What is weeding?
Weeding is the process of removing books and other materials from your collection in a planned and systematic way.
Some things to consider:
- Your collection should be age and developmentally appropriate.
- Weeding requires knowledge of the collection.
- Does removing this book silence a marginalized voice with low representation in the catalogue?
- If so, you may want to ask yourself why there's not more of this voice in the library collection and how to use reader's advisory techniques to get it, and others like it, to circulate.
- Is this book part of a series and removing it would cause a problem for readers of the series going forward?
- Analyzing reports can assist in making decisions.
- Does the item circulate? How much? When was the last checkout?
Why we weed
Why weed?
- Overcrowding
- Condition of books
- Shift in needs
- Outdated information or technology
Weeding will keep your collection current and in good condition!
Why we don't weed
Why we don't weed:
- Emotional attachment
- Reluctance to judge
- Difficult decisions
- Fear of public reactions
- Fear of 'empty shelves'
