StoneBridge Library Mission & History

 

The StoneBridge School Library is the primary resource center for the faculty and staff of StoneBridge School. Its role is one of support for the Principle Approach curriculum, education of children in the art of self-government for a Christian constitutional republic, cultivation of Christian character and leadership in the rising generations, and the establishment of scholarship upon the Biblical principles that recognize the Lordship of Christ in every subject.

The goals of the StoneBridge Library are:

1.      To acquire, maintain and preserve appropriate resources

2.      To provide a research environment for students and faculty

3.      To provide materials access and research assistance to faculty, students, and parents

 

The StoneBridge School library was founded by Rosalie J. Slater, the President of the Foundation for American Christian Education, as she mentored StoneBridge founder Carole Adams in the beginning years of the school. According to Mrs. Adams, Miss Slater periodically sent a full box of wonderful books to the school. Mrs. Adams, a classroom teacher as well as the Head of School, received the box from the UPS man in the classroom and opened it with the children present. Then one-by-one the books were removed from the box and admired as they discussed the impact of this donation on their courses of study! Miss Slater has blessed StoneBridge School with many hundreds of the best books over the years. She has also blessed the Board, administration, faculty and staff each year by giving us many wonderful books at Christmas, helping build our personal libraries. Her book, A Family Program For Reading Aloud, has directed and guided many families in building an excellent home library. It is for these reasons that our library has been named the Rosalie June Slater Library.  We are so thankful to Rosalie for her guidance, inspiration, and generosity in this area of our school!

 

1. The First "R": Research

To research a topic "diligent inquiry" is required.  So states Noah Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language.  But where can a student or a parent go to find the best resources for his inquiry?  Why, to StoneBridge School Library, of course!  Our library is a very good source for a surprising range of media, including periodicals, audiotapes, videotapes, reference materials, books, and high speed internet access.  

 

2. Primary & Secondary Sources
 

StoneBridge School emphasizes the use of primary source documents.  We have a wonderful, extensive collection of books in that genre, including this representative listing:

  • The Log of Christopher Columbus                  
  • William Bradford's History of the Plymouth Settlement      
  • Public Papers of the Presidents      
  • The Complete Works of Francis A Schaeffer
  • Greek-English New Testament
  • Plato's Republic
  • The Double Helix
  • The Elegant Universe
  • Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England
  • The Federalist
  • The Anti-Federalist Papers
  • Notes on the Debates in the Federal Convention
  • Expositor's Bible Commentary
  • Descartes: the Geometry
  • Evolution: Challenge of the Fossil Record
  • Expositor's Bible Commentary, 12 Vol.  Gaebelein
  • The Complete Works of Captain John Smith
  • The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles
  • Great Painters of the World

Our reference collection includes Durant's 11 Volume Story of Civilization, a 54-volume Great Books of the World, a 38-volume early church history, William Churchill's History of the English Speaking Peoples, Matthew Henry's Commentary, Black's Law Dictionary, several encyclopedia sets, and The Annals of America in 20 volumes. Our fiction collection is an admirable group of classic works, sprinkled with contemporary Christian authors like Tolkien, Peretti, and Lewis, and books ranging from Beowulf to The Chosen. Biographically speaking, we are proudly shelving hundreds of books illustrating the Christian character of many heroes of the faith as well as great figures in history.  Our biography collection includes such primary sources as the Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington, as well as the entire "Sowers" series, a Christian character set for the juvenile reader.  Our primary school library patron has access to numerous early-reader biographies, as well as step-up series to encourage the developing reading skills in the elementary grades.

3. Philosophy of Acquisitions

The main purpose of our libraries is to support the research needs of our 50 faculty, 450 students and our parents as we pursue a research-based Principle Approach education.  This means that we must house many primary sources in addition to the most excellent secondary sources.  If a source does not exist in our library but is needed by a faculty member, administrator or student, we purchase it if at all possible. We also purpose to provide quality reading material for students, teachers, and parents.  The emphasis is on the word quality!  We are not interested in housing poorly written or mediocre materials and therefore choose our materials very carefully.  We want to be "feasting" on the best literature!

4. Parents are Primary Educators

 

Because StoneBridge School believes the Biblically-based assumption that parents are the child's primary educator and schools serve as delegated authorities, our library is designed to serve parents as well as the faculty and student body.  Parents are welcome to check out the resources in our library and should contact our librarian for assistance in locating any item.  

5. Library Legacy
 

The "Library Legacy" is one of our treasured traditions.  Each year, every family contributes a dollar or two per child for the purchase of a library book.  Each class chooses a book that is of interest to them, purchases it and places it in the library after the book has been signed by each child and the teacher.  Students love to discover, years later, books that they donated!

6. Book Fairs

In order to fulfill its mission better, the library sponsors periodic book fairs.  The purpose of these fairs is to place the best quality literature in the hands of parents as they endeavor to select reading material to bless their children and help them grow in knowledge and in their understanding of a Biblical worldview.