LM_NET: Library Media Networking
- Subject: HIT: Paperbacks in collection (Long--part 2)
- From: "Wolfgram, Linda" <lwolfgram@BENTON.K12.IA.US>
- Date: Tue, 6 Aug 1996 17:49:05 -0500
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 11:02:35 -0400 (EDT)
From: Mary Kendall <mkendall@umd5.umd.edu>
Hi Linda...We barcode, catalog and interfile "classic" paperbacks
in "new" condition; others are placed on paperback racks uncataloged and
checked out as "temporary" items. Cheers!
Mary Kendall Calvert High Media Center
mkendall@umd5.umd.edu 600 Dares Beach Road
(410) 535-7347 Prince Frederick, MD 20678
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 11:13:27 -0400 (EDT)
From: Shirley Traylor <straylor@libby.rbls.lib.il.us>
Presently I am still using the old card catalog/shelf list system. I
received a grant to put our collection on a CD with the other libraries
in our area. -- So some of the following may change in the future. But
as of right now ........
I do both-- paperbacks that I consider just "ephermal" reading,
something that I don't care if I replace that "exact" book or just
another in the genre -- I don't catalog. Anything that is a Best Book
for Young Adults, or any other award winner, anything of real substance
that I think I can "push" and encourage students to read, or something
that I might consider purchasing later in a PermaBound format -- I
catalog. Oh yes, something by a "favorite author" may just have a shelf
list card and nothing in the card catalog so I can place it on the
regular shelves along with the rest.
--- I am taking for granted that you are talking about fiction here.
Unfortunately -- more and more of my fiction shelves are being filled
with paperbacks. My book budget has stayed the same for the last 6 years
while everything else has gone up.
As I said next year I have to do some re-thinking. But as it stands
right now I am still considering cataloging some but not all paperbacks.
Those not cataloged will be kept seperate -- and I am leaning towards
arranging them by genre and colored stickers on the spine.
_____________________________________________________________________
"Teachers with class.....surf"
Shirley Traylor Phone# (309) 523-3181
Librarian FAX # (309) 523-3550 (Superintendent Off)
Riverdale High School
Port Byron, IL 61275 E-mail: straylor@libby.rbls.lib.il.us
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 11:20:24 -0400
From: LaBookWorm@aol.com
Hi. I inherited a collection much like the one you described last year -- a
split collection with the paperbacks uncataloged. I combined the two into
one collection of paperbacks and hardbacks, and am I ever glad I did. Now
every book has a catalog record and a permanent location, both of which help
me immensely.
The kids seem to really like having a choice that's based on the size of the
type as much as on the format. (I've noticed that size of type is very
important to my middle schoolers.) They just like having the opportunity to
make a choice for themselves be so obvious, too. It's nice when students are
choosing books, too, to have books that are less stressful to read have the
same shelf value as other books. No one feels like a second-class citizen
anymore because they could only handle they kind of book that was on the
paperback rack.
And we got rid of the rack which has helped so much with taking card of the
books. I think I only lost six or so this year because of cover damage.
Good luck with your project.
LaBookWorm@aol.com
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 10:39:19 -0500 (CDT)
From: Glennda Pat Miller <gpmiller@tenet.edu>
Linda--
We have over 2000 paperbacks, including picture paperbacks for
primaries. We typed a shelflist card for each book, and keep it in a
separate drawer where students can use it. We find that most students
use the drawer when they know the title.
We keep the picture paperbacks in baskets by the author's last name. In
the B basket are all the Berenstain Bears, for example. Each book has a
small sticker in the top left corner of the front cover so they can be
filed facing front in the baskets for students to flip through.
Chapter books are on spinners, with the author's letters clearly marked
on the spines and on each shelf of the spinner. That way, students can
search by author without our having to make cards.
We have a high circulation for paperbacks. We cover the chapter books
with contact paper, and they last for years. When we lose them to damage
or loss, it is much easier to pull a single card, then to sort through
our 50 catalog drawers!
Sincerely,
Pat Miller
Walker Station Elementary LMC
6200 Homeward Way
Sugar Land, TX 77479
++++++
Date: Sat, 03 Aug 1996 10:23:25 -0600 (MDT)
From: JENSENJK@UWYO.EDU
I separate hardcover and paperback fiction at Laramie Senior High School
LibraryAll fiction is completely cataloged. Paperback books that are
classics are
given a Kapco hardcover and then shelved with the regular Hardcover fiction.
