B 3 mt. 151 S''>\ s^ tu'' amci:, c c »r c r c ( c 1' < c « C Cc' C C C C ' !£ -> ■> -i^ ■> y •, 1 > ' 5 5 3 3 J , 3 1 : THE ECLECTIC MANUAL OP METHODS J^OJ? THE ASSISTANCE OF TEACHERS VAN ANTWERP, BRAGG & CO. CINCINNATI NEW YORK ( I < < , , < ' • ' < i « » . • « < < ' < . Copyright 1885 Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co. ^iDUCAT'(ot^:! OB^' ECLECTIC PRESS ! VAN ANTWERP, BRAGG & CO. - CONTENTS. Introduction PAGE READING. Chapter I. — Auxiliary Studies II. — Methods of Teaching . III.— McGuffey's Primer IV.— McGuffey's First Reader V. — General Remarks VI. — McGuffey's Readers. — Concluded II 24 32 41 57 69 SPELLING. Chapter VII. — McGuffey's Spelling-book 85 WRITING. Chapter VIII. — Eclectic System of Penmanship 93 ARITHMETIC. Chapter IX. — First Year X. — Second Year . *' XI. — Arithmetic. — Co7icluded 105 115 131 GEOGRAPHY. Chapter XII. XIII. -The Eclectic Elementary Geography . -The Eclectic Complete Geography 145 162 IV CONTENTS. GRAMMAR. PAGE Chapter XIV. — Harvey's Elementary Grammar and Com- position 177 " XV. — Harvey's Revised Practical Grammar . 188 HISTORY. Chapter XVI. — The Eclectic History of the United States 207 " XVII. — The Eclectic History. — Appendix . . 227 PHYSIOLOGY. Chapter XVIII. — The Eclectic Physiology .... 249 ' ■> ^ \ ' ' ' ) , » ^ J 5 > 1 1 1 11 ■>, ) > ' > ) ' ' -villi 11 , 1)1 ~ ' ■> > ) 1 1 1 1 1 ' i ' > 'j 5 ' > , , ' , THE ECLECTIC MANUAL. IN TR on UCTION. THIS Manual is the outgrowth of numerous requests from young and inexperienced teachers of country district schools in nearly every part of the United States for assistance in their work. While it is therefore ad- dressed particularly to this class, it is hoped that it con- tains many suggestions which will prove useful, also, to teachers generally. During the past few years, there has been a strenuous effort made in many states to evolve some degree of symmetry and order out of the chaos in which the un- graded schools have heretofore existed. Superintendents have held meetings and discussed methods and the proper use of text-books ; they have also, in many cases, issued manuals to their teachers, setting forth the results of the conferences, and making many valuable sugges- tions as to the future conduct of the schools. These manuals, although frequently differing in unessential details, agree in recommending a definite and uniform (5) ^', THE ECLECTIC MANUAL. course of study, and, as far as may be possible, a uni- formity of text-books in classes. Wherever these suggestions of the superintendents have been followed, the schools without exception have been improved in character. But many difficulties con- front the inexperienced teacher, regarding which he receives no aid from the superintendent's manual. Not the least of these, perhaps, is owing to the fact that he does not understand how to use his text-books to the best advantage. In order to use a book properly, a teacher must know what the aim of the book is ; on what plan it has been constructed, and in conformity with what method ; how far its text is merely suggestive, etc. As the Eclectic Educational Series is used very generally in the district schools throughout the country, the Pub- lishers feel themselves called upon to aid in supplying such information in rfegard to these books and their use as will assist the teacher in securing the best pos- sible results. With this object in view, the following books of the Eclectic Educational Series have received full and careful treatment : McGuffey's Revised Eclectic Primer, Readers, and Spelling-Book ; the New Eclectic Penmanship; Ray's New Primary, Intellectual, and Prac- tical Arithmetics ; the New Eclectic Elementary and Complete Geographies ; Harvey's Revised Elementary Grammar and Composition, Harvey's Revised English Grammar ; the Eclectic History of the United States ; the Eclectic Physiology and Hygiene. INTRODUCTION. y The several books mentioned have been prepared in conformity with those modern methods of teaching which are recognized by the most advanced instructors as the best. It has been the endeavor to show in this Manual what the method is for each subject, and how it should be applied. Suggestions as to details have been given wherever it is felt they will be of service, but they must be viewed in the proper light, as mere suggestions. For example, it is by no means desired to convey the impression that in our opinion the plan suggested for conducting the opening lesson in McGuffey's Revised Eclectic First Reader is the only proper plan for conduct- ing that lesson. The same is true of all similar sugges- tions : it is not intended that they shall be followed servilely, but simply be accepted as hints. Each teacher must necessarily originate his own plan of conducting a lesson. Originality in this respect is indeed a necessary element of success ; for the teacher must be able to recognize the particular needs of his own school, and must adapt his teaching to those demands. No amount of suggestions will give this power, nor can any one teach the knack of imparting information to others. It is a well known fact that many a wise man is a very poor teacher owing to deficiency in this respect. A teacher's success, then, depends very largely upon natural gifts, but it also depends upon a thorough knowledge, not only of the subjects he teaches, but also of the methods and books that he uses. With this 8 THE ECLECTIC MANUAL. knowledge added to the necessary natural gifts, a teacher, no matter how inexperienced, may look con- fidently for good results from his teaching. Without it, even the most experienced teacher can not attain the best results. To supply this necessary information in regard to the books of the Eclectic Educational Series is the aim of this Manual, and it is issued in the hope that it will prove of valuable assistance to all teachers who are using those books in their schools. The Publishers take this opportunity of expressing their obligations to Superintendent R. W. Stevenson, Hon. Thomas W. Harvey, Miss M. E. Thalheimer, Dr. Eli F. Brown, and J. T. Stewart for their valuable assist- ance in the preparation of this Manual. READING I. AUXILIARY STUDIES. THERE are certain studies intimately connected with reading which should be taught in connection with it from the first. It will therefore be well to consider these briefly, and their relations one to another, as well as to the reading lesson itself, before taking up the details of the reading lesson proper. The four important auxiliary studies to be considered are : Language Lessons, Writing, Object Lessons and Composition, and Spelling. Language Lessons. — When the child first comes to school, he knows how to talk. He learned this art by associating certain spoken words with certain objects, attributes, and actions. He imitated the words that he heard, and thus in time learned to speak. If he has always heard correct language, his own language will for the most part be correct, and the errors he makes through inexperience or imperfect reasoning can be easily rectified. But the case is different where the child Jiears the same grammatical blunders and inelegant ex- pressions day after day, at home or on the playground, and naturally imitates them. These errors can be over- come only by patient persistence on the part of the child's instructors. A child of well educated and refined parents, and one whose associates are cultivated persons,: will probably have but little use for a grammar at any time; but such children are the rare exceptions, - and the (11) 1 2 READING. teacher must prepare to battle against great odds. He has only the short time that the child is in school to weigh against the many hours spent by that child under adverse influences, therefore there is all the more reason why work in this direction should receive the most watchful attention. Never allow a grammatical blunder to pass uncorrected either in a child's speech or in his written exercises. Above all, the teacher should be careful about his own language, both as to the choice of words and the form of expression. Do not make the mistake of writing wrong forms on the board, or elsewhere, for correction by young chil- dren. This may be done with profit in advanced classes, but it is best that a beginner should never see a wrong form of word or expression in the school- room. Correct all bad English instantly and quietly, but teach only the best, and bear in mind that the best is nearly always the simplest. This instruction in language is of the greatest import- ance to the child. "Just as the twig is bent the tree 's inclined," and a man frequently bears unconsciously through life the marks of his early training. Habits of incorrect speech acquired in childhood become a part of a man's nature, and cling to him in his old age in spite of the cultivation of later years. But language lessons should not stop with the correc- tion of language ; they should teach, also, the proper use of the different parts of speech and the meaning of words. We do not mean the formal rules of grammar, nor the formal definitions of the dictionary ; but, by skillfully prepared and carefully graded oral exercises, practically illustrated, the child's vocabulary may be ex- tended, and he may be taught to understand and to use AUXILIARY STUDIES. 1 3 English correctly, — when to use is and when to use are ; to distinguish between tJiis and tJiat, and tJiese and those, I and })ic, who and ivJiicJi, slow and slowly, strong, stronger, and strongest, etc., etc. Writing. — The reading and the writing of script should be begun with the first reading lesson. Chil- dren in the primary classes are occupied but a small portion of the time in reciting, and it is absolutely necessary to employ the remainder of their time in school in some way that will interest as well as instruct them. In no other way can this time be employed to better advantage than by having the scholars copy on their slates, or on the blackboard, both the printed and written forms of the letters and words learned in their reading lesson, for in no other way will the characters be so indelibly stamped upon the minds of the children. To facilitate instruction in these writing lessons, we present, on the four pages following, the "Slate Exer- cises" to be found on pages 61-64 of McGuffey's Re- vised Eclectic Primer. They will be found invaluable in this connection, and are repeated here for the benefit of those teachers who for any reason do not wish to use the Primer, and think it best to begin with the First Reader. In these Exercises, the small script letters are given in the order of their simplicity. They should be practiced as given in the copy, first separately, and then in combination, forming a word. It is not intended that the class should be confined to the exercises presented in the book. As rapidly as new letters are introduced, the teacher should form new words, and the exercises may then be multiplied at discretion. By the time a child has completed pages 14, 15, and 16, he should be familiar with all the small script 14 READING. AUXILIARY STUDIES. 15 ^HH ^^^^^B ^^^^^3 91 ^^^^^^B ^^^^^^s ^^^^^H H ^^^^^OH ^^^^^^^B IB Hi ^^B ^^^^^^H W^j^uS^SBt^ ^9 HI ^^^^^^S ^^^^^m Bl 191 ^^^^^^H ^^^^^B l^^^^a ^^^a^m ^H qUiI i6 READING. ^^^^^^^^^^I^^^^^^^^^^^^^^V''.-' j/n 7//j£^^^^^^^^| WBKtM ^mg^^m^^m ^^^^^^^^^H ■^^^^H ^^^^^^^^^B ^^^^^^^^^^Hl ^^^^^^S^S^^^^HT^^^^H^^^^^^^^^^^^l ■■ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H ^^^^^^H HH ^^^^^^^^B ^^^^^m ^^^^^l^s^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H IHI^^^^^^^^B HHh AUXILIARY STUDIES. 17 E. M.-2. 1 8 READING. letters. The capitals, given alphabetically on page 17, and the script figures should be taught gradually, ac- cording to the daily requirements of the reading lessons. The copies presented on these four pages may be used apart, if so desired, simply as writing lessons, and to employ the unoccupied time of the children, but this work should by no means be allowed to interfere with the writing to be taught in connection with the reading lessons, which should be conducted as follows : Before beginning work, see that each child is provided with a slate properly ruled. ^ It is important, too, that each child should have a long and neatly sharpened slate pencil, for it must be borne in mind that this slate work is preparatory to work in the copy-books ; and it is very necessary that the first steps should be taken properly, and that no bad habits be formed. The child must be taught to hold a pencil in exactly the same way as he will be taught in future to hold a pen. (See Hand-book to the New Eclectic Penmanship, page 24.) This is an impossibility with a short pencil. Moreover, a short * It is necessary that this ruling be done very carefully, and, to secure the necessary accuracy and uniformity, the teacher himself should rule all the slates. The proper form of ruhng is shown on pages 14, 15, and 16. The lines should be scratched on the slate with some sharp instrument, and care must be taken to make all hnes exactly parallel and at right angles to the side of the slate, also to make the corresponding spaces precisely equal. A steel pen from which the points have been broken, leaving two stubs about one eighth of an inch apart, will be found of much assist- ance in scratching the lines properly. It is a good plan to rule the lines first with a slate pencil, and, when you have thus located them just as they should be, go over the pencil lines with a scratcher. A UXILIAR Y STUDIES. 1 9 pencil invariably leads to the bad habit of cramping the hand, while a clumsy, blunt pencil can be expected to produce but clumsy work. An intelligent teacher will look carefully after just such points in order to produce the best results. Of course, too great precision in the form and slant of the letters, or in any of the " fine points " of writing, is not to be expected of very young children. Let details go unnoticed at first, and be content with a care- ful correction of glaring faults in the position of the body and the limbs, in the manner of holding the pencil, etc. Little by little, one after another, the errors may be corrected and good habits formed. Thus, when work in the copy-books is commenced, tasks will prove easy and progress will be rapid. Give each child credit for effort, no matter how crude the first writing may be. The mere attempt at writing is meritorious, and it is very important that the child should not become discouraged at the outset. Begin the lesson in writing by putting on the black- board, between a head and a base line, in large, well- formed script, the first word learned in the reading lesson, or the first letter taught by the Phonic method, and let the children try to copy it on their slates ; when this is fairly learned, take up the next word or letter, and so on, until the children can write all the words of the lesson. The children are supposed to learn the printed forms of these words in the reading lesson proper ; and, if thought best to do so, the printed forms may also be practiced on the slates, the children using their books to copy from. The teacher should explain that the script forms mean exactly the same thing as the printed forms, and should 20 READING. see that this is thoroughly clear to the pupils. Lest there should be confusion on this point, many teachers prefer to teach the writing of script only. With a little care, however, there need be no confusion, and practice on the printed forms certainly aids to fix them in the child's memory. Care must be taken, however, to advance very slowly at first. Do not introduce the second word until the first is fairly learned. When all the words are learned, they should be combined, and a part of the reading lesson for each day should be written on the slates, and then read aloud. The script exercises throughout the Primer and Read- ers are made up of only such words as have preceded them in print. They present no difficulties, therefore, except as exercises in writing and reading script. Let them be used as copies for slate work. Object Lessons and Composition. — As soon as the children have learned a sufficient number of words to make it practicable, have them compose sentences differ- ing from those found in the book. The review lessons in the Primer and Readers are constructed entirely from words learned in preceding lessons, and the teacher can readily make others of a similar nature. At first it will be necessary to dictate sentences for the children to write, or to put sentences on the board for them to copy, but in a short time the children will be able to compose their own sentences, and they should be en- couraged to do this as early as possible, for children should be led to think for themselves, and not merely to imitate. The illustrations of the Readers should be used as the basis of object lessons, and short compositions should be written about them. Before giving a lesson of this kind AUXILIARY STUDIES. 21 to the class, have a talk with them about the picture that is to be the subject. The field is a wide one, but much depends upon the adroitness of the teacher in making suggestions and developing ideas, so as to get all the good possible out of the lesson. Long experience shows conclusively that object lessons are of little or no value except in connection with writ- ing. The two branches should therefore be taught in combination. Do not confine the object lessons to the reader illus- trations. A collection of familiar objects, such as pieces of metal, wood, and flowers, felt and leather, etc., should be made for use in this connection. Occasion- ally, let the children select their own subjects for compo- sition in what they see about them in the school-room or at home, at churches, art galleries, or museums, or on their way to and from school. In short, let them write about whatever interests them. Interest is the mainspring of this form of study. Encourage it in every possible way. Stir up a healthful spirit of rivalry among the children as to who can see the most and describe it in the best manner. Do not be too strict as to precise forms, but stimulate freedom of expression. This exercise trains the observation, gives the child fluency in using the words he has learned, and is at the same time a drill in expression and grammar, and in penmanship. The exercises should be begun as early as possible, — that is, just as soon as a child, without forcing, can ex- press an idea in its written form, — and they should be continued throughout the school course. As the child takes up successively the studies of arithmetic, geog- raphy, history, grammar, and natural science, his mind develops and his ideas broaden ; nothing will assist this 20 READING. see that this is thoroughly clear to the pupils. Lest there should be confusion on this point, many teachers prefer to teach the writing of script only. With a little care, however, there need be no confusion, and practice on the printed forms certainly aids to fix them in the child's memory. Care must be taken, however, to advance very slowly at first. Do not introduce the second word until the first is fairly learned. When all the words are learned, they should be combined, and a part of the reading lesson for each day should be written on the slates, and then read aloud. The script exercises throughout the Primer and Read- ers are made up of only such words as have preceded them in print. They present no difficulties, therefore, except as exercises in writing and reading script. Let them be used as copies for slate work. Object Lessons and Composition. — As soon as the children have learned a sufficient number of words to make it practicable, have them compose sentences differ- ing from those found in the book. The review lessons in the Primer and Readers are constructed entirely from words learned in preceding lessons, and the teacher can readily make others of a similar nature. At first it will be necessary to dictate sentences for the children to write, or to put sentences on the board for them to copy, but in a short time the children will be able to compose their own sentences, and they should be en- couraged to do this as early as possible, for children should be led to think for themselves, and not merely to imitate. The illustrations of the Readers should be used as the basis of object lessons, and short compositions should be written about them. Before giving a lesson of this kind AUXILIARY STUDIES. 21 to the class, have a talk with them about the picture that is to be the subject. The field is a wide one, but much depends upon the adroitness of the teacher in making suggestions and developing ideas, so as to get all the good possible out of the lesson. Long experience shows conclusively that object lessons are of little or no value except in connection with writ- ing. The two branches should therefore be taught in combination. Do not confine the object lessons to the reader illus- trations. A collection of familiar objects, such as pieces of metal, wood, and flowers, felt and leather, etc., should be made for use in this connection. Occasion- ally, let the children select their own subjects for compo- sition in what they see about them in the school-room or at home, at churches, art galleries, or museums, or on their way to and from school. In short, let them write about whatever interests them. Interest is the mainspring of this form of study. Encourage it in every possible way. Stir up a healthful spirit of rivalry among the children as to who can see the most and describe it in the best manner. Do not be too strict as to precise forms, but stimulate freedom of expression. This exercise trains the observation, gives the child fluency in using the words he has learned, and is at the same time a drill in expression and grammar, and in penmanship. The exercises should be begun as early as possible, — that is, just as soon as a child, wit Jiotit forcing, can ex- press an idea in its written form, — and they should be continued throughout the school course. As the child takes up successively the studies of arithmetic, geog- raphy, history, grammar, and natural science, his mind develops and his ideas broaden; nothing will assist this ^2 READINC. mental growth so materially as the practice of putting into written words the facts learned and the thought evolved. Geography, history, and science furnish an inexhaustible supply of interesting topics ; arithmetic develops logic, and grammar assists expression. Thus, composition is a sure index to the intelligent teacher of the mental development of the child ; whether he has profited by teaching, and has acquired ideas, or simply ** words, words, words." In fine, there is no more im- portant study in the common school curriculum than that of original composition. Unfortunately, there is no study which is more neglected. Spelling has to do with written language only. It bears the same relation to the written word that pronun- ciation does to the spoken word; and if there was no such thing as writing or printing, there would be no such thing as spelling. Spelling, then, is properly taught in connection with writing. If taught orally only, it is of but little use, and while children may appear to make rapid progress in this department, and be able to spell difficult and unusual words in a manner wonderful to the casual visitor at the school, yet these difficult and unusual words are forgotten, as a rule, as soon as the drilling process is abandoned ; whereas, the aim of spell- ing is so to drill the child that in his after life, when school days are over, he can write any word in his vo- cabulary instantly, without a doubt or a thought as to its spelling. If the writing lessons suggested are performed in con- nection with each day's reading lesson, the child uncon- sciously learns to spell each word by writing it over and over again, and if the teacher does his duty in the care- ful correction of the object lessons and compositions of AUXILIARY STUDIES. 1% his classes, there will be no need of formal spelling lessons in the first years of school work. The speHing- book has its proper place, and a valuable one, but that place is not in primary classes. The practice of select- ing words for spelling from the readers and exercises should be continued in all grades, even when the spell- ing-book is used. II. METHODS OF TEACHING. READING naturally presents itself as the first subject to be taught to young children. It is the foundation upon which the education is built, the key that unlocks all other branches of study. It is of the greatest importance, then, that this first step in educa- tion be taken in the proper manner and in the right direction. It is possible, on the one hand, greatly to interest the little child from the outset of his school life ; and, on the other, to discourage him utterly, and so disgust him with study that he presents to us anew Shakespeare's picture of " The whining school-boy, with his satchel And shining morning face, creeping like snail Unwillingly to school," Properly conducted, the reading lesson may be made a source of real pleasure to the child, and at the same time a well-spring of information on many subjects. Improperly conducted, it becomes a mere memorizing, mechanical process, devoid of all interest, and burden- some alike to teacher and pupil. While the rapidity of advancement depends largely upon the natural intelligence of the pupils, the thorough- ness of the work and the real good accomplished depend almost entirely upon the intelligence of the teacher and the method of conducting the recitation. (24) METHODS OF TEACHING, 25 Much has been said and written by experienced teachers and others as to methods of teaching reading. The Alphabet, Phonic, Phonetic, Word, and Script methods, and perhaps others, — all have their warm ad- herents, who claim that their particular method is tJie only method by which reading can be taught properly ; and yet we know that almost equally good results are obtained by teachers who use different methods. No doubt some methods are better than others, and it is certain that some one well-approved method should be adopted ; but we wish to warn the young teacher especially of the danger that the method will become a hobby unless he is careful, and that thus the end will be lost sight of in attention to the means. Select your method, and be consistent in its use, but do not allow yourself to be bound by laws that will admit of no dis- play of judgment. Probably the three most clearly defined and distinctly different methods are the Alphabet, the Word, and the Phonic methods. The Alphabet Method is still used in some of the best graded schools in the country; there- fore, the Revised Eclectic Primer and Readers are so prepared as to meet fully the requirements of this method, should a teacher see fit to employ it. The printed alphabets, large and small, may be found on pages 4 and 5 of the Primer, and on page 4 of the First Reader. The corresponding script alphabets are given on page 5 of the First Reader. By this method, the child is first taught the letters, then to combine the letters into words, and finally to combine words into sentences. No attention is paid in this method to dia- critical marks ; and the names of letters are taught, not the sounds. E.M.— 3. 26 READING. The Word Method teaches a child to recognize words as wholes; and, where objects are used in illustrating the first steps, it is sometimes called the Object Method. This method pays no attention to elementary sounds and diacritical marks. After a number of words are taught as wholes, the children are told the names of the letters, and learn to spell. By the Phonic Method, the child is first taught the elementary sounds of letters ; he is then taught to com- bine these elementary sounds into words. The sound is first taught, and then the character which represents it ; the spoken word is learned, and then its written and printed form. This method pays no attention to words as wholes until the elementary sounds composing them are learned. The Combined Word and Phonic Method first presents the word as a whole, and after a number of words are learned in this way, the elementary sounds composing them are taught, with the characters which represent them. While McGuffey's Readers are prepared to meet the demands of each of the recognized methods, they are especially adapted to the Phonic Method and to the Combined Word and Phonic Method, which are the two methods most extensively used by successful teachers of primary reading. It is suggested, therefore, that the teacher select one of these methods of instruction. In order that both may be fully understood, we give a rather full description of their different principles and processes. The Combined Method aims to teach the child to read just as he learned to talk. The child, before coming to school, has learned to associate the spoken word with METHODS OF TEACHING. 2/ the object, quality, action, etc., which that word repre- sents. He knows nothing of the component parts of a word ; he simply knows the sound of the word as a whole. The Combined Method aims to continue the child's mental development naturally from this point ; it utilizes the child's knowledge of the spoken symbol to teach him to associate the corresponding written or printed symbol w^ith the object, quality, or action repre- sented by it. The Combined Method contemplates the following steps : 1. The object, or picture of the object, is first pre- sented to the child, and its name called for ; then the word is given, and written upon the board. Both object and word are observed until the child instantly associates the one with the other. 2. The word is impressed on the child's mind by requiring him to write it, or to print and write it, over and over again. 3. Words united into phrases and sentences are taught in the same manner as single words; that is, the idea is developed first. The child is led to express the thought in words, and these words are then presented to his eye and impressed upon his memory. 4. The child learns to use written words by combin- ing them himself into phrases and sentences. 5. Words are analyzed, or separated into their ele- mentary sounds. 6. The child learns the letters or combinations of letters that represent these elementary sounds. 7. The child learns to combine the letters so as to form new words. 8. The use of diacritical marks and of the marks of 28 READING. punctuation are learned gradually by the association of ideas. 9. Spelling is unconsciously learned by repeatedly writing the words of the reading lesson. This order is followed in the detailed instructions for conducting the first lesson of McGuffey's Revised Primer. See page 33. The Phonic Method also aims to lead a child naturally from the known to the unknown. The primary distinc- tion between it and the Combined Method is that the sense of hearing is first appealed to instead of the sight. Long before a child can speak, he is able to distinguish sounds. He recognizes the voices of his mother, father, brothers, and sisters, and distinguishes each from the others. It is claimed, therefore, by the adherents of this method, that inasmuch as hearing is the sense which is first developed, it should be used rather than the sight in the preliminary steps. The following order of teaching reading is in accordance with the principles of the Phonic Method : 1. The child is taught the nature of sound. 2. The child is required to distinguish sounds of different kinds. 3. The written characters which represent the ele- mentary sounds of our language are next taught, com- mencing with the simplest sounds; that is, the short vocals. 4. The elementary sounds are combined so as to form written words. 5. Written words are combined into sentences. 6. A few words made up of difficult sounds should be taught as wholes. The articles a, an, and tJie are of this nature; and these are not only taught as wholes, METHODS OF TEACHING. 2g but must invariably be taught in combination with the words following. Note. — This, it will be seen, is not in conformity with a pure Phonic method, but it is the course pursued universally by the best teachers. 7. The children are now required to make the transi- tion from script to Roman or printed forms. 8. The meaning of words is carefully developed. 9. The use of capital letters and the principal marks of punctuation are taught gradually, as they are used in the text. 10. The children are taught to spell orally and by writing. 11. The children are led to discover the expression through the thought. By comparing the several steps of the Combined and the Phonic methods, we note the following principal differences : 1. The Phonic Method appeals first to the ear. The Combined Method, to the eye. 2. The Phonic Method first teaches the elementary sounds, and then combines them into words. The Com- bined Method first presents the word, and then separates it into its elementary sounds. In this step, the Phonic Method is synthetic; the Combined Method is analytic. Note. — It will be observed that the Combined Method employs synthesis later in requiring the pupil to unite the elementary sounds into words. 