LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 
 
 • LB 1555 
 
 Shelf .&-%! 7 
 
 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
QUIZ-BOOK 
 
 Theory anil Practice of Teaching. 
 
 A. P. SOUTHWICK, A.M 
 
 Author of "The Elementary Question Book," "The Advanced Ques- 
 tion Book," "Dime Series of Question Books," 
 "Quizzism;" Etc., Etc. 
 
 L ° '• 
 
 6 s 
 
 SYRACUSE, N. Y. : 
 
 C. W. BARDEEN, PUBLISHER, 
 
 1887. 
 
.57/7 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1884, by M. T. S. Co. 
 
->M?REBMB.^- 
 
 Aware of the fact that a work of this nature invites criticism because the canons 
 of pedagogy are not fixed and immutable like those of mathematics, and that there 
 are opposing views on all the subjects here discussed, the writer has refrained from 
 making statements that may seem dogmatic, and has tried to avoid all appearance 
 of inviting antagonistic reflections or of conflicting with general professional opin- 
 ion. The teacher should know that there is pre-eminently no "The Method." 
 Method is the outgrowth of philosophy, and must adjust itself to the laws of mind 
 and to the exigencies of science. The power of every true teacher is in himself, his 
 personality, his character, his spirit and his attainments. 
 
 " The science of teaching is a broad one, embracing many laws, and the facts to 
 be noted in actual work are of sufficient importance to indr ce the thoughtful stu- 
 dent to study its philosophy. The true teacher ever seeks to classify the facts daily 
 observed in his teaching, drawing a distinction between those on the one hand 
 which lead to nothing, and those which furnish the ground-work to laws and prin- 
 ciples which make teaching a distinct profession. Use more facts; look for more 
 laws; study the relation of the one to the other." 
 
 No apology is offered for the repetition of certain ideas in the text, the duplica- 
 tion of which is essential to a thorough analysis of the subject in its various 
 divisions. 
 
-^GSF^EFpg, 
 
 With few variations the subject matter will be found arranged as follows. The 
 number indicated in the parentheses is that of the query commencing the special 
 division. 
 
 REFERENGES.-POETRY OF THE SCHOOL.-PEDAGOGIC MOSAICS. 
 
 (1). Problem of Education.— Education Defined.— Noted Educators.— "New 
 Education."— Methods.— Kindergarten Instruction. 
 
 (13). Reading. —Primary and Advanced.— Primary Literature.— Questioning. — 
 General Information.— News Bulletin.— Drills.— Elocution. 
 
 (89). Arithmetic— Teaching Number.— Mental Work. — Analysis. — Inversion 
 of the Divisor.— Tables of Measure and Money.— Object Teaching.— Rules.— Metric 
 System.— Higher Mathematics. 
 
 (170). Naturae History. 
 
 (172). Language Lessons. 
 
 (177). Grammar.— Methods.— Diagrams.— Outlining.— Definitions.— Prosody. 
 — Punctuation. 
 
 (227) . Composition. —Letter Writing.— Methods.— Selection of Topics. 
 
 (249). Rhetoric. 
 
 (251). Etymology. 
 
 (254). Literature.— Methods.— Scrap-Book.— Arousing Interest.— Higher In- 
 struction. 
 
 (268) . Spelling.— Oral.— Written.— Primary.— Methods.— SpeUing-Matches.— 
 Definition Class.— Use of Dictionary.— Orthoepy.— Diacriticals.— Drills.— SpeUing 
 Reform. — Orthographic Parsing. 
 
 (200). Psychology. 
 
 (301). Mental Philosophy. 
 
 (303). Natural Science.— Science Teaching.— " Query Box."— Remedy for 
 Defects in Teaching. 
 
 (310). Physiology.— Methods.— School Hygiene.— As a Moral Factor.— Preser- 
 vation of Health.— Calisthenics.— Lessons in Plants.— Plea for the Sciences. 
 
 (341). Geography.— Methods.— " Moulding."— Descriptive Geography.— Map 
 Drawing.— Writing Pad.—" New Method."— Games.— Variation.— Note Book.— As- 
 tronomy. —Plac.vnames.— Standard Time. 
 
 (391). History.— Methods.— Primary Teaching.— Ethics of History.— Discard- 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 ing the Text-Book.— Mnemonics.— Exciting Interest.— Collateral Reading.— Current 
 History-— Civil Government. 
 
 (431). Penmanship.— Methods.— Mechanical Systems.— Primary Instruction- 
 
 (442). Drawing.— Observation Culture. 
 
 (449). Discipline.— Government.— Why Kindness Fails.— Motives.— External 
 Conditions.— Aids to Discipline.— Human Nature.— Chronic Diseases.— The Remedy 
 — Punishment. 
 
 (501). Attention.— Means of Securing.— How to Fail.— The Highest Art. 
 
 (512). Miscellaneous. — Opening' School.— Programme.— Recitations.— Whis- 
 pering.— No Recess.— " Seven Laws of Teaching."— Friday Afternoons.— Music. 
 —Moral Training.— Habits of the Teacher. — Book-Keeping.— Diversions.— Exhibi- 
 tions.— Expositions.— Giving Assistance.— Making Presents. — Industrial Training. — 
 Practical Education.— Examinations.— Good Schools and Teachers. — Giving Prizes. 
 —Pedagogic Errors.— Director and Teacher. 
 
 A&dcii&n, 
 
 Hints, Helps, Means, and Cautions. 
 
 "Don'ts." 
 
 Educational Aphorisms. 
 
 
Spesial Refepeipes. 
 
 Alexander Bain, LL. D., Education as a Science (price $1.75); published by 
 D. Appleton & Co., New York City. James Johonnot, Principles and Practice of 
 Teaching (price $1.50) ; same publishers. J. Baldwin, The Art of School Manage- 
 ment (price $1.50) ; published by same. In the School Room; or, Chapters in the 
 Philosophy of Education, by John S. Hart, LL. D. (price $1.25); published by Eld- 
 redge &'Bro., Philadelphia. Manuals for Teachers: No. 1, The Cultivation of the 
 Senses; No. 2, The Cultivation of the Memory ; No. 3, On the Use of Words; No. 4, 
 On Discipline; No. 5, On Class Teaching (price 50 cents each); published by the 
 same. 
 
 Ofehep Refepeneeg. 
 
 Parker's Notes of Talks on Teaching; Murdoch's Plea for Spoken Language; 
 Wickersham's Methods of Instruction and School Economy; Orcutt's Teacher's 
 Manual; Ogden's Science of Education and Art of Teaching; Jewell's School Gov- 
 ernment; Lincoln's School and Industrial Hygiene; DoGraff's School Room 
 Guide; Sypher's Art of Teaching School; Holbrook's Normal Methods; Payne's 
 School Supervision; Hughes' Mistakes in Teaching; Hoose's On the Province of 
 Methods of Teaching; Swett's Methods of Teaching; Holbrook's The Nero Method; 
 Tate's The Philosophy of Education; and the writings of Supt. G. F. Luckey, Dr. 
 John Hancock, Dr. John Philbrick, Supt. Matthews, Supt. J. E. Hillard, Chas. 
 G Edwards, Supt, W. L. Balentine, Annie M. Sherrill, G. Dallas Lind, Col. F. W. 
 Parker, John Swett, J. H. Hoose, Supt. W. C. Cole, R. Heber Holbrook, Supt. S. 
 A. Ellis, Hon. T. W. Bicknell, Rev. A. D. Mayo, W. E. Sheldon, Supt. A. A. Wood- 
 bridge. 
 
itonhing, not growth, mate man- 
 hood. Accustom pursclf, therefore, to 
 thinhing. f et purself to understand 
 whateuer gou see or read. 3?o join 
 thinhing with reading is one of the 
 first maxims, and one of the easiest 
 
 OgeratiOllS. -I.saac Taylor. 
 
SFhe Schoolmaster in Literature. 
 
 THE JOLLY PEDAGOGUE. 
 
 Utj CSeorgc a.ntol&. 
 
 'Twas a jolly old pedagogue, long ago, 
 
 Tall and slender and sallow and dry; 
 His form was bent and his gait was slow, 
 His long, thin hair was as white as snow. 
 
 But a wonderful twinkle shone in his eye; 
 And he sang every night as he went to bed, 
 
 "Let us be happy here below; 
 The living should live though the dead be dead." 
 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 He taught his scholars the rule of three, 
 
 Writing and reading and history too; 
 He took the little one up on his knee, 
 For a kind old heart in his breast had he, 
 
 And the wants of the littlest child he knew- 
 "Learn while you're young," he often said, 
 
 "There's much to enjoy down here below; 
 Life for the living and rest for the dead," 
 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 With the stupidest boy he was kind and cool,. 
 
 Speaking only in gentlest tones; 
 The rod was hardly known in his school — 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Whipping, to him, was a barbarous rule, 
 And too hard work for his poor old bones; 
 
 Besides, it was painful, he sometimes said. 
 "We must make life pleasant here below; 
 
 The living need charity more than the dead," 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 He lived in the house by the hawthorn lane, 
 
 With the roses and woodbine over the door; 
 His room was quiet and neat and plain, 
 But a spirit of comfort there held reign, 
 
 And made him forget he was old and poor. 
 "I need so little," he often said, 
 
 "And my friends and relatives here below 
 Won't litigate o'er me when lam dead," 
 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 Then the jolly old pedagogue's wrinkled face 
 
 Melted all over in sunshiny smiles; 
 He stirred his glass with an old-school grace, 
 Chuckled and sipped and prattled apace, 
 
 Till the house grew merry from cellar to tiles. 
 "I'm a pretty old man," he gently said; 
 
 "I have lingered a longtime here below; 
 But my heart is fresh, if my youth is dead," 
 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 He smoked his pipe in the balmy air 
 Every night when the sun went down; 
 
 W 7 hile the soft wind played in his silvery hair, 
 
 Leaving its tenderest kisses there 
 
 On the jolly pedagogue's jolly old crown. 
 
 .And feeling the kisses, he smiled and said, 
 "'Tis a glorious world down here below; 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 Why wait for happiness till we are dead?" 
 Said the jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 He sat at his door one midsummer night, 
 
 After the sun had sunk in the west, 
 And the lingering beams of golden light 
 Made his kindly old face look warm and bright, 
 
 While the odorous night wind whispered rest. 
 Gently, gently, he bowed his head; 
 
 There were angels waiting for him, I know; ■ 
 He was sure of happiness, living or dead, 
 
 This jolly old pedagogue, long ago. 
 
 THE SCHOOLMASTER IN POETRY. 
 
 A STORY OF SCHOOL. 
 
 The red light shone through the open door 
 From the round, declining sun. 
 
 And fantastic shadows all about 
 On the dusty floor were thrown, 
 
 As the factory clock told the hour of Ave, 
 And the school was almost done. 
 
 The mingled hum of the busy town 
 Rose faint from the lower plain; 
 
 And we saw the steeple over the trees, 
 With its motionless, golden vane; 
 
 And heard the cattle's musical low, 
 And the rustle of standing grain. 
 
 In the open casement a lingering bee 
 
 Murmured a drowsy tune; 
 And from the upland meadows, a song 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 In the lulls of the afternoon 
 Had come on the air that wandered by, 
 Laden with scents of June. 
 
 Our tasks were finished and lessons said, 
 
 And we sat, all hushed and still, 
 Listening to catch the purl of the brook, 
 
 And the whirr of the distant mill; 
 And waiting the nod of dismissal, that yet 
 
 Waited the master's will. 
 
 The master was old and his form was bent, 
 
 And scattered and white his hair, 
 But his heart was young, and there ever dwelt 
 
 A calm and kindly air, 
 Like a halo over a pictured saint, 
 
 On his face marked deep with care. 
 
 His eyes were closed, and his wrinkled hands 
 
 Were folded over his vest, 
 As wearily back in his old arm chair 
 
 He reclined as if to rest; 
 And the golden streaming sunlight fell 
 
 On his brow and down his breast. 
 
 We waited in reverend silence long, 
 
 And silence the master kept, 
 Though still the accustomed saintly smile 
 
 Over his features crept, 
 And we thought that, worn with the lengthened toil 
 
 Of the summer's day, he slept. 
 
 So we gently rose and left our seats, 
 
 And outward into the sun 
 From the gathering shades of the dusty room, 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 13 
 
 Stole gently one by one; 
 For we knew, by the distant-striking clock, 
 It was time the schgol Mas done. 
 
 And left the master sleeping alone, 
 
 Alone in his high-hack chair, 
 With his eyelids closed, and his withered palms 
 
 Folded as if in prayer, 
 And the mingled light and smile on his face, 
 
 And we knew not Death was there. 
 
 Not knowing that just as the clock struck five, 
 
 His kindly soul away 
 A shadow messenger silently bore 
 
 From its trembling house of clay, 
 To be a child witli the saints of heaven, 
 
 And dwell with Christ alway! 
 
 —New York Teacher. 
 
 YE PEDAGOGUE. 
 
 3Bg 3oh« <&■> Saxt. 
 
 A CONTEMPLATIVE BALLAD. 
 
 Righte learn eed is ye Pedagogue, 
 Fulle apte to reade and spelle; 
 
 And eke to teache ye parts of speeche, 
 And strap ye urchins welle. 
 
 For as 'tis meete to soake ye feete, 
 
 Ye ailinge head to mende, 
 Ye younker's pate to stimulate, 
 
 He beats ye other ende! 
 
I4 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Righte lordlie is ye Pedagogue 
 As any turbaned Turke; 
 
 For welle to rule ye District Schoole, 
 It is no idle worke. 
 
 For oft Rebellion lurketh there 
 In breast of secret foes, 
 
 Of malice full, in waite to pulle 
 Ye Pedagogue his nose! 
 
 ■&"»■ 
 
 Sometimes he heares, with trembling feares, 
 
 Of ye ungodlie rogue 
 On mischieffe bent, with felle intent 
 
 To licke ye Pedagogue! 
 
 And if ye Pedagogue be smalle, 
 
 When to ye battell led, 
 In such a plighte, God send him mighte, 
 
 To break ye rogue his head! 
 
 Daye after daye, for little paye, 
 
 He teacheth what he can, 
 And bears ye yoke, to please ye f olke, 
 
 And ye Committee-man. 
 
 Ah! many crosses hath he borne, 
 
 And many trials founde, 
 Ye while he trudged ye district through 
 
 And boarded rounde and rounde! 
 
 Ah! many a steake hath he devoured 
 
 That by ye taste and sighte, 
 Was in disdaine, 'twas very plaine, 
 
 Of Day his patent righte! 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 Fulle solemn is ye Pedagogue, 
 
 Among ye noisy churls; 
 Ye other while he hath a smile 
 
 To give ye handsome girls! 
 
 And one — ye fayrest mayde of all — 
 
 To cheer his wayninge life, 
 Shall be, when Springe ye flowers shall bringe, 
 
 Ye Pedagogue, his wife! 
 
 — New York Ledger. 
 
 AFTER SCHOOL. 
 
 By CS. IT, 3oftttson. 
 
 Beside the window she sits and dreams, 
 And w^atches the shades on the river fall — 
 
 The purple hills in the distance sleep, 
 
 And the sunshine comes glinting over all. 
 
 Her thoughts go back to the days of youth, 
 
 When she roamed the hills 'neath the skies of May ; 
 And voices fall on her longing ear 
 
 Like the strains of some mem'ry-haunting lay. 
 
 The head droops low o'er the weary hand, 
 
 And the dreamy eyes are suffused with tears, 
 While drifting up, like the sunset clouds, 
 Come the tender thoughts of those vanished years. 
 
 From the parted lips escapes a sigh, 
 
 And the lids droop low o'er the pearly tears; 
 
 The white cheek rests on the weary hand, 
 And the spirit seeks for the vanished years. 
 
j6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Night lowers fast; 'round the weary frame 
 Play the gathering breezes, damp and cool; 
 
 She sleeps! How sweet will the waking be, 
 
 When angels shall whisper, 'Tis " after school." 
 — Journal of Education. 
 
 THE SCHOGLMARM'S STORY. 
 
 By 133olstan ©ixeij. 
 
 A frosty chill was in the air, 
 
 How plainly I remember — 
 The bright autumnal fires had paled, 
 
 Save here and there an ember; 
 The sky looked hard, the hills were bare, 
 And there were tokens everywhere 
 
 That it had come — November. 
 
 I locked the time-worn school-house door, 
 
 The village seat of learning, 
 Across the smooth, well-trodden path 
 
 My homeward footsteps turning; 
 My heart a troubled question bore, 
 And in my mind, as oft before, 
 
 A vexing thought was burning. 
 
 " Why is it up-hill all the way?" 
 
 Thus ran my meditations; 
 'The lessons had gone wrong that day, 
 
 And I had lost my patience. 
 " Is there no way to soften care, 
 And make it easier to bear 
 
 Life's sorrows and vexations?" 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 17 
 
 Across my pathway, through the wood, 
 
 A fallen tree was lying; 
 On this there sat two little girls, 
 
 And one of them was crying. 
 I heard her sob: "And if I could, 
 I'd get my lessons awful good; 
 
 But what's the use of trying?-' 
 
 And then the little hooded head 
 Sank on the other's shoulder, 
 
 The little weeper sought the arms 
 That opened to enfold her. 
 
 Against the young heart kind and true, 
 
 She nestled close, and neither knew 
 That I was a beholder. 
 
 And then I heard — ah! ne'er was known 
 Such judgment without malice, 
 
 No queenlier counsel ever heard 
 In senate-house or palace! — 
 
 "I should have failed there, I am sure; 
 
 Don't be discouraged, try once more, 
 And I will help you, Alice." 
 
 "And I will help you." This is how 
 To soften care and grieving; 
 
 Life is made easier to bear 
 By helping and by giving. 
 
 Here was the answer I had sought, 
 
 And I, the teacher, being taught 
 The secret of true living. 
 
 If "I will help you" were the rule, 
 How changed beyond all measure 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Life would become! Each heavy load 
 
 Would be a golden treasure; 
 Pain and vexation be forgot; 
 Hope would prevail in every lot, 
 
 And life be only pleasure. 
 
 — Treasure Trove. 
 
 THE TEACHER'S WIFE. 
 
 She forms no hard cast-iron plan 
 
 To guide her little school, 
 Only to do the best she can 
 
 And give the golden rule. 
 
 Her husband over science pores, 
 Till eye and thought grow dim; 
 
 She counts the culinary stores, 
 And covers books for him. 
 