Paperbacks have a slight different call #, e.g. F STE (PB) I only use the 1st
3 letters of the author's last name in the call #. In order for paperbacks to
sit nicely on the regular shelves the covers must be reinforced. Students
browse both the paperback racks and the regular fiction shelves. Oversize
paperbacks that do not fit well in the racks are also given reinforced covers
and shelved along with the regular hardcover fiction. Of course, the call
#s are slightly different, but still fairly standard. The previous
librarian used
the call #PB ST
(oops) Pb STE for Danielle Steel's books. Having the F as the first part
of the call # seems to be more consistent with other library call #s. I
don't want tocreate lots of different call#s and categories. Students
should be able towalk
into any library and quickly understand the standard #s and shelving systems.
++++++
Date: Sat, 03 Aug 1996 09:47:20 -0700 (MST)
From: marthap@CCIT.ARIZONA.EDU
I have lived with both types. I have moved paperbacks into one
collection. One collection I lived with separate because we were so
short of shelving. I much prefer the integrated collection. Are you
automated? Cataloging is easier then. You can keep a PB on you call
number, it is a little confusing but the students have overcome it. I
keep the PB for inventory purposes ( need to turn in separate count for
PB) also it keeps the circulation count separate. I much prefer the
integrated account. I never can find books on paperback racks. We now
spend 4-5 dollars a paperback, and so it is worth locating. I dislike
our public library as a patron in that in keeps them on racks, and
doesn't catalog them. I think paperbacks continue there preferential
use by middle school students, and a few more of the hardbacks go out.
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 15:33:39 -0400
From: Susan Burstein <sburstei@csunet.ctstateu.edu>
Linda, we keep our paperbacks on separate paperback racks. We use large
letters on the spine and file them by first letter of author's name.
The only problem here is that the regular size ones and the taller
ones do not go together well, so we have four a-z racks, two for each size.
We DO catalog them, and also give them categories and subjects since
nowadays I buy so many novels in paperback format only.
I would really prefer to interfile them, because I think the hard cover
fiction would get better circulation this way, but I have found that
paperbacks intermingled with hard covers tend to slide to the back of
the shelf and get lost. They really do better on those spinning
paperback racks. Susan
--
Susan Burstein
Portland Middle School, Portland, CT
sburstei@csunet.ctstateu.edu
sburnste@connix.com
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 16:49:07 -0500
From: ses@bluemarble.net (Ellen Dibble)
Dear Linda, Our middle school (where I subbed before I started at the
elementary) has separate collections. The paperbacks are not fully
cataloged or intershelved with the hardbacks, mostly due to their temporary
nature...even covered with plastic! They are given barcodes and temporary
entries in the circ database and put on circular racks for kid browsing and
circulation. Occasionally it is a problem when a book can't be "found"
right away because it is only in paperback, but most of the titles that
teachers need for curriculum are also in hardback, and the paperbacks are
quick picks for multiple copies of popular titles and series books etc. for
reluctant readers. It seems to work very well for them :) Ellen
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 17:52:04 -0400 (EDT)
From: crae@prolog.net (Cathy Rae)
Hi Linda!
I inherited the same situation. I ended up interfiling, and yes,
cataloging them. Here are some of the pros and cons I encounterd:
Separate --
The kids have to look in two places.
The paperbacks never seemed to stay in order due to kids rummaging.
Because of size, they "slid around" on the shelf, got messed
up easily, etc.
Interfiled --
Can see all the author's books together.
If a second copy is in paperback, the kids will find it right away.
Sometimes get lost between larger books, especially in non-fiction.
Cataloging is a real plus to knowing what exactly is in the collection. Most
people don't care if they have to take it in paperback, some prefer it.
I'm sure there are things I have missed. In general, I've been very happy
with having them interfiled. We originally marked them PB above the call
letters/numbers, and entered it into the circ system. We found out at
inventory time that the PB were all at the end of our list, not interfiled!
We went back and changed the PB to the end of the call letters/numbers. I
have to remember to tell everyone this at the start of the year!
Good Luck!
Cathy Rae
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cathy Rae
Library Media Specialist
Harry S Truman Elementary School
1400 Gaskill Ave.
Allentown, PA 18103
crae@prolog.net
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 17:57:29 -0400 (EDT)
From: Linda Bertland <bertland@voicenet.com>
Hi,
I have worked in a middle school library which had the paperbacks interfiled
with the hardcovers and in my current library I have the paperbacks
separated. In both cases the paperbacks were in the catalog.