3. The Phonic Method teaches the diacritical marks at the beginning. The Combined Method does not teach them until words are learned as wholes. 28 READING. punctuation are learned gradually by the association of ideas. 9. Spelling is unconsciously learned by repeatedly writing the words of the reading lesson. This order is followed in the detailed instructions for conducting the first lesson of McGuffey's Revised Primer. See page 33. The Phonic Method also aims to lead a child naturally from the known to the unknown. The primary distinc- tion between it and the Combined Method is that the sense of hearing is first appealed to instead of the sight. Long before a child can speak, he is able to distinguish sounds. He recognizes the voices of his mother, father, brothers, and sisters, and distinguishes each from the others. It is claimed, therefore, by the adherents of this method, that inasmuch as hearing is the sense which is first developed, it should be used rather than the sight in the preliminary steps. The following order of teaching reading is in accordance with the principles of the Phonic Method: 1. The child is taught the nature of sound. 2. The child is required to distinguish sounds of different kinds. 3. The written characters which represent the ele- mentary sounds of our language are next taught, com- mencing with the simplest sounds; that is, the short vocals. 4. The elementary sounds are combined so as to form written words. 5. Written words are combined into sentences. 6. A few words made up of difficult sounds should be taught as wholes. The articles a, an, and tJie are of this nature; and these are not only taught as wholes, METHODS OF TEACHING. 2g t but must invariably be taught in combination with the words following. Note. — This, it will be seen, is not in conformity with a pure Phonic method, but it is the course pursued universally by the best teachers. 7. The children are now required to make the transi- tion from script to Roman or printed forms. 8. The meaning of words is carefully developed. 9. The use of capital letters and the principal marks of punctuation are taught gradually, as they are used in the text. 10. The children are taught to spell orally and by writing. 11. The children are led to discover the expression through the thought. By comparing the several steps of the Combined and the Phonic methods, we note the following principal differences : 1. The Phonic Method appeals first to the ear. The Combined Method, to the eye. 2. The Phonic Method first teaches the elementary sounds, and then combines them into words. The Com- bined Method first presents the word, and then separates it into its elementary sounds. In this step, the Phonic Method is synthetic; the Combined Method is analytic. Note. — It will be observed that the Combined Method employs synthesis later in requiring the pupil to unite the elementary sounds into words. 3. The Phonic Method teaches the diacritical marks at the beginning. The Combined Method does not teach them until words are learned as wholes. 30 READING. \ The detailed instructions for Lesson I of the First Reader are in accordance with the Phonic Method. The teacher should carefully compare these instructions with those for conducting the first lessons of the Primer before deciding which method he will use. It is of course understood that, whichever method be adopted, it must be used in teaching both the Primer and the First Reader. In the selection of a method, the teacher has simply to consider by which one he can teach a child in the shortest time to read simple sentences intelligently. This is the chief aim in primary reading classes. After a certain point, of course, no matter what the method, the primary steps are abandoned as no longer necessary, and the teacher must then bear constantly in mind the two main objects in learning the art of reading. The first object in reading, as we understand it, is to apprehend properly the thought of the writer; and the second object, that of oral reading, is to communicate this thought to others clearly and in the author's exact words. The word ''thought," in this connection, is in- tended to include, however, not only the exact words of the writer, but also the mind or soul that inspired the words. Without the latter, reading is unintelligent and profitless. The constant care, then, should be to see that the child grasps the idea fully before he attempts to express it in words. ''Ideas before words" always, but in no study should this rule be more strictly observed than in teaching reading. When a printed or written word, phrase, or sentence evolves a clear idea in a child's mind, he expresses it naturally ; or, in other words, he reads exactly as he would speak, and this is the proof to the hearer that the reader understands METHODS OF TEACHING. 3 I what he is reading. This is the chief use of oral read- inii in tl"^ school-room. The teacher must not forjjet that oral reading in after years will be very small in comparison with silent reading ; therefore, the child should be taught to gather, in silence and with rapidity, the ideas from the printed page. III. McGUFFEY'S PRIMER. THE use of this book in the series is optional with the teacher, as the Readers have been constructed independent of the Primer for the accommodation of those who are very much Hmited as to time. It is, however, strongly urged that the Primer be used where it is possible to do so. The lessons are shorter and simpler, and the gradation is less rapid than in the First Reader ; hence, the first steps are easier alike for teacher and pupil. The demand for **more primary reading matter" is constantly increasing, and there are but few schools where it will not be a positive advantage to use both Primer and First Reader. The plan on which the Primer is constructed is the simplest and best known. It applies to the First, Second, and Third Readers as well, and is as follows: At the beginning of each lesson are placed all the new words and all the new elementary sounds to be found in that particular lesson, and no new word or ele- ment is given in a vocabulary that is not found in the particular lesson which it precedes. Omissions and repetitions alike have been carefully avoided in these vocabularies, and thus the teacher can tell, by a glance at the vocabulary, exactly what new work is to be mastered. The articles a, an, and the, and the simplest words possible are first presented in both the Primer and (32) McGUFFEV'S PRIMER. 33 First Reader. New words are introduced on a carefully graded plan. The simplest elementary sounds (the short vocals, etc.) are presented first. The more difficult sounds, combinations, and substitutes are then gradually interwoven, and, by the time the Primer is finished, all the vocals, long and short ; all the diphthongs ; all the aspirates ; all the subvocals except z, as in azure ; and all the substitutes except i for e, as in police ; cJi for shy as in cJiaise ; s for sJi, as in sure ; x for gz, as in exact; ph for/, as in phlox; and qii for k, as in pique , have been presented. It will be noticed that these excep- tions invariably involve words of difficult spelling, which should not be presented to the child until the end of the first or the beginning of the second year of his school course. Lesson I. — Call the attention of the children to the two illustrations accompanying this lesson, the cat and the rat, and engage them in conversation about them. Such questions as, Who has a cat at home ? What is her color? Does she catch rats? etc., etc., will soon awaken interest in the subject. When the attention and interest of the children are secured, revert to the illustration in the book, and re- sume your questioning in some such way as follows: Teacher. — Do you say that this is a cat? Can it run about? Can it mew? Can it drink milk? Can it catch mice and rats like your cat at home ? Is it a real cat, then ? Children. — No. Teacher. — Who can tell me, then, what this is ? [Poi?iting to the picture of the cat in the book^ If you do not succeed in drawing out the correct answer, ask the class if it is a picture of a cat. When 34 READING. the answer is satisfactorily given, proceed with the next step. Teacher. — You say this is a picture of a cat. It is not a real cat, but when you look at it you know at once that it means a cat. Who would like to see a picture of the word cat, that you have just pronounced ? Pronounce the word cat again, all at once. Now — Children . — Cat . The teacher should now place the word on the board. When this is done, the teacher should resume, pointing to the word on the board : Teacher. — There, children, that is the picture that stands for the word cat, just as this picture in the book stands for a real cat. How do you pronounce this word ? \Pointing to the board. ^ Children. — Cat. Teacher. — Now, who can find a picture of this word cat in the book ? As the word occurs several times in Lesson I, call up several children, and see how many times each can find the word in the lesson. Be reasonably sure that all in the class are able to recognize the word at sight before going any farther. Next call attention to the picture of the rat, and follow the same steps until the entire class is familiar with the word rat also. Then place both the words cat and rat on the board a number of times, and test the individual members of the class, seeing that each can readily pick out the right word when it is pronounced. Vary the exercise by letting one child pronounce one of the words for another to point out, and allow the entire class to correct errors. It will be found that this calling upon one member of the class to examine another will add greatly to the interest taken in the recitation. McGUFFEY'S PRIMER. 35 When the two words are quite thoroughly mastered, it will be time to take up the combinations "a cat" and "a rat." Turn to the illustration, and ask: Teacher. — Of what did you say this was a picture ? Did you say "picture of cat" or "picture of a cat?" Children. — Picture of a cat. [Note. — This is simply to draw out the combination "a cat." In asking the question do not emphasize the a. \ Write "a cat" on the board, and teach the phrase as you did the single word; also, the phrase "a rat." Be very careful, in pronouncing the phrase yourself, not to give the a its long sound, ''a rat," ''a cat," and do not allow the children to do so. The a should have its obscure sound, as it has in ordinary conversa- tion, when one says, "This is a cat; that is a rat," or as you would sound the a in along, around, abouty etc. This is quite an important point ; and, if neglected, the children, from the very beginning, acquire a drawling habit of reading that may take years to eradicate. Drill the class on the phrases, so that they can readily distinguish each from the other, and from the simple words cat and rat. We now come to the word and. Ask the children: "What are these animals we have been talking about?" If they do not answer as you wish the first time, perse- vere until they do, and you succeed in getting the natural answer, "A cat and a rat." Repeat their answer, and emphasize the and a little. Ask, ' ' Who can tell which word we have not studied? Listen while I say it again: A cat and a rat." Give the answer in case the class fails, and place the word and on the board. Teach it as you taught the other single words. When 36 READING. it is learned, and all the words and phrases can be dis- tinguished instantly, it is time to combine the two phrases, and the children should be able to read them readily as printed in the book. At the close of the first reading lesson, however short it may be made, begin the first lesson in writing as directed on page 13, and advance to the combination of written words into phrases and sentences as rapidly as the progress of the class will permit. Lesson II. — In this lesson there are five new words to be learned. Begin, as in Lesson I, with a pleasant talk about the illustration. Remind the children of the cat and rat in Lesson I, and have them point out the cat and the rat in the illustration of Lesson II. Make up a little story from the illustrations of Lesson I and Lesson II ; or, better still, have the children make up a story of their own. Ask who can point out the word cat in Lesson II ; the word rat; the combination "a cat;" the combination *'a rat." Proceed in the same manner as in Lesson I. In teaching the phrases **the cat" and "the rat,'' care should be taken not to allow the children to drawl out, *'t-h-e c-a-t, " ''t-h-e r-a-t. " These phrases should be pronounced as in ordinary conversation, "the cat," "the rat," giving the e, in tJie, its obscure sound. Write all the words and phrases contained in both Lessons I and II on the board promiscuously, and test the thoroughness of the work so far accomplished by having individual members of the class point out each word and phrase as it is pronounced by the teacher or by some other member of the class. Proceed as in Lesson I. McGUFFEY'S PRIMER. 3/ It is not thought necessary to give detailed instruc- tion for every lesson in the book. If we have suc- ceeded in showing- in these first two lessons, and in the ** General Remarks," Chapter V, the plan of instruction by the Combined Method, we are confident that any in- telligent teacher can use it successfully without further aid. Lessons III and IV. — These lessons present no diffi- culties that need farther suggestions, except a new sound of s in Lesson IV. The teacher should call the attention of the class to the difference between this sound of s and the s in Les- son II. And it may be accepted as a general rule that whenever a new sound of a letter is introduced, it should always be compared with the sound or sounds of the same letter already learned. In this way, the children will soon become familiar with the force of the diacritical marks. Always teach digraphs as such, and never as two separate letters. Lesson V. — Every fifth lesson in ^he book (except the fiftieth) is a review of the four lessons preceding; and, as far as has been possible, the new words of those four lessons are repeated in the review. These reviews are valuable, therefore, as tests of the thoroughness of the work done, and should be made the most important lessons in the book. Hesitation on the part of a number of the class on a review lesson shows a fault somewhere ; either the work has been pushed too rapidly, or some one lesson, per- haps, has not been thoroughly mastered. A little careful investigation will reveal the trouble, and the defect can be remedied, and should be remedied thoroughly, before proceeding with the next series of lessons. 38 READING. Lesson VI. — In this lesson we have 's, the sign of the possessive, introduced. Teach its force, and see that the children fully understand it In succeeding lessons, it is frequently used when the simple nomina- tive is given in the vocabulary. The sound of 6 in dog demands watchfulness. There is a tendency to pro- nounce this word as though it were spelled daivg. The words frog, doll, log, God, etc., are similarly mispro- nounced by many persons. This is not the proper sound of 6, and the same persons who mispronounce the above words would never think of giving the same sound to 6 in such words as fog, got, odd, or hod. In- sist on the proper sound of 6 wherever it occurs. Lesson XIX. — We would call attention to the sound of a in fast. The sound of a is the most commonly mispronounced of all the a sounds, and the error is quite common, even among the best educated classes. Many who know better give this a the wrong sound through the force of habit and association and the lack of early training. # The common error consists in giving a as though it were a, as in fat, for example. How many of your pupils make a difference in the a sound in fat and fast? On the other hand, the extremely broad a, as in fall, should be avoided. The word is neither pronounced fast nor fast, but fast, about mid- way between the two. It would perhaps be well to make a list of the words containing this sound of a as the class meets them, and give a special drill on it from time to time. Lesson XXII. — In this lesson, call particular attention to the difference in pronunciation of the words of and off. Both occur in the lesson. Refer to Lesson XIX for the phonic spelling of of McGUFFEY'S PRIMER. 39 Lesson XXIII. — In this lesson, one (wwi) needs par- ticular attention. Lesson XXV. Review. — The word doll has been learned in Lessons XVI and XX. It is here given in the plural form, dolls. Other plurals have been learned by the pupils. If the class shows any hesitation over the word, pronounce it and explain the difference be- tween doll and dolls in simple language. Lesson XXVII. — The use of the hyphen is illustrated in this lesson as joining two separate words, mill and po/id, making a compound word. See that it is thor- oughly understood. A test of this will be afforded in reading the review, Lesson XXX, where inill-ivJieel occurs, and also in Lesson XLI, where ligJit-Jwiise is given. Lesson XXXIV. — With the close of this lesson, all the small letters of the alphabet have been introduced. If the capitals have been studied in connection with the small letters, as suggested, and also the script forms of both, this is the place for a thorough review of all the alphabets. Notice the fact that none of the words in the vocab- ulary of this lesson, except we, are given in the follow- ing review, and the lesson should therefore receive particular attention. Lesson XXXVI. — Explain the meaning of the quo- tation marks, which are here met with for the first time. Lesson XXXVIII. — The quotation marks in this les- son need further explanation. Those in Lesson XXXVI indicated a simple quotation ; these represent a dialogue in progress. Lesson XLIV. — Particular attention should be given to the rather difficult words, said {sed) and ouee {wiuis). 40 READING. Lesson XLVIII. — Pay attention to been {bin). Lesson XLIX. — The use of the apostrophe in 77/, sJie 'II, and dont demands careful explanation. Write the words "I will," ''she will," and ''do not" on the board. Rub out the letters wi in will, in each case, and the in not, and substitute the apostrophe, explaining that the latter takes the place of the letters omitted, or "stands for" them. This ocular demonstration will make the fact clear to the children without much talk- ing. Lesson LI. — Explain the hyphen and the acute accent in the word ago. Lesson LII. — This lesson and Lessons XLVI and XLIX may be used to advantage as exercises for mem- orizing and speaking. IV. McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. IF the class has studied the Revised Eclectic Primer before taking up this book, the teacher will find the way clear for rapid advancement. The first ten lessons of the Reader contain only three new words {^fed, left, and pafi) not already studied in the Primer. In the next seventeen lessons, about half the words are new; among them, a dozen words of two syllables. These latter should not offer any particular difficulty, as a few words of this kind have been met with in the Primer. From this point forward, the proportion of new words and two-syllable words rapidly increases, affording an abund- ance of material for advance work. Attention will be called to any special difficulties that present themselves under the directions for each particular lesson demanding notice. As before stated, the detailed instructions for the first lessons of the First Reader are in accordance with the Phonic Method. If a teacher prefers to use the Com- bined Method, it is presumed that the instructions for the first lessons in the Primer will be a sufficient guide for work in the Readers. On the other hand, teachers using the Phonic Method will be able, it is thought, to follow that method very easily in the Primer after con- sulting the following instructions for the First Reader. As it can not be assumed that all teachers will use both Primer and First Reader, the detailed instructions E. M.— 1. (41) 42 READING. for the latter have been made as full as though the Primer had not been used. This fact will explain a few repetitions. If the Primer is not to be used, it will be well to begin work with a few preliminary oral lessons, which may be conducted as shown in the following pages. If the teacher intends to use both the Primer and the First Reader, and to teach by the Phonic Method, lessons cor- responding to the following should precede the Primer, and these lessons should be omitted. Recognition of Sounds. — After the attention of the children has been gained, the teacher taps the table with a pencil, and explains to the children that what they hear is called a soiDid. After repeating the same sound several times, the teacher tells the children to listen and he will make another sound. This may be done by tapping a bell or a piece of metal, and the children are led to distinguish between the two different sounds. After a little practice of this nature, tell the children that the words which they hear and understand are sounds. Ask them whether, if they heard two sounds, one made by a dog, and one by a bird, they could tell from the sounds which one was made by the bird and which by the dog. Tell them you are now going to try them, and see whether without looking they can tell you the different sounds you make. The children may shut their eyes, or stand with their backs to the teacher, or the teacher may make the different sounds behind the desk, asking after each, "What sound did you hear?" Answers like the following may be given: "The sound I heard was a tap on a bell." "The sound I heard was a tap McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER, 43 on a book." "I heard a talk-sound." "I heard a sing-sound." It will be found interesting and profitable to continue this practice in distinguishing sounds, in connection with the regular lessons, till the children catch the sounds readily and accurately. Each succeeding lesson should be a more severe test of the children's abilities than the one preceding. The Sound Represented by Short A. — In commenc- ing to teach the elementary sounds in Lesson I of the First Reader, select one of the short vowels. If you select a, you should follow it by n and r; if you select 0, you should follow it by g and d ; that is, finish the word with which you begin before taking up the sounds of another. Begin by asking the class to tell you some sounds they can make with their mouths. "We can sing." '*We can talk." "We can wliistle." "We cry sometimes." These may be some of the answers of the children. The teacher says, "Now listen to me. I will make a sound." He gives the sound a. The children repeat it, with the teacher, several times. Care must be taken that the sound is made short and pure. Have the chil- dren give the sound alone ; the boys alone ; the girls alone ; the children in the front row ; any one who will volunteer; and, finally, each child should be required to give the sound alone. The teacher here explains that sounds can be heard but not seen, but marks may be made to stand for sounds. The teacher turns to the blackboard, and, be- tween a head-line and a base-line, writes : y-'^r./y . He explains to the children that when they see this they are to make the sound just learned. The children are 44 READING. shown, next, how to make the character, and the teacher asks, ** How many will try to make this on their slates?" Write the following copy carefully on the board, and have the children, at their seats, imitate it on their slates as well as they can : yf^y ^jy ^jy ^jy ^yy After practicing for a time, the children should exhibit their slates to the teacher, who should point out the faults carefully and delicately, and should give farther explanations about writing, illustrating on the black- board. See page 13. The word "Ran." — Teach the sound of n as you taught that of a. Contrast the two sounds repeatedly, and see that the children can distinguish them readily and can produce them. Write the character n on the board as copy for a writ- ing lesson. It may be practiced a part at a time, if thought desirable, as follows : / / / y/y/y/ /y/y/y yy/yyy/yyy/y When the children can give the sounds and write the characters d and ?i, teach them to sound and write their combination, an. Teach the sound and form of r, and then the word rd7i as a whole. The word "Dog." — Teach the word dbg in the same gradual way that you taught ran, and in the same order, viz. : the sound of o ; its written character ; the sound of g; its written character ; the sound of the com- bination bg ; the written combination bg; the sound of McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 45 d ; its written character; the sounds of dog, as a whole; the written word as a whole. The word "The." — Do not attempt to teach the elementary sounds composing tJie, as the obscure sound of c is too difficult to introduce at this point. It is ab- solutely necessary to introduce the articles a, aii, and the early in the course on account of their constant occur- rence in even the simplest sentences ; but they should be taught, as before suggested, only in combination with the words which follow. After the word dog has been learned, teach by sound the phrase, "the dog." Be very careful not to accent the tJu\ or to give the e its long sound, thus: "the' dog," but pronounce the words naturally, as you w^ould in enumerating "the dog, the cat, the rat," etc., giving the e its obscure sound, and letting the accent fall on dog. This is quite an important point, as tJie should never be pronounced in combination in any other way than that here laid down, and if the children are allowed to hear or to pronounce the words "the' dog," etc., they will fall into the habit of drawling, which will be very difficult to overcome. Write the combination on the board with and without the capital T, thus: "The dog, the dog." Pronounce the phrase, and have the children pronounce it after you correctly, both in concert and individually, as you point it out on the board. Do not say any thing about cap- itals and small letters at this point. Simply say that The and the mean the same thing, and drill the children until they can recognize each by itself and in combination with the word dog. Have the pupils write the phrases on their slates. Finally, teach the complete sentence, "The dog ran." 4^ READING. Length of Lessons. — It is impossible to make any arbitrary division of these preliminary lessons. Each teacher must decide for himself as to the length of the lessons, as circumstances dictate. But the caution may be repeated not to attempt too much in one lesson ; at the same time, introduce enough new matter to keep the children interested. Each lesson in this preliminary work should commence with a review of all that has already been learned. Lesson I. — The transition from script to the printed forms usually presents but little difficulty to children. After two or three lessons, they read one form as readily as the other. When the written characters of the several elementary sounds and words of the first lesson are well learned by the children, write the complete list on the board, and under each written character and word make its corre- sponding printed form, being careful to insert all the diacritical marks in both forms. Drill the class on these printed forms at first in connection with the written forms ; then rub out the written forms, and drill on the printed forms alone. When the printed forms of all the characters and words can be pointed out as soon as sounded, and sounded as soon as pointed out, have the children open their books and read Lesson I. Correct drawling and hesitation at once. Do not let a child say, *'Th-e' d-aw-g\ Th-e' d-aw-g' r-a-a-n\" See that each child says, "The dog\ The dog' ran\" promptly and naturally, as they would in speaking, the McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 47 moment the combinations are presented to the eye. It is essential to enforce this point from the beginning. There is a strong tendency in some locaHties to pro- nounce the word dog as though it were spelled dawg. The words frog, doll, log, God, etc., are similarly mis- pronounced by many persons. This is not the proper sound of 0, and the same persons would never think of pronouncing the words frg, got, odd, or hod, in the same way. Insist on the proper sound of o from the begin- ning, and wherever it occurs. Lesson II. — In this lesson we have four new words and five new elementary sounds. Teach the new elementary sounds, words, and combi- nations, as in Lesson I. The vocabularies invariably contain all new words and sounds, so they will not have to be sought for in the text. Illustrate the use of the word on by placing your book, pencil, etc., on the desk, on a chair, on your hand, etc. , and ask in each case wJiere it is. When the class understands the force and meaning of the word, teach its written form in the usual manner. When satisfied that all can recognize the printed new characters and words at sight, have the lesson read from the book. Explain the interrogation point. Tell the children that when they see that mark they may always know that a question is asked. Have them read the question, "Is the cat on the mat?" giving the proper rising in- flection on the last word. Then have them read the answer with the downward inflection at the close, and with the proper emphasis on is. The proper expression in this case, and in similar ones, can usually be elicited from the children by a few well-put questions which 48 READING, teachers call "thought study;" as, "What is on the mat?" "Where is the cat?'^ "Is the cat under the mat?" Do not allow a child to read the question and answer in the painfully monotonous way so gften heard in primary classes, with pauses between each word, and with the rising inflection on each word but the last, as follows: "Is' — the'— cat'— on' — the' — mat^ ?" "The' — cat' — is' — on' — the' — mat\" Insist on having both ques- tion and answer read in the same natural tones that the child would employ in speaking. If the class fail to read the question properly, have the books closed, and select some pupil to ask the question and another to answer it. Do not show them how to do it, and have them imitate you. That is simply " parrot work," words without thought, and the very worst of all bad methods. Tell one pupil to ask another if the cat is on the mat, just as though he really wished to know, and tell the second pupil to answer, not by "yes" or "no," but in full, either that the cat is or is not on the mat. When this has been done properly, have the entire class ask and answer the question, and then have it read in pre- cisely the same tones. Constant attention to just such points as this leads the children to think for them- selves, and they soon becom.e intelligent and agreeable readers. If spelling be taught orally at all, it should be con- fined, in primary classes, to the words of the reading lessons, and should invariably be combined with written exercises on the same words (see page 22). Some teachers prefer to use oral as well as written exercises in spelling, claiming that the former assists some children to remember the words they have learned. It also McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 49 assists in articulation, by requiring the child to name the letter and then give it its proper sound. Word building, as suggested on page 59, should be begun as soon as possible ; and, after some progress has been made, it will be found interesting to the children to write the thoughts in a lesson, sentence by sentence, in their own words. This is a capital exercise, as it soon teaches a child to use his vocabulary properly, and to discover the expression through the thought. When the class is far enough advanced to have the reading lesson assigned for study before recitation, call attention to such points as will be likely to excite curiosity and interest. It is unwise to read the lesson in full, as is sometimes done. The children should be left to do as much work as possible for themselves. It is hardly necessary to say, perhaps, that there should be a daily review of each lesson of the preceding day. The detailed instructions for Lessons I and II are pre- sumed to be a sufficient guide for succeeding lessons. In the latter, therefore, attention is called merely to those points which demand particular instruction. The "General Remarks," Chapter V, apply equally to Primer and First Reader, and, usually, to the Phonic as well as to the Combined Method. They should be read before commencing work on the first reading lesson, whether it be in the Primer or the First Reader. Lessons III, IV, V. — Nothing demanding especial attention is met with in Lessons III and IV. In Les- son V, there is a new sound of c and a new sound of s. Call the attention of the children to the short sound of e, as m. pen, Lesson III, and contrast it with the long sound of e, as in see. Compare the sound of s^ in see^ with the sound of s, in is, Lesson II. E. M.-5. 