 Her desk, the corner rocking-chair; 
 
 Her pen, the needle busy; 
 Her call-bell, Bertie's, "Are you there?" 
 
 Or, "Mamma, come to Lizzie." 
 
 Her programme, breakfast, dinner, tea; 
 
 Her teaching-exercise, 
 Form, learned by baby's foot and knee,. 
 
 Color, by papa's eyes. 
 
 Her term from June to leafy June, 
 
 She asks for no vacation ; 
 Her rest, the chat at morn or noon, 
 
 A walk, her recreation. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 19 
 
 The old, old story of the heart, 
 
 Told 'neath the summer sky; 
 She thinks it o'er, her noblest art 
 
 To sing a lullaby. 
 
 The book of books helps each of them; 
 
 He reads of rest from noise; 
 She, that "The new Jerusalem 
 
 Is full of girls and boys." 
 
 " We'll fit them, dear," she says, and smiles, 
 
 " To walk the golden street, 
 And see that nothing which defiles 
 
 Shall touch their hands or feet." 
 
 " This is your school, your pupils we," 
 
 He says, "my model teacher; 
 Lessons more wise, you give to me, 
 
 Than book, or pen, or preacher." 
 
 And so she sends her girls and boys 
 
 To bed for nightly rest, 
 And says, while picking up their toys, 
 
 "Isn't my school the best?" 
 
 — -Journal of Education. 
 
 A SCHOOL-DAY. 
 
 Bg ^ail! T. intSparran. 
 
 " Now, John," the district teacher says, 
 With frown that scarce can hide 
 
 The dimpling smiles around her mouth, 
 Where Cupid's hosts abide, 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 " What have you done to Mary Ann, 
 
 That she is crying so? 
 Don't say 'twas 'nothing' — don't, I say, 
 
 For, John, that can't be so. 
 
 "For Mary Ann would never cry 
 
 At nothing, I am sure; 
 And if you've wounded justice, John, 
 
 You know the only cure 
 Is punishment! So, come, stand up; 
 
 Transgression must abide 
 The pain attendant on the scheme 
 
 That makes it justified." 
 
 So John steps forth, with sun-burnt face, 
 
 And hair all in a tumble, 
 His laughing eyes a contrast to 
 
 His drooping mouth so humble. 
 "Now, Mary, you must tell me all — 
 
 I see that John will not, 
 And if he's been unkind or rude, 
 
 I'll whip him on the spot." 
 
 ""W — we were p — playin' p — pris'ner's b — base, 
 
 An' h — he is s — such a t — tease, 
 An'w — when I w — wasn't 1 — lookin', m — ma'am, 
 
 H — he k — kissed me — if you please!" 
 Upon the teacher's face the smiles 
 
 Have triumphed o'er the frown, 
 A pleasant thought runs through her mind, 
 
 The stick conies harmless down. 
 
 But outraged law must be avenged! 
 
 Begone, ye smiles, begone! 
 Away, ye little dreams of love, 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 Come on, ye frowns, come on! 
 "I think I'll have to whip yon, John, 
 
 Such conduct breaks the rule; 
 No boy, except a naughty one, 
 
 Would kiss a girl — at school." 
 
 Again the teacher's rod is raised, 
 
 A Nemesis she stands — 
 A premium were put on sin, 
 
 If punished by such hands! 
 As when the bee explores the rose 
 
 We see the petals tremble, 
 So trembled Mary's rose-bud lips — 
 
 Her heart would not dissemble. 
 
 " I wouldn't whip him very hard" — 
 
 The stick stops in its fall — 
 "It wasn't right to do it, but — 
 
 It didn't hurt at all!" 
 "What made you cry, then, Mary Ann?" 
 
 The school's noise makes a pause, 
 And out upon the listening air, 
 
 From Mary comes — "Because!" 
 
 — The Continent. 
 
 thp: district school. 
 
 Uy 32cniamin Y. ^Taylor. 
 
 Don't yon hear the children coming, 
 
 Coming into school? 
 Don't you hear the master drumming 
 
 On the window with his rule? 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Master drumming, children coming 
 Into school? 
 
 Tip-toed fingers reach the catch, 
 Tiny fingers click the- latch; 
 Curly-headed girls throng in, 
 Lily free from toil and sin. 
 Breezy boys bolt in together, 
 Bringing breaths of winter weather, 
 Bringing baskets Indian checked, 
 Dinners in them sadly wrecked. 
 Ruddy handed mittens off, 
 Soldiers rush from Malakoff — 
 Built of snow, and marble white 
 Bastions shining in the light, 
 Marked with many a dint and dot 
 Of the ice-cold cannon shot! 
 Hear the last assaulting shout! 
 See the gunners rally out — 
 Charge upon the battered door — 
 School is called, and battle o'er! 
 
 LESSONS. 
 
 Btj Sallxe H. iloach- 
 
 "The school of the intellectual man is the place where he happens to be, and 
 his teachers are the people, books and animals, plants, stones, and earth round 
 about him."— Philp Gilbert Hamerton. 
 
 There are lessons to learn through the school time of life, 
 In the great, pressing throng, 'mid its hurry and strife: 
 There are teachers around us great truths to make plain; 
 There are sources from which daily knowledge to gain. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 23 
 
 There are lessons of love from the birds and flowers, 
 Whose perfume and song fill the glad summer hours; 
 There are lessons of trust and of hope when the snow 
 Wraps in semblance of death the new life we shall know. 
 
 There are lessons of might in the starry-gemmed sky— • 
 In the voice of the wind as it swift passeth by; * 
 There are lessons of awe in the broad-crested waves, 
 Breaking still as they broke over centuries' graves. 
 
 There are lessons of toil from the insects in air; 
 There are lessons of patience, and duty and care. 
 While the woodland re-echoes with industry's tones, 
 Shall we, "little lower than angels," be drones? 
 
 There are lessons of man's mental gifts in the store 
 Of rich, garnered knowledge each age reckons more. 
 Shall not yet every year, every nation and clime, 
 Man by man, add the gems that shall each tell its time? 
 
 There are lessons of life as each day turns the page, 
 From the spring-time of youth to the frost-time of age; 
 There are lessons of wanderings, lessons of tears, 
 Re-echoed in wails floating on through the years. 
 
 Aye, and still there are lessons of honor and right, 
 Like radiant beams shining far through the night; 
 There are lessons of manhood, and wisdom and truth, 
 Unrolled for the guidance and welfare of youth. 
 
 Let us heed them — these lessons for mind and for heart — 
 Gleaning still, day by day, that each God-given part, 
 Well schooled through the years, form at last the grand whole, 
 Which shall yet live eternal — a perfected soul. 
 
 — The Teacher. 
 
24 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 THE VILLAGE SCHOOLMASTER. 
 
 Btj OHocr (TiolismiHi. 
 
 Beside yon straggling fence, that skirts the way, 
 
 With blossomed furze unprofitably gay, 
 
 There, in his noisy mansion, skilled to rule, 
 
 The village master taught his little school. 
 
 A man severe he was, and stern to view : 
 
 I knew him well, and every truant knew. 
 
 Well had the boding tremblers learned to trace 
 
 The day's disasters in his morning's face ; 
 
 Full well they laughed with counterfeited glee 
 
 At all his jokes, for many a joke had he ; 
 
 Full well the busy whisper, circling round, 
 
 Conveyed the dismal tidings when he frowned. 
 
 Yet he was kind, or, if severe in aught, 
 
 The love he bore to learning was in fault. 
 
 The village all declared how much he knew : 
 
 'Twas certain he could write and cipher, too ; 
 
 Lands he could measure, storms and tides presage ; 
 
 And e'en the story ran that he could gauge ; 
 
 In arg'ing, too, the parson owned his skill, 
 
 For e'en though vanquished, he could argue still ; 
 
 While words of learned length and thund'ring sound 
 
 Amazed the gazing rustics ranged around ; 
 
 And still they gazed, and still the wonder grew, 
 
 That one small head could carry all he knew. 
 
 But past is all his fame, the very spot 
 
 Where many a time he triumph' d is forgot. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 25 
 
 A COUNTRY SCHOOL. 
 
 Qg <5. ^. Cutler. 
 
 Pretty and pale and tired 
 
 She sits in her stiff-backed chair, 
 While the blazing summer sun 
 
 Shines on her soft brown hair; 
 And the little brook without, 
 
 That she hears through the open door, 
 Mocks with its murmur cool 
 
 Hard bench and dusty floor. 
 
 It seems an endless round — 
 
 Grammar and A. B. C; 
 The blackboard and the sums; 
 
 The stupid geography; 
 When from teacher to little Jim 
 
 Not one of them care a straw, 
 Whether "John" is in any "case," 
 
 Or Kansas in Omaha. 
 
 For Jimmy's bare brown feet 
 
 Are aching to wade in the stream, 
 Where the trout to his luring bait 
 
 Shall leap with a quick, bright gleam; 
 And his teacher's blue eyes stray 
 
 To the flowers on the desk hard by, 
 'Till her thoughts have followed her eyes 
 
 With a half unconscious sigh — 
 
 Her heart outruns the clock, 
 
 As she smells their faint sweet scent; 
 
■^6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 But when have time and heart 
 Their measure in unison blent? 
 
 For time will haste or lag, 
 
 Like your shadow on the grass, 
 
 That lingers far behind, 
 
 Or flies when you fain would pass. 
 
 Have patience, restless Jim, 
 
 The stream and fish will wait; 
 And patients, tired blue eyes — 
 
 Down the winding road by the gate, 
 Under the willow shade, 
 
 Stands some one with fresher flowers; 
 So turn to your books again, 
 
 And keep love for the after hours. 
 
fedagQgi© M@s§i(iS, 
 
 Sducatton is th.* one lining "Fountain tuhtch must n*at©r euerg 
 part oi the Social <J5ar6en.*' 
 
 What sculpture is to a block of marble, education is to 
 a human soul. The philosopher, the saint and the hero, the 
 wise, the good and the great man very often lie hid and con- 
 cealed in a plebeian, which a proper education might have dis- 
 interred and brought to light. — Addison. 
 
 The essential difference between a good and a bad edu- 
 cation is this, that the former draws on the child to learn by 
 making it sweet to him; the latter drives the child to learn by 
 making it sour to him if he does not. — Charles Buxton. 
 
 Language is not an instrument into which if a fool breathe, 
 it will make melody. — Godwin Smith. 
 
 I wish to have them speake so it may well appeare that 
 the brain governe the tonge, and that reason leadeth forth 
 the taulke. — Roger Ascham. 
 
 The secret of thrift is knowledge. 
 
 — Charles JKingsley. 
 
 If your head always directs your pupil's hands, his own 
 head will become useless to him. — Rousseau. 
 
 That in education we should proceed from the simple to 
 the complex is a truth which has always been to some extent 
 
2 8 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 acted upon; not professionally, indeed, nor by any means 
 consistently. The mind grows. Like all things that grow it 
 progresses from the homogeneous to the heterogeneous; and 
 a normal training system being an objective counterpart of 
 this subjective process, must exhibit the like progression. 
 
 — Herbert Spencer. 
 
 The teacher is like the candle, which lights others in con- 
 suming itself. — Ruffini. 
 
 Let me here remark, that it were better for parents to 
 teach their children morals, and cultivate their hearts rather 
 than their brains in the present generation. We would thus 
 have fewer criminals and more virtue. — Trude. 
 
 The best part of our knowledge is that which teaches us 
 where knowledge leaves off and ignorance begins. 
 
 — 0. W. Holmes. 
 
 Education has to deal with the heart, the head, and the 
 hand. — Pestalozzi' 's Axiom. 
 
 Things that have to be done should be learned by doing 
 them. — Comenius. 
 
 The thing we want to save for our children is the habit 
 of intense patient reading of the world's few good books. 
 
 — Talk with Teachers. 
 
 Would you teach for all time? Keep your eyes well on 
 the ends, or rather on the aims, the far-off, ultimate aims, and 
 beware of losing your efficiency in exclusive attention to 
 immediate results. Never, for a moment, lose your faith in 
 the universal law of love, which, in the emotional world, is 
 as unfailing and as free from exceptions as the law of gravi- 
 tation in the world of matter. Never for a moment lose your 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACH IXC. 
 
 faith in truth, which, by the same law, the mind is destined 
 inevitably to find; nor in that supreme freedom of the will 
 to follow truth and love. 
 
 Education is a better safe-guard of liberty than a standing 
 army. If we retrench the wages of the schoolmaster, we 
 must raise those of the recruiting sergeant. 
 
 — Edward Everett. 
 
 For one to possess capacity for knowledge, and die ignor- 
 ant — this, I call tragedy. — Carlyle. 
 
 The government of the child should be kingly. 
 
 — Aristotle. 
 
 Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, and at 
 last we can not break it. — Horace Mann. 
 
 Our school-houses are all the days and nights of our 
 e xistence. — Carlyle. 
 
 TO THE TEACHER. 
 
 Thou must be true thyself 
 If thou the truth wouldst teach; 
 Thy soul must overflow, if thou 
 Another soul wouldst reach; 
 It needs the overflowing heart 
 To give the lips full speech. 
 Think truly, and thought 
 Shall the world's famine feed; 
 Speak truly, and thy word 
 Shall be a fruitful seed; 
 Live truly, and thy life shall be 
 A great and noble creed. 
 
 "No man ever yet attained excellence in any art or pro- 
 fession, who has not floating before his mind by day and 
 
3° 
 
 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 night, an ideal, and vision of what he might and ought to 
 do," states a writer of distinction; "and while his aspirations 
 are circumscribed by the actual, and his efforts do not over- 
 leap the probable, he is a mere mediocre, for it is this ideal 
 which stimulates the mind to its loftiest and grandest 
 achievements." 
 
 Teacher! to thyself 
 Thou has assumed responsibilities 
 Of crushing weight. A mighty peerless work 
 Is thine. The golden chords attuned by thee, 
 Or grown by thy neglect discordant, not 
 In time alone, but through the limitless 
 Expanse of all eternity, shall throb; 
 And should one note, which thou, by greater care, 
 More zealous labors, or by added skill, 
 Might now attune in harmony, be found 
 At last in dissonance with virtue, truth, 
 Or mental symmetry, in Heaven's sight, 
 Methinks a fearful guilt will on thee rest. 
 Thou hast to do with God's most noble work! 
 The image fair, and likeness of himself! 
 Immortal mind. That emanation bright 
 From his Divinity! Sole transfer made 
 To man from his own deathless nature! Such, 
 Instructor, is thy trust! Thus sacred, high, 
 And precious, e'en beyond all finite power 
 To estimate, thy holy charge. No work 
 Of art, or finest mechanism in things 
 Material, hath e'er so challenged for 
 Its right discharge e'en the vast aggregate 
 Of human skill. 
 
theory and Practice of teaching. 
 
 iftucnlion is at Home a -Tri-cno, Abroad an Introduction, in Soli- 
 tudc a Solace, in Society an Ornament* 
 
 1. What is the great problem in education? 
 
 "How to induce the pupil to go through with a course 
 of exertion, in its result good and even agreeable, but imme- 
 diately and in itself, irksome." 
 
 — A lexa n tier Ham ilton . 
 
 2. What is Education? 
 
 " Education is the generation of Power. 1 
 
 — Pestalozzi. 
 
 " Education is the culture which each generation purpose- 
 ly gives to those who are to be its successors in order to grat- 
 ify them for at least keeping up, and, if possible, for raising 
 the improvement which has been attained." 
 
 — John Stuart Mill. 
 
 " Education is developing in due order and proportion 
 whatever is good and desirable in human nature." 
 
 — Hart. 
 
 " Education is the harmonious and equable evolution of 
 the human powers." — Prussian Idea. 
 
 "Education as an art consists in selecting and applying: 
 the means used for imparting instruction and culture." 
 
 — Wickersham. 
 
3 j A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 t 
 
 " Education embraces the culture of the whole man with 
 all his faculties." — Anon. 
 
 "The end of Education is to render the individual, as 
 much as possible, an instrument of happiness to himself and 
 next, to other beings." — James Mill. 
 
 " How to make the most of one's self, is not this the pur- 
 pose and problem of Education? Education in its broadest 
 sense means development. It is the evolution of every human 
 power." — Baldwin. 
 
 "The object of Education is to produce a well-balanced, 
 many-sidedness of interest." — Anon. 
 
 " The true objective point in Education is the develop- 
 ment and culture of the mind. — Kellogg. 
 
 "The aim of Education is morality. — Herbart. 
 
 "Education as a science comprehends the laws of the 
 physical and mental constitution of man, and its relations to 
 those means by which he can receive instruction and cul- 
 ture." — Anon. 
 
 " Education is confined to the efforts made of set pur- 
 pose, to train men in a particular way; the efforts of the 
 grown-up part of the community to inform the intellect and 
 mould the character of the young; and more especially to the 
 labors of professional educators or schoolmasters." 
 
 — Chambers'* Encyclopedia. 
 
 " Moral culture is pre-eminently the aim of all Educa- 
 tion." — Eichte. 
 
 " Education, in its true sense, seems to be a full, perfect 
 discipline not only of the mental and moral powers, but of the 
 physical as well." — Raab. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 33 
 
 u The term Education is derived immediately from the 
 Latin word 'educare' (to bring up or to instruct) from the 
 root 'educere' (to lead forth, or to draw out). This literal 
 rendering but imperfectly represents the meaning that 
 now attaches to the word. It not only means to draw out, 
 but it includes the appliances and. agencies necessary for the 
 development of a human being." — Jo/ionnot. 
 
 " Education, in the most extensive sense of the word, 
 may comprehend every preparation that is made in our youth 
 for the sequel of our lives." — Paley. 
 
 " To learn how to observe and how to distinguish things 
 correctly is the greater part of Education" — -As,/ Gray. 
 
 3. Name some noted educators. 
 
 Pestalozzi, Froebel, Jacotot, Dr. Arnold, Frederick 
 Barnard, Henry Barnard, Horace Mann, Adolph Diesterweg, 
 Louis Agassiz, Herbert Spencer, Thomas H. Huxley, 
 Joseph Payne, and many other noted names of our own time. 
 