When the paperbacks are interfiled they are easier for the students to find,
but the paperbacks circulated a lot more than the hardcovers - showing that
the paperback format is a lot more popular with middle school students. We
had a lot of duplicates of titles in both paperback and hardcover, and the
students really preferred the paperback. (I have a paper on this published
in School Library Media Quarterly, Winter, 1991)
In my current library, because of my low budget and because the students
prefer paperbacks, I have almost stopped buying hardcover fiction. The
paperbacks are becomming the main fiction collection. I have them arranged
by author and cataloged. I have separated out the more popular mystery
books and put them in a section of their own because I got tired of telling
the students where the mysteries were.
I think that the decision would be based on what the composition of your
fiction collection is. If you have a lot of hardcover books in addition
to the paperbacks, I would interfile them. This will draw your students
attention to both categories. Sometimes, I think that they don't like
hardcovers because they are "fat", and will not look at hardcover books
if "skinny" paperbacks are available.
Linda Bertland
Librarian
Stetson Middle School
Philadelphia, PA
bertland@voicenet.com
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 18:22:04 -0500 (CDT)
From: Frankie Mauney Dilling <fdilling@tenet.edu>
Paperbacks might get lost in the back of the shelves.
They are not the same size and tend to creat problems if you intershelve
them with the hardbacks.
Can you catalog them with the call number PB ___ instead of FIC ____?
Then the students would know to look in the paperback section.
This has worked for us. Although we do not try to keep the paperback
rack in any kind of alphabetical order.
*************************************************
* Learning is most often, *
Frankie Dilling * figuring out how to use what you already know *
fdilling@tenet.edu *in order to go beyond what you currently think.*
* - Jerome Bruner - *
*************************************************
++++++
Date: Sat, 3 Aug 1996 21:26:13 -0400 (EDT)
From: Janet Rawdon <rawdon@meol.mass.edu>
Linda, I have paperbacks put separately uncatalogued. First of all they
are either duplicate copies of popular books, bookds I wouldn't want to
spend hardcover money on, or just random books I thought kids would like
at the time, eg about a specific but transitory interest. I do not want
to catalog them since they do not last as long as hardcover books and are
not expensive enough to waste my time processing. They are basically
throwaways, so to speak. I have a fair collection of paperbacks
but they quite literally come and go and when they go they are just
tossed out, often not replaced.
Janet Rawdon
rawdon@meol.mass.edu
++++++
Date: Mon, 05 Aug 1996 21:34:11 -0400 (EDT)
From: KARI INGLIS <kbw_inglis@K12.MEC.OHIO.GOV>
I assume you are not automated, but if you are, you can easily create a
separate category of paperbacks and enter just basics - like author and
title. We have done that with paperbacks that have been donated. We
love having them, but they are generally not in condition to warrant a
full careful cataloging/.
If you are not automated, you can either give them the full card
treatment and intershelve them or create a special call number (e.g. PB
[AUTHOR] and shelve them in their own area. (Drug store racks are nice
for this.)
We do have lots of paperbacks that we give the full treatment to -
especially trade paperbacks which I really like.
I guess the point is, if they are worth having, it is worth having some
kind of a record that lets people know you have them, but the level of
cataloging can be set by you. Do what is practical.
Kari Inglis kbw_inglis@k12.mec.ohio.gov
Bishop Watterson High School
99 E. Cooke Rd.
Columbus, OH 43214 614-268-8671 Fax: 614-268-0551
++++++
Date: Mon, 5 Aug 1996 21:15:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: jscally@deltanet.com (Jeanne Scally)
Linda, mine are separate, but I have thought of interfiling them also.
Since there are so many duplicates in both bindings it seems sensible to
have them together. I have also thought that my hardbacks would circulate
more if the paperbacks were intermingled. I am definitely interested in a
HIT. Oh, and we do have our paperbacks in our new automation system; they
were not in the paper card catalog before I came; I added title and author
cards, but not subject cards. We have full cataloging in our Follett
system.
Jeanne Scally
Cerro Villa MIddle School
Villa Park, CA
++++++
Date: Mon, 5 Aug 1996 12:59:01 -0500 (CDT)
From: "S};iu.4Pn8%" <spirkle@tenet.edu>
Ihave separated my paperbacks from my hardback books because the tiny
books kept falling through the shelves and getting lost among the bigger
books. I add PB in front or on top of all the regular call numbers to
let my students know where they are located. I also put any prebpund
paperbacks in this cataegory. We are using the Accelerated Reading
Program in our 6-8th grade reading classes and the teachers request more
paperbacks than hardbacks for this program. Even books that are classics
and come in hardback, we also buy in the preabound paperback format for
this program. I bought special slanted shelves for these books so that
they don't fall through. I have about 3,000 paperbacks and 9,000
hardbacks in my library which serves about 600 students. We have fixed
scheduling for 6th grade and flexible for everyone else. With 40-50
drop-ins every period, it is easier for the students to find books for
the reading program without very much help.
