| Why
Weed Poetry?
Weeding
in general is often the most neglected duty in a busy media
center.  The
poetry section is probably the most neglected area even
in a "well-tended" collection. Take advantage of the holiday
frame-of-mind this month and review this gentle section.
Give the gift of beautiful poetry to your students.
Suggested
Dewey Numbers to Check:
The
titles on poetry will be found in the 800s, with most anthologies
in the 808s, American poetry in the 811s, and British poetry
in the 821s. Review the remainder of the 800 section for
poetry from other nationalities. Remember to check the reference
section and the audiovisual collection.
Specific
Criteria for Weeding:
Before
you start looking at individual titles in the poetry sections,
stand back and take a general look at the area. Is there
any eye appeal to attract students? Or is this an area visited
only due to classroom assignments? Increase the appeal of
this section (and the valuable older titles) by adding a
few new attractive titles on the market today.
Some
of those older titles should still be weeded if they are
in bad physical condition or if they are misleading to your
students. The term "modern" may be acceptable in titles
if the implication is literary rather than present day.
But titles that imply currency should be current or be discarded.
Older titles may also have an ethnic or gender bias that
could be offensive to students or their parents. Check each
of the nationality sections carefully. Replace with titles
that will also attract leisure readers. The audiovisual
collection probably has some old titles in formats (such
as filmstrips and vinyl records) that are not popular with
either students or their teachers. Weed and replace with
titles that support the curriculum of today.
Consider
Weeding Titles Like These:
- 31
new American poets, 1969.
- 100
modern poems, 1949.
- About
women : anthology of contemporary fiction, poetry, and essays,
1973.
- American
poetry since 1945 : a critical survey, 1965.
- American
poets : from the Puritans to the present, 1968.
- An
anthology of Irish verse; the poetry of Ireland from mythological
times to the present, 1948.
- Anthology
of Korean poetry : from the earliest era to the present,
1964.
- Black
out loud; an anthology of modern poems by Black Americans,
1970.
- Con
Cuba : an anthology of Cuban poetry of the last sixty years,
1969.
- Contemporary
American poets : American poetry since 1940,1969.
- Ebony
rhythm : an anthology of contemporary Negro verse, 1968.
- Elizabethan
poetry; modern essays in criticism, 1967.
- English
romantic poets : modern essays in criticism,1960.
- Fifteen
modern American poets, 1956.
- Five
modern American poets (Cummings, Roethke, Wilbur, Dickey,
Merwin), 1968.
- Gaily
we parade : a collection of poems about people, here, there
& everywhere, 1940.
- How
to read and understand poetry [filmstrip], 1966.
- Images
of tomorrow : an anthology of recent poetry, 1953.
- New
American and Canadian poetry, 1971.
- A
new anthology of modern poetry, 1946.
- The
new modern poetry : British and American poetry since World
War II, 1967.
- The
new pocket anthology of America verse from colonial days
to the present, 1955.
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