 4. What are the "Nine Laws" of Pestalozzi? 
 
 1. Activity is the law of childhood. Accustom the 
 child to do— educate the hand. 
 
 2. Cultivate the faculties in their natural order. First 
 form the mind, and then furnish it. 
 
 3. Begin with the senses, and never tell a child what he 
 can discover for himself. 
 
 4. Reduce the subject t<< its elements. One difficulty 
 at a time is enough for a child. 
 
 5. Proceed step by step; be thorough. 
 
 6. Let every lesson have a point. 
 
 7. Develop the idea, then give the term. 
 
 8. Proceed from the known to the unknown. 
 
 9. Synthesis, then analysis; not the order of the subject, 
 but the order of nature. 
 
34 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 5. What educational principles have always been asserted? 
 All great educators from Socrates and Plato to the pres- 
 ent, have enunciated the following: 1. The individual free- 
 dom of teacher and pupil. 2. The cultivation of sense- 
 perception as the foundation of mental growth. 3. The 
 study of the laws of mental growth, as developed in the 
 child, the first qualification of the teacher for his high office. 
 
 4. The true educational spirit never asserts but inquires. 
 
 5. Induction precedes deduction. There must be an in-leading 
 before there can be an out-leading, or drawing-out process. 
 
 6. What is meant by the "New Education?" 
 
 It is based on the great principle of directing instead of 
 repressing the activity of childhood. The general principles 
 of this normal instruction have been applied in many public 
 schools for years past, but to Col. Francis W. Parker belongs 
 the credit of having systematized and perfected this method. 
 Time and the ceaseless march of events which have changed 
 so much the fashion of our outward lives, have not spared 
 the primary schools of the country. It is next to impossible 
 to describe intelligently and briefly the change that is going 
 on, and it is difficult to predict the consequences that will in 
 the course of years result from the "new education." The 
 traditional order of studies — the Alphabet, Spelling, Read- 
 ing, Writing — has been completely reversed, and the new 
 order is Writing, Reading, Spelling. In place of learning to 
 read and to spell through the medium of spelling, children 
 learn to read and to spell through the medium of writing. 
 The alphabet which used to occupy the first three months of 
 a child's school life is left to take care of itself. Drawing 
 and music, the "extras" of the boarding school and institute, 
 are made fundamental exercises in the new primary school. 
 Composition, which as a study, was formerly postponed to 
 
A N D 7 ' R A CTICE OF TEA CHING . 35 
 
 the High School course, is begun in the first year of school 
 life. Spelling, which was once the " grand gymnastic" of 
 the schools for the first seven years, is now reduced to a sub- 
 ordinate position. It is considered sufficient that a child 
 should be able to spell all the words that he can use. To 
 learn more is thought to be a waste of time, for the ability to 
 spell other words is expected to come with the knowledge of 
 the words themselves, and the knowledge of the words will 
 come with more extensive reading. Thus reading is made 
 the means of teaching spelling instead of using spelling, as 
 in former days, as a preparation for reading. 
 
 7. What are its results? 
 
 The current of change seems to set in the direction of a 
 knowledge of tilings rather than of words; and in addition to 
 the three R's which were once supposed to constitute the 
 sum and substance of elementary knowledge, we have three 
 other things to teach — to observe closely, to think justly, and 
 to express thought correctly. 
 
 8. What is meant by the History of Education? 
 
 The narration of the success or the failure, the causes 
 and the effects of the various educational systems and efforts 
 which have characterized the past. 
 
 9. What is the object of education? 
 
 To develop mind, body and soul; to make men and 
 women of the children committed to our care, to the end that 
 that they may become good citizens. 
 
 10. W^hat may be said of the educator? 
 
 His knowledge should be adequate to accomplish the 
 obj ect sought to be attained. His character should be such as 
 to make him the example of the children committed to his 
 
36 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 care, and, additionally, he should be largely possessed of that 
 very uncommon commodity, common sense. The teacher 
 who does not enter the business as a life-work, rather than a 
 "makeshift," is unfit for the profession. 
 
 11. Can "anybody" teach school? 
 
 No. Tt is popularly believed that all professions, except 
 one, must be learned by study and practice in their own 
 particular lines, but that teaching, the most important of all 
 professions, does not require any special training. A greater 
 mistake could not be made. A knowledge of geography, 
 arithmetic, and the spelling book will not make a successful 
 teacher, and the claim that any one with a good general edu- 
 cation, the graduates of High Schools, Academies, and 
 Colleges are competent to teach in the public schools, and 
 should be licensed as such, is no more true of education than 
 of law or medicine. A good general education is of inesti- 
 mable value as a foundation for any pursuit,- but that it 
 should take the place of special or professional training is as 
 false in theory as it is pernicious in practice. 
 
 12. Of what does the "Art of Teaching" consist? 
 
 The skillful application of rules and methods, deduced 
 from science and from intelligent obseivation and experiment. 
 *' Teaching is a process controlled by principles aiming at 
 products. The Process of teaching is the training of the 
 growing mind. The Product aimed at by this process is the 
 pleasure-giving power of unselfish self-improvement. The 
 Principles controlling this process make it systematic." 
 
 13. What does the Theory and Practice of Teaching embrace? 
 It embraces the whole science of education. It investi- 
 gates the susceptibilities and powers of the mind, and the 
 
±ND PRACTICE F TEA HING. 
 
 37 
 
 methods by which they may be trained and developed into 
 activity, strength, and harmony. 
 
 14. What does education do for a people? 
 
 It tends to make a people more orderly and to substitute 
 reflection for passion; to predispose them to respect lawful 
 authority; to render political revolutions gradual and blood- 
 less; to qualify men for the exercise of more and more" 
 power; to make refinement and civilization universal. 
 
 15. What is a method of instruction? 
 
 It is the way of performing an act. Teaching is a 
 mental act, or that act which consists in presenting objects 
 and subjects to a mind, so as to occasion the activity which 
 produces knowledge and culture. 
 
 16. How many methods are there in use? 
 
 Six. The Text-Book, Oral, Soeratic, Topical, Discussion, 
 and Lecture. The two general divisions are naturally the 
 Oral and Written. Oral teaching calls into exercise the 
 active powers of the mind, while written teaching addresses 
 itself to the passive powers only. 
 
 17. What is the Soeratic method? 
 
 Socrates taught by questioning. His aim was to prepare 
 the mind of his pupils to receive the truth, by proving to 
 them their ignorance, and then creating a curiosity, a desire, 
 a thirst for real knowledge. 
 
 18. Is a knowledge of mental philosophy of any benefit to 
 the teachers? 
 
 No one who has taught can be absolutely ignorant of 
 mental philosophy. For though he had never studied this 
 science from books, the operations of his own mind would 
 naturally be observed when he came in contact w r ith other 
 
38 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 minds. The farmer studies the character of the soil, the 
 chemist carefully analyzes the ore, and the business man 
 ponders over the probabilities of gain or loss; but the minds 
 of children are more deserving of study than soil, or ore, or 
 trade. They generally receive less. 
 
 19. What then is one element of successful teaching? 
 
 A thorough knowledge of human nature. This, combined 
 with tact, talent, firmness, and executive ability, forms the 
 perfect teacher. 
 
 20. What is meant by mental faculties? Is there any fixed 
 natural order of development? 
 
 The faculties, or powers of the mind, are divided by 
 metaphysicians into three classes: The intellectual faculties, 
 the affections, and the will, or, the phenomena of knowing, 
 the phenomena of feeling, and the phenomena of willing. 
 Those intellectual faculties which are first developed are first 
 to decay; as, for instance, the faculty of perception, so keen 
 in the child, so dull in the old man; and the reasoning 
 faculty retained in extreme old age is far removed from 
 infancy and childhood, and is developed slowly and painfully 
 by average pupils in advanced grades. Between perception 
 and reasoning lie memory, imagination, conception, judgment. 
 
 21. How can the memory be strengthened? 
 
 Memory is that faculty of the mind by which we retain 
 and recall knowledge. By "knowledge" there is not meant 
 certain facts that have been poured into us from without, but 
 the results of our own mental activity. This activity may be 
 excited by many circumstances, and especially by a teacher 
 who appreciates this idea of knowledge and acts accordingly. 
 If we make an effort to remember anything thoroughly, we 
 become aware of four processes of thought through which we 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 39 
 
 must pass. (1) Thus we must know that we have at some 
 time pigeon-holed that particular fact, that is, retained it. 
 (2) That we must know in which hole to look for it, that is, 
 to recollect it, collect it again, or call it again. (3) That 
 when found it must make a clear picture to our mind; it must 
 not have faded, that is it must be vividly represented to us. 
 (4) That when such a picture is presented it must be recog- 
 nized as the same fact we first laid away — that we know it as 
 true to the original. Hence, whatever excites these four 
 elements of memory — retention, recollection, representation, 
 and recognition — is a permanent stimulant and strengthener 
 of this faculty of the mind. Then do everything to win 
 attention, and center it on one thingat a time. "Committing 
 to memory" golden thoughts, bits of poetry, dialogues, 
 descriptions, and definitions also gives strength to the faculty. 
 A constant "going over" the necessary facts of a lesson 
 impresses the memory by its very repetition. And it is to be 
 remembered that what is written by pupils is better remem- 
 bered than what is read; that what is told them is remembered 
 better than what they write, and that what they learn to do 
 for themselves is the best remembered of all. 
 
 22. What are other aids in cultivating memory? 
 
 Obtain the power of a rapid perception of your surround- 
 ings. The completion of a vivid perception is the beginning 
 of memory. For instance, walk rapidly by a shop window 
 and see how many objects you can recall, the first time, the 
 second, the third. Dictate an interesting story or description 
 and have pupils instantly write it out from memory, or relate 
 it to you orally. Repeat a list of words that have no con- 
 nection and have them repeated in the same order. These 
 two instruct the ear. Take different coins and drop them 
 upon the desk, at the same time naming them. Repeat the 
 
4 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 dropping, and have the pupils with their eyes shut, recall the 
 pieces merely by sound. 
 
 23. What class of teachers do our primary schools require? 
 The best. Our public schools may be regarded as the 
 
 index of our civilization, and tv as the teacher is, so is the 
 school." The stream does not rise higher than the fountain. 
 It is an old and wise saying of Alexander Pope that "Educa- 
 tion forms the common mind; just as the twig is bent, the 
 tree's inclined." If this is true, then the necessity of 
 employing in our primary schools the most skillful teachers, 
 of large experience, is apparent. A good teacher is cheap at 
 any price, and it is better to have no school than a poor one. 
 
 24. What salaries should be paid primary teachers? 
 
 It is to be hoped that the effort to abolish the distinction 
 between the salaries of grammar and primary teachers now 
 being made in some of our larger cities will be successful. It 
 is the relic of a barbarous time; there is nothing to be said 
 in its favor. Thanks to Froebel that he taught the value of 
 those who teach little children. tk The post of difficulty is in 
 the primary department." — Phelps. The labor of the gram- 
 mar teachers is doubled for want of good teaching in the 
 primary school. The primary teacher should be paid as much 
 as any other teacher in the school excepting alone the princi- 
 pal. And such recognition of her -worth is already granted in 
 many different localities. 
 
 25. What is Kindergarten instruction? 
 
 Familiarizing children, by the aid of objects, with 
 solids, surfaces, and outlines. With the lessons on form are 
 associated lessons on color, and from the object, perception, 
 memory, comparison, and language are cultivated. With 
 these, printing, writing, and drawing are used in exercising 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACH IXC. 
 
 both hand and eye, and music and calisthenics to enliven the 
 routine of instruction. 
 
 26. How may " nature lessons" be taught? 
 
 They may be given to young children by allowing them 
 to bring to the school-room pieces of wood and bark, and 
 specimens of rocks, shells, etc., and having them tell what 
 they know of them and the habits of birds and insects, sup- 
 plemented by oral instruction from the teacher. Studies in 
 elementary Botany — very useful in training the powers of 
 observation — should be given only in the early autumn. 
 
 27. What is the difference between the work of the teacher 
 and that of the pupil? 
 
 The teacher's work is instruction. The pupil's work i& 
 learning. The pupil must obey. Both teacher and pupils 
 must do the best they can. The teacher must understand his 
 own rights as well as those of his pupils. 
 
 28. What distinction do you make between instruction and 
 training? 
 
 A pupil is taught when he is told something and under- 
 stands it, but he is trained when he can do something and do 
 it well. Under teaching, the mind is receiving; under training, 
 the mind is thinking, or the hand doing, or both may be 
 acting. Teaching is thinking or doing for others, but train- 
 ing is getting others to do or think for themselves. Walking 
 a tight rope, or writing and delivering a grand oration, 
 requires more training than teaching. The training of the 
 mind and the training of the hand should be separated in no 
 system of education. It has been well said "That civiliza- 
 tion is not healthy which divorces the training of the intellect 
 from the labor of the hands." If boys and girls would go to 
 school a half day and work the other half, the loss in one 
 
4 2 
 
 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 direction would be compensated by gain in another direction. 
 The number of workers who earn a livelihood by tleir hands 
 will always far outnumber those who can earn a livelihood by 
 their heads. Then why should the training of the hand be 
 so neglected in early life? 
 
 29. What is the object of primary instruction? 
 
 To develop the faculties of the soul, the reason, the 
 senses, and the bodily strength. 
 
 30. What faculty is predominant in children? 
 
 The perceptive. In the primary grade, children deal only 
 with facts, and facts are learned by perception. When the 
 pupils have advanced in the intermediate grades to that point 
 where they begin to generalize, and to study first principles, 
 then give the memory its proper share of work; however, in 
 primary grade we want but little memorizing — the less the 
 better. We should spend one golden year in teaching the 
 children how to learn rather than in converting their memo- 
 ries into mental scrap-books. 
 
 31. What may be said of the technical skill of the teacher? 
 " In order to train children how to do we must be able to 
 
 do ourselves; hence the great importance of that preparation 
 on the part of a teacher which will result in skill in the 
 technics of school work. First of all, the voice should be 
 trained, for a clear, musical voice is one of the teacher's most 
 potent qualifications for success, and can not be overrated. 
 Drill in phonics is necessary, not only to gain the ability to 
 give the slow pronunciation with ease and with natural 
 inflections, but as an aid to perfect articulation and pronun- 
 ciation. That every teacher should be an expressive reader is 
 self -evident, but it might not occur to all, that to be an 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 43 
 
 -eloquent talker is also one of the requisites demanded by the 
 New Methods."— F. W. Parker. 
 
 32. What is reading? 
 
 It is obtaining thought by means of written or printed 
 words arranged in a sentence or sentences. Thought may be 
 defined as ideas in relation. Ideas are either sense products 
 or derivations from sense products. We get thought, first, 
 by seeing objects in their relations; second, by thinking of 
 things in their relations without their presence; third, by 
 seeing pictures or drawings of objects in their relations; and, 
 fourth, by language. We get thought by language in two 
 ways. First, by the spoken language, and, second, by the 
 written or printed language. 
 
 33. How can we teach children to talk? 
 
 By giving them something to talk about, and then insist 
 that they shall express their thoughts in good language. An 
 occasional exercise in talking will not suffice. The teacher, 
 every day, should read something of interest to the class, and 
 then require the pupils to reproduce the subject matter in 
 their own words, or give the class a few minutes for silent 
 reading, and then require them to reproduce the thought of 
 the writer in their own language, either spoken or written. 
 
 34. What are the chief characteristics of a good reader? 
 To be able to interpret readily and express clearly, the 
 
 thoughts and feelings of an author. 
 
 35. What are the chief ends to be attained in teaching 
 reading in the common schools? 
 
 The securing of proper oral expression of written 
 language, and the development of the power of grasping 
 thought. Some of the indispensable qualities of good read- 
 
44 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 ing are precision of articulation, paying proper attention to 
 the pauses, the correct inflection, accent, emphasis, and the 
 adoption, as far as possible, of the ordinary colloquial tone 
 of voice. 
 
 36. Should we " mind the pauses"? 
 
 Teachers sometimes instruct pupils to stop and count 
 "one" at a comma, "one, two," at a semicolon, and soon. 
 A slight knowledge of punctuation suffices to show the 
 absurdity of these old rules. The fact is, that in some of the 
 most common cases in which a comma is necessary, a speaker 
 would make no pause. For example, "No, sir," "Thank 
 you, sir." This leads to a mechanical, unnatural style of 
 reading. First attend to the reading of sentences, and lead 
 the pupils to see how the pauses aid in understanding the 
 meaning. Do not teach reading as if attention to "pauses" 
 were the chief object to be attained. Reciting definitions of 
 pauses is not only useless, but it leads to a great waste of 
 time. Teach the use of the pauses in the lesson, instead of 
 the definition of them. A few teachers pay no attention to 
 the explanation of the words, but turn their attention almost 
 entirely to the names and the pronunciation, important points, 
 to be sure, but by no means the life-giving elements of good 
 reading. 
 
 37. How many methods are used in teaching children to 
 read? 
 
 Ten. The Word Method, Object Method, Phonic Meth- 
 od, Phonotypic Method, Phonetic Method, Look-and-say 
 Method, Word-Building Method, Sentence Method, Drawing 
 Method, and the A. B. C. or Alphabetic Method. 
 
 38. What may be said of these methods? 
 
 Some of them are very unphilosophical, and leave no 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 45 
 
 cause for surprise that so many children flounder at the very 
 threshold of knowledge, the very place that should be most 
 -attractive. In the word method we begin by teaching words, 
 leading the children to recognize them as wholes. This 
 method is now used extensively; it was the method used by 
 the race in developing the language. 
 
 39. How is the ''object method" used? 
 
 The children's attention is tirst directed to some object 
 with which they are familiar by sight, name, and use. The 
 teacher shows the object to his pupils and the name is given 
 by them. If they ean not give the name the teacher tells 
 them. He then presents a picture of the object, or makes a 
 drawing of it upon the board; then the name is plainly written 
 under the drawing. The pupils are now taught to distinguish 
 from one another, the object, the picture of it, and the word 
 representing it. 
 
 40. For what is the " look-and-say" method claimed to be 
 advantageous? 
 
 First — For mastering the word by the eye. Second — For 
 recognizing the w r ord in the sign, and for acquiring practical 
 acquaintance with the number of letters and syllables. 
 Third — For its suitability to the circumstances of common 
 schools. 
 
 41. What is the application of the " word-building" method? 
 
 Its purpose is to begin with words of one letter, as A, I, 
 O, and gradually form new words by prefixing or affixing 
 single letters. The child is taught first to pronounce the 
 word, then the letters that form it. Separate letters of the 
 alphabet and spelling, are taught by asking questions similar 
 to the following: 
 
4 6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 "What letter is placed after o to form onT? 
 " What letter after on to form one?" 
 " What letter before one to form lone?" 
 "What letter before lone to form alone?" 
 