50 READING. Here, also, we have two words containing silent let- ters, — Ann and see. These should be explained in very simple language. Tell the children that Ann is pro- nounced just as though it were printed An^ and see just as though it were printed se. Illustrate by writing the two words on the board as they are properly spelled, and then cancel the silent letters by drawing a line through them. The digraph eJi should be taught as one element, and we may give this instruction generally in regard to all digraphs. Also, wherever a new sound of a letter is met with, whether vowel or consonant, it should invari- ably be contrasted with the sound or sounds of the letter previously studied ; and in making these com- parisons, the letters, with their diacritical mai'ks^ should always be written or printed on the board. In this way, the children will soon become familiar with the force of the diacritical marks. The exclamation point is first met in Lesson V. Call attention to it, and teach its meaning. Lesson VI. — There are three digraphs in the vocabu- lary. Double long has its peculiar sound, differing from simple o long. It will not do to treat it, therefore, as we did double e in Lesson V, where practically one e is silent and the other has the identical sound of long e. For the combination ozi\ here and in all other cases, see "Suggestions to Teachers," page 2 of McGuffey's Revised First Eclectic Reader. Lesson VII. — The silent g, in eggs, affords oppor- tunity to review the instructions on this point, and to test the understanding of the class. Lesson IX.- — This is the first review lesson, and should receive careful attention. All the words em- McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 5 I ployed have been giv^en in preceding vocabularies. This is true of every review lesson in the book. Hesitation, therefore, on the part of any considerable number of the class, on a review, indicates a fault somewhere. Either work has been pushed too rapidly, or some one lesson, perhaps, has not been thoroughly mastered. A little careful investigation will generally reveal the trouble, and the defect can be remedied, and should be, before proceeding with the next series of lessons. Lesson XI. — By the time the class has finished this lesson, they have met with all the small letters of the alphabet except q and z. As these two letters are but little used, and are introduced very much later in the book, it is suggested that at this point a thorough review be given of the alphabets, large and small, printed and script, excepting these two letters. If the teacher so prefers, these two letters may also be taught in con- nection with this lesson, which is quite a simple one. If the class has previously studied the Primer, of course this review cf the alphabets will be unnecessary. Lesson XI I. — Kitty is the first word of two syllables in this book. The accent should be explained and vocal illustration given. The combination ng is rather difficult and needs especial care. Lesson XIII. — Explain in simple language the use of the ' s as denoting possession. Drill carefully on ;/. Lessons XVII and XVIII. — The lessons are intended as especial drills on script. They should be iviittcn by each member of the class as well as read. This instruc- tion applies to similar lessons throughout the book. Lesson XIX. — The sound of i\ is the most commonly mispronounced of all the a sounds, and the error is quite common, even among the best educated classes. 52 READING. Many who know better give it the wrong sound through the force of habit and association, and the lack of early training. The error lies in giving a as though it were a. On the other hand, the extremely broad a, as in fall, should be avoided. The word is neither pronounced gi'dss, nor grass, but grass. It would be well to make a list of the words contain- ing this sound of a as the class meets them, and give a special drill on it from time to time. Lesson XXI. — Here we have a very unusual substitu- tion of e for 1 in the word pretty, which is frequently mispronounced pret'ty in place of prit'ty. Lesson XXIV. — Teach in simple language the use of the hyphen at the end of the first line of this lesson. Lesson XXV. — The combination ai is not recognized as a substitute for e. The word said is therefore re- spelled in order to give its proper pronunciation. Teach the use of the quotation marks, which are here intro- duced. Lesson XXVIII. — The word cajit presents two diffi- culties, — its pronunciation and the mark of abbrevia- tion. While the word caji has the short a, it will be noticed that in ca7it the a is pronounced like a in farm. The proper pronunciation should be insisted upon as often as the word is used by a pupil in the teacher's presence. To explain the abbreviation mark, write the words "can not" on the board; then rub out the 7io of not, and write the apostrophe in their place, explaining that it stands for the omitted letters. Test the class in the use of the hyphen in the line next to the last in the lesson. McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 53 Lesson XXX. — The word wont is a peculiar contrac- tion of "will not" or **woll not" used colloquially. In New England it is sometimes pronounced as though spelled wimt. A full explanation of the derivation of the word would probably not be understood by young children. It will be sufficient to explain that the apos- trophe stands for an omitted o, in the word not, which helps form the compound. It will be noticed that the quotation marks in this lesson are used to indicate a con- tinued conversation, differing from previous cases in the omission of tire person relating the conversation. See that the children understand that two persons are speak- ing, and when one ceases and the other begins. Lesson XXXI. — The past tenses, called and jnmpcdy are the first words of their form that are presented. They may be mistaken for words of two syllables. Teach that the e in both words is silent. Attention should be called to a new use of the capital letter at the beginning of a quotation, as in paragraph seven: *'Kate said, ' Good old Ponto ! ' " Heretofore the capital has been used only as the initial letter of a proper name and of the first word of a sentence. Lesson XXXII. — ^The word says is respelled, since ay is not recognized as a substitute for e. The letter z is first presented in this respelling. If it causes any diffi- culty, substitute 5 for z, thus : ses. Lesson XXXV. — Test the knowledge of the class on the use of the apostrophe in Fve. If no one can tell for what letters it stands, write the words '*I have" on the board, and have some pupil erase the proper letters without prompting. Assign compositions in which the children are to use the abbreviations Fve^ I'll, /V, /';;/, etc. 54 READING. Lesson XXXVI. — This lesson presents another word requiring respelling in order to show its proper pronun- ciation. Been is often improperly pronounced ben. Lesson XXXVII. — The word one needs particular attention. The main difficulty with these words of arbitrary pronunciation is in the spelling, but if the daily writing exercises are conducted in the manner we have advised, they soon become fixed in the memory, and present little trouble. Lesson XXXVIII. — Be careful about the word has' - ket ; it is generally mispronounced bds'ket or has' kit. Lesson XXXIX. — In the second line of this lesson we have the compound word easy-chair. Its component parts only are given in the vocabulary. Call attention to this use of the hyphen, and illustrate with other words on the blackboard ; for example, market-basket, derived from the preceding lesson. Lesson XL. — See that the quotation marks in this lesson do not lead to confusion as to who is speaking. The mother is speaking throughout the third, fourth, and fifth paragraphs. The laws of punctuation require that quotation marks should be placed at the beginning of each of these paragraphs, but at the close of the last one only. The danger is that the young child may imagine that the person speaking changes with each par- agraph, and confusion naturally follows. This lesson affords a good opportunity for the teacher to test the thinking power of the children. This should be done by pertinent and searching questions. Lesson XLIII. — In this lesson is presented an ex- cellent drill on the different sounds of a. In the fifth line, "At half past eight," we have first a in at, then a in half, a in past, and e, a substitute for a, in eight. McGUFFEY'S FIRST READER. 55 Drill on this phrase, and see that the four distinct sounds of a arc clearly given. Test the class in the use of the hyphen in line six of page 58. The words bed and time have been given sep- arately in Lessons XXIV and XXIX. Lesson XLIX. — See that often is pronounced of'n. Both the t and the e are silent. Lesson XLVIII. — The letter q is here introduced, completing the alphabet. Teach that q is always fol- lowed by 21 ; the combination has two sounds: that of kw, as in quiet, and that of simple k, as in pique. Lesson XLIX. — Teach that underscored words in writing mean the same thing as words printed in italics; that is, both are to be emphasized in reading. By careful "thought questions" on the part of the teacher, the children can be led to discover the proper word or phrase to be emphasized. Lesson L. — Laugh' ing is rarely pronounced properly, the a being given generally as a prolonged sound of short a ; as, Id-d-df'ing, or like a. Have it pronounced like a in father. Illustrate by pronouncing the two words a number of times alternately, dwelling a little on the a in each case to impress the sound. Lesson LV. — The word again is commonly mispro- nounced. "Poetic license" is frequently taken with it, even by many of the leading poets. Nevertheless, the only proper pronunciation of the word is agen' . It should never be pronounced agan' . Lesson LVI. — The seasons, spring, summer, autumn, and winter are frequently written incorrectly with a capital. The opportunity for teaching the proper method occurs in correcting the writing exercise accom- panying this lesson. Do not teach or even say what the 56 READING. wrong form is, but if any pupil writes spiing with a capital, call him up quietly and point out his error. Lesson LVII. — Call attention to the difference be- tween the spelling, pronunciation, and meaning of of and off. Lesson LIX. — Here we have the unusual occurrence of two silent letters in one syllable, making whistle a little difficult to spell. Lesson LXIL — Really is the first word of three sylla- bles presented to the children. Lesson LXIIL — Be careful about the word pdr'ents; it is frequently mispronounced pa'rents. Phonic Chart. — The chart is presented for the pur- poses of drill, and can be used at the discretion of the teacher as time and circumstances dictate. It is sug- gested that the entire school, either as a body or in separate classes, spend from three to five minutes in exercising on the elementary sounds. It will be time well spent. V. GENERAL REMARKS. GREAT care must be taken not to attempt too much in any one lesson. Here the teacher must be guided by his judgment as to the inteUigence of his class, and no specific directions can be laid down. In general, we would say, do not wait until you see the class becoming weary and the interest flagging. Stop while all are fi-esh and zealous. It is much better to err on the side of brevity than of its opposite. It is well to be thorough, and to make sure of one step before taking another, but do not make the mistake of going to the opposite extreme, and dwell on one topic or one lesson until the children are weary and disgusted with it. Analysis. — If you are using the Combined Method,* when the class has made some progress, say at the end of the first review. Lesson V of the Primer, begin the work of analyzing into their elementary sounds the words already learned and fixed in the mind. At first this work may prove quite difficult, and the results discouraging, but patience and perseverance will accomplish wonders in a few lessons properly taught, and it will be found that children take great interest in this branch of their study. The great trouble in the " The Phonic Method is synthetic, and does not admit of exer- cises under this head. (-57) 58 READING. teaching of Phonics is that many teachers are themselves unable to do what is required of the children : they adopt an unnatural tone, and distort the word under study so that, as a matter of course, the children fail to recognize the most familiar words. The teacher, then, should give the subject careful attention, and not attempt to teach a class until he is certain of his own ground. If understood, the subject of Phonics is very simple and very easily taught ; moreover, it is of great assistance to the child in acquiring new words, and should therefore not be neglected. We here introduce the method of treating the words found in Lesson I. Commence by pronouncing for the class the word cat rather slowly, in a perfectly natural tone, and with very distinct articulation, giving each letter its full value. Ask the class what the word is. It will, or should be, recognized at once. Pronounce it more slowly and with the same care, and have the class imitate you. Repeat the word a number of times, each time more slowly than before, the class always imitating you, until you have in this manner separated the word as nearly as possible into the elementary sounds r, ^, t. Care must be taken that the c and t are not slighted, and the a prolonged into a drawl, thus : c-a-a-a-a-a-t. Dwell equally on the r, the a, and the /, and insist on the class doing the same thing. Call up individuals until you are sure that all have the idea ; then say, "Listen carefully, children, while I pronounce the word cat as you have just done, and see who can give me the first sound that I make." Pronounce the word, making almost an entire separa- tion between the c and the a. If all fail to recognize it, give the c sound alone and have the class imitate GENERAL REMARKS. 59 you. Follow the same plan with the a and /, and drill until the class is familiar with the three elementary sounds. Now have the children pronounce the word very slowly, as before, and tell them that you will write on the board the letters that stand for the sounds as they give them ; then, as they pronounce c-a-t, write the word zvitJi the diacritical viarks. Reverse the process, and have the children give the sounds as you write the letters. Treat rat and and in the same way. The class should now be able to give all the elementary sounds of the first lesson. The characters representing these sounds are given in the vocabulary at the head of the lesson. Drill the class on these until the characters and their sounds are instantly associated in the minds of the pupils, so that when a sound is given they can at once point out its character, and when a character is pointed out they can at once give its sound. Continue these exercises throughout the book. Synthesis. — When the children have grasped the idea of analysis, and can readily resolve simple, familiar words into their elementary sounds, teach them how to reverse the process, and build up new words from the sounds they have learned.^ This will afford interesting and profitable occupation for them at their desks. For example, from the elements given in the first four les- sons of the Primer can be formed the following simple words not found in the vocabularies: Mat, that, inap^ rap, mad, had, Sam, pat, than, nap, tap, pad, ham, fat^ pan, lap, sap, sad, ram. ■'^Exercises in word-building may be commenced Lit once when the Phonic Method is employed. Ou READING. Show the children how to build these words in phonic order. Thus, the word cat is given in Lesson I. Write it on the board, and have the class pronounce it. Then, rubbing out the c, ask: "Now, children, who can tell me what sound to make to change cat to pat?'' Pronounce the word pat several times, giving the p sound emphasis, until some of the class indicate that they recognize the sound necessary to make the change. Select one of the pupils to give the sound of /. When it is given correctly, write both cat and pat on the board, at one side. Form fat and that in the same way, and write them in the column under cat and pat. Then, taking the words i^an, in Lesson II, and cap and lad, in Lesson IV, as bases, form than, pan, map, nap, lap, rap, tap, sap, mad, pad, sad, and had. Write these words on the board in columns as they are formed, putting each under its proper base word. The remain- ing words are more difficult, for although the elements forming them are given, we find no word in the vocabu- laries to take as a basis, as we did in forming the other words. However, this will not be necessary after a few lessons, and the children will in time be able to form new words without the teacher's assistance. The new words thus formed must be those which belong to the ordinary vocabulary of the child. The children will recognize them at once as familiar, and will join In the exercises with zest. The spirit of competition as to who can make the most new words will arouse the interest of the class, and every new lesson will broaden the field, so that work in this direction will never grow monot- onous. Place the new words formed in each lesson on the GENERAL REMARKS. 6 1 board, and have the children use them by combining them into phrases and sentences, which should be written on their slates and read aloud. Diacritical Marks. — This is the proper place to begin the study of the diacritical marks. They should be used in the work of analysis every time the teacher or a pupil puts a word on the board, and the pupils should be required to use them in such slate exercises as are given them to perform under this head. The accurate knowledge of the power of all the dia- critical marks, as well as the mastery of all the sounds of the letters representing them, is necessary for the intelligent use of the Dictionary and the acquirement of a correct and elegant pronunciation. Note. — The elementary sounds of the EngHsh language are fre- quently represented by characters other than the primary ones which give them name ; thus, long a is represented not only by a, but also by e. A list of the ordinary substitutes, as recognized by Webster, will be found on page 96 of the First Reader; but unusual substitutes are sometimes encountered ; as, for example, e or ee for i, as seen in England and been. Often, too, combifiatiojis of letters are met with which seem to represent the elementary sounds. On examination, these combinations are frequently seen to consist of the primary character, or one of its substitutes, and silent letters. For example, the only substitute given for a, in the list on page 96, is e ; but we have the sound of a in the/, sX^igh, vazh, gaz^ge, brve, wi?men, tortoise, cha.m.ois, b^/sy, g//mea, mjth. 1, as in machme. — Substitute for e. i, as in sir. — Substitute for e. o. as in f^^ld. — Beau, ha///boy, cheva/^.r-de-frise, fc^am, yt't'man, hoe, fioor, sh^wlder, sew, low, owe. GENERAL REMARKS. 6^ 6, as in n^d. — Wh.'7t, kn^^'zc'ledge, ct^ntime, madem^/selle. o, as in w^rm. — Substitute for e. 6, as in s^n. — Substitute for u. 6, as in ox. — Substitute for a. o, as in t^. — Substitute for oo. o, as in w^'lf — Substitute for ob. oo, as in soow. — Rhtv/m, dr 1 \1 •) •> , 1 ■> 1 II 1 A WAKENING AN INTER ESTo \ ; ' ' - ' > \ \0\\ ,' , , and day, or some motto, verse, or sentence on a slip of paper, which is to be filed away, and at the end of the term the same is to be written again, and compared with the first. These specimens, filed away term after term, serve as milestones to mark the progress of the pupils, and will be exhibited with pride by the successful teacher. Another way is to have the class write several groups of letters, words, and sentences out of school, each one trying his best. Several of the finest specimens, with a number showing the greatest effort, may be selected and neatly pasted in a blank-book, with the pupil's name attached. These specimens may be ornamented with circles, squares, scrolls, or figures of different designs, made with a ruling pen, using inks of different colors. In one instance, where this plan was followed, every pupil whose name appeared in the book asked to carry it home to show to his parents, and this increased the interest and enthusiasm to such an extent that soon books were produced containing specimens from every pupil. By another method, great freedom and rapidity, as well as accuracy, may be obtained. The teacher gives out some word or sentence, and directs the class to write it as many times as possible within a given time, and write it well. Careful attention to form, height, slant, width, spacing, and movement should be required, never allowing the writing to degenerate into scribbling. Soon the rules will become habits, requiring muscular rather than mental effort. For full details as to the methods of conducting the writing lesson, a description of the letters and figures, and how to teach shading, spacing and form, the teacher 'IC^2 WRITING. is referred to the "Hand-book to the New Eclectic Pen- manship." It is important that every teacher who uses the copy-books should make a careful study of this Hand-book in order to accomplish the best results. Speaking of this point in his Introduction, Mr. Thomp- son says : "That the results obtained in Penmanship, in most of our public schools, are not what they should be, is evident from an inspection of the examination papers of most of the graduating classes, and from the oft-repeated remark of merchants, that, when boys come from the public schools to the counting-room, their handwriting is impracticable, and soon undergoes an entire change. "The fault lies in the bad arrangement and adapta- tion of books, in the incorrect methods of teaching which they inculcate, and m the fact that many of the best teachers in our common schools have had no oppor- tunity to fit themselves properly for teaching Penmanship. ' ' There is, therefore, a demand for something better, and it is believed that there will be great improvement in the results obtained if the plan of the Eclectic Series is carried out as directed in the Copy-books, and in this little Hand-book, which has been prepared to aid those who wish to qualify themselves to teach this branch most advantageously. "The best penman may be a very poor teacher; and, on the other hand, the most successful teacher may be a very ordinary writer ; and, as * a lame man may be able to point out the way, though unable to walk therein, ' so it is believed that any one who has sufficient ability to teach other branches successfully, can teach writing well by becoming thoroughly acquainted with its princi- ples, and insisting on a strict adherence to them." ARITHMETIC fl ll IX. ARITHMETIC— First Year. THE subject of Arithmetic is usually considered easy to teach, probably because it seems to possess a more definite aim than most of the common branches. But, nevertheless, it is a subject in regard to which the young teacher is liable to make serious errors of judg- ment, both as to the method adopted and the manner of conducting recitations under that method. It has become somewhat the fashion to adopt new and fanciful ideas in teaching, and many young teachers are misled into thinking that unless a method is new it can not be the best. It should be borne in mind, however, that change is not necessarily progress. Any and every method must be subjected, first, to the laws of common sense as applied to the development of a child's mind; and, second, to the test of actual experience in the class-room, before it can be proclaimed the best, or even a good, method. The method presented in this Manual is neither purely nor partly theoretical in nature, but is the method of practical, successful teachers of long experience. It has stood the test of the school-room for years, and has witnessed the growth and failure of many other methods, some of which attained a wide but short-lived popu- larity, while others are at work to-day, befogging the minds of little children, or converting them into mere (105) 1 06 ARITHME TIC. figure-making machines, and in either case creating a hfe-long distaste for mathematics. It is difficult, not to say impossible, to lay down an arbitrary rule as to how much work shall be attempted in any one year in ungraded schools, since the condi- tions, — such as the length of the school year, the amount of time that can be devoted to arithmetic, the number, intelligence, and age of the class, etc., — differ so widely in the numerous schools. The divisions of work recommended in this Manual are not to be con- sidered as arbitrary, therefore, but only as meeting the average requirements of common schools. They are to be used simply as a guide, and should be modified at the discretion of the teacher as circumstances may demand. The first step should be to examine the entire school carefully, and find out, if possible, just how thorough the instruction of the more advanced pupils has been. Then classify the pupils according to their knowledge of the subject, entirely irrespective of age or of the in- equality of numbers in each class. The work that Is here presented under the heads ** First Year" and ''Second Year" should be thor- oughly ^mastered, whether it requires one year, two years, or three years. If the entire school be suffi- ciently advanced, the instruction here suggested for the primary classes may be omitted altogether, but the teacher should be thoroughly satisfied on this point before assigning pupils to higher classes. Older pupils, whom It may be necessary to place in the primary classes at first, will naturally be able to advance more rapidly than the younger ones, and should be transferred to higher classes as they show FIRST YEAR COURSE. 10/ themselves capable of such advancement. By having such pupils recite in both a higher and a lower class for a time, these transfers need not disturb in the least the daily routine of the programme. In the first class, besides those who have never studied Arithmetic, put all who have been poorly trained in the elementary processes. It will be economy of time and labor to do this, even if you have to include the entire school in this division for a time ; for, in arithmetic, above all other studies of the common school course, it is of the utmost importance that one step shall be thoroughly understood before the next is attempted. The first two years' training is of more importance than all the rest the child receives. Do not attempt to have the cJiildren use a book in the primary class. — A book should not be used, because no book contains, and no book can be made to contain, the kind of instruction necessary the first year. Do not teach the figures in tJie first lessons, and do not alloiu the cJiildren to do any written work; bnt teach orally y ilhistj^ating every operation, at first, by means of various objects. — The instruction should be entirely oral, and should deal altogether at first with concrete numbers. The little child can not grasp abstract ideas. It is true you can teach him to repeat, "2 and 2 are 4;" "2 from 4 leave 2;" '*2 times 2 are 4;" and "4 divided by 2 equal 2." But, without the proper preliminary work, these words can not possibly convey any clear mean- ing to his mind. This kind of instruction in a primary class is simply machine drilling on abstract numbers and words which convey no ideas, or at best a mere jumble of ideas to the child's mind. It is one of the worst, and at the same time one of the most common, faults I08 ARITHMETIC. in the teaching of arithmetic, and it is one which is very apt to disgust pupils with the subject from the outset. On tlie other hand, if the proper method of teaching is pursued, which may properly be called the object method, the children are taught to think ; they will be interested at the very beginning, and they will be kept interested by this method until they are successfully carried to the point where the object method is no longer necessary, and their minds are ready to grasp the abstract, through careful preliminary drill on the concrete. Begin the teaching of arithmetic, then, with objects, — blocks, balls, marbles, sticks, books, kernels of corn, apples, shells, pebbles, etc., etc. The more varied your assortment of objects the better. The numeral frame and other mechanical devices are useful, but should not be used exclusively, or the work will become monot- onous and tiresome. Teach the concrete digital mnnbers in regular order, from one to ten inclusive, ilhisti'ating each number by correspond- ing groups of objects. — The first step is to teach number- ing ; that is, so to train the child that he can instantly give the number of any group of objects not exceeding ten, at sight, and zvitJwut counting. Experience has proved that nearly every child old enough to commence school has at that time a very good knowledge of the numbers I and 2. It is therefore unnecessary to spend much time on these numbers. However, the class should be thoroughly tested on them before proceeding to take up the number three. The average child com- mencing school is unable to recognize at sight, without counting, the number of a group of objects exceeding three, and from this point the successive steps towards FIRST YEAR COURSE. IO9 ten must be made slowly and carefully. Do not take up a new num.ber until the class has proved itself per- fectly trained on all that precedes. Each day's work should include a review of all the previous work, so as to keep the different numbers fresh in the mind. Do not allow a child to count by ones to find how many objects tJiere ai^e in a group, but teach hijn to recognize the group as a luhole. — Teach what th7'ee means by re- peatedly combining two and one, and one and two, into groups of three apples, three blocks, three marbles, three books, three pencils, three lines, three dots, etc., etc. , and then immediately separating these groups again into their component parts, two and one, or one and two, apples, blocks, etc. When the group three in- stantly suggests the idea three to the entire class, teach foiw in the same manner by combining and separating one and three, three and one, and two and two objects. Make all the possible combinations and separations of integers forming each number, using as wide a variety of objects as possible. As soon as the class is suffi- ciently advanced, have the children do the combining and separating of objects for themselves. If you begin by teaching a child to count, he is very apt to get an erroneous idea by considering the group of objects individually instead of collectively ; and, as he points them out, — either actually or mentally, — ''one, two, three, four, five," his three means the third object enumerated, and \\\s five means the fifth ; so t\\?it five, to his mind, really means one particular object — the fifth — in place of a group of five objects, irrespective of order or individuality. Not until the child has learned to associate a number with its group, should he be taught to count the objects in that group. If the child 1 1 ARITHME TIC. once forms the habit of counting by ones in order to answer such a question as, *'How many blocks in this group?" it will be almost impossible to correct his error. In place of adding figured at sight, when that step of the work is reached, he will stop to count on his fingers to obtain the result, and will probably never be able to add rapidly and at the same time accurately. Therefore, we would suggest that counting be deferred altogether until the class can satisfactorily number any group including ten or less. When you do teach the class to count, have a group of objects counted forward and backward, and in promiscuous order. In this way, you will avoid the danger of having the number associ- ated with one particular object. Teach Addition ayid Subtraction together. — The one is the reverse of the other, and when taught together they help the child to understand each process more readily than if they were taught separately. It is not necessary to teach the signs until abstract numbers and written work are commenced. Do not teach Midtiplicatioit and Division in the pnmary class. — They do not help in the understanding of addi- tion and subtraction ; but, on the contrar>', are apt to confuse the child by the number of different processes presented to his mind at once. Teach the concrete digital riumbers without objects. — When, by the use of objects before the eyes of the class, you have taught all satisfactorily to number groups at sight, and to add and subtract all the possible combi- nations within the limit of ten as a total, the children are ready to take the next step. From combining and separating objects they can see, lead them to combine and separate groups of objects that they can not see, F/A'ST YEAR COURSE. I I I but can readily imagine, such as animals, houses, trees, tools, toys, or an}' objects with which they are familiar. Repeat the same processes that were used with the ob- jects before the class in combining and separating, and in the same order. Give numerous exercises on each number, with constant reviews, until the entire class can perform each operation with great accuracy and rapidity. Teach the absti^ut digital numbers orally. — When you are satisfied wnth the results of the work thus far, take the next step b}' simph' dropping the names of the objects, and teach the abstract digital numbers orally in the same order that you taught the concrete. Accuracy and rapidity are the important aims, and the children should be drilled until they can give the answers to all the possible combinations and separations instantly, and apparently \\'ithout stopping to think. Teach the digital figures, and the use of tJie sigfis plus and minus and the sign of equality. — During the last part of the first year, when the children are thor- oughly proficient in the preceding steps, teach them the written characters that stand for the numbers which they have learned to use orally. Write the corre- sponding words and figures on the board in two columns, as in the margin, and explain that we use figures in arithmetic in place of words for the sake of con- venience and rapidity. Exercise the class in making the several figures on their slates and on the board, at first sep- arately, and then in simple problems involving both con- crete and abstract numbers. One, I Two, 2 TJiree, 3 Four, 4 Five, 5 Six, 6 Seven, 7 Eight, 8 Nine, 9 Ten, lO 1 1 2 ARITHME TIC. To teach the signs, write on the board an example similar to the following: 4 and 2 are 6. 