the world and to adjust himself to his environment. The material must be so used as to awaken in the child a desire to learn more about the world in which he lives, and to cultivate in him the power to picture to himself facts, conditions, and influences which we have no means of illustrating. THE TEACHER'S LIBRARY. In connection with the Educational Museum a teachers' library was opened in 1905. It contains the best publications on philosophy, psychology, education, school management, science, and literature, the textbooks used in our own and other countries, reports and courses of study of the schools of the United States and Europe, reference books giving information on all the material in the museum, and the leading educational and other magazines. The teacher's library aims to put within reach of the teachers everything they need for professional study and self-culture, some of which the public library does not supply. Principals and teachers cooperate with the board of education in making the institution as complete and efficient as it should be. They are asked to state what they would like to have added to the library, and their suggestions and wishes always meet with ready consideration. The number of volumes in the library is 8,000; 2,000 volumes of the private library of Dr. Soldan, late superintendent of schools of St. Louis, were presented to the institution by his widow. A catalogue of the library is in the hands of each teacher. She may procure the books in two ways, by calling at the library to select the books she wishes to read or by inserting the title of the book or books in an order blank. The books desired are sent to her school by the museum automobile in the same way in which museum material is sent. The board of education makes it easy for the teachers to avail themselves of the opportunities offered by the library, and these opportunities are most extensively used. THE MUSEUM IN ITS NEW HOME. The Educational Museum, at its opening, was housed in some of the rooms of the Wyman School and the adjoining Teachers' College, and remained in these quarters for seven years. During this period the institution grew to such dimensions that the space assigned to it in the two schools became totally inadequate. In 1911 the Peabody School, Eighteenth and Carroll Streets, was closed, because many pupils had left the district, and the others could be taken care of in schools in the neighborhood. A part of the large three-story building, as much as is needed for all the departments of the museum, was so changed as to adapt it to the needs of the institution. STUDY EXHIBITS. A large part of the lower floor, including 64 by 32 feet on the north side, 32 by 32 feet on the south side, and the entire corridor, 75 by 15 feet, has been set aside for the display department. One or more collections of each kind sent out by the museum are displayed in proper sequence. These are the study exhibits. They enable the teacher to become thoroughly acquainted with all the museum contains; they make it possible for the teacher to acquire, with the help of the library, such information as may be needed to use the material intelligently and profitably. No normal school or teachers' college can give its students the general information in all departments of science which a modern teacher must possess to go far beyond the text of the book and make her work interesting and valuable. A museum arranged in accordance with the course of study and supplied with a good reference library can do this. The St. Louis teachers make good use of these study exhibits and show no hesitancy in telling how the study and the use of material have widened their horizon, how much better they are prepared for their lessons, and how much more pleasure and satisfaction they find in their work. The The display rooms, however, do not constitute the museum. museum proper, the traveling museum, is found in thousands of boxes and cases, jars, and bottles, ready to go out and do their work in the schools. CARE OF THE MATERIAL. All collections returned from the schools are unpacked, checked, and examined. Soiled or missing labels are at once replaced, damaged articles sent to the repair room, and all glass and boxes and cases carefully cleaned. Two men repack all the material, and make it ready to go out again. The boxes and other receptacles, for the various articles are all so constructed as to give the best protection and to keep the exhibits in usable shape as long as possible. The teachers and pupils seem to place the proper value upon the museum material. They seem to feel that they are responsible for its care and preservation, and they show commendable care in handling it. The annual loss of exhibit material has been comparatively small. NUMBER OF COLLECTIONS. The number of individual collections in the museum is 1,750; 7,000 individual and duplicate collections constitute the traveling museum. The number of lantern slides is 4,000, of stereoscopes 8,000, and of colored charts and photographs, 2,000. ANNUAL INCREASE IN ORDERS. How the popularity of the museum and the library has grown, and to what extent their use in the schools has increased, are shown by the following schedule: EXTENT TO WHICH DIFFERENT GROUPS OF MATERIAL ARE USED. The following extracts from the museum report state to what extent the different groups of material have been used and which groups are in greater demand than others. Nature of material. Food products... Character of collections ordered, 1912-1913. Material for clothing and shelter.. Mounted birds.... Mounted insects and butterflies... Reptiles, amphibia, and sea life. Mounted mammals... Minerals..... Pictorial illustrations, charts, and views. Material illustrating life of various countries.. Apparatus for physical experiments.... Lantern lessons............. Miscellaneous material. Total number of collections ordered. Library Classification of books issued, 1912–13. Reference books, nature study, history, and geography. Times ordered by schools. 7,078 8,840 10, 388 1,503 2,637 2.984 2,787 12, 213 2,409 2, 313 4,083 64 57, 299 3,907 1,715 The working staff of the institution consists of the assistant superintendent in charge, a curator, two assistants, a librarian, a repairer, a checker, two packers, a chauffeur, and a janitor. The museum is open daily, except Sundays, from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. Visitors are always welcome. Frequently teachers take their classes to the institution after school or on Saturdays, not to give instruction, but to reward them for good work and to make them acquainted with what the museum offers. A large number of teachers from all parts of the country and some from abroad visit the museum every year. The total number of visitors in 1912-13 was 3,885. |