How to organise a school library

A school library is not simply a room where books are stored. It can become an educational space that supports reading, research, subject learning and student participation.

To work well, however, it must be easy to use. Teachers, students and staff should be able to understand which books are available, where they are located, who has borrowed them and when they must be returned.

Initial organisation requires several decisions: how to inventory the books, which data to record, which classification system to adopt, how to label the shelves and how to manage loans and returns.

📚 Discover how to choose software for cataloguing books and libraries

Good organisation should make it possible to:

✓ know which items are available;
✓ find every book quickly;
✓ record loans and returns;
✓ avoid losses and duplicates;
✓ plan purchases and activities;
✓ involve students and teachers.

The first step is to collect the books kept in classrooms, laboratories, storage rooms and offices. This helps ensure that no part of the collection is excluded from the inventory.

It is useful to distinguish books in good condition from those that are damaged, incomplete, obsolete or duplicated. Books to be repaired or withdrawn should be recorded separately.

Each copy should receive a unique inventory number. Even two copies of the same title must be distinguishable during loans, inspections and checks.

A complete bibliographic record supports both searching and the administrative management of the collection. It is not necessary to complete every possible field immediately, but it is advisable to define a minimum set of required data.

For each book, it is advisable to record at least the title, author, publisher, year of publication, ISBN, inventory number, shelving location, category, language, condition and any notes.

For special publications, it may also be useful to record the series, edition, translator, illustrator, number of pages, keywords, age range and related school subject.

💡 Best practice: establish consistent rules from the beginning for author names, titles, abbreviations and capitalisation. Consistency makes searches and statistics more reliable.

• Title
• Author
• Publisher
• Year
• ISBN
• Inventory number
• Shelving location
• Category
• Condition

🔎 Learn more about retrieving bibliographic data through ISBN

Grouping books by subjects such as history, science, fiction, art and languages is intuitive, especially in smaller libraries.

The Dewey Decimal Classification assigns numerical codes to subjects. It is a widely used and scalable method that remains useful as the collection grows.

📖 Read the guide to the Dewey Decimal Classification

For fiction intended for students, it may be useful to add colours, symbols or age ranges while maintaining a consistent shelving system.

The shelving location indicates the exact place where the book should be returned. It may include the section, bookcase, category, Dewey code, author and sequential number.

Spine labels should be legible and consistent. Signs showing categories, codes or colours should be placed on the shelves so that students can also find and return books correctly.

To avoid confusion, the shelving location recorded in the catalogue must match exactly what appears on the book and shelf.

⚠ Common mistake: changing the labelling system over time without updating older records. This creates two sets of rules and makes books difficult to locate.

NAR-ITA-ROSSI-012

NAR = fiction
ITA = Italian literature
ROSSI = author
012 = sequential number

In more structured libraries, the shelving code can also include the Dewey number.

The most frequently used books should be easy to reach. Shelves should not be overloaded, and space should be left for new acquisitions.

It is useful to distinguish the fiction area, reference section, subject textbooks, reading area, catalogue workstation and loan desk.

Signs, colours and maps help students and teachers find their way. The signage should use simple terms that are consistent with the catalogue.

For each loan, it is necessary to know which copy was issued, to whom, on what date and when it should be returned. Even a simple procedure should avoid ambiguous notes or separate sheets that are difficult to monitor.

Users can be divided into students, teachers, staff and classes. For each category, it is possible to define the loan period, maximum number of books, renewals and rules for late or damaged items.

Returns should immediately update the book's status so that it becomes available again in the catalogue.

✓ Best practice: use barcodes or RFID to identify books and users quickly, reducing typing errors and registration time.

🔗 Learn more about using barcodes and RFID in PowerWolf software

Define in advance:

• loan period;
• maximum number of books;
• renewal options;
• management of overdue items;
• books excluded from lending;
• responsibility for damage.

Specify opening hours, access arrangements, the presence of a person in charge and the behaviour expected in the library.

Specify the loan period, renewals, maximum quantity, permitted categories and any books that may only be consulted on site.

Explain how to report damage or loss and which procedure should be followed to replace a book.

A school library works better when it is seen as a living space. Students can help organise the books, prepare reviews, choose new titles and promote reading.

Teachers can suggest books useful for their subjects, propose themed reading paths, organise readings and use the catalogue to prepare teaching activities.

Temporary displays can be created for anniversaries, authors, subjects studied in class or school projects.

💡 Practical idea: periodically publish a selection of new arrivals, most-read books or student recommendations.

• Reading groups
• Student reviews
• Themed bibliographies
• Book exhibitions
• Meetings with authors
• Class loans
• Cataloguing days

Periodically comparing the books on the shelves with the catalogue helps identify missing items, shelving errors and duplicate records.

Some books may become obsolete, damaged or unsuitable. Reviewing the collection helps determine repairs, replacements, withdrawals and new purchases.

The number of loans, most-requested books, active users and consulted categories help show how the library is actually used.

The digital catalogue may contain years of work, loan data, user records and information useful to the school. Regular backups and copies stored on separate media are therefore essential.

Before imports, updates, bulk changes or transfer to a new computer, it is advisable to create an additional database copy.

Backup procedures should be simple, documented and periodically verified through a restoration test.

🔒 Read the guide to backing up a digital library

✓ date of the latest backup;
✓ storage medium used;
✓ available space;
✓ presence of multiple versions;
✓ copy stored separately from the PC;
✓ restoration test.

PowerBK is Windows software for cataloguing books and managing libraries, school collections and book collections.

It allows users to record bibliographic data, ISBNs, shelving locations, categories, images, users and loans. Search functions help find books quickly, while printing and export functions can support inventories, lists and labels.

PowerBK can automatically retrieve data from several bibliographic sources and can be used with barcode scanners to speed up data entry, searches and transaction management.

📚 Discover PowerBK, software for libraries and book cataloguing

📥 Learn more about importing and exporting data

✓ immediate searches;
✓ fewer errors;
✓ controlled loans;
✓ simpler inventory management;
✓ consistent labels;
✓ available statistics;
✓ backup of the data collection.

Question: Where should you start when organising a school library?
Answer: Start by inventorying the available books, defining the spaces, choosing a cataloguing and shelving method and writing simple rules for loans and returns.

Question: Is it necessary to use the Dewey Decimal Classification?
Answer: It is not mandatory, but it is very useful because it organises books by subject using a recognisable and scalable system.

Question: Which data should be recorded for each book?
Answer: At least the title, author, publisher, year, ISBN, inventory number, shelving location, category, condition and any notes.

Question: How should multiple copies of the same title be managed?
Answer: Each copy must have its own inventory number and status, even when the title, author and ISBN are identical.

Question: How can loans and returns be processed more quickly?
Answer: Management software combined with barcode scanners can identify the book and user quickly, reducing processing time and typing errors.

Question: Is it important to perform backups?
Answer: Yes. The digital catalogue, loans and user records should be protected with regular copies also stored on media separate from the main computer.

Question: Can PowerBK be used in a school library?
Answer: Yes. PowerBK can catalogue books and manage inventory, shelving locations, users, loans, labels, searches, imports and exports.