4 plus 2 equal 6. 4 + 2=6. Explain that in place of the word phis, the sign + is commonly used, and that it is to be read plus; thus, 4 + 2 is read **4 plus 2." In the same way explain that the sign =, called the sign of equality^ stands in place of the words **is equal to," or equals; thus, 4 + 2 = 6, is read: ''4 plus 2 equals 6." Teach that the sign — , called the minus sign, is used in place of the word less or inimiSy thus : 6 — 5 = i> is read 6 less 5 equals i, or 6 minus 5 equals I. Have the class practice with the signs until they are used as readily in reciting as the words for which they stand. The following t^ble will be found useful for slate and board exercises. Have the class fill out the blanks. It may also be used for oral drill, and at the close of the year children should be able to give the answers in- stantly. I + I = ; therefore, 2 — i =: 2 + I or I + 2 = ; therefore, 3—1 3 + 1 or I + 3 = ; therefore, 4 — I = 2 + 2 =r ; therefore, 4 — 2 =r FIRST YEAR COURSE. 113 4+1 or 1+4 = ; therefore, 5—1- ; 5- -4 = 3+2 or 2 + 3 ; therefore, 5 — 2 ; 5- -3 = 5+1 or 1 + 5 ; therefore, 6 I — ; 6- -5 = 4+2 or 2 -(- 4 — ; therefore, 6 ? ; 6- -4 = Z^Z ; therefore, 6-3- 6+1 or I -|- 6 — ; therefore, 7- I 7- -6 = 5+2 or 2+5_ ; therefore. 7 — 2 ; 7- -5 = 4 + 3 or 3 + 4 — ; therefore, 7—3 — ; 7- -4 = 7+1 or 1 + 7 ; therefore, 8—1 = 8- -7 = 6 + 2 or 2 -f 6 — ; therefore. 8 7 — 8- -6z 5 + 3 or 3 + 5 — ; therefore, 8-3- ; 8- -5 = 4 + 4 ; therefore, 8-4- 8+1 or 1+8 — ; therefore. 9 — 1 9- -8 = 7 + 2 or 2+7_ ; therefore. 9 — 2 — 9- -7- 6 + 3 or 3 4- 6 ; therefore, 9 3- 9- -6 = 5 + 4 or 4+5 — ; therefore, 9—4 9- -5 = 9+1 or 1 + 9 — ; therefore. 10 — I — ; 10- -9 8 + 2 or 2 + 8— , therefore, 10 — 2 — ; 10- -8 7 + 3 or 3+7 — therefore, 10- 3_ 10 -7 6 -|-4 or 4 + 6 therefore. 10 — 4 ; 10- -6 5 + 5- ; therefore, 10-5 — This is the extent of the work that should be at- tempted in the primary class; and if the instruction is as thorough, and the reviews are as frequent as they should be, this amount of work will occupy the full year. It is granted that much greater apparent advance can be made in this time, and that children can be taught the names of numbers as high as a hundred or E. M.-IO. I 1 4 ARITHME TIC. more, and to write the figures representing them ; but the learning of names and the making of figures do not of themselves imply the gaining or developing of ideas, and classes forced too rapidly over the preliminary ground without thoroughly understanding each step as they advance, will sooner or later show the bad effects of this method of teaching. \ X. arithmetic—Second year. THE class should now be prepared to commence the study of Ray's New Primary Arithmetic. If the teacher prefers to do so, the first six lessons on numer- ation and notation may be omitted until the close of Lesson XXXVII. Lessons VII, VIII, and IX are a review of the first year's work, and the advance work begins with Lesson XI. Teach each number from 1 1 to 20 inclusive, just as you taught the numbers from i to 10, using the tables and examples in the book as supplementary to the oral drill. If the first year's work has been thoroughly done, the advance from 10 to 20 will be comparatively easy and rapid. But the work should still be exhaustive, and should include counting by ones, twos, threes, etc., forward and backward ; also, all the possible combina- tions and separations with a total of 20 or less. Lesson XI introduces the new number, 11. To teach II, take a group of ten objects, such as pencils, blocks, sticks, or cards, and tie them in a bunch for convenience of handling. Before doing this, however, be sure that the entire class recognizes the fact that there are ten objects in the group or bunch. Then, holding up the bunch, ask : ** How many sticks are in this group?" Holding up one stick, ask: **How many sticks do I now hold up ? " Holding up one bunch and (115) 1 1 6 A RITHME TIC. one stick, ask: ''How many sticks are ten sticks and one stick? Now, if I take away one stick (illustrating), how many sticks are left?" Continue the illustration of this number with various objects, and by means of dots, lines, crosses, etc., on the blackboard, until the children are familiar with eleven as composed of one (group of) ten and one unit. Teach the class the characters that stand for eleven, writing both the word and the figures on the board, thus: Eleven, ii. The class are now prepared to take up Lesson XI in the book. Preface each of the succeeding lessons by similar oral work, illustrating 12, 13, 14, etc., up to 20, as these numbers are introduced, constantly reviewing with each lesson the numbers already learned. If the class have not already been taught the reading and writing of numbers up to 100, Lessons II to VI inclusive should here be introduced, and the drill con- tinued until the class are perfect. The different values attached to a figure by its posi- tion in the order of tens or in the order of units, may be illustrated in the following manner, so as to be easily understood and remembered : Hold up one bunch of ten objects, and ask: "How many objects in this group?" When the question is answered, write the number 10 on the blackboard. Hold up one bunch and one object, and ask: "How many (sticks) do I now hold up?" When the answer eleven is given, reply "Yes, and eleven is made up of i ten and i," holding up the bunch and the single object. "Now I will write the figures that stand for one ten and one,'' writing the number 11 on the board under the number 10, as you say '' 07te ten and one.'' Continue in SECOND YEAR COURSE. 117 this way with the consecutive numbers up to 20, illustrating with objects, and writing the corresponding fieures in the column on the board. Then show the children, again illustrating each number with objects, that, in the combination 10, the i stands for i (group of) ten, and the o, which means nothing, or naught, stands for no ones or units. That in the combination 1 1 the first I stands for i (group of) ten, and the second i stands for one unit. That 12 stands for i ten and 2 units, etc. Finally, that 20 stands for 2 tens and no units. There will be no difficulty in illustrating 21, 22, 23, etc., 31, 32, 33, etc., in the same manner, by means of the tied bunches of ten, up to ten tens, or 100. The children should then understand clearly, without a for- mal statement, that the figure in the second order from the right tells how many tens, and the figure in the first order how many ones, there are in a number. The following tables can be used to advantage as review exercises, both in oral and written work, having the children fill the blanks: 10 -f I or 14-10 = 9-|-2or2-f 9:= 8 + 3 or 3 + 8 = 7 + 4 or 4+ 7 = 6-1- 5 or 5+ 6 = II -f- I or I -j- II = 10 -(- 2 or 2 -|- 10 = 9 + 3 or 3+ 9 = 8 + 4 or 4+ 8 = 7 + 5 or 5 + 7 = 6+ 6 = therefore. II — I ; II — 10 ( II — 2 — II — 9 <( II — 3- II 8 (( 1 1 — 4 — II— 7 (( II-5 — II 6 therefore, 12 — I — 12— II 12 — 2 , 12—10 12 — 3 — ; 12— 9 12 — 4 — , 12- 8 12 — 5- 12 7 12 — 6 = ii8 ARITHMETIC. 12 -|- I or I -j- 12 II -[- 2 or 2 -I- II ■ IO + 3 or 3 -I- lo 9 + 4 or 4 + 9 8 + 5 or 5 + 8 7 -)- 6 or 6 -f- 7 13+ I or I + 13 12 -(- 2 or 2 -)- 12 11+3 or 3 + II 10 -f 4 or 4 -]- 10 9 + 5 or 5 + 9 8 + 6 or 6 + 8 7+ 7 14 -)- I or I + 14 13 + 2 or 2+13: 12 + 3 or 3 + 12 ii-|-4 or 4-j-ii- 10+5 or 5+10 9 -f- 6 or 6 -(- 9 8 + 7 or 7 + 8 15+ I or 1 + 15^ 14 -f- 2 or 2 -(- 14 13 + 3 or 3+ 13 12 -j-- 4 or 4 -f- 12 : II -f 5 or 5 + II : 10 -j- 6 or 6 -(- 10 : 9 + 7 or 7 + 9 8-4- 8 16 + I or I 4- 16 : 15 + 2 or 2 + 15 14 + 3 or 3+14 13 + 4 or 4+ 13 12+ 5 or 5 + 12 therefore, 13 I- 13 — 12 n 13 — 2— , 13 — 1 1 (( 13—3 — 13 — 10 (( 13 — 4— > 13 — 9 (( 13 - 5 - 13 8 (( 13-6 13 — 7 therefore, 14— I — 14 — 13 (( 14 — 2 _ 14 12 (« 14 — 3 — 14 — II (( 14 — 4 — 14 10 (( 14-5- - 14 — 9 (( 14 — 6 14 8 (( 14—7 — therefore, 15 — I- ; 15- 14 <( 15 — 2 — 15 — 13 <( 15-3 — 15- 12 (( 15-4 — 15 — II (( 15-5 = 15 10 (C 15-6 15 — 9 << 15-7- 15 — 8 therefore, 16 I — ; 16 15 (< 16—2 16 14 <( 16-3 ; 16 13 << 16 4 rr= 16 12 (( 16-5 16 II <( 16 6 — 16 10 ((• 16-7 16 9 (( 16 8 — therefore, 17— I — 17 - 16 <( 17 — 2_ 17 — 15 <( ^l-li — 17- 14 (( 17 — 4 — 17 — 13 (( 17-5- 17- 12 SECOND YEAR COURSE. 119 II -f 6 or 6 + II ^ 10+7 or 7 -f- 10 = 9 + 8 or 8+ 9 = I7 + I or 1 + 17 16 + 2 or 2 + 16 15 + 3 or 3 + 15 14 + 4 or 4+14 13 + 5 or 5 + 13 12 + 6 or 6 + 12 II + 7 or 7 + II 10 + 8 or 8 + 10 9 + 9 18+ I or I + 18 17 -j- 2 or 2-1-17 16 -h 3 or 3 -f 16 15+4 or 4+ 15; 14 + 5 or 5 -f 14 13-f 6 or 6-1- 13 12 -|- 7 or 7 -)- 12 II + 8 or 8+ II : 10 -f- 9 or 9 -f- lO: 19 -f I or I -f I9 — I8 -f 2 or 2 + 18 = 17 + 3 or 3+ 17 = 16 -j- 4 or 4 -j- 16 = 15 + 5 or 5+ 15 = 14 + 6 or 6 -f- 14 =: n^l or 7+13=^ 12 -f- 8 or 8 -f- 12 = II + 9 or 9 -|- II =r 10 4- 10 = ; therefore, 17-6: (( 17- 1-- (( 17-8. ; therefore, 18— I: <( 18 -2i (( 18-3 = (< 18 — 41 (( 18-5. (( 18—6 = C( 18-7^ (< 18 8. (( 18 9z ; therefore, 19 - I -- <( 19 — 2- (( 19-3 = <( 19 — 4 = (( 19-5 = (( 19 — 6 - << 19 - 7 z << 19 8z <( 19—93 ; therefore. 20 — I (( 20 — 2 (( 20—3 (( 20 — 4 <( 20 — 5 (( 20—6 (< 20— 7 <( 20—8 t( 20—9 (( 20 — 10 17 17 17 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 II = 10 =r 9 = 17 = 16 = 15 = 14 = 13 = 12 z= II =: 10 = 19- 18 = 19 — 17 = 19 — 16 = 19 — 15- 19 - 14. 19 — 13 = 19- 12 - 19 — II - 19 — 10 - 20- -19 20 - - 18 20 - -17 20 - - 16 20- -15 20- - 14 20 - 13 20- - 12 20 - - II Do not attempt to teach the combinations and separa- tions in this complete way beyond the total of 20 at I20 ARITHMETIC. this point. The class should be drilled, however, before taking up the subjects of multiplication and division, on adding and subtracting the digital numbers to and from all numbers within the limits of lOO. Special drill in addition should be given to those combinations by which the addition of the digit carries the total into the ten next higher than the number to which the digit is added ; as, for example, in the fol- lowing table : 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 _3 4 5 6 7 8 9 16 16 16 16 16 16 4 5 6 7 8 9 15 15 ^5 15 15 5 6 7 8 9 14 6 14 7 14 8 14 9 13 7 13 8 13 9 12 8 12 9 II 9 SECOND YEAR COURSE, 121 Similar tables for each ten numbers, 21 to 29, 31 to 39, etc., up to 91 to 99, should be written on the board, and the class should be drilled on them until all can give the results instantly without counting. Drill the class also in adding columns of digital num- bers whose totals shall be 100 or less; and teach the pupils to write the totals at the foot of the column properly, with the tmit figure of the sum directly under the column added. Commence with a few numbers at a time, and extend the columns to greater and greater length as the class advances in proficiency. In adding a column, — for example, the one in 3 the margin, — do not allow a child to say, "6 2 and 8 are 14; 14 and 4 are 18; 18 and i are 5 19," etc.; but teach him to speak the results of 7 his mental additions only, thus: ''6, 14, 18, 9 19, 28, 35, 40, 42, 45." I Drill on similar examples until the class can 4 add long columns rapidly and accurately. Have 8 the columns added both from bottom to top and 6 from top to bottom. By changing the top and 45 bottom figures only, an entirely new set of com- binations are formed, whichever way the column may be added. In this way, the teacher can present a very large number of blackboard exercises for the class with a comparatively small expenditure of time and labor on his own part. In the business world, the accountant is called upon to use addition more frequently, as a rule, than all the other fundamental processes combined. It is there- fore of the utmost importance that proficiency in this respect should be strictly demanded, and practice in E. M.—W. 1 2 2 ARITHME TIC. the addition of columns of figures should commence as soon as the child is able to combine numbers. If the drill on the primary combinations in addition has been thorough, the children should be able, in a very short time, to add long columns accurately as fast or faster than they can utter the consecutive additions aloud. The only way to learn to add accurately and rapidly is through much practice ; therefore, it is necessary to continue this class of exercises for some time, and even after taking up other steps. The only difficulty in teaching the subtraction of digits from the numbers between lO and lOO will be found in cases where the digital number exceeds the figure in the unit's place of the minuend. This difficulty can be readily overcome by continual practice on such subtrac- tions. Teach the children in such cases to add ten to the units of the minuend before subtracting the digit num- ber, and to subtract one from the tens of the minuend to obtain the tens of the answer. To familiarize this rule, give a long series of exercises, retaining first the same units' figure, and then the same tens' figure, of the min- uend throughout, while varying the tens in the first case and the units in the second, and using as a subtrahend the digital numbers in succession. The following exam- ples will serve as a guide for this work : 21 31 41 51 6i 71 8i 91 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 22 32 42 52 62 72 82 92 3 3 3 3 Etc., etc. 3 etc. 3 3 3 SECOND YEAR COURSE. I 23 21 2 22 - 3 23 4 24 5 1 26 7 27 8 28 9 31 2 32 3 33 4 34 5 Etc., etc., ^1 , etc. 36 7 37 8 38 9 Tables similar to the following, embracing 30 to 38, 40 to 48, etc., up to 90 to 98, should be written on the board and used as a drill exercise in subtracting. These tables may be learned in regular order, but promiscuous exercises on them should also be given. 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 23 4 23 5 23 6 23 7 23 8 23 9 24 5 24 6 24 7 24 8 24 9 25 6 25 7 25 8 25 9 26 26 26 7 8 9 27 8 27 9 28 9 1 24 ARITHME TIC. Drill also on adding and subtracting by tens to and from each number within the limits of 10 and lOO. Up to this point, the children have been taught to consider numbers as paiis to be combined and separated. They are now to study the same numbers in their rela- tions as factors. In introducing these new processes of multiplication and division, the principle of developing ideas before words should control, and the knowledge already gained should be used as a stepping-stone to the acquisition of the new ideas. For example, the child already knows that 2 + 2 + 2 = 6; also, that 3 + 3 = 6. With this knowledge as a basis, it is very easy to show him that three times 2 are 6, and that two times 3 are 6. Thus, the child's knowledge of addition is used in teaching him multiplication. This seems much more rational than at once plunging into the multiplication table, and, by dint of incessant repetition, memorizing the combinations of a host of factors and products. By the first method, the child learns Jiow the product is formed, and ivJiy 3X2 or 2X3 = 6. By the second method, he simply remembers — if he can remember — the formula. It is not to be disputed that the multiplication table should be memorized, so that any two digital factors being given, the product shall be given instantly and without adding; but this mastery of the table should be a gradual process, and each successive product should be properly analyzed and introduced. If this plan of teaching be adopted, it will be found that the children understand what they are studying, that they learn more rapidly, and that they remember the tables better after they are learned. We submit the following method of treating Lesson SECOND YEAR COURSE. I 25 XXXIX, and suggest that each of the succeeding les- sons in multipHcation be taught in a similar manner: Illustrate the work by practical demonstrations before the eyes of the class, using the numeral frame and various objects, as in teaching addition and subtraction. At first, use the denominations balls, apples, shells, blocks, etc., illustrating with the objects themselves; then use denominations without illustrating ; and, finally, use the abstract numbers simply, thus : How many are i ball and i ball? {Illustrating with balls.') How many are i horse and i horse ? How many are i and i ? How many are two I's? One 2? How many are two times i ? One time 2 ? Use a number of different objects in illustrating this step ; and when the answers are instantaneous, write the final ones on the board, as they appear in the table of Lesson XXXIX, thus : 1 time 2 is 2 ; 2 times I are 2. Then proceed by the same steps to form the next product : How many are i block, i block, and i block ? {Illustrating.) How many are i doll, i doll, and i doll ? How many are i and i and i ? , How many are three I's ? One 3? How many are three times i ? One time 3 ? Place the final answers in the column on the board, as before : I time 3 is 3; 3 times I are 3. 1 26 ARITHME TIC. In a similar way, lead the children to form the entire table, writing each successive product on the board as it is formed. If a pupil hesitate in giving a product, he should be indulged at first, and allowed to work out the answer in his own mind by addition ; in other words, to exercise his reasoning powers. But, as soon as possible, put a stop to the necessity of adding in order to find a product. This can be done only by constant drill on the table until it is thoroughly memorized. Addition is useful in leading children to see how the products are formed, but it should be borne in mind that the final aim in teaching multiplication is to train the child's memory so that, any two digital factors being _given, the product will instantly come to his mind without adding. More exercises are required for purposes of drill than can possibly be crowded into a primary text-book, which should be used only as a guide. The teacher should therefore supplement largely the exercises in the book under each table. Division is simply the reverse of multiplication, and as such may be easily taught by utilizing the child's ac- quired information as to the latter process. For exam- ple, you taught the child that 3X2 or 2X3^6 by presenting to his eye three 2's and two 3's, thus: 2 -f 2 -f 2 = 6 ; 3 + 3 = 6. It is very easy, then, to lead him to see by inspec- tion that there are three 2's in 6, and two 3's in 6, and he will readily answer the questions: How many times 2 in 6? 2 in 6 how many times ? SECOND YEAR COURSE. 12/ How many times 3 in 6 ? 3 in 6 how many times ? We would suggest, therefore, that in teaching the successive lessons in division, the tables of the corre- spoitding lessons in multiplication be used as a basis. For example, in forming the table of Lesson LIII, use the table of Lesson XL as a basis. As in teaching multiplication, the processes should be illustrated by means of the numeral frame and objects of various sorts, at the first step, then concrete numbers should be used, and finally abstract numbers. The fol- lowing is the method suggested for treating Lesson LIII: How many are 2 times i ball? (Lesson XL.) How many times i ball in 2 balls ? How many times 2 balls in 2 balls ? How many are 2 times i house ? How many times i house in 2 houses .'* How many times 2 houses in 2 houses ? How many are 2 times i ? How many times i in 2 ? How manv times 2 in 2 ? It is not thought necessary to form the table of I's in division ; therefore, write only the answer to the last question on the board, thus : 2 in 2, I time. Proceed in the same manner to find the next quotient : How many are two times 2 gloves ? How many times 2 gloves in 4 gloves ? How many are 2 times 2 farms ? How many times 2 farms in 4 farms? How many are 2 times 2 ? How many times 2 in 4 ? 1 2 8 ARITHME TIC. Write the answer under the preceding one, thus : 2 in 4, 2 times. In the succeeding steps, use both factors as divisors in forming the division table, thus : How many are 3 times 2 pencils ? How many are 2 times 3 pencils ? How many times 2 pencils in 6 pencils ? How many times 3 pencils in 6 pencils ? How many are 3 times 2 wagons? How many are 2 times 3 wagons ? How many times 2 wagons in 6 wagons ? How many times 3 wagons in 6 wagons? How many are 3 times 2 ? How many are 2 times 3 ? How many times 2 in 6 ? How many times 3 in 6 ? Write the last two answers on the board, thus : 2 in 6, 3 times ; 3 in 6, 2 times. Proceed in like manner to complete the table of 2's and the succeeding tables of division. It will not be necessary to memorize the division tables if work on the multiplication tables has been thorough. For, if the latter have been mastered, when a product and one of its factors are given, the children should be able to give the other factor instantly after they have learned the simple process of division. As in multiplication, the exercises under each lesson in the book should be supplemented by others until every step of the table is thoroughly learned and im- pressed on the memory. SECOND YEAR COURSE. 1 29 For convenience in written exercises, the signs of multiplication and division may be taught as soon as those subjects are taken up. The Review Lessons from LXII to LXXVIII in- clusive should receive careful attention, and no child should be allowed to go into an advanced class whose work on review is unsatisfactory. It follows that he does not fully understand his work thus far, or that he is insufficiently drilled, and in either case it is folly to give him more difficult work to do, and work that presumes thoroughness in what has gone before. Lesson LXII, except the table, and Lessons LXIX and LXXI embrace what is commonly known as ** lightning calculations." They should be extended at the discretion of the teacher, and the four processes of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division should be included. It is well to vary the order of the pro- cesses in different examples. In schools where the teacher is pushed for time, in place of reciting these exercises orally, they may be used as slate or board exercises. Commence the work by pausing after each process a few seconds. Make these pauses shorter and shorter as the class becomes skilled, and have only the final results uttered or written. If a class is sent to the board to work, number the pupils in consecutive order as they stand at the board, and give the odd num- bers one example and the even numbers another, in order to prevent copying or prompting. In teaching the tables in Lessons LXXIX to LXXXVIII inclusive, the teacher should supply him- self, so far as possible, with the actual measures of value, weight, etc., and demonstrate before the class, for example, that **2 pints make I quart" by filling the 1 30 ARITHME TIC. pint cup twice, and pouring its contents into the quart cup. A very good plan in teaching many of these tables is simply to teach the names of the different measures, and have the children find out for themselves by actual experiment in the class-room how many of one measure it takes to make the next higher. The tables taught in this way will be learned with interest and will be reineni- bcred. Whereas, if simply made a matter of rote, they are apt to convey but little information ; consequently, they are devoid of interest and are speedily forgotten. XI. A RITHME TIC. — CONCL UDED. Third Year. EFORE beginning the advance work of the third year, give the class a thorough review of the Primary Arithmetic. It will be sufficient, ordinarily, to have the children perform the work of the regular review lessons of that book, which are to be found on pages 23 to 26, 38 to 40, 52 to 55, 66 to 83, inclusive, and on page 94. As before stated, pupils who find any difficulty in solving the problems contained in these review lessons are not prepared to advance, and should be kept in the Primary Arithmetic class until they are thoroughly proficient. Bear in mind that, in the study of Arithmetic especially, one step must be mastered before another is attempted. Progress is necessarily slow, and the golden rule is, "Make haste slowly.'^ Mental and Written Arithmetic should be taught to- gether to save labor and time. Therefore, after com- pleting the review of the Primary, as suggested, have the class begin work in both the New Intellectual and the New Practical Arithmetics. Let the mental and written instruction alternate, and, as far as possible, have the work in the Intellectual Arithmetic precede work on the corresponding subject in the Practical Arithmetic. It is proposed to complete the work in both books as far as the subject of fractions during this Third Year. (131) 1 3 2 ARITHME TIC. A clear understanding of the terms used in arithmetic is absolutely necessary, and all definitions should be carefully memorized. Principles and rules should also be required as they are given in the book, because these can not be given clearly in fewer words. The thought, of course, must be explained with great care to avoid ''parrot work," caution against which can not be re- peated too often. But, after the thought is grasped, demand exactness of expression, which is one of the most important aims in the study of arithmetic. Before beginning the third year's work, the children are supposed to understand the four fundamental pro- cesses, and to be able to solve simple problems within the limits of lOO. They are now supposed, also, to have arrived at an age when they may properly be re- quired to analyze the different processes ; that is, to state clearly and concisely each step of a solution. In teaching analysis, care must be taken not to allow repetitions, or indeed any unnecessary verbiage. Wordy analyses not only involve a waste of time, but they obscure the reasoning rather than make it clear. The old method of requiring a child to separate his analysis into four formal steps, two of which were usually need- less repetitions, has been abandoned by all advanced teachers, who have adopted in its place the simplest and most concise form of statement consistent with clear reasoning. The Model Solutions in the Intellectual and Practical Arithmetics give all the steps necessary to a thorough understanding of a problem, and give them as concisely, perhaps, as can well be done. The children should be required to follow these models in their exer- cises in analysis. Exercises in analysis should not be confined to work THIRD YEAR COURSE. 1 33 in mental arithmetic. The written work should be analyzed in the same way. The latter differs from the former only in that it requires mechanical work (the operation) in addition to the mental work. Both forms of work are useful, and each has a particular purpose. The tables of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division in the Intellectual and Practical Arithmetics, carry the work a few steps beyond the corresponding tables in the Primary book. All of these tables should be learned and recited, but the multiplication table should be memorized so that each product, up to 12 X 12=144, can be given by every member of the class the instant that the factors are presented. Prepare for the class as large a number and variety of original exercises, both mental and written, as you possibly can. Such original exercises are far better in certain respects than those given in any book ; for, de- spite every caution, answers to the latter are liable to be copied from keys, or marked in the old books, and thus the object of the exercises is defeated. It is unwise to assign work in arithmetic to be per- formed by the children out of school hours, for almost invariably those children who most need the exercise will procure assistance in place of endeavoring to do the work themselves, and again the object of the exercises is defeated. The consequence is that the class develops very unevenly ; some of the pupils making rapid mental progress, and others dragging behind hopelessly. Much supposed natural incapacity may be suddenly removed by the discovery that those "naturally incapable" are neglecting their work. The teacher should therefore carefully watch them, and see that they actually perform the work assigned them. 1 3 4 ARITHME TIC. Fourth Year. In the Fourth Year, the class should continue alter- nate recitations in mental and written arithmetic, and it is suggested that the work be extended to the subject of ratio in the Intellectual, and to percentage in the Practical, Arithmetic. That is, the arithmetical work of the entire year is devoted to the study of fractions, both common and decimal. This includes the work ordinarily performed in graded schools during the fifth year. In teaching fractions, illustrate by actual objects, as in the first steps in teaching whole numbers. Show the class that there are two halves in one whole apple by dividing an apple into two equal parts. Demonstrate the importance of the word equal by dividing an apple, or other object, into two parts which are not equal. Neither part, in this case, will be a half. Illustrate \, \, \, \, etc., in the same way. By this method, the class at once gain a clear, accurate idea of fractional parts. They see that f, f, f, etc., make one whole, or unit, without waste of words. The difference between a proper and an improper frac- tion should be practically illustrated, and the reason for so naming the latter will be immediately apparent. Continue to illustrate each step by objects as you advance. Before giving Lesson XXVII of the Intellectual Arith- metic to the class, illustrate with objects the fact that the same fractional part of a unit can be expressed in a variety of terms; that is, by a variety of numerators and denominators (see definition of "terms," page 47, Intellectual Arithmetic). Thus, \ of an apple can be FOURTH YEAR COURSE. 1 35 divided into two equal parts, and the \ becomes \\ or, it can be divided into three equal parts, and the \ be- comes -| ; divided into four equal parts, \ becomes |-, etc. The class will readily see that \, J, f, |-, etc., all express the same quantity; /. e., ^ of one apple. Con- tinue the illustration by the division of \, \, ^, etc., into two, three, four, etc., equal parts. When the children understand this, they can easily understand, also, what is meant by "reducing a fraction to its lowest terms." The use of objects should be abandoned whenever the teacher finds that it is no longer necessary to a clear understanding of the subject, but it may be found advis- able to resume this method occasionally when any un- usual difficulty presents itself. It may occur to some teachers that there is too great disparity in the amount of work assigned for the third and fourth years. It is true that, as far as the number of pages covered in the Practical Arithmetic is con- cerned, there is a disparity ; but it must be borne in mind that the work assigned for the third year is very largely a review and an extension of principles taught in the two preceding years. Whereas, the subject of frac- tions opens an entirely new and quite a difficult field ; and the work assigned for the fourth year will be found ample, even under the most favorable circumstances, to occupy the time. Fifth Year. Percentage and its applications are made the special objects of study this year. The subject of ratio is in- troduced in the Intellectual before percentage; but, if thought best, it may be omitted until that subject is taken 136 ARITHMETIC. up in the Practical Arithmetic, at the beginning of the Sixth Year. It is true that the study of percentage, and its appH- cations, possesses pecuhar value for those pupils who intend to follow certain mercantile pursuits ; but a fair knowledge of the subject is valuable to men of almost every occupation, and should therefore receive careful attention. The subject is so fully treated in the Practical Arith- metic that additional explanation here seems uncalled for. Lessons in the Intellectual Arithmetic, as before suggested, should precede the corresponding lessons in the Practical Arithmetic. Unless the subject of ratio be postponed, the In- tellectual Arithmetic should be finished this year. Sixth Year. The work of this year, from ratio to the close of the Practical Arithmetic, with the exception of arithmetical and geometrical progression, is essentially practical in nature, and a knowledge of the subjects treated is useful, if not necessary, to all. The number of examples given in the book is neces- sarily limited, owing to the number of subjects treated, and to the condensed form demanded in a school text- book. The examples in the book should be largely supplemented by the teacher, and the latter should en- deavor to make his original exercises as practical as possible. It has been frequently suggested that teachers should supply exercises for their classes in addition to those SIXTH YEAR COURSE. 