infinitum) if the subject concerns traditions of a specific gender, age group, socio-economic level, religion, language group, ethnicity or race, occupation, and/or status. An option to 9XX or 305.X is possible throughout the 390s so I’m not going to denote it below unless I think it’s a preferred option.
Before you wholeheartedly throw yourself into a 9XX or 305.X scheme remember children’s books often look at customs comparatively across the world. While it might make sense to move the book Food by Ifeoma Onyefulu, about the foods of Mali to 966.23 (Mali) it feels very odd to move What I eat by E.C. Andrews, about foods eaten in different places all over the world, to 909 (world history) -- the only 900 option for “the world”. 641 (home management – food) is a better choice for both books if I want to keep books about food together. I don’t have to do that. I know in our collections the Onyefulu book might circulate more in the 900s because we have a large immigrant / first generation population interested in their heritage. If I only have these two books to consider, I’d probably split them. I’d also want to be consistent if I get any more books that are originally cataloged to 391.1. So, I make a rule: “if it’s designated to go to 391.1 and is about a specific place I catalog it to that place. If it’s worldwide in scope it goes to 641.” I could otherwise just make the rule “all 391.1 to 641” or “all 391.1 to 9XX”. I write the rule down because I can barely remember my login password that I use every day let alone a cataloging rule I might use once every few years, and I stick to it.
Finding a cataloging black hole in your collection is an excellent way to try moving some books around within Dewey without a lot of fuss and bother. See if it makes a difference in usage. It ‘s worth it to consider what if you get other books like it? In my example above, what would you do with a book about Chinese food culture around the world. What about African American food culture? Would you put it in 973 or 641, or should it go in 305.1 – social sciences of specific groups of people? If you hate Dewey because of some of the messages it sends, what would you be saying by landing these few books in another given area? Project those thoughts out to other, bigger sections of your collection, especially if you’re considering moving larger sections. You don’t want to get mid-move and realize there’s a topic in the “move from” area that doesn’t fit the “move to.”Does it matter? Everyone gets annoyed by what they think is inconsistent cataloging in Dewey. Use simple examples and black hole moves to consider the larger ramifications before you start wholescale recataloging projects. Let me know what you consider “black holes."
391 Costume and personal appearance
Costume. Some schools might have enough in 391.XX to leave them there. Otherwise clothing customs 746.92 textile arts – clothes ; 338.4 industry – fashion
Jewelry. 745.5 decorative arts – handicrafts ; 739.27 precious metal work – jewelry ; 338.4 – industry – fashion
Hairstyles. 646.7 grooming – hair, skin, face, nails ; 331 hairstyling and barbering (profession) ; 612.7 hair, skin, nails (anatomy)
Tattooing and henna. 646.7 grooming – hair, skin, face, nails ; 612.7 hair, skin, nails (anatomy)
9XX or 305.X
392 Customs of life cycle and domestic life
Birth rites and customs. 612.6 anatomy – reproduction ; 305.23 groups of people – youth to 20 ; 306.4 cultures and institutions – not specified otherwise
Puberty and adulthood rites and customs. 612.66 anatomy – adult development and maturity ; 305.23 groups of people – youth to 20 ; 306.4 cultures and institutions – not specified otherwise
Homemaking rites and customs – 640 home and family management ; 728 architecture of residential buildings ; 747 interior decoration
Courtship and weddings. 306.8 cultures and institutions – marriage and families ; 305.24 groups of people – by age
393 Death customs
306.9 Culture and institutions – death
394 General customs
394.1 Customs around food and drink. 641 home and family management – food and drink
394.2-392.6 Holidays, celebrations, ceremonies, festivals, fairs. Keep these where they are. Knock back long numbers to one or two after the decimal if you wish.
394.7Customs of chivalry. 395 or wherever you move 395 ; 940.1 European history – To 1453
394.8-394.9 Customs of dueling and suicide ; cannibalism. I’m going to assume this isn’t a problem. If you have books there, you are on your own.
395 Etiquette and manners
302.1 general social interaction ; 303.32 socialization
396-397 Unassigned
Considering unassigned numbers free for the taking is not condoned. Don’t use them.
398 Folklore
Keep as is or consolidate long numbers down to 398.2-.9.
399 Customs of war and diplomacy
355 military science. 9XX.
Works Cited
Dewey, Melvin, (2011). Dewey Decimal Classification and Relative Index: 300s. https://www.oclc.org/content/dam/oclc/webdewey/help/300.pdf
Oyefulu, Ifeyoma. (2012). Food. London: Frances Lincoln Children’s Books.
Andrews, E.C. (2025) What I eat. Buffalo, NY: Kidhaven Publishing.
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