Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality : Libraries

NELSON MANDELA BAY MUNICIPALITY : LIBRARIES

CHILDREN’S BOOKS – WHERE DO I START?

A guide to the arrangement of children’s books in our libraries

FICTION (STORIES)

PICTURE BOOKS (JPB)

Picture books consist mainly of illustrations with a text suitable to be read to young children. These books have colour-coded tapes on the spine to make it easier to choose the right book. (± 0—6+ years.)

EASY READERS (JE, JPBKE, JCE)

Easy readers have a text that is simple enough for a beginner reader to read with adult assistance. There are relatively few

sentences on a page, the print is fairly large and there are many illustrations. The collected stories in this section (JCE) are mainly for an adult to read toa child.

(± 6—8 years.)

LADYBIRD FICTION (JL)

Ladybird books are small and regular in format and are shelved together. They are colour-coded to make it easier to choose the right book. This section

contains books to be read to children and books to be read by children.

MIDDLE READERS (JM, JPBKM, JCM)

Middle readers are for children who have gained some reading confidence. The text is slightly longer, there are more words to a page, a larger vocabulary and fewer illustrations than easy readers. (± 8—10 years.)

JUNIOR READERS (JJ, JPBKJ, JCJ)

Junior readers are for independent readers who need little or no help from adults.

(± 10—12 years.)

TEENAGE READERS (JT, JPBKT, JCT)

The main characters in teenage readers are usually teenagers. The content often deals with issues close to teenagers’ interests:

emotional problems, parents, character

development, romance, adventure and

growing up in today’s society. The fantasy

stories are of a more profound nature than books for younger children. This section serves as a transition stage from the children’s to the young adult and adult library.

(± 12+ years.)

NON-FICTION (FACTS)

EASY NON-FICTION (JNF, JLNF)

Books with a simple text and plenty of pictures, easy enough for a very young child to understand or a beginner reader to manage. They are colour-coded to make it easier to choose the right book. (± 1—8 years.)

CLASSIFIED NON-FICTION (JN)

Facts suitable for older children doing research or finding out about a particular subject. They are classified according to the Dewey Decimal System. (± 9+ years.)

Please ask a librarian if you

need help

choosing the right books.

Page 1 of 2Aug. 2008