1 37 given in the several text-books. Many teachers may find it impossible to devote the time necessary for the proper preparation of such exercises ; and, unless the exercises are most carefully prepared and graded, they will usually be found of little service. To such teachers the use of *' Ray's New Test Examples in Arithmetic" is recommended, which will furnish them the necessary number and variety of exercises to supplement the work of each year. The exercises of this book are practical in their nature, all mere puzzles having been excluded. We can not give a correct idea of the book in any better way than by quoting from the preface of its author, Mr. B. O. M. DeBeck, formerly a teacher in the public schools of Cincinnati. He says : "No example has been introduced which the average pupil can not solve without assistance, and no solid progress can be expected unless this is required. * ' The examples in each article have been carefully graded, the first few being suited to very young pupils, while the last half would furnish work for advanced pupils whose time is limited. ** Attention is called to examples occuring in pairs, where a slight variation in statement changes the nature of the problem. *'In each article, the number of examples presented is made to depend upon the difficulty and importance of the particular subject presented." The book covers the entire ground of Ray's New Practical Arithmetic, and is bound in two forms, — with answers and without answers. The latter, if so desired, may be placed in the hands of the pupils ; while a copy with answers, in possession of the teacher, will save him much time and trouble. E. M.— 12. .I3S ARITHMETIC. B OK-KEEPING. If the older pupils have the time and the inclination to extend their mathematical course beyond the ordinary limits of the common school, they can do so in no way that will afford a better return for the time and labor expended than by taking a short course in book- keeping. In many cities and towns, book-keeping is made a requirement in the regular course of the public schools ; but the necessity of the study is fully as great in the country schools, owing to the fact that there is a very general lack of information on the subject in country neighborhoods. A knowledge of book-keeping can be turned to prac- tical account by every man and woman, no matter what his or her vocation may be. Few professional men, farmers, artisans, or tradesmen are able to keep a set of books for themselves, and few are willing or able to pay a clerk for the purpose of having their accounts accu- rately kept, even if such a clerk were easily obtained. Therefore, these classes of men are notoriously poor ** business men." They rarely know exactly what their financial condition is. Debts accumulate unexpectedly ; collections are overlooked ; and notes fall due at the most inconvenient times, without any preparation having been made to meet them. Confusion in financial mat- ters usually results, sooner or later, in disaster, and all for the lack of a little system and order, which could readily be secured by a knowledge of rudimentary book- keeping, and a very limited expenditure of time and trouble. Even those whose affairs can be managed well enough, B OK-KEEriNG. 1 3 9 in their opinion, without the trouble or expense of book-keeping, must appreciate the value of fully under- standing the accounts of the store-keeper and others against themselves. Thus, a knowledge of book-keeping is useful to nearly every one, whether the books kept are his own or another's. Not only the accounts of the profession, the farm, and the trade should be accurately kept, but also the accounts of the living expenses of the household, for in no way are economy and thrift more certainly made possible and encouraged. With the figures before you, it is comparatively easy to see where there has been un- necessary outlay, and where you can most readily cut down expenses. The wife, daughter, or son can and should keep these household accounts, rather than the head of the family, whose time, generally, is too fully occupied with other affairs to give these proper atten- tion. Women, too, in the present day, are gradually mak- ing their way into the book-keeping situations of busi- ness houses in our cities and towns. In the cities they are regularly educated for these positions, and a respect- able girl who is so educated often obtains a situation which provides a comfortable living for herself, and per- haps for her family as well, in place of being forced by a lack of such knowledge to accept a miserable pittance of two or three dollars a week as an overworked shop- girl or seamstress. It therefore behooves both boys and girls to add a knowledge of book-keeping to their store of useful acquirements whenever it is made possible to do so. A knowledge of book-keeping does not involve, as some seem to think, the necessity of a two or three I40 ARITHMETIC. year's course at a business college. It is true that if a man intends to become a professional book-keeper, — an expert, — such a course is advisable; but one may learn all that is necessary to be able to keep an ordinary set set of accounts in a perfectly accurate and clear manner by a few months' careful study of a manual especially adapted to this purpose. The Eclectic Complete Book- keeping is just such a manual. The few necessary terms, such as debit, credit, etc., the classification of accounts, and the titles of accounts are carefully and lucidly explained. The various books necessary are de- scribed, and sample pages of each are shown. Then, four illustrative sets of transactions are given, two of which are accompanied by the corresponding pages of the Day-book, Journal, Ledger, Cash-book, etc., with the various transactions of the two sets properly "written up." With these models before him for refer- ence, the student is required to write up properly the transactions of the two remaining sets, and also certain particular problems, which are accompanied by particular instructions. Various suggestions are made where there is a choice between different methods of entry, and the entire subject is made so clear and simple that its thorough understanding presents but little difficulty to an ordinary mind. Samples are given of the various forms of commercial paper, just as they actually appear, in script, including notes, drafts, acceptances, checks, etc. The business of joint stock companies is briefly and clearly explained, and sample pages of the Installment Scrip Book, Certificate and Transfer Book, and the Capital Stock Ledger are presented. Special accounts and books, such as a Pay Roll, Phy- BOOK-KEEPING. I4I sician's Diary, Farm Accounts, Farm Record, Farm Register, and Family Expense Account receive brief treatment, but ample to enable a pupil to understand each thoroughly, and to keep the accounts if it should become necessary to do so. The entire book contains less than 150 pages of sub- ject-matter, and can be thoroughly mastered, with care- ful teaching, in a few months' time. The manual is accompanied by a key, which will enable any teacher to master the subject and to teach it without the least difficulty. There is also a complete set of book-keeping blanks, consisting of a Day-book, Journal, Ledger, Cash- book, and Bill-book. These blanks, which are in book form, have been expressly prepared to accompany the manual. They are of sufficient size, and are properly ruled for the use of students in writing up the work re- quired by the manual. GEOGRAPHY XII. THE ECLECTIC ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. COMPLAINT Is justly made that children ordinarily receive but little benefit from the study of geog- raphy in our common schools. Pupils are confused by unintelligible statements about ''imaginary lines," the earth's "turning over," "zones," and many similar terms and expressions, the simple statements of which convey no information whatever to a child's mind. The pupils are hurried confusedly through mathematical, physical, and political geography, and are compelled to memorize the words of many definitions concerning which they may not have a single clear idea. They are then crammed with the names and localities of places — many of them so unimportant that they are never heard of outside of the school-room — and with endless statistics of areas, populations, and crop productions im- possible to remember. Why wonder that a child so taught has a vague idea that "the equator is a lion running around the earth," a definite conviction that Maine is yellow and New Hampshire red, and a grave uncertainty as to whether the population of the United States is 50,000,000 or 5,000,000! The reason such poor results are obtained from teach- ing geography is because many teachers blindly follow whatever text-book may be in use, sticking persistently to the book, and never offering the slightest assistance E. M.-i:j. (145) 146 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. to their classes in the way of illustration or explanation. Thus, even if the book happens to be a good one, it is not used, as it should be, to the best possible advantage. The teacher should make the subject a study, first, to decide what and how much to teach ; and second, how to teach it with the greatest probability of successful results. By successful results, we mean so that children will retain a store of information which will be useful to them in after life. No matter what text-book is used, it should be used only as a guide, and its subject-matter should be supplemented or cut down as, in the teacher's judgment, necessity requires. Text-books are made to answer the general demand, but each teacher must be a law unto himself as to what to teach and how to teach it. We repeat the warning given as to other subjects, — not to talk over the children's heads. By this, how- ever, it is not meant that you should not attempt to develop ideas, although these ideas involve facts beyond the clear appreciation of any human mind. For exam- ple, the idea of the revolution of the earth on its axis involves the fact that we are whirling about a center at the rate — at the equator — of more than a thousand miles an hour. And while we are entirely unable to perceive the latter fact through our senses, yet this should not prevent our endeavor to give the children a clear idea of the revolution of the earth once in twenty-four hours. Astronomical distances are still more inconceivable, but that fact should not prevent instruction as to the yearly journey of the earth around the sun, and the consequent change of seasons. It is not to be expected that chil- dren will fully comprehend all that is involved in the science of geography, but they can be taught in simple PRIMARY TEACHING. 1 47 language, and by means of practical illustration, to un- derstand the simple facts at the basis of the science. The subject of geography opens up a wide and interesting field for composition work, and should be thoroughly utilized in this direction. The two branches mutually assist in adding to the interest of the class in both studies, and information put into writing is apt to be remembered, while that which is the result of the mere memorizing of a text-book is usually soon for- gotten. The teacher can add very much to each day's recita- tion in geography by reading or narrating to the class little incidents or interesting facts gleaned from history or authentic books of travels, and connected with cities or localities. This plan, in addition to aiding the memory, relieves the subject of monotony. At first the teaching of geography should be oral. Many facts properly included under this head should receive preliminary treatment in object lessons, such as facts concerning the different kinds of soils and minerals, the vegetable and animal worlds, etc., etc. These facts, if properly classified and taught, prepare the way for the study of geography proper, which should not be begun until the child is ten or twelve years of age. It is useless and injurious to crowd a multiplicity of sub- jects on the young child ; and, up to the age named, reading, writing, and arithmetic, with attendant language and object lessons, will be ample to occupy the time profitably. Teach primary geography objectively as far as possible. A large school globe is desirable, but if it is not to be had, a ball or orange may be made to answer fairly well. Molding-sand can be used to advantage for 148 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. certain purposes. Walks in the country, with talks about the hills and the valleys, the flow of the streams, the vegetation and the soil,' the state of the weather and the season of the year, the fog and the rain, the heat and the cold, — all should be used to illustrate the sub- ject and to interest the children. These are things that can not be put in a text-book, but on their proper use depends to a large extent the success of every teacher. The training of the imagination is one of the most useful purposes of geography, and this faculty must be called into active play in this study from the very be- ginning. The knowledge of things seen must be utilized to develop correct ideas of the unseen. Thus, a globe or a ball is used to develop the idea of the great round world ; a little creek, or even a gutter, may be used to illustrate a great river ; a level field, to give an idea of many miles of a plain ; a small hill or ridge, to illustrate the mountain peak or range, etc., etc. For example, in teaching the opening lesson in the Eclectic Elementary Geography, illustrate the fact that the earth is a great ball moving, unsupported, through space, by means of soap bubbles floating in the air. Blow the bubbles, and let the class watch them as they move. Now, tell the children that the earth does not move first this way and then that, as the bubbles are apt to do, but that it journeys steadily on in the same direction, year after year, its path making a circle about the sun.^ * Do not confuse small children by mincing scientific terms. It is not necessary at this stage that a child should know the earth is a sphc7'oid, and not a sphere, or that the earth's orbit is an ellipse, and not a circle, since the ellipse is so nearly a circle that it would take a miscroscope to detect the difference on a plan in which the radius of the circle is 10 feet. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1 49 To illustrate this last statement, pass a wire or stick through a ball, orange, or apple, and use a candle or lamp to represent the sun. Walk about the lamp with- out interposing your body between the lamp and the ball or between the ball and the class. Be sure to walk in the right direction, keeping the lamp on your left side. Explain that the circle of the earth about the sun, thus illustrated, is so large that it takes a year for the earth to complete it. Have each child in the class carry the ball about the lamp in the same way. When the class seems to have a clear idea of the mo- tion of the earth about the sun, tell them that while the earth is making this yearly journey it is also spinning around like a top. Illustrate the movement by whirling the wire in the fingers w4iile you are walking about the light, thus showing both movements in operation at once. Tell the class that the earth is such a big ball that it takes a whole day to turn completely around once, although it is spinning fast. In explaining what the axis is, be careful the children do not get the absurd idea that there is a rod similar to the wire extending through the earth. Illustrate by spinning a coin on the desk ; this shows the line of the axis very clearly ; but to give the idea of a sphere spin- ning about an axis in the same way, follow the coin illustration with the ball spun on the desk without the wire inserted. In illustrating day and night, it is well to darken the room entirely, except from the light of the lamp or candle used to represent the sun, explaining that the sun is practically the only source from which the earth receives light. Then, by holding the ball close to the light, and turning the former slowly on the wire, the I 50 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. class readily sees that one half of the globe is dark and the other half light ; also, that the movement of any given spot on the globe — except within the polar circles, which, however, should not be mentioned at this stage — is constantly and steadily proceeding from darkness to light and from light to darkness. Bring out both of these points clearly: tJie equal division of darkness and light on the globe, and tJie constant vwvemerit from one to another, but develop only one idea at a time. The large illustration on page five of the book may be used also in showing the daylight and the darkness on the earth, and the school globe may be carried about the lamp in the manner suggested for the ball or the orange. Always give two or three different illustrations of the same point when it is possible. Be careful always to turn the ball or the globe in the same direction, from left to right, otherwise you will lead to confusion when you come to illustrate the direc- tions of the compass. To explain the latter, fix on your orange or ball a little image of a man with his arms extended, and his right hand pointing in the direction toward which the ball is to revolve. You can readily carve a rough little figure to answer the purpose, or you may use two pieces of match-sticks, etc., to represent a man with his arms extended ; in this case, you should blacken or otherwise mark the part representing the face. Attach your figure to the ball in the proper posi- tion. Call the attention of the class to the fact that the axis of the earth ahvays points in the same direction. Illustrate as before, carrying the ball about the light, with the axis properly inclined. Call attention to the figure, and ask who can answer the following questions: "As I turn this ball slowly DIRECTIONS OF THE COMPASS. 151 around [suiting the action to the ivoi'd), where is the Hght first seen, at the right or at the left hand of the figure? Where is it last seen?" Let the child who is being questioned come close to the ball, as you hold it in po- sition, and have him stand so that his right hand is in the direction of the right hand of the figure ; or, in other words, station him facing the light with the ball directly between his eyes and the light. This point needs care in illustration, but if the directions are fol- lowed, — if the pupil stands facing the light; if the ball is held between his eyes and the light, with the axis pointing to the north star ; and if the ball is then re- volved in the proper direction, from left to right, — the pupils should have no difficulty in answering the ques- tion. If there should be any difficulty, persist patiently until all the children see clearly that tJic ligJit always appears 07i the right anci disappears on the left of the figure. When this fact is fully realized of one point in the orbit, carry the ball about the light as before, and show that the fact is true of ei^eiy point of the orbit. Do not use the word orbit, or any scientific terms, but lead the children to realize the fact by ocular demonstration, and with as few words as possible. Now explain that the great earth also turns always in one direction, so that the sun, Hke the lamp, invariably appears in one direction and disappears in the opposite direction. Next, teach that the direction in which the sun appears, or ** rises, " is called East, and the direction in which it disappears, or "sets," is called West. Ask: "Who can point to the direction in which the sun first appears in the morning ? In which direction is east ? W^ho can point to the direction in which the sun sets in the evening? In which direction is west? Stand with 1 5 2 ELEMENTAR V GEOGRAPHY. your arms extended, with the right hand pointing to the east and the left hand pointing to the west. Now, chil- dren, when you stand in that position, with your right hand pointing to the east and your left hand pointing to the west, the direction directly in front of you is called N'orth, and the direction directly behind you is called SoutJi. Now, who can tell me which direction is in front of you ? In which direction is north ? Which direction is behind you ? In which direction is south ? Lower your hands. Point to the north ; to the east ; to the south ; to the west. Face the east ; the west ; the north; the south," etc., drilling until the four directions are perfectly familiar. In explaining the compass, by all means have the in- strument itself to show the class. Carry it with you on your walks, and teach the children to use it by locating the different cardinal points in various localities. In teaching the lines of the earth, a globe should be used. If the school does not possess one, use a ball or an orange, and draw the equator (a thread will serve for a mark), the parallels, and the meridians upon it. Be sure the children do not get the erroneous idea that these lines are actually marked on the earth's surface as they are on the globe or ball. By means of a globe or a ball properly marked, it is very easy to show a child that a degree of longitude at the equator is much longer than a degree of longitude at the arctic circle, although they are measured by the same meridians. But by merely memorizing the state- ment of this fact in a book, few if any children will have the remotest idea of what is meant or how such a thing could be. Explain with the globe the statements in the book re- USE OF THE SCALE. I 5 3 garding north and south latitude, and east and west lon- gitude. When the children understand the terms fully, drill them by having various points found on the globe when the latitude and longitude are given. The different divisions of land and water should be illustrated, as far as your particular locality admits of it, by pointing out to the children an actual cape, hill, bay, spring, etc. Few localities present many of the divisions, but, as before suggested, those which are accessible may often be used to develop correct ideas of those which are not. A tray full of molding-sand will enable you to form all the land divisions, and the banks of any little creek wdll afford you material for illustrating the definitions of both land and water divi- sions in miniature. This kind of work will interest the children, and they will remember the definitions so taught much more readily than by merely studying the statements in the book. Have the children themselves do as much work of this kind as may be necessary to fix the several definitions in their minds. In teaching what maps are, have the children make maps, first of the school-room, then of the school-yard, then of the neighborhood of the school, and of different familiar localities, etc. Begin by showing them what a scale of distances is, and why one is necessary to under- stand a map rightly. Thus, show them that while you can not draw a map of the school-room floor on the blackboard, making the map of the same size as the floor, yet, by measuring the latter, and representing each foot of the floor by a distance of one inch on the board, you can draw a map having the exact shape of the floor, with all the benches, desks, the stove, etc., in the right positions, so that a person who had never seen 154 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. ^ m ^ ^ ^ the room could form a very clear idea of its size, shape, and arrangement by simply look- ing at the map and consulting the scale on which it is drawn. To show wJiy it is necessary to know the scale on which a map is made, draw two maps of the room floor on the board, using for the first a scale of one inch to the foot, and for the second a scale of half an inch to the foot. Draw the scales on the board, as in the margin, placing each scale under its proper map. Explain that the two maps represent the same floor ; but, if it were not for the scales, we might think the maps rep- resented different floors, one of which was much larger than the other. Again, draw a map of some imaginary room, and, without showing any scale, ask how wide a room or how long a room it represents. As it is impossible to answer these questions, the children will at once per- ceive the necessity of having a scale given in order to determine size or extent. Next, give the children as much practice as possible in measuring actual distances and reducing them to various scales. As they are presumed to be able to work problems in ratio and proportion by this time, the mathematical part of the work should present no diffi- culty. When they show themselves proficient in reducing simple lines to a scale, have them employ the lines of length and breadth in figures representing certain simple areas, such as the school-room, school-yard, their own farms or places, etc., as before suggested. MAP TEACHING. I 55 The important aim of this work is to accustom chil- dren to view a map in its proper Hght : namely, as a mere representation in miniature of a certain extent of country. Children should have sufficient practice in this kind of map-sketching to fix firmly in their minds the correct idea of what a map is before the maps in the book are made a subject of study. Before taking up the map of the world on pages 1 1 and 12, you should use the school globe, if you have one, in teaching the hemispheres, the grand divisions, the principal islands, the oceans, and the seas. The first point to be made, and a most important one, is to have the children fully comprehend that the globe is simply a miniature representation of the world on which we live. Let it be your constant effort in teaching geog- raphy to carry the minds of the children from the rep- resentation to the thing represented, from the map of a country to the country itself, and from the descriptive text to what is described. Do not allow the globe to be studied simply as a wooden ball covered with paper, on which various colors, lines, and names are printed. Picture to the child's imagination, as vividly as you can, the great round earth, made up of land and water, with the continents and islands raised above, or, as it were, standing out of the oceans. When the children have this picture in their minds, tell them that the globe is made to represent the earth, just as a very small toy house could be made to represent accurately the outside of a great palace. Point out on the globe, first, the continents, and then each of the grand divisions. Have the children point them out as they are named, and name them as they are pointed out, repeatedly, until all are perfectly 156 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. familiar both as to name and locality. Next, the oceans should be pointed out on the globe, and their locations with reference to the continents should be learned as well as their names. Drill as on the continents and grand divisions. The principal islands, seas, etc., may be taught in the same manner. Teach that the map on pages II and 12 is simply another way of representing the surface of the round world, and that all other maps in the book are representations of only portions of the earth's surface dr-awn on a lai^ger scale than this first map. Illustrate by contrasting North America, as rep- resented on pages 11 and 18. Follow this by contrast- ing the United States on pages 18 and 22, 23 ; then contrast your own state as shown on pages 22, 23, with the sectional map of the state given in the book. In this way the child is led to look at a sectional map in the right light as representing a portion of the earth's surface. He will not be so apt then to study it as a mere isolated conglomeration of colors, lines, and names. It is suggested that each map be traced back in this manner through the decreasing scales until the portion under study is located on the map of the world or the globe, and that the children be taught to bear this location in mind while studying the larger map. Relief globes and maps, and moldings in sand, are used by some instructors in teaching the structure of continents, but there is, we think, a very grave objec- tion to their use, as they must necessarily give most erroneous ideas of elevations of land as compared with continental distances. We think it is a fact conceded by all teachers that it is better to develop no ideas at all than to develop wrong ones. First impressions are notably strong. Why, then, should children be taught RELIEF MAPS. I 57 the monstrous absurdities portrayed on relief globes and maps, and by moldings of continents, only to be com- pelled to fight against these first impressions for the remainder of their lives? Few teachers seem to realize how great the distortion generally is on a relief map or globe. For example, the highest mountain in the world, Mount Everest is about 29,000 feet high; and when you reduce our world — about 7,900 miles in diameter — to the size of a school globe 2 feet in diameter, Mount Everest would be represented properly by a speck not -^ of an inch high. Again, let us consider the proper proportions of a section extending across the United States on the parallel of Mount Whitney, the highest mountain in the United States. This mountain is nearly 15,000 feet high, and on its parallel the continent is about 2, 500 miles wide. If, then, we represent the mountain by an elevation one inch in height, our section must be made 1,056 inches, or 88 feet in width. Now consider the distortion of the ordinary molding in relief of the United States — say, with the mountains elevated at least an inch above sea-level, and with a breadth of continent not more than 40 inches. This would either represent Mount Whitney as 62^ miles high, or the continent as only 1 14 miles broad. Does not such teaching inevitably do more harm than good? It seems to us a much better plan not to bring these widely differing extensions into comparison until the child has arrived at an age when he can realize to a certain extent the vast difference between them. We do not mean to imply that relief should not be taught at all in primary classes. On the contrary, it can be very successfully taught. Show a child a hill ; tell him its height, and then contrast this with the 158 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. height of a mountain. He will readily follow you, and you have taken one step in teaching the relief of the globe. Again, show him a sloping field crossed by an abrupt ridge, and you can easily lead him to imagine the long gradual slope from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains, and so on with other continental features, until the child can see in his mind the conti- nent as a whole, with its mountain ranges, river valleys, and coast plains, probably in a much truer light than that presented by distorted piles of sand, etc. We believe in teaching relief, but we do not believe in teaching wrong ideas, or in attempting to teach propor- tions impossible of conception. The use of molding-sand should be confined to the formation of the geographical forms usually defined. It is easy to teach the children to make an island, a prom- ontory, a cape, a plain, a plateau, a hill or mountain, a mountain chain, an isthmus, etc., but this method of illustration is not well adapted to teaching the forms of continents or their structure, neither is it sufficiently exact in ordinary use for teaching those facts usually acquired from maps. Molding-sand can not take the place of globes, maps, or books on geography. Great care must be taken that the children, .in study- ing maps, do not get erroneous ideas of directions. North is almost invariably toward the top of a map ; but do not allow the children to gain an idea, because of this uniformity, that north means up and that south means doivn. There is danger of this, especially when wall maps are constantly used. A case is on record where a school visitor asked the children to point to the north, and the entire school pointed directly over their heads. With correct and careful teaching, such a blun- ZONES. 