 42. Should the spelling of words in the reading lesson be 
 allowed? 
 
 No. This is in violation of the fundamental laws of 
 teaching. It attempts to compel the child to do two things at 
 the same time, and to do both in an unnatural manner, viz.: 
 to learn reading and spelling simultaneously, and reading 
 through spelling. Reading has to deal with sounds and signs 
 of thoughts. Spelling rests on a habit of the age, which is 
 best acquired by writing. In attempting to teach reading 
 through spelling the effort distracts the attention from the 
 thought; reading furnishes facilities for teaching spelling; but 
 spelling does not furnish a suitable means for teaching read- 
 ing. If spelling is permitted, a love of reading is not 
 enkindled, and good readers are not produced. 
 
 43. How would you give instruction in primary reading? 
 
 Train the pupils to pronounce the words readily at sight. 
 
 1. Print or write the words on the board in columns; pupils 
 pronounce them. Here reading charts are indispensable. 
 
 2. Write difficult words on the board and syllabicate them; 
 pupils pronounce them. 3. Require the pupils to bring in a 
 portion or all of the reading lesson written upon the slate, 
 from which they should read the lesson. 4. Require the 
 pupils to pronounce the words forward; reverse. 5. Alter- 
 nate. Cautions: (a) Present to the pupils only one diffi- 
 culty at a time, (b) Never permit them to spell words in 
 reading, (c) Insist upon correct articulation and pronunciation. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 47 
 
 44. What is the standard for good reading? 
 Its resemblance to good conversation. 
 
 45. Should we follow the rules given for inflection? 
 
 " Let me caution you against placing dependence upon 
 rules of inflection of the voice given in reading books. All 
 that you need is to fully understand the thought; when you 
 have the thought fully, you will know all about inflection of 
 the voice. If a person can not translate what he reads into 
 his own language, he most assuredly does not understand it. 
 If you can not bring out in your own language the full mean- 
 ing of the lesson, you are not the one to teach, and you should 
 either adopt some other vocation, or go through a rigid course 
 of reading." — E. V. DeGi 
 
 46. What are the results of ''Mental Picturing?" 
 
 By this process we are enabled to conceive definite ideals 
 and sharply defined images of the word scenes we are de- 
 picting. This makes our description vivid, or our narration 
 vivacious and wide-awake. It moves to tears in pathos, or to 
 laughter in comedy. It makes the flesh thrill in tragedy, and 
 lack of it enables us to sit unmoved through the recitation of 
 the most affecting language — that is, language having all the 
 requisites for strong emotional feeling. 
 
 47. How is this applied in the school-room? 
 
 By having the pupils picture every detail fully. Draw 
 out their exceptions in logical order by careful questioning. 
 
 48. What illustration can be given of this? 
 Take the example: — 
 
 " And the nights shall be filled with music, 
 
 And the cares that infest the day, 
 Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs, 
 
 And as silently steal away."— Longfellov. 
 
 How shall the nights be filled? What is it that infests 
 
48 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 the day? What will the " cares" do? Who shall fold their 
 tents? How? What will become of the "cares"? How 
 will they " steal away"? Who will steal away? And thus 
 by a series of questions graded according to the sense and 
 •difficulty of the work — if sufficiently advanced, ask about the 
 author, the name of the selection, literary worth, and beauty — 
 you can interest any class and draw out the most artistic 
 pictures, adding wonderfully to the vividness of their 
 readme:. 
 
 *&• 
 
 49. What distinction can be made between " good reading" 
 and elocution? 
 
 None. The art of reading has been defined as that em- 
 bodying every accomplishment, both of voice and action, 
 necessary to appropriate expression, and elocution as an artis- 
 tic copy of intelligent, significant, and expressive speech as 
 employed in our communication with each other, either in 
 the energized enforcement of deliberate argument, the sympa- 
 thetic and endearing expressions of affectionate intercourse, 
 the bursts of passion, or the ordinary statement of facts and 
 circumstances which concern our business or other relations. 
 
 50. Why should primary instruction be more largely oral 
 than higher instruction? 
 
 The reason is plain, for very young pupils cannot investi- 
 gate books like older pupils, and the teacher must not only 
 give more instruction (information) but explain the text and 
 contents of the books to the pupils. The teacher should make 
 the pupils do the talking as far as possible. 
 
 51. What is the "Golden Rule" relative to talking in the 
 school-room ? 
 
 That the minimitm on the part of the teacher, and the 
 
AND PRACTICE <>F TEACHING 
 
 \9 
 
 maae&rmim on the pari of the pupil, be the rule and not the 
 exception. 
 
 52. What may be said of questioning:* 
 
 Good questioning is essential. Without it the teacher 
 does not know what hi> pupils know, what they receive, or 
 what they understand. Questioning should stimulate the 
 learner and excite the effort to think it should direct the effort 
 into the right channel, and it should help children to express 
 in suitable language what they learn. 
 
 53. What are its various classes? 
 
 Tentative, Catechetical, Socratic, and Examination. The 
 iirst is employed at the introduction of a topic in order to dis- 
 cover what is known. It also makes apparent to the children 
 their needs, and prepares them to receive. The second has 
 for its office the duty of making children understand. It is a 
 kind of cross-questioning after an exhaustive fashion, in which 
 the teacher and pupil find how far a thing is not understood; 
 and in which the questions arc so ordered as to place matters 
 clearly, and get that activity of mind by which the subject 
 will be thoroughly apprehended. It is the most effective of 
 the teacher's gifts. 
 
 54. Describe Socratic questioning. 
 
 Its purpose is the development of some subject in the 
 mind of the pupil as the result of a series of inferences from 
 something that he already knows. It starts with a question 
 which the pupil can not answer, and then leads him step by 
 step from some known fact till he discovers the answer for 
 himself. 
 
 55. When is Examination questioning used? 
 
 • At the end of a lesson, to brinsr out its broad features and 
 
50 
 
 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 most essential parts, and to bring these together as a whole. 
 A good rule in all questioning is, to vary the forms, so that 
 the child may attend to the sense rather than to the words. 
 
 56. Why are " leading "questions," or questions that can be 
 answered by Yes or No, objectional? 
 
 "Leading questions" are useful in recitation when it is 
 desirable to have a pupil commit himself when he refuses pur- 
 posely or otherwise to come to the point. But they are usually 
 objectionable : First, because they provoke very little effort on 
 the part of the pupil as to thought, and none at all in the ex- 
 pression of it. If there is no effort required in the recitation, 
 no effort will be made for it. Second, because the teacher has 
 to do all the reciting, and it is not his business to recite. 
 
 57. What is meant be the term Exposition.'' 
 
 It is the complement of questioning. Some things must 
 be told. They are facts, which, if not known, no questioning 
 can reveal; and there are ideas which the child might discover, 
 but which would not repay the labor. Hence there will 
 always be a demand for instances, explanations, descriptions, 
 and analogies. In these there may be sometimes lengthened 
 statement, the aim being to give power of attention, of fol- 
 lowing what is said, and of retaining it. But this practice 
 ought to be joined to that of requiring the reproduction of the 
 statement either orally or on paper. As a rule, a stream of 
 talk must not be indulged. The old comparison of a child's 
 mind to a narrow-necked phial should be remembered. Pour 
 in drop by drop, little by little, it may be filled, when a con- 
 tinued stream would run to waste. 
 
 58. State your opinion of what a child of average ability 
 should accomplish in the first year of its school year. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 51 
 
 • 
 
 It should be able to read easy words of two syllables at 
 sight, and should be able to write plainly with slate or lead 
 pencil. It should be able to count to one hundred, and know 
 all the combinations of numbers to one hundred. It should 
 also have a small stock of small accomplishments, such as tell- 
 ing the time, the day of the week, month of the year, name of 
 county, name of township, name of the President, Governor 
 of the State, grade of its school, be able to make " small 
 change," etc. 
 
 59. What do you understand by " unconscious tuition" ? 
 Upon what does its character or quality depend? 
 
 Perhaps my idea of "unconscious tuition" can best be 
 illustrated. One gloomy, rainy day, at the noon recess, one 
 of my pupils, a bright, precocious child about eleven, said to 
 me: " Tell us something to play." I replied: "Suppose we 
 play school and I will be your scholar." And when I'm 
 teacher may I do as you do?" This was a poser,. but I said 
 "yes." 
 
 So school began, after the superintendent, writing- 
 teacher, and music-teacher had been selected in high glee. 
 Soon after school had begun, the superintendent came in, nod- 
 ded to the teacher, took a chair, tipped it back, crossed his 
 legs, stroked his beard, and quietly observed the state of 
 affairs, taking out a small book after a while and making notes 
 with perfect solemnity. The writing and music teachers were 
 faithfully imitated, sometimes with cruel exactness. But the 
 teacher of the school was simply abominable. I could hear 
 the tones of my own voice, could recognize my peculiarities 
 and movement. There stood my tormentor, doing just as I 
 did, with an air of defiance, unpropitious and implacable, the 
 tones of her voice having a peculiarly grating quality, an 
 
5- 
 
 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 edge on every remark, — offensive ones not being the excep- 
 tion; a caustic something in every utterance, and an air of ex- 
 pecting rebellion. All this tartness and irritability seemed 
 so unnecessary to an observer as to be positively amusing. 
 So my pupils taught me unconsciously, what I had taught 
 them in a like manner — the weakness of my own character. 
 Since then, I have known myself to sit in one of the child- 
 ren's desks after school and wonder how I would like to be a 
 child again and have a teacher just like myself. So far, it 
 has never seemed an alluring prospect. 
 
 A GENUINE EXAMINATION PAPER. 
 
 60. What is the best evidence of thorough instruction upon 
 the part of the teacher? 
 
 The mental grade of the reading class. " Of all knowl- 
 edge and mental training, reading is in our day the principal 
 means, and reading aloud intelligently the unmistakable, if 
 not the only, sign.'' 1 — Richard Grant White. 
 
 61. Should the teacher make special preparation for the 
 reading class? 
 
 Yes. He should be familiar with the pronunciation of 
 every word, including its literal and received meaning. He 
 should give the pupil the history of the author and some of 
 his prominent characteristics, — this will add to the interest; 
 should awaken thought in the mind of the pupils, — this will 
 secure interest. It matters not how simple the lesson may be, 
 previous preparation is indispensible. Previous study will 
 add new power and generate better methods, by means of 
 which success will be insured. The teacher will become in- 
 dependent, self-reliant, and a " law unto himself." As a 
 requisite essential to success, however, theteacher of reading 
 slumld he a good, rentier. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 53 
 
 62. How may the teacher succeed in giving instruction in 
 reading? 
 
 If you have a fault, attend to it, and overcome it by 
 practice. Much time must be taken in correcting bad habits 
 of reading, but you must take the time. And whatever you 
 do, be sure to teach the pupils to do it in the right way. If 
 the teacher wishes to succeed, he must learn how intonation 
 and articulation are taught. Before he can teach it, he must 
 learn it, and it can only be acquired through study. Then if 
 your pupils have unnatural tones, make them repeat after 
 your sentences and whole passages. This will insure correct 
 pronunciation, distinctness of utterance and expression. 
 
 63. What is the most common error among readers — teacher 
 and pupil? 
 
 Faulty pronunciation. More errors are made in orthoepy 
 than is generally supposed. Test yourself with such words 
 as Arab, orthoepy, vagary, idea, syncrasy, discipline, adver- 
 tisement, interesting, withe, awful, preferable, Arabian, influ- 
 ence (*?) design, rise (noun), and hygiene, and then consult 
 the dictionary to verify your accent and syllabication. 
 
 64. What may be said of the reading classes of our schools? 
 A great amount of teaching in reading is a positive in- 
 jury to schools, and all because the teacher does not know 
 how to teach. " Practice makes perfect;" rapidity and cor- 
 rectness are attained only through frequent repetition. 
 
 65. Should pupils be required to commit the definitions in 
 the primary reading-books to memory? 
 
 No; but we would insist that the pupils understand the 
 meaning of the words used. A definition is a general truth, 
 
54 ,4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 a deduction; children should be taught primary truths, and, 
 as their reason develops, deduce the definitions, rules, and 
 principles. Develop correct ideas; then give definitions. A 
 great many teachers have been amazed, shocked, and, in all 
 probability almost disgusted at the absurd or ludicrous 
 answers given by pupils to those required book definitions; — 
 the result of an attempt to develop logical reasoning in an 
 immature mind. 
 
 66. How would you instruct a class using the second reader? 
 The true teacher will have no particular set or routine 
 
 method. His main object should be to secure distinct articu- 
 lation; cultivate natural tones and delivery; require pupils to 
 take a proper position; cultivate their powers of perception 
 and language, by questions on the subject matter of the les- 
 son; teach use of principal punctuation marks; exercise the 
 class in spelling, pronouncing, and defining words of the les- 
 son. He should occasionally give a drill in concert reading, 
 the pupils reading a sentence after the teacher or some mem- 
 ber of the class; the pronunciation of difficult words, ajid the 
 explanation of new points in the next lesson. 
 
 67. What variations may be used in the reading lessons? 
 
 The teacher may in the course of his reading, find an 
 article or a story which he would like to have his pupils enjoy 
 with him. This may serve two purposes. Perhaps he may 
 have in his school a pupil who is addicted to some bad habit; 
 or a spirit of insubordination or discontent or laziness may 
 be creeping into the school room; or he may wish to inspire 
 the pupils with nobler aspirations and to prompt better im- 
 pulses. In any of these or similar cases, the reading of some 
 article may produce the desired effect. Sometimes it may be 
 well to have one of the pupils bring in something he has 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 55 
 
 found, and let him read it to the school, and let him comment 
 on it. After such an article has been read, it may be well to 
 have the entire school engage in a general talk about it. Or, 
 it may be advisable to say nothing, leaving each one to draw 
 from it what benefit he can. 
 
 68. Give general rules for conducting a reading class. 
 
 Every reading class is a literature class. It is not an 
 elocution class. To secure good tones and inflections, give 
 the pupils time in reading a passage to comprehend it. Never 
 "mind the elocution. Let it take care of itself. By artifice 
 and variety, keep the pupils for one week on a passage you 
 have usually read at a lesson. Let the whole interest and 
 study he upon its thoughts and its literary mechanism. In- 
 vestigate the capitals, the spelling, the punctuation, the para- 
 graphing. Outline it. Instead of reading, let the pupils 
 tell it. Be patient here. Do not judge what can he done by 
 the first attempts. Let the pupils stumble and stutter as they 
 will. Don't scold or disapprove. They are probably doing- 
 better than you could. Instead of reading, let the pupils 
 bring their slates, and in five, ten, or fifteen minutes, write 
 what they can remember of the passage. Let them read their 
 own efforts. Don't criticise too closely. Let the elocution go. 
 
 69. What is the first step toward the introduction of the 
 pupil into the study of literature'/ 
 
 The memorizing of literary gems. This can be done in 
 the primary department or the primary classes of any school. 
 A knowledge of the author, his life, or his labors is of sec- 
 ondary consideration at first. Engravings of noted authors 
 can be obtained for a trifling sum of money— cut from cata- 
 logues at no cost whatever— and tacked or pasted upon some 
 convenient piece of the wall of the school-room. In the in- 
 
.4 QUIZ-BOOK n.V THE THEORY 
 
 termediate grades this instruction can be advanced by the 
 teacher placing upon the blackboard, daily for a few weeks, 
 favorite extracts and familiar quotations from noted authors 
 giving the dates of their birth and death, supplemented by 
 some information relative to their lives, etc. The pupil is then 
 ready to commence the study in some short course of liter- 
 ature, there being some two or three excellent manuals pub- 
 lished that are admirably adapted for this purpose. Larger 
 and more exhaustive treatises follow as a matter of course. 
 
 70. What may be said of primary work in the district 
 schools? 
 
 The subject is more or less neglected, both in theory and 
 practice. Journals neglect to insist upon these advanced 
 methods being carried into the primary work of the ungraded 
 schools. Yet it can be done and is done by good teachers in 
 many parts of the country. The teacher who reads edu- 
 cational journals, and visits our best schools in search of new 
 ideas and methods, will find them; will learn what to do with 
 the little folks, as well as older pupils. Too many teachers 
 of "district" schools think if the child has a primer, with 
 a slate and pencil, he has all that is necessary. Very little 
 work, if any, is given to keep those little brains and hands 
 busy when not reciting. The child, left to himself, will 
 draw pictures that mean nothing. Too little attention is 
 paid to writing, and numbers. Some schools of this grade are 
 the veriest shams; others show a degree of proficiency and 
 advancement that is not excelled by the best graded school. 
 
 71. How should instruction be given in the third reader? 
 
 When the third reader is reached, instructions in phonics 
 and diacritical marks should be given for the purpose of 
 giving command of the dictionary. Require the children to 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 57 
 
 face the class while reading. You can not expect a child to 
 read to a blank wall with any degree of animation. He 
 should read in the spirit of " I believe this, and I am going to 
 make those fellows down there believe it." 
 
 72. How is the dictionary to be used? 
 
 Practically, and not vaguely and theoretically. Proba- 
 bly no school exercise is more profitable, when properly con- 
 ducted, than a drill in the right use of words. To know just 
 what word to use to express the exact shade of meaning in- 
 tended is no mean accomplishment; and the person who is 
 not reasonably familiar with words and their uses is very 
 liable to make very ludicrous and embarrassing mistakes. 
 
 72. When is such a drill to be given? 
 
 It comes naturally in connection with the reading lessons. 
 It is here more than anywhere else that the acquaintance of 
 unfamiliar words is made, and that occasions arise for show- 
 ing the various shades of meaning and the peculiar uses of 
 many words given in the dictionaries as synonomous terms. 
 It is necessary, then, to familiarize pupils with the use of the 
 dictionary in finding the meaning and pronounciation of 
 words; but these, unless supplemented by a careful drill from 
 the teacher, will be found strangely misleading. 
 
 73. What illustration can be given of these errors? 
 
 Such as have actually occured in the school-room. For 
 instance: 
 
 Tandem=One behind another: "The scholars sit tan- 
 dem in school." 
 
 Akimbo=With a crook: " I saw a dog with an akimbo 
 in his tail." 
 
^8 -4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Athletic = Strong: "The vinegar was too athletic to be 
 
 used." 
 
 Frantic = Wild: "I picked a bouquet of frantic flowers." 
 Composure =Calmness: "The composure of the day 
 
 was remarkable." 
 
