Town School Library Classification System

A System for Our Students

In 2014, the Town School Library moved to a more intuitive organization system for our young users by simplifying the Dewey Decimal System. We recataloged and relabeled our 15,000+ books with eye-catching stickers using a new system based on Metis from the Ethical Culture School in NYC.

In the nonfiction section, we use words in place of decimal numbers. Sub-topics are shelved alphabetically and listed prominently on the spine of the book. Fiction is shelved by genre or topic. Authors' last names are the last word of the call number.

The Town School Library Classification System has been a great success, empowering users, young and old, to find books easily in our library.

(We've strived to build a system that is intuitive and provides for fortuitous browsing. Please give us feedback on your experience, as we'd like to continue to improve the system.)