159 der would have been impossible. North means in the direction toward the north pole, and south means in the direction toward the south pole ; up means in the direction toward the zenith, or overhead, and down means in the direction toward the center of the earth, or underfoot. These latter definitions are not arbitrary, of course, for up also means from a lower to a higher place, and down means the reverse. Thus, down from the top of a hill may be in every direction of the com- pass ; and, from the base of the hill, you may be able to go up in every direction of the compass ; but, from either top or bottom of the hill, there is but one north direction and but one south direction. We dwell upon this point because it is important that the distinction between the various terms should be impressed upon the minds of the children before they commence to study maps. In teaching the zones in the elementary class, it is undesirable to go into any explanation of Jiow the boundaries of the different zones are determined, as the subject is considered too difficult for the comprehension of young children. This explanation is treated fully under the corresponding head in the Complete Geogra- phy ; but in the Elementary, only so much is said about the zones as is necessary for a clear understanding of the succeeding topics of climate, plants, and animals ; the races of men, their manner of living, and their oc- cupations. In teaching climate, ask: "Who can tell from the definitions in the book in which zone we live?" If this question can not be answered at once, draw out the fact by a series of questions until the children realize that they must be living in the temperate zone. Then l60 ELEMENTARY GEOGRAPHY. point out the different zones on the globe, or, if the school does not possess one, on the map of the world, and show them as nearly as possible the spot where they live. In teaching plants, illustrate the subject as far as you can by specimens of the various plants, bits of woods of different kinds, etc., etc. Have- the class bring you as many specimens as possible of the vegetable products of their zone, and incite them to secure a wide variety. If any important products of the temperate zone are not to be obtained in your neighborhood, make a list of them, and teach the children any interesting facts you may know about them. While the illustrations on page 13, and similar illus- trations throughout the book, are exceedingly useful, yet the lessons they teach should be supplemented where it is possible by showing the children the living animals. A zoological garden or a good menagerie is a most useful and intensely interesting means to this end ; but the children should be accompanied to such places by a person who is competent to tell them the names of the animals, where they live, their habits, their uses, etc. The manner of living and the occupations of men depend largely upon the zone in which they live ; thus, agriculture and manufacturing could not be carried on in the frigid zone. By judicious questioning, and by explanation where necessary, show how different coun- tries, or parts of countries, are peculiarly adapted by nature to certain pursuits. Also, demonstrate the im- portance of commerce, showing that by this means it is possible for almost any place to be supplied w^ith the products and manufactures of the entire world. WHAT TO TEACH. l6l It will be observed that the maps of the Elementary Geography are exceedingly simple. Except on the sectional maps of the United States, only those rivers, mountains, cities, etc., are shown which, it is consid- ered, should be taught to every child, and in such a way that he will be able to locate them promptly as soon as they are mentioned. The sectional maps of the United States are fuller in detail, as children should be more fully instructed in regard to their own state than any other. The less important cities of the section not in the child's own state may be omitted in map work at the discretion of the teacher. The text of the Elementary Geography is absolutely free from statistics, from unimportant details, and from repetitions. Therefore, all that is given should be learned, and the teacher can not go wrong in demanding that the entire text shall be learned thoroughly. In reviewing, it Avill be well to bear in mind the rela- tive importance of the topics as presented in the book. Ask only general questions on the geography of the world as a whole. Let the questioning be a little fuller on the grand divisions. That on the different political divisions should be graduated in accordance with the importance of the several nations as related to our country and their own importance in the history of the world. The geography of the United States should receive careful attention, and your own state especially should have full treatment, the questions embracing all that is given in the book, both on the map and in the text. E. M.— 14. XIII. THE ECLECTIC COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. THIS book has been so arranged, by the use of two sizes of type, that, if the time is Hmited, a short course, complete in itself, can be adopted. The full course includes the entire text, embracing both the large and the small type. Much of the explanatory matter, and the less important particulars, are put in small type, and may be omitted without interfering with the arrangement or connection of the large type. -The latter used alone constitutes the short course. The questions on the text are confined to the short course. The matter in small type, however, should in no case be disregarded entirely. Even where the short course is adopted, and this small type is not recited, the teacher should suggest that the pupils read it carefully. It contains much interesting and valuable information, and in many cases will assist materially in understanding the accompanying text in large type. The preliminary treatment of mathematical, physical, and political geography should be taught in a manner similar to that suggested for these subjects in the Ele- mentary Geography. In the Complete, the treatment is, of course, much fuller than in the Elementary, and is somewhat more difficult to understand. Every state- ment that admits of it should be fully illustrated. Have the children themselves perform all the illustrative ex- periments, such as showing the two movements of the (1G2) EXPLANA TIONS. 1 63 earth in combination ; how the directions east, west, north, and south are determined; the changes of season, how the zones are formed, etc., etc. In reviewing the preceding day's lesson, select some pupil to make the necessary explanations to the class, just as you made them on the previous day. Nothing will impress the facts on a child's memory so indelibly as this class of exercises. The statements in a text-book of this nature are nec- essarily very concise. Do not limit your instruction to these concise statements, however, where a development of the ideas they set forth seems desirable. For exam- ple, on page five, under mathematical geography, article 2 {ci), explain the statement, ''This would not be the case if the surface were flat," by telling explicitly what would be the case, and luJiy the masts would disappear before the hull. If you can draw these explanations from the pupils themselves by judicious questioning, so much the better ; but, at all events, the full explana- tions should be made in one form or another. The pupils should not be allowed to stumble along in the dark as to the meaning of what they study, simply memorizing words. Show by experiment in the sunshine, or with a light of some kind, that a sphere is the only body whose shadow is always round, using a half sphere, a coin, and various objects besides a sphere. In teaching directions of the compass, pursue the same plan as in this elementary class. The two classes may be given the lesson together. In teaching the circles of the earth, show by experi- ment, using an orange or wooden ball properly cut, that the circle which divides a sphere into two equal parts 1 64 COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. must pass through the center oi the sphere, that all such circles are of the same size, and that any circle which does not pass through the center of the earth is smaller than one that does. Explain with the globe why meridians are only semi- circumferences, while the parallels extend entirely around the globe. Explain why the meridian of Greenwich is taken as the prime meridian rather than that of London. The national observatory is at Greenwich. Exercises in finding points on the globe when the lat- itude and longitude are given, should be continued long enough to assure the teacher that the entire class under- stands the meaning and use of parallels and meridians. The motions of the earth should be illustrated as in the Elementary Geography by means of a ball transfixed by a wire, the sun being represented by a light of some kind. / Show what is meant by the sun being **over" any meridian, illustrating with a light and a revolving globe. The simple diagram on page i66 may be readily drawn upon the board, and will be found of great assist- ance if used in connection with the revolving ball and lamp, in explaining how the limits of the zones are de- termined, the changes of seasons, the longest and the shortest days of the year, etc. Explain, in the first place, what is meant by the in- clination of the earth's axis 23^° from a perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic, using the diagram on page 7, second column, and the sketch on the opposite page of this book, which should be drawn on the board. Refer to article 15, page 6, in explaining what deter- mines the length of a degree. LENGTH OF DA YS. 165 23 H' To Illustrate and explain the longest and shortest day of the year, carry the globe around the light, hav- ing the axis properly inclined and kept constantly pointing in the same direction. Ask the children to note carefully at what point of the circuit the north end of the axis leans most directly away from the lamp, and at what point it leans directly toward the lamp. When they have recognized these two points, tell them that these two positions are rep- resented by figures No. i and No. 3 in the diagram on the board (see page 166). Darken the room, except from the light representing the sun, and show the class that at point No. I there is more darkness as compared with the light north of the equator than at any other point in the entire circuit, while at No. 3 there is more light as com- pared with the darkness north of the equator than at any other point in the circuit. This means, in other words, that when the earth is at point No. i it is the shortest day and the longest night of the year north of the equator, and when the earth is at point No. 3 it is the longest day and the shortest night of the year north of the equator. Tell the class that the earth is in position No. i on the 21st of December, which is accordingly the shortest day of the year north of the equator; and that it is in position No. 3 on the 21st of June, which is therefore the longest day of the year north of the equator. South of the equator the condi- tions and facts are simply reversed. Now tell the class that the rays of the sun, when the earth is in these two positions, fix the limits of certain 1 66 COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. No. 2. Spring March 22nd. No. 3. Summer Juue 21st. Nol. Winter Dec. 21 St. ^ No.4. Autumn Sept. 22 nd. belts or zones, known as the north and south frigid zones, the torrid zone, and the north and south temper- ate zones. Hold the globe in position No. i, and indicate with a pencil the points a, b, and c. The first two points mark the northern and southern limits of the sunlight on this day ; c marks the point on which the vertical rays of the sun fall on this day. With the pencil at each of these points in turn, have a pupil revolve the globe, and the pencil will describe the arctic circle at a, the antarctic circle at b, and the tropic of Capricorn at c. Then, in the same Avay, Avith the globe at position No. 3, the pencil describes the arctic circle at a, the ESTABLISHMENT OE ZONES. 1 6/ antarctic circle at /;, and the tropic of cancer at c. Question the class, and draw out of the pupils the exact statements of how the limits of the torrid and frigid zones are determined, thus: "What determines the limits of the frigid zones?" Answer: "The frigid zones are bounded by the parallels which mark the extreme limits of the earth's surface touched by the sun's rays on the longest and shortest days of the year." "What determines the limits of the torrid zone?" "The torrid zone is bounded by those parallels which mark the extreme limits of the earth's surface touched by the vertical rays of the sun on the longest and shortest days of the year." Explain that the surfaces between the frigid zones and the torrid zone are called the temperate zones. Thus we have the five distinct zones in order: the north frigid zone, the north temperate zone, the torrid zone, the south temperate zone, and the south frigid zone. Hold the globe in position No. i, and have the class note that on Dec. 2ist, which is called our winter sol- stice, the entire north frigid zone is in darkness ; that is, at no point in the north frigid zone does the sun appear or "rise" that day. Again, at this time in the south frigid zone, the sun is visible from every point ; that is, it does not "set" on that day. These facts, and the relative lengths of day and night in different quarters of the globe on this day, are illus- trated by the light and shaded portions of the diagram on the board ; but they should also be illustrated by actual experiment with the light and the globe. Explain that as the earth journeys on in its orbit from Dec. 2 1 St, that the point a gradually advances toward the north pole, and the point b recedes towards the 1 68 COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. south pole until at a certain point in the orbit these two points and the poles of the earth coincide ; that is, at this point, represented by figure No. 2 in the diagram, the sun's rays touch the north and south poles at the same time. It is apparent from the figure that at this point exactly one half of each zone is light and the other half dark ; or, in other words, the days and nights are equal in all parts of the world. Illustrate with the globe and lamp as before, and tell the class that the earth reaches this point in its orbit which is known as the vernal equinox, on the 22d of March. The globe should be carried slowly from position No. I to position No. 2, and the class required to notice the gradual change of light and darkness in the two frigid zones. Demonstrate with the light and globe the changes that occur in each quarter from 2 to 3, 3 to 4, and 4 to I, asking such questions as will lead the class to find out the facts for themselves. Have the class notice that at every point in the orbit one half of the equator is in the light, and the other half in darkness ; that is, at the equator the day and the night are always equal, and each is one half of 24 hours, or 12 hours, long. Have the class notice also that the sun first appears at the north pole on March 2 2d, and does not again disappear until September 22d; that is, the day is there six months long. After disappearing on September 22d, the sun does not appear again at the north pole until March 22d ; that is, the night is there six months long. This is also true at reverse periods for the south pole ; that is, the day and night are equal at the poles, and each is six months long. The explanations, illustrated by the globe and light, WAVES AND TIDES. 1 69 the diagram on the board, and the diagrams in the book, ought to render the causes of all the phenomena of day and night, and the seasons, apparent to any in- telligent child who is old enough to study the Complete Geography. Teach the use of globes, maps, and scales as sug- gested for the Elementary Geography. In teaching physical geography, even those defini- tions that are repeated from the Elementary should be illustrated as far as possible, but especial attention should be paid to such definitions as may be new to the children. For example, illustrate the statements regard- ing the Land and Water Hemispheres, page nine, article 13. Place the school globe in such a position that the diameter through the land and water centers, or ** poles, " will be perpendicular to the floor, turning first one pole on top and then the other. This will show at a glance the preponderance of water surface. If possible, secure a piece of unpolished coral to show of what material the coral islands are built. The more illustrations you have of this nature, the more in- teresting the subject will be. To show the motion of waves, page 12, article 36, use a rather long and heavy piece of rope. By shaking one end of this up and down, the children can follow a wave as it travels along from the hand to the other end of the rope. By this experiment the child learns that the wave travels, while the material or substance of which it is composed has little if any horizontal motion ; the wave travels, the rope does not ; in the same way the wave of water travels forward, while the water itself, unless disturbed by other influences, simply rises and falls with each succeeding wave. E. M.— 15. I/O COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. As stated in article 37, the tide moves like a wave. Do not let the children get a wrong impression, from the sweeping in and out of tide waters in river mouths, harbors, etc., that the waters of the open ocean have this same regular horizontal flow back and forth. There the tides are not appreciable at all; that is, there is almost no horizontal motion of the water itself, and the slow, gradual rise and fall of the great body a few feet twice in twenty-four hours can not be perceived. It is only when the tide approaches the shore and meets with resistance from the shoaling bottom that the waters attain appreciable height and a horizontal motion. Speaking of this point, and of the variation in the height of the tides at different places on the same coast, J. E. Hilgard, ex-superintendent of the United States Coast Survey, says : ' ' When the movement reaches shallow water, in approaching the shores, the horizontal motion [of the wave^ not of the water\ is partly trans- lated into vertical motion upon the sloping bottom, and it is thus that the tides attain sensible vertical height. Now, where a bay or indentation of the coast presents itself, opening favorably to the tide-wave thus devel- oped, and decreases in width from its entrance toward its head, the tide rises higher from the mouth upward. This is due to the concentration of the wave by the approach of the shores, and to the gradual shoaling of the bottom." You should explain hozv the vapor, mentioned on page 12, article 41, is formed. Illustrate by the vapor rising from a wet shoe when held near the fire. To show the class that the same number of sun's rays are distributed over a greater space nearer the poles than at the equator, page 13, article 58, draw the HE^i T AND COLD. 171 accompanying diagram on the board. The columns x and y contain an equal number of sun's rays, and it is very evident that the distance cd on the earth's surface near the pole is much greater than the distance ab near the equator ; that is, the rays that fall near the poles are more widely distributed than those which fall near the equator. Another way of stating the case would be that more rays fall in the same space at the equator than at the poles, and consequently the space re- ceiving the most rays is the hottest. To show this, lay off the space ce at the pole equal to the space ab at the equator. It is evident that more rays fall in the space ab than in the space ce, and consequently ab is hotter than ce. The subject of minerals, treated on page 15, article 97, and more fully on page 17, article 16, may be made extremely interesting. Specimens should be obtained if possible, showing the various minerals in their native state. Many interesting books and articles have been written in reference to the formation of coal, salt, and petroleum. The entire subject opens a wide field for instructive composition lessons. The subject of the "Surveys of the Public Land," treated on page 26, is an important one, and should be thoroughly learned, especially in those states where the land has been surveyed in the manner described. In all such states, children should know where the base-line and principal meridian for their state are situated, and 172 COMPLETE GEOGRAPHY. should be drilled until they can locate any tract of 160 acres in the state. It will be noted that in the text of the Complete Geography comparative statements are usually made in regard to areas in addition to the actual figures. It is more important that these comparative statements should be learned than that the statistics should be mem.orized ; for if relative sizes are clearly defined in the mind, approximate areas at once suggest themselves when the area of the basis of comparison is known. Thus, a child in Indiana is taught the exact area of his own state in figures thoroughly. Knowing this, he learns that the United States would contain one hundred states the size of Indiana (page 21, article 3); and this fact, which at once gives him approximately the area of the United States, is easily retained in the memory. The same method should be used in teaching the comparative areas of different states in our own country, and the areas of the principal countries of the world as com- pared with the United States. That the eye may assist the mind effectively, the different sectional maps of the United States have been drawn on a nearly uniform scale, so that states in different sections can be thus brought into direct comparison as to size. In the map work, due attention should be given to the prominent places in corresponding latitudes which are given on the side margins. There is an astonishing amount of ignorance on this subject, even among per- sons who consider themselves well educated; and there are few persons, perhaps, who will not be surprised at their own erroneous ideas, as developed by some of the facts brought to light by this feature of the study. Contour lines, both in the sea and on land, should re- ADDENDA. 1 73 celve attention, especially those which appertain to your own state. The teacher should explain carefully to the class that those on the land represent lines of equal alti- tudes above the surface of the sea, and that those in the water represent lines of equal depths below the surface of the sea. Map drawing is important as a great aid in fixing the shapes of countries in the memory. It should be com- menced with the study of the maps, and every pupil should draw all the maps that are given in the Com- plete Geography. The teacher may use his discretion as to the reproduction of minute details, but outlines, topographical features, and principal cites should be re- quired in all cases. Particular attention is called to the table of definitions of foreign geographical terms on page 102. As maps of foreign countries are studied, this table should be consulted, and the more important translations should be memorized. The general review questions on page ICXD cover the ground thoroughly, and every child that is supposed to have "finished" geography should be able to answer every question on that page. An examination on these questions without special preparation will test the thoroughness of the work accomplished. GRAMMAR XIV. HARVEY'S ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR AND COMPOSITION. GENERAL REMARKS. —Harvey's Elementary Grammar and Composition is a text-book in which the topics relating to technical grammar and analysis are arranged in the order in which they should be studied by beginners. It contains carefully prepared illustra- tions of the method of instruction to be employed in teaching these topics. In the preparation of this manual for teachers, it has not been thought necessary or ad- visable to do much more than (i) to designate the parts of the course of study to which special attention must be paid in order to secure the most desirable results ; (2) to suggest the introduction of supplementary exercises where they can probably be used with advan- tage \ (3) to point out the sections that need only to be read and made subjects of conversation ; (4) to em- phasize by repeated statement the advice, ''never to define a term or enunciate a principle without first pre- paring the mind of the pupil to grasp and comprehend the meaning and use of the term defined or the prin- ciple enunciated." The "sentence-making" exercises may be supple- mented indefinitely and used in all parts of the course. At first all the words to be used in the construction of a sentence should be given ; then, a part of them, the pupils supplying those necessary for a complete state- (177) 178 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. ment. When they have learned to do this readily, they should be taught that groups of words are sometimes used like single words. Single words and groups be- ginning with prepositions may then be written on the blackboard, and the pupils required to arrange them into sentences without changing the order of the words in the groups. The use of the clause can be taught in a similar manner. In an elementary course, the terms phrase and clatise ought never be used, but each combi- nation of words should be called a groups and be re- garded as a single thing not to be separated into its parts. Pupils taught in this manner soon become apt critics of their own language and that of their com- panions. The value of picture lessons in ''composition" can hardly be overestimated. The manner in which they should first be given is illustrated on pages 22 and 23. As soon as pupils can dispense with the assistance of a teacher in the use of pictures, they may be taught to describe what is to be seen through windows or doors, to write stories suggested by pictures, and to describe scenes with which they may be familiar. Excellent results can be secured by work of this kind in high schools, as well as in schools of lower grade. To an observant teacher or pupil, the pictures that adorn the walls of so many of our school-rooms will suggest inter- esting themes for compositions. Any intelligent, pains- taking teacher, by using the method recommended, can make this a most interesting and attractive part of the course of study. In schools in which many different branches are taught and the number of classes is large, the recitation in technical grammar should be omitted occasionally and the time devoted to instruction and GENERAL REMARKS. IJg practice in composition. Much will be gained and little lost by this ** departure" from the "old way." Having been trained in sentence-making, in picture lessons, and in writing descriptions of real or imaginary events, pupils may be required to read a description of a single object several times, then to lay the book or paper containing it aside, and reproduce its leading facts from memory. The description should never be re- ferred to while writing, either for facts or forms of ex- pression. Work similar to this should be done until the reproduction of a description becomes an easy task. Pupils may then be required to describe familiar single objects, at first using "plans" prepared by the teacher or given in the text-book. The teacher should talk w^ith the pupils about objects to be described, criticize "plans" submitted to him for examination, and assist in obtaining desired information, but he should insist on each pupil's using his own language in his descriptions. The description of single objects, especially of manu- factured articles, buildings, etc., is excellent work for pupils in the lower classes of high schools. The definitions of technical terms ought to be re- peated in parsing exercises until they can be given without hesitation ; they may then be dispensed with or given only in occasional reviews. Grammatical rules are usually statements of facts — repetition helps to fix them in the memory. Too frequent repetition, however, is wearisome and unnecessary. Refer to the rules for the use of capital letters and marks of punctuation, as they are needed in sentence- making and composition. Pupils will thus learn the practical application of rules at the time they are learn- ing their formal statement in technical language. l8o ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. PART I. — Elementary Course. Objects. Definitions. — Talk with the pupils about the senses, objects, words, language, spoken language, written language, and grammar, but do not require them to commit to memory the definitions on pages 7 and 8. TJie Sentence. — Teach the subject in the manner indi- cated in the text. Require pupils to learn and recite the directions to be observed in writing sentences. Sentence -making. — In developing the idea of each kind of sentence, use many illustrations in addition to those in the text. Observe the direction given on page lo. Use this lesson quite frequently as a review. Quotation Marks. — As an additional exercise, require pupils to write sentences in which one states what another says without using his exact language. The pupil will thus learn how to write both direct and in- direct quotations. Parts of Speech. — The object of this lesson is to show that words can be divided into classes. Use the same word with different meanings, and in different parts of sentences, to illustrate what is meant by the terms meaning and use. **I saw a drove of cattle." **He drove the cattle over the bridge." ''Gold is a metal.'' *'Mary has a gold pencil," and similar sentences may be employed for this purpose. Tlie Noun. — Do not neglect to teach that a noun is the name of an object and not the object itself. Show, also, that by placing tJie, this, that and other definitive words before a common noun, a particular meaning is given to it without making it a proper noun. Do not omit any of the exercises. Be thorough in teaching EL EM EN TAR Y CO URSE. 1 8 I how to form the plurals of nouns. Illustrate each rule in assigning it as a part of a lesson. Abbrcviatiojis and Contractions. — Require pupils to pay particular attention to the use of capital letters and the period in writing abbreviations, and to the writing of words in which the apostrophe takes the place of omitted letters. Examine critically the written exercises of pupils, and see that the work required is done cor- rectly. Elemcfits of a Sentence. — Develop the idea of each part of a sentence before permitting pupils to learn its definition. Prepare oral exercises to supplement those given on page 20. Require pupils to analyze sentences orally before using diagrams. The Verb. — Pupils should be required to fill all the blanks with appropriate words. Develop the idea of the objective element before attempting to teach the classification of the verb. Read the remarks carefully in assigning lessons, but do not require pupils to commit them to memory. Observe the directions given in the text of this and succeeding lessons. Incorrect Language. — The ''cautions" in the Ele- mentary Grammar need not be committed to memory. Refer to them in correcting the exercises in the text- book as well as the language of the pupils in conversa- tion and sentence-making. Sentence-making. — Be thorough in teaching the appli- cation of the two rules given on page 29. See that the blanks in the exercises are filled with appropriate words, and that the pupils make no mistakes in the use of the comma. The Adjective. — Require pupils to make separate lists of quality-words, pointing-out-words, and number-words 1 82 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. before permitting them to learn the definitions. Refer to the dictionary for definitions of the words descriptive and definitive. Do not introduce the subject of com- parison in a formal way, but use adjectives in the com- parative or superlative degree without referring to their forms. Tell the pupils that the articles the, a, and an are usually classed among the definitive adjectives. Sentence -making. — The teacher should supplement the exercises in the lesson on page 34 by others prepared by himself Pupils should not be permitted to slight the work required in this part of the course. Examine all written work with care, and see that pupils observe the directions given in preceding lessons. The Participle. — Do not hurry in developing the idea of this part of speech. Show by a large number of illustrations in what particulars the participle resembles the verb and the adjective. In teaching the definitions, call attention again and again to the fact that the present participle denotes continuance, and always ends in hig, and that the perfect participle always denotes completion. Be sure that the pupils learn how the compound parti- ciple is formed. The Pronoim. — Teach the definition in the manner in- dicated on page 42. It is not necessary that the pupil should learn the definitions of the kinds of pronouns at this time. The Adjective Element. — Pupils generally learn readily how to distinguish this element from the others. Be careful in teaching the application of the terms posses- sive and appositive. Teach that possessives and apposi- tives are usually nouns or pronouns, although they are used like adjectives as modifiers of nouns. The rules for the formation of the possessive case should be ELEMENTARY COURSE. 