 74. How is this fault to be corrected? 
 
 By giving an original illustration of this principle, rule, 
 or usage. It is hardly necessary to carry out the old sugges- 
 tion of having pupils underline with a light pencil mark the 
 designated number of unfamiliar words and expressions in 
 the day's reading, as it is a habit that detracts from neatness, 
 but instead place upon the blackboard the required list. Some 
 of the progressive readers of the day contain many selected 
 sentences from the lesson with the words in italics whose 
 synonyms are required. 
 
 75. What are the advantages of this plan ? 
 
 It is an accurate test as to whether the definition found 
 by the pupil is a suitable one for the place, and, if so, 
 whether it is the best one for the place. It teaches the pupil, 
 therefore, to exercise his judgment in the choice of words 
 to express a given thought or shade of meaning. One pupil 
 has found a definition which does not express the full force 
 of the word, a second has found the definition of the same 
 word when used in an entirely different sense, while a third 
 may have selected a definition which expresses the thought 
 in a stronger sense than the author intended. 
 
 76. By what results is this followed? 
 
 An attempt to substitute the various definitions for the 
 words or expressions in question will usually make their 
 various defects apparent. It will also be found that when 
 
AND PRACTKE OF TEACHING. 59 
 
 certain definitions are substituted the order of the words 
 must be slightly changed, that different or additional adjuncts 
 
 must be used, or that the words must be followed by different 
 prepositions. In short, it furnishes many of the advantages 
 usually attributed to the study of Latin. 
 
 77. Mention further benefits. 
 
 It retains the interest of the pupils in a second reading 
 of a given lesson. Every experienced teacher knows how 
 difficult this is by the ordinary methods of study and recita- 
 tion. When the lesson has once been read, it usually becomes 
 an old story, and is studied and recited with*indifference ever 
 after. Hut by this method the second reading is usually more 
 interesting than the first, and it enables the teacher to carry 
 out practically that best of school maxims — to make !i<i*te 
 slowly. 
 
 78. Should newspapers be used in the school? 
 
 To assist the studies of children by having them read 
 the newspapers in the public schools at stated hours, and 
 under the supervision of teachers, is not a new idea. It is on 
 trial- in different parts of the country, and has found a warm, 
 practical advocate in Superintendent Luckey, of the Pittsburg 
 public schools. In a convention of Pennsylvania teachers 
 that gentleinan opposed the use of any and all spelling books, 
 because he contended that a word standingby itself was dead, 
 while in a sentence it had life. He ridiculed the reading 
 lessons to be found in the school books, and wanted the 
 newspapers substituted for the prosy readers dealing with 
 unrealities and teaching nothing. 
 
 70. How can this theory be applied in the district school? 
 By having marked on the blackboard a special space 
 
6o A QUIZ-BaoK ON THE THEORY 
 
 headed "News Bulletin." If access is had to daily papers 
 the bulletin should indicate this. In places " far remote" 
 where the weekly is the only news visitor a summary of the 
 week's events should be placed under the "Bulletin" on 
 Monday morning by the teacher to which the pupil's atten- 
 tion should be called and supplemental information given by 
 the teacher. One-half of the school children in the United 
 States to-day do not know the name of the Vice President. 
 
 80. To what will this lead? 
 
 To instruction in general information. A knowledge of 
 common statistical, geographical, and historical facts, w r ith 
 some of the more simple statements that can readily be 
 adduced from the sciences, arousing the child's interest, culti- 
 vating habits of research, culminating in accuracy of scholar- 
 ship, and giving him that stock of outside-of-the-text-book 
 information every educated boy and girl should possess. In 
 several of the States of the Mississippi Valley, this is done by 
 placing weekly upon the blackboard a set of live or ten so- 
 called "queer queries." 
 
 81. Has instruction in "phonics" proved beneficial in con- 
 nection with the reading lessons? 
 
 In one city at least (Boston) the difference between their 
 use and disuse has become very apparent for since the res- 
 ignation of Superintendent Philbrick, at which time they 
 were discontinued, the universal testimony there is to the 
 effect that the standard of good reading does not reach its 
 former excellence. Their use has been abused, however, in 
 many schools by incompetent instructors. 
 
 82. Of what benefit is etymology to the reader? 
 
 It aids in the use of words with precision and accuracy 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 61 
 
 when we know their history as well as their present meaning. 
 It is the science of etymons — that is, of true primitive forms, 
 and traces words from language to language back to their 
 origins. 
 
 83. What are the three forms of reading? 
 
 Mechanical, intelligent, and intellectual reading. The 
 latter is not only comprehending clearly and definitely the 
 author's meaning, but it is also a ready recognition of the 
 relation of that meaning, a prompt assimilation of it, and a 
 subsequent growth. This is the kind of reading that reigns 
 in the student's "den" and the philosopher's study. 
 
 84. What is meant by personation in reading? 
 
 The identification of the reader with two or more persons 
 represented by necessary changes of the voice. 
 
 85. Is this ordinarly taught in schools? 
 
 To a very small extent only, but as a quality of the high- 
 est standard of reading known as elocution, it is deserving of 
 more notice. The teacher may furnish an ordinary illustra- 
 tion by alternating in reading with them some of the common 
 dialogues to be found in most readers. Elocution as a special 
 study should be taught as a specialty. It is an art well worth 
 the undivided attention of any teacher. There is probably 
 no study requiring a more complicated mental action than 
 reading aloud so as to impart all the emotional accessories of 
 the sense; and no other one tends more rapidly toward devel- 
 oping and refining the sensibilities. 
 
 3P>. What are " reading drills" ? 
 
 Those which exercise and tend to improve the pupil's 
 
62 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 powers in giving the various forms of inflection, emphasis, 
 and pitch; drills in correct articulation and enunciation as in 
 
 "Amidst the mists, 
 And coldest frosts," etc.; 
 
 Rapidity of tone and correctness in " Pretty Pluma placed a 
 pie upon a pile of plates. Where is the pretty pewter platter 
 Pluma placed the pie upon?'.' 
 
 Closeness of tone can be developed by having the pupil 
 repeat in concert and singly, some exercise similar to the fol- 
 lowing : " Fanny Finch fried fourteen floundering frogs for 
 Francis Fowler's father." 
 
 87. Give your method of instructing primary classes in read- 
 ing. 
 
 Too much stress can hardly be laid upon the importance 
 of using the best methods in teaching children to read; for 
 this is its first introduction into the realm of knowledge, and 
 the effect of good or bad teaching will show itself plainly in 
 subsequent study. Begin by using the child's faculty of obser- 
 vation to aid you in giving it new ideas. Teach it in familiar 
 conversation by easy questions, by the use of pictures, to ex- 
 press itself readily concerning objects that it knows well and 
 sees daily. Then begin the process of teaching to read by 
 printing names of familiar objects upon the board. The 
 child is to be shown the word in connection with the object 
 or its picture, so that the form of the word will be joined in 
 its thought, and known as soon as perceived, anywmere, to 
 belong to the object indicated. Print these words on the 
 blackboard until the children know them well. Then begin 
 the teaching of the letters composing the words, and, while 
 so doing, teach the children to print them on their slates. 
 Keep a list of these words upon the blackboard, and as fast 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 63 
 
 as new words are mastered, add them to the list. Always 
 bear in mind what reading is. It is not merely the pronun- 
 ciation of* words, though of course that is the first step 
 toward it. When the child commences reading exercises, train 
 him carefully upon pronunciation. Teach him to pronounce 
 every word correctly, and be sure that he understands its 
 meaning. Then teach him to read the sentence, that is, to 
 express the thought which it conveys to him, in the most 
 natural manner. 
 
 88. What is one express fault in the pupil's reading? 
 
 The mispronunciation of compound forms, where the 
 sound of the vowel is changed from that of the single or 
 simple word, as illustrated in there and therefore; main and 
 maintain; gain and again; child and children; clean and 
 cleanliness, and in such arbitrary terms as "pretty," "bou- 
 quet," "depot," "buoy." 
 
 89. What is the object of a recitation in Arithmetic? 
 
 It should be to acquire practical skill and exact thinking, 
 and for this reason the pupils should be required to bring the 
 problems of the lesson into the class neatly solved and ar- 
 ranged for inspection, while their knowledge of the topic 
 under consideration should be thoroughly tested by judicious 
 questioning and by the solution of problems not embraced in 
 the text. 
 
 90. Explain the Grube method. 
 
 It consists of training beginners from five to six years of 
 age on combination of numbers, not exceeding ten, in addi- 
 tion, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Begin with 
 counters, such as small blocks of wood, shells, corn, beans, or 
 
64 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 pebbles, and use them for two or three months, until the pupils 
 can make the combinations without the aid of objects. 
 
 91. What should be taught the second year? 
 Instruction should be given in decimals in connection 
 
 with whole numbers, at least to the extent of adding and 
 subtracting, and of multiplying and dividing them by whole 
 numbers. Limit: First step, tenths; second, hundredths; 
 third, thousandths. Give frequent drills in addition — the 
 operation in which more mistakes are made than in any other. 
 
 92. Describe the plan of procedure after this. 
 
 In the second and third years common fractions may be 
 taught, limited mainly to halves, thirds, fourths, etc., to 
 twelfths. Illustrate simple operations in the four rules by 
 means of apples, crayons, or lines upon the blackboard. Use 
 the blackboard yourself for the purpose of giving explanation 
 or models of methods. 
 
 93. Which operations in arithmetic are essential? 
 
 Those which all pupils should understand are the four 
 rules — common and decimal fractions, the tables of weights 
 and measures, and interest. The rest of the text-book may 
 be omitted without much loss by all but high-school pupils. 
 
 94. How do you conduct a recitation in arithmetic? 
 
 Instill into their minds, tirst, the important fact that accu- 
 racy is vastly more necessary than rapidity. One hour a day 
 is amply sufficient for this study. More dependence should 
 be placed upon slate and blackboard drill in school, than upon 
 problems to be worked at home. The pupils should be drilled 
 at the boards, a new subject thoroughly explained to the class, 
 and if tin- class is large one-half may be engaged in slate 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 6^ 
 
 work while the remainder are at the blackboard. Insist upon 
 neat work, with souk- such arbitrary division as a brace or 
 curved line separating the work of the pupils, an accurate 
 solution, and a neatly-worded correct analysis of the problem. 
 
 95. How should " catch-questiQns" he treated? 
 
 Do not waste your time or that of the pupils upon them. 
 They will do very well for the "puzzle department" of some 
 literary medium. Additionally, it is well to remember that a 
 considerable amount of that which passes in text-books under 
 the name of arithmetic, such as circulating decimals and other 
 mathematical curiosities, consists largely of schoolmaster's 
 exercises of neither practical nor disciplinary value. 
 
 96. What may be said of object teaching? 
 
 The teaching of each number, definition, principle, rule, 
 process or problem, is a language, as well as an object lesson; 
 in other words, each number, definition, etc., presents an 
 opportunity to teach language. This method may be absurd, 
 however, and one of the leading teachers of the country has 
 placed this dictum on record that "one of* the crying evils of 
 the time in the subject of primary arithmetic is the too great 
 use of objects." 
 
 97. What must be .remembered in teaching "number"? 
 
 That most children know very little of* the subject when 
 they enter school, and, consequently, the first step should 
 be taken with great care. After the child has been made 
 thoroughly at home in the school-room the teacher should 
 ascertain by careful and repeated tests just what it knows of 
 numbers. This examination should be made under the most 
 favorable circumstances, and extend over a period of not less 
 than two weeks. 
 
66 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 98. Is primary teaching of the utmost importance? 
 
 Yes; the moral is so plain there can be no disputing it. 
 Since twice as man}' pupils attend the primary schools as go 
 to any other department, and about one. half of them go 
 nowhere else, the primary schools deserve and demand the 
 largest share of attention, and their efficiency should be raised 
 to the highest standard of excellence, though it should be 
 necessary to lessen some of the expenses of the other and 
 higher schools. 
 
 99. What are some of the needs of the primary teacher? 
 
 First of all he needs patience; yes, patience first and 
 last. Self-control, so akin to patience, is another important 
 requisite. He who can not control himself is not fit to 
 govern others. Tact, that quality which all teachers must 
 have, is particularly useful here. Knowledge of child nature, 
 one of the most important qualifications, is least appreciated 
 by many. Interest in the work. Freedom. Have plans of 
 your own and carry them into execution. Do nothing just 
 alike twice. Whatever you do, have a change. Give your 
 pupils something new, and they will work. There is great 
 need of preparation in this department. " To teach a little 
 child well is truly a great thing." 
 
 100. What should be taught a child at first; the process of 
 writing numbers, or the rule of notation? 
 
 The rule-of notation, being simply the plan of procedure, 
 will be taught in and through the process. Rules in arith- 
 metic are only rationally taught by having the pupils solve 
 problems under those rules, under the teacher's guidance, step 
 by step. 
 
 101. What are the results to be obtained by the study of 
 Mental Arithmetic? 
 
AND PRACTKE OF TEACHING. 67 
 
 (1) Distinct mental conceptions; (2) clear views of cause 
 and effect; (3) certainty in the course of reasoning; (4) pre- 
 cision in language; (5) a thorough understanding of fractions; 
 (6) rapidity in the solution of questions; (7) artifices for 
 abridging labor; and (8) cultivation of memory. 
 
 102. Mention some of the " common artifices" that may be 
 used. 
 
 The use of aliquot parts is not sufficiently treated in 
 most schools, especially as regards the decimal division of U. 
 S. money. Sixty-two and a half cents equal live-eights of a 
 dollar. Then, what is the cost of 168 bushels of com at 62£ 
 cents a bushel? By rapid mental calculation, five-eighths of 
 168 equals £105, the answer. Consequently, what does 136 
 pounds of butter cost at 37^ cents a pound? The product of 
 1H by 1U is easily ascertained from a knowledge of geomet- 
 rical principles to be 132^; that is 11 X12-f^=132^. These 
 artifices are of invaluable use to teacher and pupil. They 
 should also have memorized the product of whole numbers of 
 the same kind to 25 times 25. 
 
 103. What is the best system of mental arithmetic? 
 
 It is that one which shows the pupils how to w r ork 
 systematically. It requires mental work, but little slate- w^ork 
 except to record answers. 
 
 104. What is the value of mental analysis in teaching arith- 
 metic? 
 
 No words can convey a full appreciation of the impor- 
 tance of mental arithmetic. Only those who have experi- 
 enced the transition from the old methods to the new can 
 fully realize the supreme value of this study. Indeed, it is 
 generally believed that the method of mental arithmetic is 
 the greatest improvement in modern education; and the 
 
68 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 world owes a debt of gratitude to Warren Colburn, its 
 author, which it can never pay. 
 
 105. Of what practical benefit, if any, are the G. C. I>., 
 and L. C. M.V 
 
 The former is used in reducing fractions to their lowest 
 terms, and the solution of some practical questions, as, e. g. — 
 what is the least number of square blocks of granite that 
 will cover a floor 7 ft. 8 in. by 10 ft. 4 in.? (Ans. 713). 
 The latter is of much use in changing fractions to the least 
 common denominator, and in solving mechanical ami astro- 
 nomical questions. 
 
 106. What is the smtplest method of finding the greatest 
 common divisor? 
 
 There are two principles commonly used in Algebra, 
 which may be very profitably applied to Arithmetic: 
 
 1. "If one of the quantities contains a factor not found 
 in the other, it may be cancelled without affecting the com- 
 mon divisor.'" 
 
 Find the G. C. D. of 48 and 60. 
 
 48 60—12 G. C. D. 
 
 It is evident at a glance that 5 is a factor of 60, but not 
 of 48. Dropping the factor 5, from 60, the other factor, 12, 
 is seen to be the G. C. D. « 
 
 Find the G. C. D. of 70, 154 and 819. 
 
 70 154 819. 
 
 35 77 7 G. C. D. 
 
 Dropping the factor 2 from 70 and 154, 7 is seen to be 
 a factor of 35 and 77. It is also a Divisor of 819, and is the 
 G. C. D. This method is simple; it saves time, and gives 
 the pupil a drill in rapid mental calculation. 
 
 107. In division by fraction, how do you explain the inver- 
 sion of the divisor? 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 69 
 
 There are several solutions that can be given but proba- 
 bly the following simple method can be used with good suc- 
 cess. Taking any ordinary problem as 4-5-5-3-4 or 1-^2-3, 
 explain to the class that inverting the divisor is simply a 
 short method of reducing to a common denominator and 
 comparing numerators, or dividing one numerator by 
 another. For example: (4-5-K3-4. 20 = com. denom.) that 
 is 16-20-^ 15-20 = 16-15 or 1 1-15. Using the same fractions, 
 and inverting the divisor we obtain 4-5X4-3=16-15=1 1-15. 
 
 108. Which should be taught first, long or short division, 
 and why? 
 
 Long division; because every step of the process can be 
 put before the learner in figures, while short division is a 
 contracted method, and leaves nearly all the work, especially 
 the multiplication and subtraction to be done mentally. 
 
 109. Which should have precedence, instruction in common 
 or decimal fractions, and why? 
 
 Decimal fractions, so far as the system goes, because it 
 is easier — being merelv an extension to the right of the 
 point of the notation system for whole numbers. Number 
 rlasses should learn, however, the practical use of a few of 
 the simplest common fractions as ^, £, etc., before they get 
 to any kind of fractions as usually given in arithmetics. 
 
 110. What are the "new methods" in arithmetic? 
 
 Mental arithmetic, as practically illustrated, is as fol- 
 lows: The teacher recites rapidly a series of mathematical 
 perplexities as for this way. "I had six apples, I took one 
 away, added five, divided by two, squared them, gave away 
 live, lost one, sold two, bought ten and ten and live and four 
 and three, and lost seven, and divided them all with Kate 
 and J£nnie and Tom and Ned. How many did they have, 
 
70 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 . , 1 
 
 and bow many were left?" There is a pause of about thirty 
 seconds, and then one calls out that be has it, and then 
 another and another, till they all say they have solved the 
 problem. Allowing a minute to elapse, one pupil is called 
 upon for the answer, and then it is put to the vote of the 
 school whether or not the answer is right. 
 
 111. How are the tables of weights and measures taught/ 
 
 There are tin and wooden measures with a pail of water 
 and a bushel of bran, ranged on the table before the class. 
 The teacher holds up the smallest tin measure and asks what 
 it is. Some say it is a quart, others declare it to be a pint. 
 After some delay it is decided to be a gill. "Can any one 
 spell it or write it on the board?" This is done, and the 
 next step is to experiment with the measure. One of the 
 girls fills it with water and makes a statement about it: "I 
 have one gill of water." Having obtained a unit of meas- 
 ure, the next is taken, and the pint is considered by filling it 
 with water by means of the gill measure, and counting the 
 number of gills required to fill it. For dry measure, the 
 bran is used instead. 
 
