The Dewey Decimal System:
How Is It Organized?

Materials in both of the Fairfield High School Library Media Centers are arranged  according to the Dewey Decimal System, which logically organizes information so that books on similar topics are located near each other. This makes it easier to browse through the shelves to find related titles. This classification system is commonly used in all public and school libraries, so that books on a specific topic can be found with the same subject number from one library to the next.

The Dewey subject numbers can be found as part of each item's call number, which will be located on the spine of the books. Click here to learn more information about Call Numbers.

The following are the main categories of Dewey classification:

000-    GENERAL REFERENCE

100-    PHILOSOPHY AND RELATED DISCIPLINES

Statistics, political science, economics, law, public administration, social problems and services, education, commerce, communication, transportation, customs, etiquette, folklore

200-    RELIGION

Religion and philosophy

300-    SOCIAL SCIENCES

Sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, social and political studies, social problems and issues

400-    LANGUAGE

World languages, grammar, language structure & usage, etymology,  dictionaries, thesauri

500-    PURE SCIENCES

Mathematics, astronomy, physics, chemistry, earth science, paleontology, paleozoology, life sciences, botanical sciences, zoological sciences

600-    TECHNOLOGY AND APPLIED SCIENCES

Medical sciences, medicine, engineering/allied operations, agriculture and related technologies, home economics, family living, management, auxiliary services, chemical and related technologies, manufacturers, buildings

700-     THE ARTS/FINE ART AND DECORATIVE ARTS

Civic and landscape art, architecture, plastic arts, sculpture, drawing, decorative arts, painting, graphic arts, printmaking, prints, photography, music, recreation, performing arts

800-    LITERATURE

Rhetoric, poetry, drama, speeches, letters, short stories & anthologies, satire, humor, world literature

900-    GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY

[Research Manual Homepage ][ Introduction ] [ Research Process ] [ Dewey Decimal ] [ Search Strategies ] [ Evaluating Resources ] [ Bibliography Cards ] [ Avoiding Plagiarism ] [ Note Cards ] [ Works Cited ] [ Parenthetical Citations ] [ Science Writing ] [ Documenting Science ] [ Outlining ] [ Sample Outline ] [ Graphic Organizers ] [ Sample Paper/Works Cited ] [ Primary Sources ] [ Glossary ] [ Useful Links ] [ citations ]

Virtual Library Home Page