1 83 learned, but no attempt made to develop the idea of case. Use sentences written by pupils as supplementary exercises in analysis and parsing. Kinds of Pronouns : i . . Personal Pronouits. — Be careful to teach the subject of person before attempting to teach the definition of the term personal pronoun. The exer- cises on page 49 are specially important, and none of them should be omitted. 2. Possessive Pronouns. — Do not fail to make the pupil understand that a possessive denotes a possessor only, while a possessive pronoun denotes both the possessor and the tiling possessed. 3. Relative Pronouns. — Develop the idea of a relative clause by the use of oral illustrations. Supplement the exercises on pages 54 and 55 by sentences prepared by teacher or pupil. 4. Interrogative Pronojms. — As additional exercises in analysis and parsing, use sentences written by pupils. These sentences should contain both interrogative pro- nouns and interrogative adjectives. The Adverb. — Do not omit any of the exercises on page 58. In developing the idea of the adverb, as well as that of the adverbial element, use oral illustrations. Require pupils to substitute adverbs for the adverbial clauses, when practicable, in the exercises on page 60. TJie PiTposition. — Require pupils to point out the groups of words used as modifiers in the exercises on page 63 ; then teach them that each group begins with a word that shows the relation between the words it connects. Call this connective a Preposition, and the modifying group of words a Phrase. The definitions of the two terms may then be learned and the exercises analyzed. 1 84 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. The Infinitive. — Pupils should be made to understand the difference between expirssing action and affiinning it before being permitted to commit the definition of the infinitive to memory. Use oral exercises to supplement those given on page 66. The Conju?iction. — The definition should be taught in the manner indicated in the oral lesson on page 6j. Show by illustrative examples in what respects conjunc- tions differ from prepositions and relative pronouns. Compound Elements. — Require pupils to commit to memory the directions for writing compound elements. Use sentences written by pupils as exercises in analysis. Simple and Compound Sentences. — Require pupils to write sentences, each containing a part common to the others, and then to combine them into single sentences ; also, to write many compound sentences, and, when possible, to separate them into simple ones. Complex Sentences. — Call attention to the remarks on page 74, and teach that a sentence in which a clause is used as subject or predicate, is complex, one of its ele- ments containing a subject and a predicate. Use many sentences, in addition to those on pages ']6 and 'j'j, as exercises in reducing and enlarging sentences. Reviezv. — Review Part I thoroughly before beginning Part II. In this review, sentence-making and composi- tion should not be neglected. They are more important exercises than analysis and parsing. PART II. — Advanced Course. Gender, Person, and Number. — Use oral illustrations in teaching the definitions, and use the sentences required ADVANCED COURSE. 1 85 to be written as exercises in analysis. As soon as the idea of a property is developed and the definition learned, require the term to be used in parsing exer- cises. Do not require the rules for the formation of the plurals of nouns to be committed to memory and recited in the order in which they are arranged in the text, but let pupils refer to them until they can write correctly the singular and plural forms of nouns in common use. Case. — Use the illustrations on page 83 in showing that the term case is used to denote the relation of a noun or a pronoun to other words, and oral illustrations in showing the use of the same term to denote the form of a noun or pronoun. Call attention to the fact that nouns have only two case-forms, — the nominative and the possessive, — the nominative case-form being used in the nominative, objective, and nominative-absolute cases. Review the lesson on pages 43 and 44 thoroughly, and require pupils to write a large number of sentences con- taining nouns in the possessive case singular and plural. Properties of the Pronoun: i. Personal Pronouns. — Refer to the remarks on page 89 occasionally in parsing exer- cises, and require pupils to state the substance of each remark in their own language. 2. Possessive Pronouns. — Teach that in parsing a pos- sessive pronoun by the first method, no attention what- ever should be paid to the name of the possessor, the part to be parsed being the name of the thing possessed. This part may be in any case except the possessive. Teach, also, that in using the second method, one of the two words into which the pronoun may be sepa- rated, may be owning, having, or possession. 3. Relative Pronouns. — Teach orally how to distinguish a relative from a personal pronoun. Be patient, and do E. M.— 16. 1 86 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. not hurry in this part of the course. Each paragraph following the description of "double relatives" on page 93 may be made the subject of a separate lesson. 4. Interrogative Pronouns. — Require the remark on page 95 to be studied carefully, and be sure that the pupils understand the meaning and use of the term sub- sequent. In review lessons, show how interrogative pro- nouns are used in indirect questions. False Syntax. — Do not require the ** Cautions" to be learned in teaching pupils how to correct examples in false syntax. Refer to them as occasion may require. The Adjective. — Review definitions already learned. Teach that more, most, less, and least, in such expres- sions as more careful, most cai'eful, less careful, and least carefiil, are adverbs. The lists of pronominals need not be committed to memory, and no technical terms should be employed in parsing, except those given in the ''Order of Parsing." Properties of the Verb. — Review as directed on page 103. 1. Voice. — Require the verbs in given sentences to be changed from the active to the passive voice, or from the passive to the active voice. At first, let the pupils point out the parts of each verb in the passive voice. 2. Mode and Tense. — Having taught the definition of the indicative mode, teach the subject of Tense. Do not assign long lessons. To teach a single mode thoroughly may require all the time usually set apart for several recitations. 3. Number and Person. — Refer to Rules XIII, XIV, and XV as occasion may require. 4. Conjugation. — The paradigms need not be com- mitted to memory; but pupils should prepare synopses ADVANCED COURSE, I 8/ and write sentences containing verbs in any required form, voice, mode, tense, number, and person. The Adverb. — Review the lessons on pages 57, 58, 59, and 60. Do not require pupils, in parsing exercises, to tell to what class an adverb belongs. TJie Preposition. — Require the statements made on page 127 to be studied carefully. Let the pupils state the substance of each paragraph in his own language. In written exercises in analysis and in diagrams, use the symbol [ ] to indicate the omission of a preposition. TJie Conjunction. — Review the lesson on page 6^ , and teach the definition on page 129; then review pages 6*^^ 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 'jG, and y'j. Ellipsis. — Let the pupils supply the words omitted in their reading lessons and in sentences used as drill exer- cises. Write on the blackboard a series of elliptical sentences to show that any part of a sentence may be omitted except the part that will suggest the rest. Abridgment. — Require pupils to change many complex sentences to simple ones by abridging their subordinate clauses ; also, to write sentences containing abridged propositions. Let the pupils state in their own lan- guage the substance of the three parts of the remark on page 134. Refer to this remark in parsing the nouns or the pronouns in abridged propositions. Teach that the noun or the pronoun on which an infinitive depends is called the subject of that infinitive. XV. HARVEY'S REVISED PRACTICAL GRAMMAR. GENERAL REMARKS.— In Harvey's Elementary Grammar and Composition, the arrangement of the topics relating to technical grammar and analysis corresponds to the order in which they should be studied by beginners. In his Practical Grammar, the topics are arranged in a different manner — those relating to the same subject or division of a subject being grouped to- gether. In many schools, the Practical Grammar is used in teaching classes of beginners. To secure the best re- sults in such schools, the topics properly belonging to an elementary course of instruction should be studied in an order similar to that indicated in this manual. Hav- ing mastered this course, pupils can pursue, easily and profitably, the study of those more difficult topics usu- ally regarded as belonging to an advanced course. In mastering this elementary course, pupils will learn (i) to identify words as belonging to (^le'tain classes, called parts of speech ; (2) to analyze sentences, or to separate them into their principal and subordinate ele- ments ; (3) to define the technical terms employed, and to use them intelligently ; (4) to express thoughts in properly constructed sentences ; (5) the correct use of capital letters, marks of punctuation, etc. In teaching classes of beginners, omit the definitions on page 7 and all of Part I. When necessary in sen- (188) GENERAL REMARKS. 1 89 tence-making and composition, refer to the rules and remarks on the use of capitals, small capitals, etc., in Part I, but do not require pupils to commit them to memory. In an advanced course, reference should be made to Part I for definitions of terms used in orthography, and it may be advisable to have occasional drill exercises in the analysis of syllables and words ; but systematic in- struction in orthography need not be made a part of the course. The "Cautions" should be studied carefully, and pupils required to correct the examples in false syntax. P'requent reference should be made to these cautions in correcting the spoken and written language of pupils. It is by no means necessary that they be learned and recited memoriter. In assigning lessons, the teacher should designate the "Remarks" to be studied, and refer to them frequently in conducting recitations. Pupils may occasionally be required to state in their own language the substance of remarks assigned as a part of a lesson. The "Rules" may be learned when they are needed in parsing exercises. In some instances, the whole or a part of a remark may be used instead of a rule — as in parsing a noun or a pronoun changed from the nomina- tive to the objective case in abridging a proposition, or a noun or a pronoun in the nominative case after a par- ticipial noun in an abridged proposition. (See Remark 3, page 198, and the second part of Remark i, page 182.) In all written exercises, require pupils to observe the rules for the use of the marks of punctuation. In drill exercises in punctuation, use the methods recommended 190 PRACTICAL GRAMMAR. in the "Note to Teachers" on page 252. The exer- cises in the text-books should be studied until the appli- cation of each rule and remark is understood. The subjects under the heading of ** Figures of Lan- guage " may be referred to for the definitions of such technical terms as pupils may have occasion to use in literary exercises. Refer to these terms and their defini- tions when appropriate illustrations occur in reading les- sons. At least one third of the time usually set apart for recitation should be spent in sentence-making and com- position. It is to be regretted that in many schools no attention whatever is paid to these important exercises. Pupils must know how to analyze a given sentence before they can intelligently represent its analysis in a diagram. The proper use of diagrams, therefore, is to supplement oral or written analysis. As a rule, pupils should not begin the study of tech- nical grammar before they are ten years old. Elementary Course. {The references are to Harvey's Revised Practical Grammar.') The Noun: definition. — Page 7. In teaching the defi- nition, use the first paragraph of the oral lesson on page 29. Analysis: definitions. — Lesson I, page 136. Do not require or permit pupils to commit the definitions to memory before they have learned the uses of the terms to be defined. Do not omit any of the exercises in sentence-making on page 137. Rule I, page 245, to be observed in writing. ELEMENTAR V CO URSE. 1 9 1 Analysis. — Lesson II, page 137. The Noun. — Use the second and third paragraphs of the oral lesson on page 29 in teaching the Common Noun and the Proper Noun. Require pupils to point out the nouns in their reading lessons, and to tell whether they are common or proper. Model for Parsing. — "John is an orphan." John is a noun: it is a name; proper: it is the name of a par- ticular person.' OrpJian is a noun; (why?) eommon : it can be applied to any one of a class or kind. Analysis. — Lesson III, page 138, and the classification of sentences with respect to use on page 144. The Adjective. — Use the first four paragraphs of the oral lesson on page 42 in teaching the definition. Do not omit any of the exercises on page 26. The Adjective. — Use the last three paragraphs of the oral lesson on page 43 in teaching the definitions of the two kinds of adjectives. Require the pupils to classify the adjectives as descriptive or definitive in the exercises on page 26. Model for Parsing. — ''Ripe apples are in that box." Ripe is an adjective: it is a word used to describe a noun ; descriptive : it describes a noun by denoting some quality. That is an adjective; (why?) defijiitive : it de- fines without expressing any quality. 77ie Pronoun. — Use the first paragraph of the oral lesson on page 56 in teaching the definition. Require pupils to point out the pronouns in the exercises on page 26 and in their reading lessons. Model for Parsing. — "Who came with you?" Who is a pronoun ; it is a word used instead of a noun. You is a pronoun; (why?). Analysis. — Lesson IV, page 138. Analyze all the ex- 192 PRACTICAL GRAMMAR. ercises, and require pupils to point out and classify all the nouns and adjectives. Use these diagrams: I. Apples are ripe. 2. Birds ply. Apples I are : ripe. Birds | fly. i i~ The Verb. — Teach the definition in the manner indi- cated on page 26, and in the first paragraph of the oral lesson on page 73. Require pupils to write sentences containing verbs denoting action. Analysis. — Lesson V, page 139. Use this diagram: Childre7i love play. Children | love | play. The Verb. — Use the last three paragraphs of the oral lesson on page 73 in teaching the definitions of the three kinds of verbs. Use oral exercises in drills on the application of the terms transitive, intransitive, and copulative. Models for Parsing. — i. ''Pupils recite lessons." Re- cite is a verb; it denotes action; transitive: it requires an object to complete its meaning. 2. **The horse runs." Runs is a verb; (why?) intransitive: it does not require the addition of an object to complete its meaning, 3. "Liberty is sweet." Is is a vci% ; (why?) copulative: it is used to connect a subject and a predicate, and to make an assertion. Analysis. — Lesson VI, page 140. Do not omit any of the exercises in sentence-making. Use sentences written by pupils as additional exercises in analysis. Require pupils to point out the nouns, pronouns, and ELEMENTARY COURSE. 193 adjectives in all the exercises. Be patient, mid do 7iot hiury. Use these diagrams: I. Cold winter conies. winter I comes. 2. The man reads his paper. man | reads | paper. Cold The his The Participle. — Teach the definition in the manner indicated on page 27. Call attention to the difference between a participle and a verb. Teach the classification and definitions as given on pages 78 and 79. Require pupils to point out and classify the participles in the exercises on pages 81 and 82. Use the model for parsing on page 81. Analysis. — Lesson VII, page 141. Teach orally the use and the definition of the term subordinate element. Use these diagrams : I. The wind blows violently. wind I blows 2. Very loud reports were heard. reports | were heard. The I I violently. loud Very The Adverb. — Use the oral lesson on page 115 in teaching the definition. Model for Parsing. — '* He acted wisely." Wisely is an adverb; it is used to modify a verb. The Phrase. — Teach the use of a prepositional phrase, caUing it a ''group of words." Let pupils point out the phrases in the exercises following the definition of the preposition on page 28. Use this diagram : The weary soldiers rested at noon by the roadside. soldiers I rested E. M.-17. weary at noon The by roadside. the 194 PRACTICAL GRAMMAR. The Preposition. — Use the oral lesson on page 121 in teaching the definition. Define the term pJirase (see page 162). Model for Parsing. — "The horse ran over the hill." Over is a pi'eposition ; it shows the relation between its object and some other word : it shows the relation be- tween ///// and ran. Analysis. — Teach the definition of the term simple sentence given on page 145. Use sentences written by pupils as drill exercises in analysis. Many of these sen- tences should contain phrases used as adjective or ad- verbial elements. TJie Pronoun. — Teach the classification of the pro- noun, using the oral lesson on page 56. Illustrate the use of the terms fij'st perso7i, second person, and tJiii'd person before teaching the classification. Models for Parsing. — i. "I have seen him." / is a pronoun; it is a word used instead of a noun: personal; it shows by its form that it is of the first person. 2. "That book is Jiei^s.'' Hers is 3. pjvnoun ; (why?): pos- sessive; it represents both the possessor and the thing possessed. 3. "I am he whom ye seek." Whom is a pronoun; (why?): relative; it represents a preceding word to which it joins a limiting clause. 4. "Who goes there?" Who is 2. pronoun ; (why?): iiiterrogative ; it is used in asking a question. Analysis. — Teach the definition of the term Complex Sentence given on page 145. Require pupils to point out the principal and subordinate clauses in the exer- cises. Use the exercises on page 146, and the first six exercises on page 166 as illustrations. Do not analyze the subordinate clause in a complex sentence, but teach its use as an element. Require pupils to write many ELEMENTARY COURSE. 1 95 sentences containing subordinate clauses. Analyze these sentences, using these diagrams : I. He who studies will 2. Flowers will bloom when spring learn. cojnes. He I will learn. Flowers | will bloom who studies | | when spring comes T/ie Conjunction. — Use the oral lesson on page 127, and the exercises on page 29. Teach the uses and the definitions of the two kinds of conjunctions. Model for Parsing. — '*EH and Silas will improve if they study." Arid is a conjunction; it is a word used to connect words : it connects the words Eli and Silas. If is a conjunction ; it is a word used to connect clauses: it connects the clauses Eli and Silas will improve and they study. Analysis. — Teach the definition of the term simple element given on page 168. Use any appropriate exer- cises in preceding lessons as illustrations. Analysis. — Teach the definition of the term compound element, using exercises on page 174. Use these dia- grams I. John and Seth read well. 2. They run swiftly and gracefully. John and Seth | read They | run well. I swiftly «;? > -1 te* ony it 0) land hH " t-c S n ^•^' s? > etrda to N tleme s , s *i3 S? ^ R. ti» |u Ui. 133 ?= ? J3 >^ to 4^ ^ C> ti to • HH 01 »— ) ON HH ^J \^^ CO HH VO 224 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. A moment or two will be well spent before each reci- tation in reviewing from this chart the items, if any, noted on the previous day. At the end of the week, let all the events so far learned be read from the chart, or recited, with their dates, until each of the six main divisions of the book has been thus learned and re- viewed chronologically. Prejudices. — Neither author nor teacher should allow his personal prejudices to appear in his educational work. A text-book is not a brief, nor is a teacher a lawyer employed to argue a case. A properly prepared text-book aims to present facts, not opinions, as exactly as they can be ascertained from the most reliable sources of information. It is the teacher's duty to perform his share of the work in the same impartial spirit. How- ever strong the personal feelings may be in the matters of religion and politics, neither author nor teacher has the right to obtrude such personal feelings in the school-room, where children, whose parents may be of widely different opinions and feelings in such matters, meet for instruction. The public schools of America should present nothing needlessly offensive to Jew or Gentile, Protestant or Catholic, Republican or Democrat. At the same time, the truths of history should be fearlessly set forth by both author and teacher, regardless of the fact that the truth can not always be universally agreeable. For ex- ample, it can not be a source of pride for inhabitants of New England to learn the events of the * ' Salem witch- craft," or of the persecution of the Quakers and others by their forefathers ; nor for Protestants to learn of the persecution of the Catholics in Maryland, nor for Cath- olics to read of the massacres of the Huguenots. The PR EJUDICES. 225 results of the battles of Bull Run and Gettysburg can not be equally pleasant reading to one who is prejudiced on either side. But the statement of many such facts is absolutely necessary to history, and it seems almost needless to say that it would be radically wrong to dis- tort or suppress such facts when they have a direct bearing on historical results. All such facts should be stated by both author and teacher fearlessly but impar- tially. The author of the Eclectic History has taken the greatest pains to make that book absolutely impartial in all statements which necessarily touch upon the religious or political sentiments of its readers. The highest pos- sible compliment that could be paid to the author's discrimination in this respect consists in the fact that the book has been assailed only by fanatics and extrem- ists, and by fanatics and extremists of opposing factions. The teacher is urged to conduct his recitations in the same intelligent and unpartisan spirit. He must not allow himself to be led into a partisan or sectarian dis- cussion by questions which his pupils may sometimes ask. He will often find it necessary to exercise a spirit of liberality and self-control. The most difficult part of the history of the United States to teach, in this particular, is of course that part which treats of the Civil War, fought to conclusion more than twenty years ago. It is time that the educa- tors of the present day were doing all in their power to allay the bitter feelings aroused in that sad time, and, whether Northerner or Southerner, teach the facts of that war as they are now obtained from the official records of both sides. It is believed that the Eclectic History presents these facts as impartially as it is possi- 226 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. ble to be done. Teach them as impartially as they are presented. If you are a Northerner, avoid teaching on the assumption that every one who fought on the Southern side was necessarily a scoundrel and a villain. If you are a Southerner, be equally liberal towards the opposing ranks of twenty years ago. Prejudice nearly always involves the distortion of the truth ; therefore, the stronger your feelings are on any subject, the more carefully should you guard against their leading you astray. Especially should this fact be remembered by one whose duty it is to enlighten the minds of coming generations. XVII. THE ECLECTIC HISTORY.— THE APPENDIX. THE Appendix of the Eclectic History of the United States should by no means be neglected ; nor should the matter it contains be considered of trivial importance because it is placed in an appendix, and not included in the text proper. It seems neces- sary to make these remarks, owing to the fact that many teachers are in the habit of paying no attention whatever to an appendix simply because it is an appen- dix, totally disregarding the possible importance of the information to be derived from its careful study. The matter in the appendix of the Eclectic History may be used as a basis for two distinct courses of study, embracing information especially valuable to pupils of country schools, from the fact that it is not usually elsewhere accessible to such pupils, while at the same time it is information they certainly should possess. The two courses may be formally divided as follows: 1. The acquisition and transfer of territory, and the growth and development of the United States. 2. The political history and form of government of the United States. As stated, the matter in the te^^t-book is intended to be used merely as a basis of instruction ; it should be supplemented by lectures or talks by the teacher. Both courses of study demand work, however, on the part of the pupils, which it is thought will prove interesting as well as profitable. (227) 228 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. Acquisition and Transfer of Territory. — Growth and Development. The map following page 360 of the Eclectic History, and the explanations accompanying it, are to be used as a basis for the first part of this course of study. It will be necessary for the teacher to procure, also, a small blackboard, say three or four feet square, on which should be painted in white an outline of the United States, including Alaska. The materials for constructing this board and map are probably within reach of every teacher. One or two pine boards, a httle black and less white paint, and a few hours' work are all that is re- quired. This base-map, as it may be called, which is to be used throughout the course, should show simply the outline of the United States as it exists at present, the principal streams, and the meridians and parallels. The latter will be found very useful aids in locating the different interior boundary lines, which are to be filled in with chalk as occasion demands. The present boun- dary lines of states should not be painted on the base- map, as they would detract from the clearness of the work to be performed. Having prepared your base-map, proceed to trace the acquisition and transfers of territory of the United States from the Revolution to the present day, using the map in the book, as a guide for the interior boun- daries. This work requires the greatest care, otherwise serious blunders will be made, and your instruction may do more harm than good. The first thing to be done is to show the boundaries of the United States as established by the treaty of THE BASE- MAP. 22g Versailles (see Article 309), and the boundaries of the thirteen original states. Have the pupils open their books at page one of the Appendix, and, reading the explanations there, tell you where to draw the outlines of the several states in order. If you can procure colored crayons — two or three colors will be sufficient — it will add materially to the clearness of your map to shade adjoining states in different colors. It will be observed that many of the states extended from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River, at this period, while Massachusetts and Connecticut were divided into eastern and western portions, with other states lying be- tween them. The northern and eastern boundary of the present state of Maine was not settled until 1842 (see Article 436), but may be laid down as forming part of the boundary line of the United States at this time. When the map is completed, put the proper title and date, 1783, on it, and have the class copy it on bristol- board; or, better still, in a book, and mark it "No. i." As will be seen, there is to be a regular series of these maps drawn, and the children should be req.uired to pre- serve the set in some neat form. The first change of boundary lines occurred, we find, in 1784, when Virginia ceded her western lands to the United States. This was followed rapidly by similar cessions of other states, until in 1790 the changes be- came so great that a new map is called for, showing the boundaries at that date. Trace the boundaries for this map as you did those for Map No. i, requiring the pupils to study the key and give you instructions how to lay the boundaries down. Insert on this map the date of the several cessions, following the map in the book as a guide. Give the map its title, ''The United States in 230 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. 1790," and mark it "No. 2." Have the children copy and preserve this, as before. Make a map for every decade, 1800, 18 10, etc., and also a map of the country at the time of the several accessions or limitations of territory in 1 803, 18 19, 1842, 1845, 1846, 1848, 1853, and 1867, marking on each map the changes, with their dates, that have taken place since the date of the map preceding. As each of these maps is completed, that portion of the text of the Eclectic History which bears directly upon the changes noted should be read over by the pupils with the map before their eyes. Many facts are thus impressively brought out and stamped on the memory. For example, a study of the map of 1820 will at once show the importance of the contest over the admission of Missouri, etc. When these maps are completed, each pupil will have a valuable portfolio showing the gradual territorial de- velopment of the United States. Moreover, they will have a knowledge of the subject which they could gain probably in no other way, and which they will always retain. In addition to showing the territorial development of the United States, the base-map can also be used to do excellent service in showing graphically the growth of the population and the distribution of the various lead- ing mineral and agricultural products of the country. It is a recognized fact that the graphic method of presenting facts of this nature is immeasurably superior to mere statistics and dry statements. Moreover, the amount of work required from the teacher is merely nominal. For example, the accompanying maps show the areas of the United States in 1790 and 1880, re- INCREASE OE POPULA TION. 231 AREA INHABITED IN 1880. TOTAL POPULATION^ 50,155,783 spectively, inhabited by a population of more than one person to the square mile. These two maps show at a glance the tremendous stride of the country, in less than a century, far more forcibly than could be done by any amount of verbal description. It will take the teacher 232 THE ECLECTIC HISTOR V. but a few moments to shade his base-map after these copies, and the children should be required to copy and compare the two maps. To show how the base-map should be used for dis- playing the distribution of the agricultural and mineral products of the country, let us take the corn crop, for example. The statistics of the United States Census Report for 1880 give the total corn product of the United States at 1,754,591,676 bushels. Of this amount, eight states produced about 72 per cent, as follows : CORN. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 1,754,591,676 Bushels. RANK. LEADING STATES. PKODICTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Illinois . . Iowa . . . Missouri Indiana . . Ohio . . . Kansas . . Kentucky . Nebraska . . 325,792,481 275,014,247 202,414,413 115,482,300 111,877,124 105,729,325 72,852,263 65,450,135 72 Per Cent. 1,274,612,288 Now shade the states on your base-map, graduating the shading roughly to the production, as in the ac- companying map (page 233), and what do we see? The great corn-belt of the United States at once starts forth and impresses itself on the mind as perhaps it never has done before ; and we see, also, by a glance at the TEACHING STATISTICS. 233 E. M— 20. 234 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. map, that the heart of this belt is the heart of the Mississippi Valley. With a very little expenditure of time or trouble, the teacher can show in a like manner the distribution of the other leading products. For the convenience of teachers the statistics of a number of products are pre- sented below. The maps of this series should be reproduced by the pupils, each one marked appropriately "Wheat," "Corn," etc., and preserved for reference. If it is thought desirable, pupils can be supplied with the signal service weather maps of the United States. These cost only fifteen to twenty cents a dozen, are easily procured, and answer the purpose capitally. They will save the pupils the labor and time of drawing a complete map of the United States for each product displayed. WHEAT. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 459,483,137 Bushels. RANK. LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Illinois . . Indiana . . Ohio . . . Michigan . Minnesota Iowa . . . California . . Missouri . . Wisconsin . 