 112. How is instruction given in measures of length? 
 
 By means of tape stretched along the wall. Upon this 
 tape the pupils measure off the foot, the yard, the rod. Each 
 child is provided with a foot rule as part of his school appa- 
 ratus, and it is frequently used in the various lessons. The 
 study of the yard and rod grows out of this, and they get 
 what no one who merely learns by rote that " twelve inches 
 make one foot, three feet one yard," etc., ever can get, — an 
 exact and real idea of the yard and rod. From this tape the 
 teacher readily brings out a lesson in numbers. For instance, 
 she writes on the board: "If I paid $90. 00 for eighteen feet 
 of land, how much did three yards cost?" The pupils see 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 7I 
 
 the foot and yard plainly marked off on the tape. They have 
 a realizing sense of comparative lengths, and this assists the 
 mental process required to solve the question. 
 
 113. How can all arithmetical problems be taught? 
 
 By the blocks, the wet and dry measures, the rules and 
 tapes, without once referring to a book. In point of fact, it 
 does not appear advisable to use books at all, but to study 
 numbers from objects, or by means of the board or stories of 
 imaginary transactions from real life. The study of numbers 
 is contined to the first four rules, simple fractions, and, per- 
 haps, interest. This takes the pupil about half way through 
 the grammar school, and it covers all that is required in or- 
 dinary business transactions. The tables, addition, multipli- 
 cation, weights, etc., are in time all learned, but they are 
 placed last and not first. 
 
 114. What are the results of these "new methods"? 
 
 The pupils are probably weak on the " tables," or in the 
 mere parrot-like recitation of formulas, but they display a 
 degree of quickness, a readiness of memory, comprehension, 
 and reasoning, that is remarkable. With shorter questions 
 involving two sums in one rapidly spoken sentence, the ans- 
 M r ers come in a vollev from the class the instant the sentence 
 is finished, showing that the mental processes have been just 
 as rapid as the spoken words. Such are the " results" in many 
 schools. As the majority of children leave school when 
 about half way through the grammar grades, the question 
 whether this objective teaching is fitting the boy for his prob- 
 able position in life or whether this is the best " schooling" 
 for the poor man's child, can only be answered by the facts 
 of future years. 
 
72 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 115. What may be said of the aims of this system? 
 
 They are in the right direction, and that all the aims are 
 more or less thoroughly accomplished. First of all, the child 
 must be happy. He must be at ease and' pleased with his 
 work, or little will be learned, and the training will be slight. 
 The child has senses through which he receives all he can 
 know, and makes known the thought that is in him. His 
 senses must be trained by use; hence the games, the blocks, 
 the colors, the music, pictures, and real objects. Imagina- 
 tion is perhaps the most valuable mental quality given to hu- 
 man beings; it must be cultivated continually, that the mind 
 may work quickly and surely. The studies are very limited, 
 because reading, writing, and arithmetic, are the tools with 
 which the work of the world is performed. These are enough 
 for the boy or girl who must leave the school before the gram- 
 mar term is over. If he has these, the world of work and 
 learning is all before him. 
 
 116. Give an illustration of primary teaching in arithmetic? 
 
 The teacher writes a series of simple sums in addition on 
 the board, and the whole school watch her with the keenest 
 interest. Now for a grand competition in language, gram- 
 mar, arithmetic, and imagination. As soon as the figures are 
 set forth a dozen hands are "up." "Well, Jennie?" Jen 
 nie rises and says: "I was walking in the fields, and I met 
 two butterflies, and then I saw two more, and that made four 
 butterflies." "Good." The answer is put under the sum, 
 and another child is called. " I had seven red roses and a 
 man gave me three white roses, and then I had ten roses." 
 By this time the school has caught the spirit of the game. 
 Forty hands are up, trying in almost frantic eagerness for a 
 chance to bowl over one of the sums and tell a story. Whis- 
 pering is plenty. One by one the sums are answered and the 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 73 
 
 quaint stories told. Then all the upper figures of the sums 
 are removed, and the lesson is changed to subtraction. Again 
 the stories. " I had four red apples, and I gave two away, 
 and then I had two apples," etc. Nearly every one mentions 
 the color of the articles described. They take their subjects 
 from out-of-doors, as if all their thoughts are of the woods,, 
 the fields, the street. The most striking feature of the lesson 
 is the intense eagerness to tell something, the alertness, the 
 free play to the imagination of the pupils, and the absence of 
 formality and anything like task or recitation. It is practically 
 an exercise in imagination, grammar, language, expression, 
 and arithmetic. 
 
 117. What method has been used in teaching Federal 
 money ? 
 
 This subject logically follows Decimal Fractions, but as 
 many pupils are compelled to leave school to follow business 
 pursuits before they reach the Grammar grades, this impor- 
 tant practical " study" should be placed in the highest pri- 
 mary course, immediately succeeding the four fundamental 
 rules. If pupils are instructed to express all amounts of 
 United States money in dollars, cents, and mills, they will 
 have no difficulty in writing money correctly. When the 
 teacher says, ''write twenty-live cents," the pupil will write 
 £.250 not .25 merely. Or, if the teacher asks for the writing 
 of three dollars, the pupil should write £3.000 and not $3. or 
 £3.00. The main advantage or rather, absolute necessity of 
 this will be appreciated when division of Federal money is 
 reached, especially the case in which money is divided by^ 
 money. 
 
 118. , What should be impressed upon the pupils? 
 
 That the dollar mark (*) and decimal point are all impor- 
 
74 .4 QUIZ-BOOK OX THE THEORY 
 
 tant; and that the work is of no value unless these signs are 
 properly placed. If all money be carried out to cents and 
 mills there will be no necessity of teaching reduction of Fed- 
 eral money, provided the pupils are familiar with the table. 
 
 119. Give an illustration by means of a problem. 
 
 " Add five dollars and two and one-half cents, thirty- 
 seven and one half cents, one dollar and sixty-two and one-half 
 cents, forty-four cents and three mills, and two dollars and 
 fifty-three cents and two mills, and subtract one cent from 
 the sum." Have the pupil proceed thus: 
 
 15.025 
 .375 
 
 1.625 
 .448 
 
 2.532 
 
 10.000 
 .010 
 
 Ans. 9.990 
 
 As the class is supposed to have no knowledge of 
 Common Fractions, the teacher will instruct pupils to write 
 five mills for one-half cent. Teach no other fractions of a 
 cent. 
 
 121. How may this subject be extended? 
 
 Drill thoroughly in practical questions involving combi- 
 nations of Addition, Subtraction, and Multiplication before 
 commencing Division. The latter may be classified under 
 the following cases: Money divided by an abstract number; 
 money divided by a comparatively large abstract number; 
 money divided by money; and then form combinations in 
 
AND PRACTICE <>F TEACHING 
 
 problems similar to this: If 240 pounds of salt cost $6, what 
 will 25 pounds cost? 
 
 240)6.000($.025 $.025 
 
 480 25 
 
 1200 125 
 
 1200 50 
 
 Ans. &B.25 or 62^ cents = cost 
 
 of 25 pounds. 
 
 122. How should problems be "worked" by the class? 
 When the teacher is instructing the class, all the pupils 
 
 may, of course, solve each question simultaneously. In test- 
 ing the school, however, the pupils should always have dif- 
 ferent problems, and, when practicable, those involving dif- 
 ferent operations. To prevent copying, let all the right.hand 
 pupils on each row of desks perform on one involving division, 
 while their companions by their side, on the left, are engaged 
 upon one involving multiplication; or have the former at work 
 upon one division and one multiplication, while the latter use 
 two divisions. 
 
 123. To what should special attention be given? 
 
 To problems involving tiro multiplications, and one multi- 
 plication and one division, as well as questions of barter and 
 exchange. 
 
 124. What is the real arithmetic? 
 
 Mental arithmetic. Written arithmetic is the bringing 
 in of slate and pencil, pen and pencil and paper, chalk and 
 blackboard, to aid the memory when the numbers become too 
 large and too complicated to be carried in the mind. School 
 work should aim to accomplish two things: to develop thought 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 and to teach expression. Hence the language used in solving 
 problems and in "working examples"" should be correct. The 
 expression of an idea is of no less importance than the idea itself. 
 For it is from the expression of the idea by another that we 
 get an understanding of the character and quality of the idea 
 as it exists in the mind. Such expressions as "I" multiplied 
 by so-and-so, and it gave me," and so on, are incorrect in 
 many, many ways. And yet every superintendent is obliged 
 to hear such expressions, and see such work done day after 
 day, until his soul grows vexed and his nerves all unstrung. 
 Upon inquiry, he finds that those who allow inaccurate 
 expressions do not teach mental arithmetic. 
 
 125. How is arithmetic generally taught at the present? 
 
 Written — slate-and-pencil arithmetic — is made the arith- 
 metic of the school-room in the town and city. In the dist- 
 rict schools the blackboard takes the place of the slate, and 
 this is preferable with the higher grades. In both, mental 
 arithmetic is being set aside, looked upon as an incumbrance, 
 the natural sequence of the subject being made a " hobby" by 
 many teachers and then ridden to death. This is wrong. It 
 is true that mental and written arithmetic should not be 
 looked upon as two separate studies, and treated as two sub- 
 jects completely isolated from each other. This is wrong on 
 the other extreme. 
 
 126. How should a subject of study be regarded? 
 
 The first point of view relative to a subject taught in the 
 school-room and from which it should be regarded, is its value 
 as a mind developer and as an element of discipline. The 
 second point of view is its utility in the practical every-day 
 affairs of life. Formerly mental arithmetic was studied solely 
 for the sake of mental discipline, and the idea was not a bad 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 77 
 
 one; it was not a correct one, but it was better than t<> throw 
 it away altogether. 
 
 127. What may be said of these two divisions? 
 
 Mental arithmetic should not be dropped entirely as a 
 separate study, for it reaches further and further in the way of 
 discipline than can be readied by the study of mental and 
 written combined. Furthermore, written arithmetic is the 
 application of the principles of arithmetic to the practical 
 business of life, but mental, arithmetic applies principles 
 without reference to anything but the truth. A harmonious 
 combination of the two produces the best and well-rounded 
 results. 
 
 128. Should problems be solved by rule? 
 
 The old idea of "working arithmetic by rule" has 
 exploded. For instance: From the analysis of a question 
 we obtain a formula; from the formula we deduce a rule. 
 Now, if we can analyze, what use is there of a rule ? We do 
 this by analysis. The result is the principle made into an 
 instrument with which to work out results. Instead of ma- 
 chines, we should aim to make our pupils machinists. 
 
 129. What is displayed by analysis? 
 
 The test, efficiency and thoroughness of the comprehen- 
 sion. If the lesson includes a half-dozen problems, require 
 each member of the class to prepare this lesson, writing out 
 in full — or as fully as necessary — on slate or paper, the analy- 
 sis of each, and let this work be brought to the recitation by 
 the class, and while a question is being placed on the black- 
 board, the class may recite from their slates or papers. 
 
 130. What language should be used? 
 
 It is just as necessary that the language used in an arith- 
 metical recitation be elegant and accurate as that it be elegant 
 
78 -4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 and accurate in a recitation in Grammar, for expression is not 
 only a test, but also a help to correct thinking. 
 
 131. Of what does the solution of a problem consist? 
 
 1. The statement and question; 2. The analysis; 3. 
 The conclusion, — -or, really, the answer to the question asked 
 in connection with the statement. This analysis may be, and 
 should be, shortened and condensed just as soon as the pupil 
 is able to do it, and do it intelligently and correctly. 
 
 132. Why are language and arithmetic the two most import- 
 
 ant subjects taught in the school? 
 
 Language is important, because any amount of learning 
 is of little use if it cannot be expressed. Arithmetic, because 
 it is necessary in the transaction of such business as must be 
 done by every one, no matter what his calling may be. 
 
 133. What has been taught for arithmetic? 
 
 Figures, instead of the science of numbers. Go into any 
 average school, and ask to be shown a number, and the child 
 will go to the board and write a figure; ask for a fraction and 
 he will write "-J" — which is no more a fraction than the word 
 "cat" is a cat. We teach figures, and the bright children 
 apply them to numbers. Give to the ordinary pupil this 
 question: 
 
 I have a cord of wood, sticks four feet long, to be cut 
 into three lengths for a stove, for which I pay $2; if I want 
 another cord cut into four lengths, how much proportionately 
 should I pay? And he will answer with edifying assurance. 
 $2.66f — which is wrong, of course. If I pay two dollars for 
 two cuts, three cuts are worth three dollars; but the child 
 didn't think he used figures. 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 134. What is the correct use of mental arithmetic? 
 
 To develop the faculty of ready and sharp logic that is 
 required in the applications of arithmetical process to the 
 business of common life. A mental habit of readiness and 
 accuracy in the processes of exact reasoning is of the highest 
 value. We need this kind of mental drill, and greatly 
 lament its general absence in the daily work of the common 
 schools of to-day. 
 
 135. Why has mental arithmetic fallen into disfavor? 
 Through an improper use of Warren Colburn's admira- 
 ble book. Teachers came to require of their pupils mere 
 routine work and formulated processes of analysis in recita- 
 tion — absolutely foreign to the author's design. In many 
 instances children were assigned daily lessons from this book 
 and required to commit not only the examples, but the 
 formula of explanation, to memory. Any single deviation 
 from a prescribed form was treated as a failure on the part of 
 the pupil. Such absurd and unphilosophical teaching of 
 mental arithmetic served to secure its general abolition. 
 The foolish abuse of the principle of analytic induction 
 caused its abandonment, and the substitution of books and 
 methods of a diluted and undisciplinary character. 
 
 136. Are errors taught in arithmetic? 
 
 Yes; and perhaps necessarily from *'the eternal fitness of 
 things." The primary pupil is instructed that 4+6X2 — 74- 
 9-^-3=7^, but the correct answer to this combination is (4+ 
 [6X2] — 7+[9-^3] ) 12; from the principle derived from the appli- 
 cation of higher mathematics that precedence is first given to 
 the quantities connected by the sign of division, then those 
 united by the multiplication sign, and finally the disposition 
 of those governed by the plus and minus sign, no priority of 
 use in the two latter changing the final result. 
 
So A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 137. Should arithmetical "curiosities" be used in the school- 
 room ? 
 
 The wise teacher will avoid everything having the 
 appearance of educational jugglery; but frequently in the 
 communication of general information in the five or ten 
 minute "talks," that many of the best and leading teachers 
 in the country are in the habit of giving to their pupils, 
 reference may be made to "lightning addition, 1 " obtaining a 
 repetition of figures by the multiplication of the nine digits, 
 circulating decimals, casting out the 9"s and the 7's, and an 
 explanation of the origin of the signs. 
 
 138. Give the origin of the arithmetical signs. 
 
 The sign of addition, called plus, is derived from the 
 initial letter of the word plus. Thus, P P T +, each time 
 more carelessly written. The sign of subtraction, called 
 minus, was derived from the word minus, which was con- 
 tracted into the letters m n s with a horizontal line drawn 
 above them to denote contraction. Then the letters m n s 
 were omitted, which left the short horizontal line [— ]. The 
 multiplication sign was obtained by changing the sign of 
 addition into the letter X; that is, the perpendicular cross 
 into the oblique cross, and this change was made because 
 multiplication is the short way of performing many 
 additions. 
 
 139. What is the source of the division sign? 
 
 Its origin is a little obscure, but it is said to have been 
 employed to save room on the printed page, and preserve its 
 regularity. The dividend was written at the left of the sign, 
 and the divisor at the right, and a dot was written in the 
 places of the dividend and divisor. Thus 12-*-3. 
 
 The radical si^n was derived from the letter r, the 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHlSd 
 
 initial letter of radix. Thus \9. The sign of equality was 
 first used by Robert Recorde, physician, in his Whetstone of 
 Witte, published in 1557. He gives his reason in his own 
 quaint manner, in the following words: "And to ayoid the 
 tediouse repetition of these wordes, is equalle to, I will settle, 
 as I doe often in woorkeuse, a paire of paralleles or Gemowe 
 lines of one lengthe thus =, because noe 2 thinges can be 
 more equalle." * 
 
 140. What is the first step in teaching number? 
 
 To ascertain, by careful examination, just how much the 
 child knows of number — i. e., just his acquired power of 
 limiting of objects of the same kind, to how many; just how 
 many limitations of this kind he has acquired. His knowl- 
 edge of number has been acquired through some necessity 
 of limiting the number of objects he handles or sees. Thus 
 a child in the kindergarten, who is constantly handling 
 objects — splints, pieces of paper, blocks, etc., placing them 
 in different forms, such as triangles, squares, oblongs, etc., is 
 gaining unconsciously, in the best possible way, knowledge 
 of number. 
 
 141. Of what does the child's real knowledge of number 
 consist? 
 
 In recognizing numbers of things at sight. Ability to 
 count must not be confounded with the true knowledge of 
 things. Counting is generally ordinal; his four or five is apt 
 to be nothing but the fourth or fifth. He may know numbers 
 without knowing their names or the words that recall them. 
 The names of numbers are frequently learned very early, and 
 
 * For further notice of the cariosities of mathematics, explanation of deriva- 
 tions, etc.. see No. 18. Dime Series of Question Books. 
 
82 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 many children learn to count as far as 100 before they know- 
 even the letters of the alphabet, and long before they are 
 placed in school at all. 
 
 142. How is a knowledge of things and their names together 
 to be learned? 
 
 Hold up three objects and say, " Bring me so many," is 
 the first and easiest test. If this is successful, hold up a 
 number of objects (not more than four), and say, "Bring me 
 
 " (naming the number). Third test: hold up a number 
 
 of objects and ask, " How many?" Fourth: request the child 
 to bring you so many, giving the number without showing the 
 object. 
 
 143. What instruction follows this? 
 
 As soon as the children have a clear idea of more or less. 
 
 which is the true idea of quantity, they should be taught to 
 make small calculations. Thev are naturally fond of such 
 exercises and acquire a facility in their performance. At the 
 outset they should be led to exercise their own skill in '.'doing 
 examples" adapted to their age and capacity. They should 
 be required to observe and explain their method at arriving 
 at results. If these methods are not the wisest, the teacher 
 should act the part o± a sagacious helper, and show his skill 
 in imparting better ways. 
 