Hope that this helps.
Shirley Pirkle
Librarian
Gonzales Junior High School
Gonzales, Texas 78629
spirkle@tenet.edu
++++++
To: lwolfgram@BENTON.K12.IA.US
From: "Donna Peterson" <Donna.M.Peterson-2@tc.umn.edu>
Hi, Linda
Paperbacks can be a pain in the neck. In our K-5 library we shelve the
non-fiction paperbacks (there are some titles that we wanted that did not
come hardbound) with the regular non-fiction. The fiction paperbacks are
shelved separately, mainly because - for the most part they are copies of
existing hard bound editions. To help the budget, we purchase second and
third copies of popular books in paperback editions. When I came to the
library, none of the paperbacks were catalogued, and it drove me crazy,
because I really didnot know what we had. For the paperback copies of
hardbound books, we typed a shelf list card, then ordered a small stamp that
said "+ paper" and stamped the upper right hand corner of the catalog cards
that also had paperback copies.
We were automated two years ago, and so the problem is solved. The hard
bound and paperback titles are both identified.
Hope this helps, or gives you some other ideas.
Good luck, Donna
++++++
Date: Sun, 4 Aug 96 15:04 EDT
From: sdtayl@dmci.net (Stanley D. Taylor)
Linda,
I have my collections seperate and keep a shelf list and a title and author
file for the students. The paperbacks tend to wear out so fact that I
thought putting them in with hte hardcover would increase the wear and
tear. These are on round racks and even though we try to keep them in order
sometimes it is a matter of searching for a title. Hope this helps.
Helen:=).
Helen Taylor
Vandercook Lake Schools
McDevitt Elementary
Townsend Elementary
1005 Floyd
Jackson, MI 49203
++++++
Date: Sun, 4 Aug 1996 15:34:53 -0700
From: pherr@int1.mhrcc.org
I keep my fiction separate. Sometimes the kids just want a PB--they do tend to
be newer. The nonfiction is shelved, or they're "lost." Also, I consider 99%
of them consumable, don't bother with cataloging. When we automate, I'll do
just the basics.
Pauline Herr, LMS pherr@int1.mhrcc.org
Arlington Elementary School Phone: (914) 486-4960
Raymond Avenue
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
District Web Pages: http://www.s390.ibm.com/arlington
"He who opens a school door, closes a prison." Victor Hugo
++++++
Date: Sun, 4 Aug 1996 16:03:43 -0700 (PDT)
From: "L. Phillips" <lphillip@ciao.trail.bc.ca>
On Fri, 2 Aug 1996, Wolfgram, Linda wrote:
>
> What are the pros and cons of having paperback fiction separate from
> hardcover fiction? I have inherited a collection where the two are
> separate, and the paperbacks do not appear to be in the card catalog. I'm
>
I was in the same spot when I took over my K to 7 library. The picture
books were shelved separately, hardcover fiction for intermediate and
paperback; as most of the recent purchases in fiction had been paperback,
the kids never went to the hardcover fiction, so I intershelved them and
continue to do so. I also deliberately buy hardcover best selling
fiction (e.g. The Giver) so that they dont think that pb=good stuff and
hc=boring, old stuff. We always catalogued the pb fiction and continue
to do so, as those books will last from 3 to 5 years. I think that
books should be classified by type and not by binding. I also do that
with non-fiction and with softcover paperbacks although I dont like
buying picture books in paperback as they are so hard to shelve.
The kids *do* check out more of the hc oldies but goodies when they have
to confront them while looking for the latest RL Steine or whatever.
Hope this helps,
Lynne
Lynne Phillips, Teacher-Librarian, Cook Ave Elementary
School Rossland, British Columbia, Canada lphillip@ciao.trail.bc.ca
++++++
Date: Sun, 04 Aug 1996 19:53:28 -0400
From: Maryann Hensarling <mahen@vistech.net>
Linda...Do not waste your time cataloging Paperbacks beyond Author,
title..They will be gone before you know, if they are popular. I am one
of those crazy people that mix some with hardback in hopes that students
will find the hardbacks too. Now I am buying mostly paperback
(hardback paperback) for my fiction collection. Fiction books are too
expensive to just sit on the shelf. A big part of my budget goes for
non-fiction/reference. I am now having to purchase Computer stuff out
of the same budget... The important thing is to get the Kids to read!!