51,110,502 47,284,853 46,014,869 35.532,543 34,601,030 31.154,205 29,017,707 24,966,627 24,884,689 70 Per Cent. 324,567,025 AGRICUL TURAL ST A TISTICS. 235 OATS. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 407,858,999 BusJtels. RANK. LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Illinois 63,189,200 • 50,610,591 37.575.506 33,841,439 32,905,320 28,664,505 23,382,158 20,670,958 Iowa .... New York . . Pennsylvania Wisconsin . . Ohio .... Minnesota . . Missouri . . 71 Per Cent. • 290,839,677 BARLEY. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 43,997,495 Bushels. RANK. LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 California .... New York . . . Wisconsin . . . Iowa Minnesota . . . Nebraska . . . Ohio Illinois .... 12,463,561 7,792,062 5,043,118 4,022,588 2,972,965 1,744,686 1,707,129 1,229,523 84 Per Cent. 36,975,632 236 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. RYE. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 19,831,595 Bushels. RANK. LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pennsylvania Illinois . . . New York . . Wisconsin . . Iowa New Jersey . . Kentucky . . Missouri . . . 3,683,621 3.121,785 2,634,690 2,298,513 1,518,605 949,064 668,050 535.426 78 Per Cent. 15,409,754 RICE. Total Production U. S. Census 1880. RANK. ONLY STATES PRODUCING. PRODUCTION IN POUNDS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 South Carolina Georgia . . . Louisiana . . North Carolina Mississippi Florida . 52,077,515 25,369,687 23,188,311 5,609,191 1,718,951 1,294,677 810,889 62,152 Alabama . . . Texas . . . Total in U. S. . . 110,131,373 AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS. 237 BUCKWHEAT. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 11,817,327 Bushels. RANK. LEADING STATES. ! PRODUCTION IN BUSHELS. I 2 3 1 New York .... Pennsylvania . . New Jersey . . . 4,461,200 3-593-326 466,414 72 Per Cent. 8,520,940 COTTON. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 5,755,359 Bales. RANK. LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN BALES. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mississippi . . Georo'ia . 963,111 814.441 805,284 699-654 608,256 522,548 508,569 389.598 330,621 Texas . . . Alabama . . Arkansas . . South Carolina Louisiana . . North Carolina . Tennessee . . 98 Per Cent. 5,642,082 HEMP. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 5,025 Tons. RANK. LEADING STATE. PRODUCTION IN TONS. I Kentucky, 91 Per Ct. 4.583 238 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. SUGAR AND MOLASSES. Cane. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880. RANK. ONLY STATES. HOGSHEADS OF SUGAR. GALLONS OF MO- LASSES. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 Louisiana . . Texas . . . Florida . . . Georgia .... 171,706 4,951 1,273 601 229 94 18 11,696,248 810,605 1,029,868 1,565,784 138,944 795.199 536,625 South Carolina Alabama . . Mississippi . Total, United States, 178,872 16,573.273 SorgJiuni. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880: Sugar, 12792 Lbs; Jlfolasses, 28,444,202 Galls. RANK. LEADING STATES. POUNDS OF SUGAR. J GALLONS OF MO- L.\SSES. I Missouri .... 300 4,129,595 2 Tennessee 265 3,776,212 3 Kentucky . . 554 2,962,965 4 Illinois .... 1,801 2,265,993 5 Iowa .... 1,031 2,064,020 6 Indiana .... 1,141 I.74I.853 7 Kansas . . . 805 1,429,476 8 Ohio .... 270 1,229,852 6,167 19,599,966 A GRIC UL TURAL ST A TIS TICS. 239 Maple. Total Production U. S. Census 1880: Sugar, 36,576,061 Lbs.; Molasses, 1,796,048 Galls. RANK. LEADING STATES. POUNDS OF SUGAR. GALLONS OF MO- LASSES. I 2 3 4 5 6 Vermont .... 'New York .... Michigan .... Ohio Pennsylvania . . New Hampshire . 11,261,077 10,693,619 3.423.149 2,895,782 2,866,010 2,731.945 128,091 266,390 131,990 495.839 140,667 79,712 33.871.582 1,242,689 TOBACCO. Total Production U. S. Census 1880, 472,661,157 Pounds. RANK. . LEADING STATES. PRODUCTION IN POUNDS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kentucky . . Virginia . . . 171,120,784 79,988,868 36,943,272 34,735.235 29,365,052 26,986,213 26,082,147 14,044.652 12,015,657 10,608,423 Pennsylvania Ohio .... Tennessee . . North Carolina Maryland . . . Connecticut . . Missouri . . Wisconsin . . . 93 Per Cent. 441,890,303 240 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. FARM PRODUCTS. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880: Value, $2,212,540,927. RANK. LEADING STATES. ESTIMATED VALUE OF ALL FARM PRODUCTIONS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Illinois .... ^203,980,137 178,025,695 156,777,152 136,103,473 129,760,476 114,707,082 95,912,660 91,159,858 New York . . Ohio .... • Iowa .... Pennsylvania . Indiana . . . Missouri . . . Michigan . . 50 Per Cent. ^1,106,426,533 COAL. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880, 71,067,576 Tons. RANK. LEADING STATES. TONS OF 2,OQO POUNDS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 T> 1 • f Anthracite Pennsylvania i ^ • , •^ ( Bituminous Illinois Ohio 28,640,819 18,425,163 6,115,377 6,008,595 2,228,917 1,839.845 1,461,116 1,454,327 946,288 Maryland West Virginia Iowa Indiana Kentucky 94 Per Cent. 67.120,447 IMPORTANT MINERALS. 241 PIG IRON. Total Production, U. S. Geological Survey 1882, 5,178,122 Tons. RANK. LEADING STATES. NET TONS. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Pennsylvania Ohio . . . New York , . Illinois . . Michigan . New Jersey Tennessee . Missouri Alabama . 2,449,256 698,900 416,156 360,407 210,195 176,805 137,602 113,644 112,765 90 Per Cent. 4.675.730 GOLD. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880: Value, $33,379,663. RANK. LEADING ST.ATES AND TER. VALUE OF PRODUCT. I California .... $17,150,941 2 Nevada 4,888,242 3 Dakota 3.305.843 4 Colorado .... 2,699,898 5 Montana .... 1,805,767 6 Idaho 1.479.653 7 Oregon 1,097,701 97 Per Cent. $32,428,045 Other gold producing States and Territories, in the order of their productions, are : (8) Utah. (9) Arizona. (10) Washington. (11) North Carolina. (12) Georgia. (13) New Mexico. (14) Wyoming. (15) South Carolina. (16) New Hampshire. (17) Virginia. (18) Alaska. (19) Maine. (20) Tennessee. (21) Alabama. E. M.— 21. 242 THE ECLECTIC HISTORY. SILVER. Toial Production, U. S. Census 1880: Value, $41,110,957. RANK. LEADING STATES. VALUE OF PRODUCT. I 2 3 4 5 6 Colorado .... Nevada Utah Montana .... Arizona (estimated) California .... $16,549,274 12,430,667 4.743.087 2,905,068 2,325,825 1,150,887 97 Per Cent. $40,104,808 Other silver producing States and Territories, in the order of their productions are: (7) Idaho. (8) New Mexico. (9) Dakota. (10) Oregon. (11) Michigan. (12) New Hampshire. (13) Maine. (14) Washington. (15) Georgia. (16) North Carohna. (17) South Carolina. (18) Alaska. MANUFACTURES. Total Production, U. S. Census 1880: Value, $5,341,838,890. RANK. LEADING STATES. VALUE OF PRODUCT. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 New York . . . Pennsylvania . Massachusetts . Illinois .... • $1,080,696,596 744,818,445 631,135,284 414,864,673 348,298,390 254,380,236 185,697,211 165,386,205. Ohio . . New Jersey . . Connecticut . Missouri . . . 71 Per Cent. $3,825,277,040 POLITICAL HISTORY. 243 Political History. Professor Moses Coit Tyler, of Cornell University, says: **I teach American history not so much to make historians as to make citizens and good leaders for the state and nation." This should certainly be the aim, also, of every teacher in our common schools. Every boy in America should learn to appreciate thoroughly American political institutions, and should be so trained that when he grows to manhood he will be able to use his franchise intelligently. If time admits of a brief course in political history, the teacher should organize the older boys into a class for this purpose. The course need not occupy much time, and will certainly be most valuable. It should consist largely in oral instruction on American institu- tions, and should treat briefly the following three points : 1. Our form of government compared with others now existing. 2. The origin and growth of our political institutions. 3. The organization and methods of local, state, and national government. The teacher should describe, in a general way, the various forms of government of the great European powers, and compare them with our own, showing where they are alike, where similar, and where and how they are different. Particular attention should be devoted to the English government, on which our own is so largely based. The origin and gradual growth of our political institu- tions should next be traced. The different forms of colonial government should receive brief treatment; the 244 THE ECLECTIC HISTOR Y. causes of the Revolution should be reviewed from the Declaration of Independence (page viii of the Appen- dix) ; and the changes in local government brought about by the Revolution noted. This should be fol- lowed by a short account of the rise and fall of the various political parties since the Revolution, with an outline of their principles. On taking up the subject of modern political institu- tions, commence with instruction in regard to the minor political divisions, first of your own state, and then of the United States generally. It will probably prove of interest to pupils to find that there are three distinct classes of these minor divisions which differ essentially in organization; namely, the **town" system, which is confined to New England; the ''county" system, which exists in all the southern states — except Virginia and North Carolina — and in Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, and California; and the ''compromise," or combined county and township system, which exists in the remaining states of the Union. The compromise system has two forms, very nearly alike, one of which is seen in New York and the other in Pennsylvania. The states adopting this system are cjuite evenly divided between the two forms. Mr. S. A. Galpin, writing of these minor divisions for "Walker's Statistical Atlas of the United States," says: "The two which differ most widely from each other, not only in their general characteristics, but also in their location throughout the country, are the ' town ' system of New England and the ' county ' system of the south. Both of these were firmly rooted in their respective sec- tions before the Declaration of Independence, and passed through the successive transfers of sovereignty POLITICAL HISTORY. 245 growing out of the war of the Revolution without any material change."* That system which prevails in your own state should receive full treatment ; that is, the class should be in- structed as to its minutest details. It will be sufficient to give a simple outline of the other systems, showing their chief points of difference from your own. Next in order comes the state government, which should also receive full treatment, including a study, or at least a reading, of the state constitution. Finally, the class should carefully study the constitu- tion of the United States, which is given on pages xi-xx of the Eclectic History, and should be examined thor- oughly as to their knowledge of the subject by means of the "Questions" on the two succeeding pages. * For full and authentic information on these systems, the teacher is referred to the very interesting article, " The Minor Political Divisions of the United States," from which the above is an extract. PHYSIOLOGY XVIII. PHYSIOLOGY. THE importance of Physiology as a study in the common schools has grown, year by year, until it has attained its proper place, and is now considered a necessary part of education. It is only strange that it has not always been so considered ; for health is recog- nized by all as the prime requisite for a happy life, and we should therefore feel a moral obligation to instruct the young in the fundamental laws of health, and to give them such a knowledge of the human body that they can not violate any of these laws through igno- rance. The study of the text-book on physiology should be deferred until the pupils are old enough to understand and appreciate it; but there are certain laws of health that should be taught to the entire school, and certain requisites demanded by those laws should receive the unremitting attention of every teacher. It is impossible to give a complete list of all the things that should and all that should not be done, but we mention a few of the most important matters which should receive atten- tion. "Cleanliness is indeed next to godliness," and it is the teacher's duty, not only to the individual, but to the school at large, to insist on cleanliness of person on the part of each member of the school. (249) 250 THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOLOGY. Position. — When pupils are reciting, see that they stand squarely on both feet, with the heels together, shoulders back, and head erect. When at their desks, see that pupils do not lounge or sit in a cramped posi- tion. It is not necessary to act the martinet in this matter, but a little care will probably save many little children from strained eyes, weak lungs, round shoul- ders, and ungraceful habits. Voice and Lungs. — When children are reading or speaking, whether in ordinary recitation or in vocal ex- ercises, individually or in concert, see that they use their voices and lungs properly. The voice should be pitched in its natural conversational key, neither higher nor lower. The tones of the voice should always be distinct and resonant, but never loud. The manner of breathing is of the greatest importance, in vocal drills especially. Two points should be insisted upon : first, the breathing should be carried on as much as possible through the nose, and not through the mouth; second, the inspiration should distend the abdomen and the lower part of the chest. TJie shouldci'S and upper paH of the chest should never be raised^ in taking breathy under any circumstances. The celebrated Dr. Lennox Browne, of England, and Professor Emil Behnke, in their joint work, "Voice, Song, and Speech," lay much stress upon the impor- tance of correct breathing. We quote a few passages from their book which bear directly on school training in this particular : "The criterion of correct inspiration is an increase in the size of the abdomen and the lower part of the chest. Whoever draws in the abdomen and raises the upper part of the chest breathes wrongly. VOICE AND LUNGS. 25 I "While we urge the importance of nose breathing for full inflation, which is an act to be performed slowly, steadily, and gradually, we do not deny that for rapid half-breaths occasionally demanded by singer or speaker, inspiration by the mouth is not only justifiable but un- avoidable. Habitual practice, however, in mouth-breath- ing can only lead to great discomfort, if not to actual and direct mischief of the throat, windpipe, and chest ; and such is very probable to result in the foggy and and cold-damp weather of spring, autumn, and winter. . . . It may be added that even asthma and other serious chest diseases are induced from this cause, and that purity and resonance of all vocal tone is diminished or destroyed in proportion to the amount of closure [of the nasal passages]. *'It is not out of place here to mention that respira- tory exercises, and subsequently lessons in reading, re- citing, and singing are oftentimes of the greatest use in strengthening a weak chest ; and, indeed, it is not too much to say in arresting consumption." Temperature and Light. — In regard to temperature and light, the teacher is largely governed by circum- stances beyond his control, but he can always make the best possible out of those circumstances. The school room ought to be thoroughly well ventilated and well lighted, free from drafts, and protected by proper cur- tains or shades from the direct glare of the sun. The heating apparatus should be such as to preserve a proper and uniform temperature. Every school room should be supplied with a thermometer, which should be hung in such a place as will best show the average tempera- ture of the room. It should not be huncf more than four feet above the floor, near a window or heater, nor 252 THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOL OGV. on an outside wall. A thermometer properly hung should not be allowed to vary much from 70° Fahrenheit. If all these conditions can not be obtained, do the best you can to approximate to them. Do not allow a child to sit too near a register or a hot stove, nor in a draft. Neither should a child be allowed to work with the direct sunlight falling upon the paper before him, and dazzling his eyes. Wet Clothing. — Do not allow children to sit in school with wet feet or clothing. If they live too far away to be sent home to change their garments, they should at least be compelled to dry both feet and cloth- ing thoroughly before taking their seats. If this is im- possible, it is far better to send them home for the entire day than to have them run the risk of serious illness. Exercise in the open air and sunlight is a necessity to health, and the younger children especially need abundance of time for this kind of relaxation. The teacher, however, should regulate the exercises, if pos- sible, and warn the children of the dangers of violent exercise, both from over-exertion and from over-heating, and then suddenly cooling, the body. The entire school should be exercised in light gym- nastics at least once each day, and oftener if possible. Simple apparatus, such as wooden dumb-bells, rods, and rings, are desirable, but not essential. If it is possible to do so, employ a few minutes each day with military drill. The excellent effect of this species of drill is well seen in the superior carriage of soldiers and of boys who attend military schools. A very little study of any manual of tactics will give the teacher all the information necessary to conduct this drill, and the results will be found well worth the time THE TEA CHER'S PREPARA TION. 253 and trouble bestowed. When the weather will permit, the drill should be conducted in the open air on the playground. The Eclectic Physiology. Physiology is usually a very interesting subject to pupils, and it is not a difficult subject to teach thor- oughly if it is properly treated. The Teacher's Preparation for conducting his class in their study is of supreme importance. The teacher needs to be fai)iiliar with the subject-matter of the science, and his knowledge must be fresh ; hence, he should study the subject as thoroughly as circumstances will permit, and not confine himself to the text-book used by the class ; and if he has made a thorough study of the subject in times past, but is somewhat "rusty" in his knowledge, he should review the entire subject thoroughly before entering upon class-work. In addition to this general knowledge of the subject, it is of great importance that the teacher should have a special knowledge of the text-book in use. He must understand the aims of the author, the scope of the work, and the plan of arrangement, including the order of topics and the dependence of the various parts of the treatise. Moreover, each day's lesson in turn should receive the teacher's careful attention in advance of at- tempting to conduct the recitation. The Purpose of the study of physiology is two-fold: 1. To give the pupils valuable information. 2. To discipline the minds of the pupils by encourag- ing the habit of sound and systematic thought. The value of the knowledge gained depends upon the 254 THE E CLE C TIC PHYSIOL O G Y. impressiveness of the lessons in hygiene, whereby the pupils should learn to take proper care of their bodies, that they may most effectively maintain good health and avoid disease and weakness. The disciplinary value of physiology depends upon an intelligent and systematic method of instruction upon the part of the teacher, and a corresponding method of study on the part of the pupils. The Plan of instruction should conform to the two purposes just stated. The hygienic features of the science are of paramount importance, and therefore demand the greatest share of attention. Only so much of anatomy and physiology need be learned as will form a basis for intelligent instruction in hygiene. In other words, the pupils are not to be taught as if they were to become surgeons and physicians, but in such manner as will best prepare them for healthful, every-day life. Errors to be Avoided. — The teacher who sees clearly from the beginning the chief importance of hygiene, will be likely to avoid three great errors that are quite common with teachers of physiology : 1. Giving too much attention to the details of anatomy. 2. Making too little practical application of the science to the common affairs of life. 3. Teaching facts in a disconnected and unrelated manner. Aids. — In the study of the human body, the pupil needs to be thoroughly impressed with the fact that he is studying about Jiis own body, — not some body repre- sented in the pictures of his book, or on the charts, but his own, living, throbbing body. To secure this great AIDS. 255 end, the teacher must constantly require the pupils to refer to their own vital processes. They can examine the skin, can notice the breathing, can feel the pulse and heart beat, can examine the eye, and can feel the bones and muscles. They know, also, what hunger and thirst are, what food is, what pain and sickness are, what each special sense gives them. Let the children commence work by considering such facts concerning their own bodies, and their own vital processes ; then the lessons of hygiene which they learn will come very close to them, and they will be likely to apply such lessons to their actual experiences. To aid in creating an interest in the mechanism of the human body, and in giving a clear idea of it, the teacher should use good charts, from which the pupils may more readily see the structure and relation of the parts. Plain, simple charts are valuable aids, because, on the one hand, we can not perform dissection in the school room ; while, on the other, purely verbal descrip- tions are usually feeble as compared with pictorial rep- resentations. In the absence of charts, the teacher, by some effort and practice, may draw many figures upon the black- board, illustrating the parts of the body. The pupils will usually be much interested in making such draw- ings for themselves. In addition to what has already been suggested, the teacher may obtain interesting material from slaughtered animals with which to show the character and arrange- ment of the similar parts of the human body. A hog's heart resembles the human heart very closely. By cut- ting open the hog's heart, the structure and arrangement of the human heart may be studied objectively. In like 256 THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOLOGY. manner, the teacher may show the class the structure of the lungs, liver, kidneys, intestines, bones, joints, eyes, etc., etc. The use of such material for illustra- tion intensifies the interest and impresses the mind far more forcibly than either verbal or pictorial representa- tions. Time of Recitations. — It would be well for the class in physiology to recite daily. A short lesson each day is to be preferred to longer lessons on alternate days. In a mixed school, in which the teacher has many classes each day, the lesson in physiology need not exceed twenty-five minutes in length. Proper Division into Lessons. — A class of ordinary pupils can complete the Eclectic Physiology in one school year of five or six months. A strong class might possibly complete the work in sixteen weeks or less. Nevertheless, it is urged that the teacher aim at thoroughness rather than rapidity. Seventy-five lessons may be considered the average number for a strong class, and certainly no fewer than fifty lessons should be attempted under any circum- stances. If fifty lessons are all that can possibly be given the subject, the following division may prove of value to the teacher in assigning lessons: Introduction Bones Muscles Skin Food Digestion Circulation Respiration Excretion General Nervous System Two lessons. Three lessons. Three lessons. Two lessons. Two lessons. Three lessons. Five lessons. Five lessons. Two lessons. Five lessons. SUBDIVISION OF TOPICS. 257 Touch, Taste, and Smell Sight .... Hearing Sanitary Science . Effects of Alcohol Reviews and Examinations, Total, F\fty Lesso?is. Three lessons. Three lessons. Three lessons. Two lessofts. Two lessojts. Five lessons. If seventy-five lessons can be given, the teacher should divide the subjects proportionately to the above list. The teacher should decide before commencing work exactly how many lessons he proposes to give, make out his schedule accordingly, and then hold firmly to his plan. If he adopt this method, he will find that the pupils will complete the subject within the allotted time, and that, at the same time, the topics in the latter part of the text will receive as full consideration as those treated in the beginning. If this method be not adopted, there is danger of dwelling too long on certain portions of the text at the expense of others. Subdivisions of Topics. — After the teacher has ex- amined the text-book carefully, and has decided both as to the length of time that is to be given to the study, and as to the number of lessons into which the subject is to be divided, as above suggested, he must next de- termine definitely the exact limits of the subdivisions to be made, else the lesssons designed to treat of any divi- sion of the text may not cover the ground they are intended to include. To illustrate this point, the five lessons assigned for the study of circulation must divide that subject properly. It is supposed that the class has just studied the subject of food and the process of digestion. As the food makes blood, it would seem E. M.— 22. 258 THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOL OGY. proper that the class should take for its first lesson in circulation the subject of blood. Certain facts are to be learned about the blood : for example, what the blood is, its importance, its uses, its composition, etc. To learn these facts, the pupils must study articles 66 to 71 inclusive, and must read carefully notes i, 2, and 3. The second lesson should include tJie organs of chxula- tion. These are treated of in articles 72 to 'jj inclusive, and notes 4 and 5. The third lesson should trace the circulation, as taught in articles 78 to 81 inclusive, and note 6. The fourth lesson should include the remaining articles of the chapter, and the teacher should pay par- ticular attention to the hygiene of circulation. The fifth lesson should review and unify the whole chapter. In a similar manner the teacher should divide each chapter of the book into lessons of appropriate length, taking carefully into consideration both the time allotted to a recitation and the total number of lessons that must include the entire subject. Advantages of System. — Let us repeat that all this planning should be closely studied by the teacher before commencing work at all. If the suggestion be heeded, the teacher will find that this definite planning of work will materially add to the efficiency of his instruction in physiology. It aims to accomplish the following ex- cellent results : 1. The orderly presentation of matter. 2. The due division of time among the several parts of the subject. 3. Systematic and intelligent study on the part of the pupils. 4. Topical and methodical recitation of the lessons thus learned. ADVANTAGES OF SYSTEM. 259 Lead pupils to study with the idea of orderly arrange- ment of topics constantly before the mind. If the teacher requires pupils to recite in an orderly manner, they will naturally learn to prepare their work in that way. Bear constantly in mind that the two important aims in the study of physiology are to have the pupils acquire a valuable knowledge of the subject, and to train the mind in systematic and forcible action. Both of these aims are to be attained most readily by the classified form of study and recitation. But beware of bare outlines. The danger in the use of outlines in class-work is that the teacher may use the outline merely as a skeleton, and not put upon it the necessary flesh in which the skeleton should be im- bedded. Classification learned simply as such is of very little use, and teachers should guard carefully against teaching in this way. On the Conduct of Recitations. — Let us suppose that the teacher has assigned a lesson in physiology, and the time has arrived for the recitation. It is supposed that the pupils have been definitely informed as to what to study, and that they know what is to be the plan of recitation. It is not necessary, therefore, for the teacher to ask where the lesson is, and to proceed to ask question after question, to which the pupils give answers. He may direct one of the pupils to state the lesson, and to proceed to recite the first portion of it. At a suitable time the teacher should excuse the first pupil, and ask another to continue the recitation. Passing from one to another in the class, the lesson is soon recited. The omissions made by those pupils who have recited may now be supplied by other pupils. Criticisms may be 26o THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOLOGY, made on the recitations by both pupils and teacher. Questions may be asked to still farther test the pupils in their understanding of the matter recited. Specimens may be examined illustrating the subject under consideration. Recitations may be made from the charts, in which case the pupils point out the represen- tation of the parts described. The pupils may ask ques- tions about any points of particular interest to them, or about such parts as they do not well understand. The notes which refer to certain parts of the lesson may be read aloud. The pupils may write out an outline of the lesson upon the blackboard. The connection between the present lesson and the new lesson that is to be assigned, may be stated by the teacher, and he may call special attention to important and interesting features of the new lesson. Whatever will tend to deepen the interest of the pupils in the study of the subject should be done. Encourage the pupils to converse and to ask questions about the sub- jects studied. To illustrate still more fully, suppose the class is just beginning the subject of respiration, and that the lesson is articles 85, 86, and 87. Here are certain important points to be brought out in the recitation : The constant demand for air by all living things. The air must enter the blood and be circulated, — no other want is more urgent. How plants breathe. How fishes get air. How the higher animals breathe. What respiration is. What the uses of the air are. What the general plan of respiration is. How the air enters the blood. The ten points just enumerated cover the matter in- cluded in the articles, and might form the topics for the recitations to be made by the several pupils of the class. RECITATIONS. 26 1 The teacher might ask such questions as the following to test any member of the class : What are the pur- poses of respiration ? How does the need of air com- pare with the want of food ? How do trees breathe ? How do water animals breathe? How do land animals breathe? How do we breathe? Why do all living things need air? Let it be supposed that the class is to recite the first lesson of Chapter XIV, — "Sight." The topics in this lesson would include the matter contained in articles I35» 1 36* I37» 138. The chief topics are as follows: Sight, what it is. What we learn from the sense of sight. The eyes, what are they? Description of the eyes. The protecting parts of the eyes. Tears, what are they ? Their origin and purpose. How the eye- balls are supported. How they are moved. When the pupils have recited these topics, the teacher may test them by many questions, such as the follow- ing: What is it that comes into the eye from the objects we see ? What do we learn by seeing any thing? Why are the eyes placed as they are? How do the orbits protect the eyes? Of what use are the brows and lashes ? What glands are connected with the eyes? Whence do the tears come? How are the eye- balls kept clean ? How do we turn the eyes ? In connection with this lesson and the one that fol- lows it, the teacher should dissect an eye for the class, as described in note i. Each pupil may learn much by looking at the eye of another person, and by touching and examining his own eye. If the teacher can secure the use of a convex lens, he may perform many interesting experiments with it that will show the action of the lens of the eye. 262 THE ECLECTIC PHYSIOLOGY. It only remains to say that while physiology is usually a very interesting study to children, yet no subject can be made very interesting to a class by a teacher who is himself devoid of interest in that subject. On the other hand, the more real interest the teacher can put into the work, the more enthusiastic will his class be in the study of the subject. The more impressive the lessons of hygiene are, the more valuable will the information be to the pupils. 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