
Preparing their climbing gear at the base of a towering pine tree on BB&N’s Lower School, arborists Remy Lee and Josh Snyder encountered something unusual in their field of work: a cheering section.
The Lower School has two libraries: one for Grades Beginner, Kindergarten, and Grade 1 and another for Grades 2-6. Students learn to use a variety of research tools in the library including: the electronic catalog, encyclopedias, almanacs, atlases, dictionaries, search engines on the Internet, and other reference sources to explore individual interests as well as prepare for class assignments. The program is spiral, with more challenging material added each year. Students also learn about different genres of fiction, discuss authors and styles, and listen to folktales from many different cultures.
In weekly classes, the overall goal is to encourage a love of reading, and a facility of nonfiction materials, which will enable students to approach research with ease and confidence. Students typically go to the library once a week in half groups and may check out books.