Overviews

Weeding the Collection is a 1.5 hour course explaining:

1. Why collections should be weeded.
2. Criteria for weeding materials.
3. A process for weeding.
4. Problems encountered in weeding and how to work through them.
5. Disposing of weeded materials.

(www.lili.org/forlibs/ce/able/course4/01index.htm)

Weeding guidelines

Overview Chart of CREW Formulas is a summary of the weeding guidelines by Dewey Decimal call number. In this chart, the Dewey call number classes are in the first two columns. Weeding guidelines are in the third column.
(www.smcoe.k12.ca.us/smerc/lib_training/crewguide.html)

• Guidelines look like this: 3/10/MUSTIE.
• The first number is the year since the book's lastest copyright date. copyright dates are found on the reverse side of the title page.
• The second number is the most recent number of year's since the book was checked out.
• So the number in this example, 10/3/MUSTIE, should be interpreted as "Books should be discarded if they are over ten years old or have not been checked out in three years.
• An "X" instead of a number means that that factor "is not applicable to a specific subject."
• MUSTIE means books should be discarded if they are Misleading, Ugly, Superseded by newer editions or better books, Trivial, Irrelevent to patron interests, easily obtained Elsewhere through interlibrary loan.

These guidelines are part of The CREW Method developed by the Texas State Library. A more detailed explanation of The CREW Method is at www.tea.state.tx.us/technology/libraries/lib_downloads/weeding1.pdf. The fullest explanation of The CREW Method is in the print book, "The Crew Method: Expanded Guidelines for Collection Evaluation and Weeding for Small and Medium-sized Public Libraries" by Belinda Boon, Texas State Library, 1995. CKLS has copies in its professional collection you can borrow.

Some Special Considerations by Dewey Section discusses issues about weeding each Dewey section.
(www.alpine.k12.ut.us/depts/media/elemlessons_rev/m6-mc_management/l3weed.html)

SUNLINK Weed of the Month Club provides advice for weeding and purchasing up-to-date books in a different topic each month.
(www.sunlink.ucf.edu/weed/)

Reading Morton Grove's collection management plan for the specific subject you will be weeding will put you in the proper frame of mind.

• 000
• 100
• 200
• 300
• 400
• 500
• 600
• 700
• 800
• 900
• Biography
• Fiction
• Mysteries
• Science fiction
• Young adult
• Large print

Guidelines for non-book items

(www.slco.lib.ut.us/cdromse.htm)

Near the bottom of the Web pages below, Morton Grove Public Library provides weeding criteria for:

• Books-on-tape for adults (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevadultspk.html)
• Books-on-tape for juveniles (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevjuvspk.html)
• Music on audiocassette and CDs for adults (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevadultpop.html)
• Music on audiocassette and CDs for juveniles (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevjuvsnd.html)
• Videos and DVDs (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevadultvideos.html)
• Circulating CD-ROMs (www.webrary.org/inside/colldevadultcirccdr.html)