MaryAnn Cobb Middle School, Tallahassee, Florida
++++++
Date: Sat, 03 Aug 1996 23:11:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: kfd_yuhas@K12.MEC.OHIO.GOV
Linda,
Our paperback fiction is separate from the hardback fiction. The
cataloging record contains the notation that a book is pbk so that we
know where to look. Works well for us.
Eileen Yuhas
DeSales H.S.
Cols.,OH
kfd_yuhas@k12.mec. ohio.gov
++++++
Date: Sun, 4 Aug 96 23:37:00 -0400
From: Suzanne Weinheimer <suzanne@whatexit.com>
I am in a 2-building K-4 school. In the K-1 building, paperback picture
books are separated from H/C, and are filed at the end of the top shelf
of the section. That is, if , in a three shelf bookcase, A is on the top
shelf, B is in the middle and C on the bottom, then the A-B-C books are
placed at the end of the top shelf (of A). In the grades 2-4 building,
paperbacks are interfiled, unless they are new. I have a display of new
paperbacks, as well as a display of American Girls collection, which
includes both PB and HC.
********************************************
Suzanne Weinheimer, Library Media Specialist
South Mountain School/Annex (K-4)
South Orange, NJ 07079
school email: SMtnSchLib@aol.com
personal email: suzanne@whatexit.com
school web page: http://www.shu.edu/~murrayna
********************************************
Opinions expressed are my own...
++++++
From: "Evie Funk" <funkx005@gold.tc.umn.edu>
Date: Mon, 5 Aug 96 05:22:52 -0500
Dear Linda,
When I first came to my middle school media center three years ago, the
paperbacks were separate and uncataloged. I cataloged all the paperbacks and
interfiled them with the hardcovers. It's working out beautifully. I can't
imagine having paperbacks in a separate location now! It makes more sense to the
kids, too.
Evie Funk
Hopkins West Junior High
Minnetonka, Minnesota
++++++
Date: Sun, 04 Aug 1996 22:23:15 -0700
From: al8433kh <Kay.Honaker@m.k12.ut.us>
> What are the pros and cons of having paperback fiction separate from
> hardcover fiction? I have inherited a collection where the two are
> separate, and the paperbacks do not appear to be in the card catalog. I'm
> thinking about interfiling the paperbacks with the hardcovers
I worked in a junior high (7-9) media center that had them separate.
They were cataloged by accession number and genre. The kids came in for
a quick read and went to the mystery section, or the romance section, or
whatever. It worked pretty well, but the hardback fiction were being
ignored, and the paperback section was getting too big to handle.
I finally went through (after much trepidation) and consolidated the two
collections. Hardback circulation went up dramatically the first year.
I had spine labels identifying genre, so students could still look that
way if they wanted. I'm opening a new high school this year, and am
keeping the integrated policy. One note--my paperbacks are all hard
cover.
--
Kay Honaker, Media Coordinator
Timpanogos High School
Orem, UT 84057
Kay.Honaker@m.k12.ut.us
++++++
Date: Tue, 6 Aug 1996 09:43:44 -0500 (CDT)
From: "S. Peckham" <speckham@creighton.edu>
Hi Linda, I have always believed that students as well as staff search for
books in different ways-sometimes they know the author and it is important
to locate the fiction title on the shelf-other times we just browse and
that is where paperbacks (I buy hardbound paperbacks) are terrrific on
wire racks. I often buy several copies so they can be found both on the
shelf and the racks. In middle school libraries I had racks for Science
fiction, historical novels, animal stories, etc. in high school where
history students are required to read historical novels I often color code
(with tape) American Hsitorical novels, World historical, etc. i also
inherited a library of bunches of donated paperbacks-most of them were
dingy, yellowed and not ones students would choose to read. I discarded
almost everything and ordered good YA Hardbound paperbacks and
recreational reading has skyrocketed in our school as a result. These
books are in the computer catalog and I get free records for them when
they are ordered. Good luck
Sarah
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Sarah Peckham. Marian High School
7400 Military Ave, Omaha, NE
SPeckham@Marian.Creighton.edu
402-571-0619
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
----------------------------------------------------------
Linda Wolfgram
wolfgraml@crpl.cedar-rapids.lib.ia.us
Middle/High School Media Specialist
Benton Community Schools
Van Horne, IA
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