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Libraries

TJ has the library research resources your child needs for success.

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The TJ Libraries

The TJ Libraries are open when the school is open. The library resources are available for all students in grades Pre-K through 12, and books may be checked out by students and parents for a period of two weeks. Library resources also include books and multimedia in almost every classroom (especially in Early Childhood and Lower School classrooms), so be sure to check with your child’s teacher about additional resources. The school libraries also provide access to research databases students will use in college, including JSTOR and Interactive Anatomy.

Parent Resources

Parent Resources

Within the TJ Library collection are dozens of books, videos, and references offered exclusively for TJ Parents. Resources for parents are marked with orange spine tags and are located on shelves in the south west corner of the Early Childhood and Lower School library.  These resources are also searchable through the TJ Catalog Search.

Launch Common Sense Media

Ask the Librarian

Ask the Librarian

Do you have a special request for the TJ Librarian? Stop by the library during regular school hours or complete this form.

Search the TJ Collection

Search JSTOR

Tutorial: How to Search JSTOR from home.

Lexicool: A directory of “all” the online bilingual and multilingual dictionaries and glossaries freely available on the Internet. It is a resource intended for translators, linguists, language students and all those interested in foreign languages.

The World Factbook: CIA source for history, people, government, economy, geography, transportation, and military info for 266 world entities.

Census Bureau Data: U.S. Census Bureau source for population, housing, economic, and geographic data.

Gallica Digital Library: French language collection of documents and images.

Library of Congress: Online Catalog Search

National Archives Catalog

Genetic Science Learning Center: Developed by the University of Utah, this site was awarded the Science Prize for Online Resources in Education. Science magazine says it is filled with unbiased and accurate information about genetics and health.

WorldCat: The world’s largest network of library content and services.

LITERATURE

Project Gutenberg: The first and largest single collection of free electronic books.

Great Books: online collection.

Folger Digital Texts: Complete online works of William Shakespeare.

Poetry Foundation: Explore poems, poets, and prose through this independent literary organization’s site.

NEWS ARCHIVES

On This Day: Online feature of the New York Times that highlights events in history.

Today in History: Online feature of the Library of Congress.

ADDITIONAL HISTORICAL REFERENCES

LoC Digital Collection: Digitized collection of the Library of Congress featuring spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music.

Missouri Digital Heritage Collection: Maps, photos, newspapers, art, and cultural resources, as well as county and municipal records.

The American Presidency Project: Archive containing over 87,000 documents related to the study of the Presidency.

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers: Search America’s historic newspapers from 1789-1963, including the Jasper News from 1898-1924.

ADDITIONAL STUDENT RESOURCES

Guides for Citing Sources: Cornell University Library site with access to guides and tools for citation.

MLA Formatting and Style Guide

Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)

Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations

Strunk’s Elements of Style

Computer Lab:
The Lower School Computer Lab is open for Early Childhood and Lower School students as scheduled. Middle School students use the Computer Lab resources on a regular basis for research, writing, and elective courses. The Computer Lab also serves as the Applied Programming/Robotics Lab, and one of the school’s videoconference classrooms, supporting up to 45 students for videoconference sessions.

Videoconferencing:
The TJ Library operates a videoconference lab (can serve up to 44 students at the same time) and a mobile videoconferencing unit that moves from class to class and can serve as many students as can fit in the classroom. Teachers use the videoconferencing systems to enhance their curriculum and expand their students’ educational horizons by accessing resources that are not available in the Joplin area. TJ students participate in live videoconferences with researchers at leading universities, scientists at major research centers, students at dozens of schools around the world, and curators at world-famous museums.

Reference Sections:
The reference sections include classroom sets of globes; English and foreign language dictionaries; statistical abstracts; legal, medical, and scientific encyclopedia sets; literature and poetry anthologies; historical references including The Annals of America, The Story of Civilization, and presidential biographies; World Book and Britannica encyclopedia sets; and dozens of other resources in print and online formats.

Periodicals:
The TJ Library subscribes to dozens of periodicals for student, faculty, and parent use.  In addition to periodicals referenced in subscription-based digital services, the library offers copies of local and national news magazines and other magazines for all ages including Ranger Rick, National Geographic, Smithsonian, and many others.

Parent Resources:
Books for parents are kept on the shelf in the southwest corner of the Library.  Orange-colored labels on the spine identify books that are specifically offered for parents of TJ students.

The summer reading program includes required texts for students in grades 1-12, as well as additional recommended titles for students in Middle and Upper School.

These required books (for the grade a child will rise to in the fall) will be used in classroom discussions in the fall. Selections from the recommended reading lists (Middle and Upper School) will also be used in fall English class assignments. See the appropriate section of the list for specific requirements for your child’s grade. All required texts are available in the front office and at book retailers.

Download the Summer Reading Lists