 144. What are the "facts" regarding this youthful instruc- 
 tion? 
 
 That children at a very early age may be taught a great 
 variety of the most useful combinations of numbers. No 
 exercise is better adapted to give strength and maturity to 
 the mind than one in arithmetical calculation. It develops 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. S3 
 
 the reasoning powers, and satisfies the judgment, from the 
 fact that the result is absolutely certain. 
 
 145. What is one cause of the confused knowledge of arith- 
 metic found in older pupils'? 
 
 It results in greater part from the attempt to teach too 
 much during the first year. Too many teachers argue that 
 the child can not reason, and therefore he must be taught the 
 language, before the things. All this unreason arises from 
 the attempt, that tradition forces upon us to teach far more 
 than the child can learn. There is no time in the child's life 
 when he can not see, judge, generalize, and imagine, providing 
 the work is adapted to his mental capacity. It is this lack of 
 adaptation which leads to this erratic theory and ruinous 
 practice. Give the child time to grow, and wait patiently 
 until the germs of power burst out of their fruitful soil of 
 unconsciousness. 
 
 146. When should the use of objects be discontinued in 
 teaching arithmetic? 
 
 Cease using any object, when it can be remembered and 
 used without the presence of the object. This is a general 
 rule, and applies to all object teaching. 
 
 147. How should higher or written arithmetic be taught? 
 
 There is absolutely nothing new to be learned in all 
 arithmetical teaching, except the processes which large num- 
 bers involve, such as is found in the additions, multiplications, 
 subtractions, and divisions, which can not be performed with- 
 out the use of slate and pencil. All these processes should 
 be discovered by pupils. 
 
 148. What is the most diflicult division of arithmetic to teach? 
 
84 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Probably that of per eentage and its various applications, 
 and it is possible that here a memorized knowledge of the 
 rules governing the various cases — though in direct contra- 
 diction to the philosophical methods of teaching arithmetic — is 
 of more utility in advancing the pupil than in any other subject 
 of the study. Continued and persistent explanation, illus- 
 trated by the " thirty possible problems" of per eentage, will 
 only and alone give a mastery. 
 
 149. What may be said regarding the teaching of problems 
 of longitude and time? 
 
 The average pupil experiences nearly as much difficulty 
 in solving problems under this division as in the more diffi- 
 cult applications of per eentage. 
 
 150. How is this to be remedied? 
 
 By the teacher insisting upon the memorizing of the 
 simple fact that when longitude (or a difference of such) is 
 reduced to time, 15 is used as a divisor; that, conversely, in 
 reducing a difference of time to degrees of longitude, 15 is 
 used as a multiplier. 
 
 151. How may this principle be further instilled into the 
 minds of the pupils? 
 
 By having them draw a circle on the slate or blackboard 
 — the latter is preferable — and then furnished with a thorough 
 instruction in the apparent revolution of the sun around the 
 earth making so plain the cause of one hour's difference 
 in time representing fifteen degrees of longitude that the 
 pupil may be able to give this explanation in connection with 
 his solution of the problem. A school globe is a very useful 
 accessorv at this time. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 85 
 
 152. With what class of problems in longitude and time is 
 the greatest difficulty experienced? 
 
 With those especially, in which the number of degrees 
 (usually) is smaller than the divisor 15. This can be removed 
 only by an illustration from the teacher of some three, four 
 or half a dozen cases, if necessary, of solutions of this class 
 of problems. In the question: What amount of time is 
 represented in 4 degrees, 23 minutes, 17 seconds? the show- 
 ing to the class that 4 being indivisible by the given divisor, 
 a reduction to the next lower quantity or degree is essentially 
 the first step, will be found to aid the pupils sufficiently well 
 and encourage them to such development of their mathemati- 
 cal reasoning, as will result in obtaining the answer — a correct 
 one, if they have been drilled in securing accuracy of work. 
 
 153. Should we ever teach a rule in arithmetic? 
 
 A rule is merely a convenient statement of a method. 
 Rules, formula?, and analyses should not be memorized to be 
 repeated parrot-fashion by the pupil. A knowledge of the 
 principles involved in the question will unconsciously frame 
 in the mind of the pupil the rule for solution. -'The arith- 
 metic of the future, will contain, not one rule, definition, or 
 explanation of a process." — Parker. 
 
 154. State the difference between teaching a rule inductively 
 and deductively? 
 
 By the Inductive Method, we solve each case by analysis, 
 and derive the rules by inference or induction. By the De- 
 ductive Method, we first establish a few general principles, 
 and then derive rules of operation from these principles. 
 
 155. Where it is necessary, why should a definition or princi- 
 ple be understood by a pupil before he attempts to 
 commit it to memory? 
 
86 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Because it would be otherwise to him sound without 
 sense. 
 
 156. How much assistance should be given to the pupil in the 
 arithmetic class? 
 
 Only so much as is necessary to show him how to study, 
 and keep him from discouragement. Let him do the work, 
 while you point out the way, and encourage his application. 
 And, if he asks for light, give him only twilight. This is 
 Nature's method of imparting light to the world. First, in 
 the morning, the darkness is relieved by the glimmering twi- 
 light; and by imperceptible degrees it steals upon us; more and 
 more, until we bask in the full blaze of noonday- The 
 anxious pupil sees but dimly the principle and the fact. He 
 longs for more light. Encourage him to struggle for it, and 
 let it in upon him slowly, and only as he needs it. "Never 
 do anything for a pupil, that he can be led to do for himself." 
 
 157. How should mensuration be taught? 
 
 The working of all problems should be accompanied by 
 drawings of squares, rectangles, circles, spheres, cubes, cylin- 
 ders, etc. It adds interest to the recitation; ensures a more 
 thorough knowledge of the subject; develops habits of accu- 
 racy and neatness; cultivates the hand and eye, and frequently 
 arouses an honest rivalry in each member of the class to do 
 better than his neighbor. 
 
 158. What connection has the New Education with this? 
 
 Nothing more than that resulting from all object teach- 
 ing. Many teachers start at this term as though some 
 new discovery had just been made and announced to the 
 world. Some probably associate it with Supt. RickotFs noble 
 work at Cleveland, Dr. Hancock's at Cincinnati and Dayton, 
 
AVD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 3 7 
 
 Mr. Wilson's at Washington, Dr. Harris's at St. Louis, 
 Colonel Parker's at Quincy, or John Swett's in California. 
 The probability is that not one of these gentlemen claims to be 
 the founder of a new doctrine, or the discoverer of any very 
 new truth, but all have been more or less thorough students 
 of child-nature, and of the methods and principles of the 
 great teachers who have opened new avenues of thought, 
 investigation, and reflection in the past. The New Educa- 
 tion, an era of real revival of the true spiritual side of educa- 
 tion, in distinction from the purely formal and abstract, began 
 with the study of the real nature and wants of the child. 
 Comenius, Pestalozzi, Frcebel, Jacotot, Ratisch, Locke, 
 and other names so ably presented to us in Prof. Quick's 
 Educational Reformers, were the real discoverers of the New 
 Education, and we are poor students of our profession if we 
 have not learned something of their methods and purposes. 
 So great an educator as Horace Mann lighted his torch at the 
 lamp of these poet reformers, and to him as much, and possi- 
 bly more, than to any other man in America, unless we except 
 Henry Barnard, is due the honor of the great work of enlight- 
 ening the intelligence of the American teachers from the 
 sources of English and German educational philosophy. 
 
 159. How shall the New Education be accepted? 
 
 The term has come to be an acknowledged name for the 
 definite departure from the old process of mind cultivation, 
 and has already suffered by its practical adoption in the 
 school-room by unthinking, unreasoning teachers who only 
 copy others as parrots learn to talk. They do not think that 
 it is a lack of skill on their part that they fail, and that such 
 failure results from not studying what to do and what to 
 avoid. No one can ask or expect, before making a first 
 attempt, a thoughtful, intelligent teacher, who has followed 
 
88 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 a certain course faithfully because it has seemed the best 
 way for him, to lay it aside at an hour's notice, and work as 
 conscientiously for a new, untried, though highly recom- 
 mended one. But let the winnowing process of careful 
 experimental study be applied to them without prejudice and 
 without haste. In this way only can the chaff be separated 
 from the wheat. 
 
 160. What should be one characteristic of a recitation in 
 arithmetic? 
 
 Neatness and carefullness in the small item of making 
 exact figures, and forming beautiful combinations of 
 numbers. The scrawling, irregular-shaped figures that 
 deface the blackboards of very many country and town 
 schools should give place to order and precision, and accu- 
 rately-shaped characters. It is quite probable that nine- 
 tenths of the mistakes and failures which occur at the board, 
 find their origin, either remotely or immediately, in this 
 slipshod work. 
 
 161. What should be prominent in the instruction in arith- 
 metic? 
 
 Practical applications; and, in solving such problems, 
 pupils should be required to understand the words in which 
 the problem is expressed, to point out the relation of the 
 thing required to the thing given, to present a neat solution, 
 and to explain their work in concise and appropriate lan- 
 guage. 
 
 162. State the difference between the objective and sub- 
 jective course in arithmetic. 
 
 The former busies itself with finding out what are the 
 facts in the case, and what these facts signify. The latter 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. S9. 
 
 employs itself in arranging the facts in order, and in devot- 
 ing them to such uses as will most effectually serve humanity, 
 
 163. When can arithmetic be fully understood by the 
 pupil? 
 
 The full bearings of the science can not be seen until 
 some progress has been made in the higher branches of 
 mathematics; and they are never completely known, except 
 to the few that attain the conception of the highest scientific 
 or logical method. In the lower stage of school training,, 
 ease and accuracy in calculation, extended to the ordinary 
 compass of arithmetical problems, must be chiefly regarded. 
 The persistent practice of years should bring about this 
 result; while rapidity is attained by special drill in mental 
 arithmetic. 
 
 164. What are the principles of instruction in Algebra? 
 
 First: to lead the pupil to make the transition from arith- 
 metic to algebra. Second: to begin algebra with concrete 
 problems, and not with the abstract operations of the sci- 
 ence. Third: the pupil should have a thorough drill in the 
 practice of algebra. 
 
 165. Of what value is Geometry as a study? 
 
 It ranks among the first of all studies for the discipline 
 of thought power. It is the perfection of logic, and excels 
 in training the mind to logical habits of thought. In this 
 respect, it is superior to the study of Logic itself; for it is 
 logic embodied in the science of form. While logic makes 
 us familiar with the principles of reasoning, geometry trains 
 the mind to the habits of reasoning. No study is so well 
 adapted to make close and accurate thinkers. Euclid ha& 
 done more to develop the logical faculty of the world than 
 
go A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 any book ever written. It has been the inspiring influence 
 of scientific thought for ages, and is one of the corner-stones 
 of modern civilization. 
 
 166. State briefly the importance of a course in the ele- 
 ments of geometry. 
 
 1. A knowledge of geometry is adapted to the young 
 mind. 2. The elements of geometry should be taught for 
 their practical value. 3. Instruction in the elements of 
 geometry lies at the basis of drawing; and fourth, lessons in 
 geometry will be of value in school discipline. 
 
 167. What may be said of methods in the Higher Mathe- 
 
 matics? 
 
 The methods in Algebra, Geometry, etc., are those for 
 impressing abstract and symbolical notions and principles. 
 The understanding must accompany the work throughout; 
 the stage of routine manipulation, worked up to automatic 
 dexterity, is left behind. To a certain extent, the mechan- 
 ical processes may enter into Algebra; the pupil may receive 
 certain instructions, and, without understanding the reasons, 
 perform the simpler operations of adding, subtracting, multi- 
 plying, as in Arithmetic, but in the resolution of equations, 
 the principles must be understood. 
 
 168. When should Algebra be studied? 
 
 Alexander Bain states that this science is better learned 
 after Geometry, inasmuch as it works in part by demonstra- 
 tion or deduction from principles, for which by far the best 
 commencement is Geometry. It has its own specialty, which 
 consists in wrapping up the problems more completely in 
 symbols, so that the inferences have to depend upon the 
 validity of the symbolic representations and processes. The 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 91 
 
 symbolic processes should be justified by explanations and 
 demonstrations at the outset; and the pupil should fully com- 
 prehend these. 
 
 169. Should the Metric System be prominently taught? 
 
 Of its utility — as it is the whole assemblage of measures 
 derived from a fundamental standard, called meter — there 
 can be no question. Originating in France, it is a mooted 
 question whether it will come into general use by the people 
 of other countries. Its opponents declare that it is no more 
 necessary to adopt it than it would be to accept the monetary 
 system, decimal or otherwise, of France, England, etc. Its 
 adoption by the Government and almost universal use by 
 scientists, does not necessarily make it "a part of us." Cer- 
 tainly a knowledge of its divisions — beautifully uniform — 
 can be imparted to the pupils in a short time. 
 
 170. How are the Natural History sciences taught? 
 
 These sciences are typified, and made up chiefly, by 
 Mineralogy, Botany, and Zoology. The methods of teach- 
 ing these are not difficult to assign, although there are some 
 things that serve to complicate them. It is understood that 
 they repeat facts, notions already obtained in the general 
 sciences, and that they are occupied with the arrangement, 
 classification, and description of vast numbers of individual 
 objects. Any of these sciences, and particulai'ly the last 
 two, would swamp and overwhelm the strongest memory, and 
 the details would be unprofitable when lodged there. The 
 teacher has to make a principle of selection that will guide 
 him in making the most of a limited amount of time. 
 
 171. How are Philosophy and Chemistry to be taught? 
 Principally by experiment. And this principle applies 
 
92 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 to Zoology, which can not be learnt with any degree of suffi- 
 ciency and exactness, unless the student practice dissection. 
 In our common schools, topical diagrams alone supply the* 
 deficiency resulting from lack of apparatus. 
 
 172. What is meant by Language Lessons? 
 
 A system of language lessons conforms to nature's 
 method of teaching language. The little child, prattling in 
 its mother's arms, is engaged in its first lessons in composi- 
 tion. The simple name, the quality and action word, the 
 short sentence, all come in the natural growth of the power 
 of expression. In teaching, we must observe nature's 
 method and follow her golden rules. A correct system of 
 language lessons is founded upon the way in which a little 
 child naturally learns oral and written language. 
 
 173. What fact follows from this principle? 
 
 That a knowledge of language should precede a knowl- 
 edge of grammar. This is the historical order of develop- 
 ment. The ancients knew language and could use it in litera- 
 ture, but they had very little knowledge of grammar. Homer 
 sang in immortal veise, and probably could not distinguish 
 a noun from a verb. The Iliad embodied the rules of gram- 
 mar, without the author being conscious of them; the rules 
 of grammar were derived from the study of the Iliad. This 
 is also the natural order, — practice precedes theory, the art 
 comes before the science, — and should be followed in the 
 early lessons on language. 
 
 174. Why should pupils be required to recite in good 
 language ? 
 
 That they may learn what is good language and form 
 the habit of using it. We acquire language through imita- 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 93 
 
 tion; the pupil who has always heard good language will use 
 good language; his ability to use good language does not 
 depend upon his knowledge of grammar, but upon his hav- 
 ing heard good English, read good English, and practiced 
 _good English. No teacher can afford to dispense with the 
 language exercise. 
 
 175. What noted statement has been made upon the subject 
 of teaching grammar? 
 
 "The time is coming, and will be here ere long, when 
 there will be no more thought of teaching the grammar of 
 his mother-tongue to an English-speaking boy than of teach- 
 ing him astrology." — Richard Grant White. 
 
 176. How does the pupil acquire the use of good English? 
 
 Not through the study of words, but through familiarity 
 of speech; and the teacher's conversation, in school and out, 
 has more to do with the child's power of expression than the 
 teaching of grammar. True, the latter is essential as much 
 for its reactionary influences on the teacher, as for its 
 effect npon the pupils, but it is the teacher's unguarded 
 utterance that has most permanent influence in molding the 
 child in the use of language. 
 
 177. Why should we study grammar? 
 
 Bain very cogently states some of the reasons why. He 
 writes: A few persons, accustomed only to the best forms 
 of the language, might approximate to a faultless style with- 
 out grammar teaching; but not so the mass. By the ear 
 alone we may be taught to avoid "houses »V; but the insid- 
 ious breaches of concord due to the distance of the subject 
 and the verb — " the price upon the houses are" — can hardly 
 be explained without the terminology of grammar. * * * * 
 
94 A QUIZ- BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 It is an aid to readiness, ease, correctness, and effectiveness 
 of composition, to be led to examine the structure, arrange- 
 ment, and constituents of the sentence. We may dispense 
 with this training, but it will be our loss; we shall not com- 
 pass the arts of style so rapidly in any other way. 
 
 178. How should children be taught English Grammar? 
 When? 
 
 The first aim would be to have the meaning of the 
 words of any simple story or narration understood, by telling 
 or otherwise. The second would be to sort out or classify all 
 the words meaning persons, places, or things. Then the 
 words used to express doing or being. Next describing 
 words — 1, of Nouns — 2, of Verbs. Next connecting words 
 simply, and then words connecting and showing relation. 
 Thus far, no grammar should be used. The pupil should 
 then learn the inflections and syntax of the text-book. 
 Technical grammar should not be studied too early. Cer- 
 tainly not before a child is in its " teens." 
 
 179. Of what benefit are diagrams? 
 
 These are figures or drawings, usually formed of lines 
 oval, straight, or slightly bent (as in the brace), used to facili- 
 tate a demonstration of the agreement, construction, and 
 arrangement of words. They are useful in picturing to the 
 eye the several relations of words, phrases, and clauses in the 
 sentence. 
 
 180. When does their use become injurious? 
 
 When used merely as a mechanical form without the 
 additional and supplementary training in outlining, verbal 
 analysis, and parsing. Their constant use results in surfeiting 
 the pupil with a mastery of pictured analysis and some skill in 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 95 
 
 the elements of geometrical drawing, without teaching him 
 the use of his mother- tongue. By judicious use, they will 
 ever be a beneficial auxiliary in demonstrating his knowledge 
 of proper grammatical connection. 
 
 181. Why do pupils generally dislike grammar? 
 
 The reason why* so many of our pupils call grammar a 
 dry and senseless study, is simply because there is neither 
 method nor order in teaching it. This may be easily shown 
 by asking a class to parse a word. That two in twenty should 
 parse the same word in exactly the same way, would be a 
 mere chance. 
 
 182. How would you give a course in Language Lessons? 
 
 1. Require pupils to write the names of objects. 2. Re- 
 quire them to write the names of actions. 3. Require them 
 to combine the names of objects with the names of actions, 
 forming a sentence. 4. Lead pupils to an idea of a sentence, 
 as asserting something of something. Lead them to see what 
 is a telling or declarative sentence, an asking or interrogative 
 sentence, and a commanding or imperative sentence. 5. Show 
 them the use of capitals, the period, and the interrogation 
 point. 6. Have them write sentences introducing adjectives, 
 adverbs, pronouns, interjections, etc. 7. Show the difference 
 between particular and common nouns; the use of capitals for 
 I and 0., and so continue. A full analysis of this course is 
 given in that excellent manual, Dr. Brook's Normal Methods 
 of Teaching. 
 
 183. The formation of correct habits of speech demands 
 what? 
 
 In addition to systematic instruction, there is required: 
 
 # 
 
^6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 1. Correct speech on the part of teachers. 
 
 2. Careful correction of faults. 
 
 3. Care in the choice of reading and of associates. For 
 several years from the first, the course of language lessons 
 runs closely parallel with object lessons, and they must be 
 treated as mutually complementary. As the child's intellect 
 expands and he becomes capable of examining objects min- 
 utely, his attention should be called to resemblances and 
 differences, to the parts, material, qualities, and uses of the 
 objects presented. Exercises of this kind properly conducted 
 give a large number of concrete nouns and of such adjectives 
 as are needed for simple descriptions of material things. 
 
 184. What are cognates of this study? 
 
 Reading and spelling might be considered as coming 
 within the scope of this subject, but the special aim here is 
 to develop the power of using the language with readiness, 
 grammatical propriety, elegance, and force; for one of the 
 •chief ends of education is universally conceded to be the 
 cultivation of the power of thought, and words are its ex- 
 pression. 
 
 185. What should be the teacher's purpose at this time? 
 
 On the child's first entrance into school the teacher should 
 engage him in conversation on things most familiar to him, 
 which are then the things associated with his home-life — and 
 this can readily be done in the graded school — by way of 
 securing his confidence and arousing an intelligent interest in 
 the teacher and the school, as well as of improving his powers 
 of expression. In all this the teacher should keep constantly 
 in view the improvement of the child in all that pertains to 
 the expression of his thought— intonation, pronunciation, 
 choice of words, and form of sentence. 
 
A XI) PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 97 
 
 186. When can this be done? 
 
 Continually; in the class during the recitation, at noon, 
 and at recess. The child's expression will at first, in most 
 cases, be so faulty that the teacher must be very vigilant and 
 careful in correction, and must repeatedly tell him just what 
 form to give to his answer, remembering that the fit expression 
 of a child's thought will always be in childish speech. 
 
 187. What may be said of instruction in this study? 
 
 Exercise the child's mind rightly and there must be 
 permanent intellectual profit; and this applies to all branches 
 of instruction. The mind, like the body, grows pliable and 
 vigorous by exercise, and the child needs mental gymnastics 
 well arranged and skillfully applied. But the danger is that, 
 like athletic exercises, they will not be progressive, but will 
 become mere routine marching and counter-marching. Success 
 in mental training lies in giving the class intellectual exercise 
 progressively in all branches of study. It needs to be con- 
 ducted in a bright, spirited manner to stir the mind to white 
 heat, as lively athletic exercise warms the blood. 
 
 188. What is the principal subject of school instruction? 
 
 Language. No intellectual necessity of man is greater 
 than such a knowledge as shall unlock for him the records and 
 treasures of all ages, enabling him to contribute of his own 
 knowledge and thought to the profit and pleasure of mankind. 
 If the teacher can realize what a blessing he is conferring 
 upon humanity when he teaches language, he will not enter 
 upon the grammar hour with so much reluctance. It will 
 never be as satisfactory as mathematics, "an exact science;" 
 or as reading, which may become an imitative art; or as 
 geography, which may be fervently taught; or even as spelling, 
 
98 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 that may be almost silently taught; but it may be so directed 
 as an exercise as to be of the highest value to them. 
 
 189. How should the criticism of teaching this study be 
 regarded ? 
 
 The teacher of grammar is apt to be unduly sensitive in 
 regard to the stale criticism of narrowness. It is never used 
 by sharp, active men, whose judgment is worth heeding; but 
 when heard, if at all, it emanates from people who borrowed 
 the phrase from their grandfathers who knew only the district 
 schoolmaster. It has no place in modern society. 
 
 190. Of what must the young teacher be careful? 
 
 Of that captious disposition which results in magnifying 
 little matters. In the teacher's daily duties and surroundings, 
 and in the examinations upon minutia3 to which he is con- 
 stantly subjected, it is easy to discover the cause of this 
 "disease." But it is none the less unfortunate. And a 
 teacher is never so much to be commiserated as while he 
 abides in that inflammatory rheumatic stage of learning, exact 
 though not profound, in which no matter how absorbing the 
 theme, he can not hear without a twinge in his mental joints 
 and even in his countenance, a misplaced accent, a wrong 
 sound of a vowel, or one of those at least venial idioms which 
 some critics condemn. 
 
 191. What may be said of "verbal purism"? 
 
 Many estimable people, including very many teachers, 
 ignore the thoughts expressed in a conversation or newspaper 
 article or a sermon, in their eagerness to ferret out some of 
 the few scores or expressions which they are big with the 
 wisdom of just having learned to reject. This would be 
 puerile enough, even if their newly acquired information were 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 99 
 
 always correct. But it usually comes from some one book, 
 and most such books that have been issued either are super- 
 ficial catch-pennies, or are warped by personal prejudice and 
 whims. No one should rely upon Dean Alford's The Queen'' s 
 English, until he has read The Dean's English; nor should he 
 put faith in Richard Grant White till he has read Fitzgerald 
 Hall's two books, or Matthews' Words and Their Uses, or 
 Bardeen's Verbal Pitfalls. 
 
 192. How is this exhibited at Institutes? 
 
 Sometimes, unfortunately, by a spirit of unfairness in 
 attempting to trip the fellow teacher into some statement 
 antagonistic to the "decree" of the text-book author, or by a 
 confession of ignorance of the construction of a word of 
 which the querist was himself possibly half an hour previous. 
 Precious time has been thus wasted, when a proper discussion 
 of ways, means, methods, and the solution of the difficulties 
 of the school-room was the proper work. All such jugglery 
 should be decried by the good sense of the presiding officer. 
 
 193. What are really the "two troublesome words" to the 
 teacher? 
 
 Like and As. " The similarity and yet difference of 
 these two little words often give use to obscurity in the 
 writings of even the most thoroughly educated. A sentence 
 in a newspaper remonstrating against the laborers in a gas- 
 works being compelled to work twelve hours a day before red- 
 hot furnaces, runs. thus: 'The directors could fill their places 
 in three hours from the docks alone; but that does not give 
 them a right to use up men like Cuban planters.' Of course 
 the writer meant to say that the directors had no right to use 
 up men as Cuban planters use up negroes. The obscurity of 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 his expression arose from the misunderstanding of the dis- 
 tinction between like and as. So in ordinary language it is 
 common to hear such expressions as 'He don't like to do it as 
 you do.' Like and as both express similarity, but the for- 
 mer compares things, the latter action or existence. ' John is 
 like James,' and 'John is such a man as James is,' are correct 
 expressions. We may say, A's speech is like B's; or A speaks 
 as B; but it would be incorrect to say that A's speech is as 
 B's is; or A speaks like B does. One good rule on this 
 question is, that when as is correctly used, a verb is expressed 
 or understood, thus: 'One man is as good as another,' 
 With like a verb is unnecessary, thus: ' He does his work 
 like a man,' not 'like a man does.' These examples show how 
 words generally supposed to be synonymous may in reality 
 alter the true and close sense of a passage, and effect the 
 clearness and terseness of style." — On the Use of Words. 
 
 194. What are the " common errors of speech" among pupils? 
 
 Outside of gross vulgarisms and barbarisms, — common 
 in many cases to both pupil and teacher, — are the uses of the 
 past tense of many verbs with the auxiliary verbs have, had 
 etc.; the use of the participle instead of the past tense with 
 the first person, as I done; and the euphonious error of dcm-t 
 (and in the above extract the author pays no attention to it) 
 with the third person singular. 
 
 195. How are these errors to be corrected? 
 
 Principally by having your class or classes drilled on the 
 conjugation of the verbs. Assign the verb "believe" to 
 them daily for slate work, in one or more tenses, through the 
 active and passive voices. Succeed this by similar drill in 
 "fall," "see," "freeze," "eat," and many others, varied by 
 having the class write on the blackboard such sentences as 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 "I should have fell," "I have froze," "I haven't saw," etc., 
 and then rewrite the sentence correctly, explaining the fault 
 in the former sentence. 
 
 196. How may this subject be further illustrated? 
 
 By further illustration of the puzzling verbs " lie" and 
 "lay," "sit" and "set," and an explanation of the auxilia- 
 ries skill and will] and here where so many grammarians are 
 suspiciously silent it is best to simply state that shall is used 
 in the first persons, and will in the second and third, in 
 ordinary affirmation; or vice versa in their use, when strong 
 determination is asserted. 
 
 197. What is a good rule relative to this? 
 
 That the teacher with pupils of ordinary ability and 
 progress should not strive to elucidate this subject too clearly, 
 as there is danger of confusing in their minds the easier facts 
 that may be retained. With an advanced class "gleanings" 
 from text books and educational journals may be brought to 
 their notice with comments upon them from the teacher — in 
 some cases possibly, from both teacher and pupil — and where 
 circumstances justify such a course, a discussion on the merits 
 of the statements gleaned may ensue. There is seldom any 
 opportunity for this in the district or graded school, however. 
 
 198. What is the principal fault in grammar instruction? 
 
 It is one that frequently does not exist owing to the 
 paucity of knowledge of the subject by the teacher, or in its 
 stead there is a pseudo-criticism fever premeating his instruc- 
 tion as to whether five and six are eleven or five and six is 
 eleven; but it is that resulting from trying to teach too much 
 where the instructor is scholarly and really well versed in the 
 subject. 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 199. By what result is it followed? 
 
 The pupil can readily give a very charming analysis of 
 those lines from Whittier's Snow Bound, and furnish on slate 
 or blackboard a picturesque diagram (according to Clark or 
 some one of the manifold modifications and variations of the 
 Brace System) of the interesting lines selected from Gold- 
 smith's The Village Schoolmaster: 
 
 " Here, in his noisy mansion, skilled to rule, 
 The village master taught his little school." 
 
 And at the very moment possibly, or some minutes later, 
 indulge in one or more of the ungrammatical expressions that 
 result principally from not being drilled in such a simple matter 
 as the conjugation of verbs. 
 
 200. What "grammar" should the young teacher use? 
 
 He must be careful not to make a false distinction. For 
 the simple reason that he has found some statement con- 
 tradicting a long-loved hobby, he should not resolve to heed 
 in his use of language any mentor but habit. Here he would 
 be wrong, for there are expressions in common use, unques- 
 tionably some of them in his own vocabulary, which would 
 stamp him in many minds as an ignoramus. There are even 
 expressions recognized by scholars as wholly legitimate, 
 which he should remember to avoid because they have been 
 questioned by shallow critics whose books or newspaper 
 articles have had wide circulation. He will avoid such 
 expressions, not because they are wrong, but because they 
 might distract attention from his thoughts; just as a sensible 
 man avoids parting his hair in the middle, or saying ei(i)ther 
 and nei(i)ther, or the ungeneral pronunciations of wounded 
 and deaf, whatever may be his personal preferences, because 
 the multitude of men would regard the one and the other as 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 103 
 
 affectations. Better be thought thrice a dunce than once a 
 pedant. 
 
 201. What may be said of the conclusion that grammar 
 should never be studied? 
 
 It is' a mistake. English grammar, well studied, puts the 
 student in posession of many important facts concerning the 
 English language. The student thus adds to his stock of 
 information. Additionally, it will give the pupil a kind of 
 discipline he can not gain in any other way. Distinctions of 
 words and forms, idioms and constructions, are important in 
 themselves, and the nice observation of them develops a criti- 
 cal faculty that can not be obtained from mathematical or 
 scientific studies. 
 
 202. State your method of teaching grammar. 
 
 It should be so taught as to improve the pupil's use of 
 language. Even if a pupil has a good command of words, 
 forms, and constructions, there are still some things that he 
 must learn by rule and practice. He may by imitation pro- 
 nounce his plurals and possessives correctly, but he can not 
 thus spell and write them. But in the cases of the majority 
 there are numerous errors of speech that spring from associa- 
 tion, and that can be rooted out only by persistent criticism 
 and correction. Some of these are errors of Etymology, and 
 some errors of Syntax. 
 
 203. What then should the teacher do? 
 
 He should pay much attention to the practical side of the 
 subject; the grammar study and the language lessons should 
 be taught together. Moreover, the teacher must not be con- 
 tent with mere corrections of errors. In the discussion of 
 false forms, four steps may be noted; the error, the reason 
 
104 -4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 why it is an error, the correction, and the reason why the cor- 
 rection is made. 
 
 204. To what result will this method tend? 
 
 (a) Pupils will become observant and critical of errors 
 both in literature and in oral speech. 
 
 (b) They will become observant of their own errors, 
 spoken and written. 
 
 205. How will the pupils further show beneficial results? 
 
 The fruits of their study will be shown in improved 
 practice in the use of language, and will thus aid in removing 
 the current reproach against the study of grammar. As 
 respects themselves, the language of pupils will become more 
 conscious and more grammatical. A cultivated second nature 
 will take the place, in a degree, of the spontaneous first 
 nature; and this second nature will be developed all the more 
 rapidly if technical grammar is accompanied by studies in 
 language and literature, as should be the case. 
 
 206. What has been said of the usual method of teaching 
 grammar? 
 
 " The present general method of teaching grammar is 
 all wrong. If you want children to speak correctly, present 
 occasion for thinking, let them express their thoughts in 
 words, and when far enough advanced, let them read the 
 science of the English language, and they will not hate gram- 
 mar as they do now; while at the same time they will be able 
 to speak and write more correctly. I have heard school 
 children rattle off from memory page after page, but it was 
 all mechanical." — F. W. Parker. 
 
 207. Is there such a thing as English grammar? 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 ">5 
 
 "Now there is such a thing as Greek grammar, and 
 Latin Grammar, and German grammar; but there is no sci- 
 ence of the English language worth mentioning (since 
 William the Conqueror smashed the Saxon), and what there 
 is can be taught to a high school pupil in a week or two. 
 But some man unfortunately tried to make an English gram- 
 mar on the Latin plan; and ever since they have been making 
 it more and more complicated, and we have gone on teaching 
 what is called English grammar, and pretend to teach the 
 child "to speak and write the English language correctly — 
 we all know how he does it. * * * * * What shall 
 we do about it? Why apply our principle; let the child learn 
 to talk by talking, and to write by writing, and to compose 
 by composing — that is all." — F. W. Parker. 
 
 208. What is the relation of habit to grammar instruction? 
 
 Young pupils do not learn half as much good English 
 from their text-books as they do from their teacher, if she is 
 accurate and choice in her language. A pupil may decline 
 the pronoun "I" a hundred times, and repeat the rule for the 
 objective case as often, and yet he will say " Olla gave the 
 flowers to Mary and I" if his teacher uses such construc- 
 tions. On the contrary, if his teacher says " She gave it to 
 Mary and me," he will say the same, though he never looked 
 into a grammar. Corrollary 1. A child would never use bad 
 grammar, if he had never heard bad grammar. Corrollary 2. 
 Children in their language are much the same as are their 
 models. 
 
 209. How can correct language only be attained? 
 
 The important thing in the guidance of children toward 
 the acquirement of ease and correctness of expression, is to 
 see from the earliest moment in school-life that every spoken 
 
io 6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 or written sentence that comes under their observation be 
 correct and even elegant. That this shall be done must be 
 made the constant care of every teacher. The pupil watches 
 the movements and imitates the words and actions to a far 
 greater extent than the teacher knows. 
 
 210. What will be the result of this unconscious tuition? 
 Let the teacher never speak incorrectly himself, nor per 
 
 mit an incorrect expression of a pupil to pass unheeded, and 
 there is a probability of our seeing and hearing such forms of 
 language for them as would honor even " a well of English 
 undefiled." 
 
 211. What should be shunned by the teacher? 
 
 That feeling which is common among many district 
 school teachers, of constraint, awkwardness, amounting in 
 some cases to almost shame, to speak grammatical English 
 when at home, on the farm, or by the fireside. If you are to 
 be exposed to ridicule for speaking correctly, even if it comes 
 in contradiction to the language of your parents, the sooner 
 the matter is settled by a judicious stand, the better for the 
 sake of all, and especially your own welfare. The attempt 
 to indulge in too set forms of speech — one for the school- 
 room and the other for the " world" — can not be too much 
 decried. 
 
 212. What may be said of all methods of teaching 
 grammar? 
 
 As there is no royal road to learning, in general, so there 
 is no one method for teaching language so pre-eminent that it 
 may be regarded as the best method. It is, however, strik- 
 ingly manifest that those teachers secure the most satisfac- 
 tory results who work in accordance with methods of their 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 107 
 
 own arranging; who are not mere imitators, but intelligent 
 executors of methods which they have thoughtfully devised. 
 
 213. State one of these "original" methods. 
 
 As one of the objections made strongly against the 
 " rote" parsing (characterized by some as "senseless memo- 
 rizing") of "John is a noun, singular number, masculine gen- 
 der," etc., and yet as it is absolutely necessary that a knowl- 
 edge of the properties of the various parts of speech should 
 be held by the pupil, there can be used " outlines," similar 
 to the following, and given as slate-work or produced on the 
 blackboard: 
 
 For the Substantivb. 
 Species. 
 Class. 
 Sub-class. 
 Person. 
 <j Gender. 
 Number. 
 Declension. 
 Case. 
 Construction. 
 
 For the Verb. 
 'Species. 
 
 Class. 
 
 Sub-class. 
 
 Voice. 
 
 Mode. 
 
 Tense. 
 
 Conjugation. 
 
 Person. 
 
 Number. 
 
 Construction. 
 
 214. What does this method insure? 
 
 Closer attention on the part of the pupils to the tech- 
 nicalities of language. The work being before the eyes of 
 all — blackboard outlining is preferable — a spirit of emulation 
 is aroused between the members of the class, resulting in 
 growing accuracy, daily. They will not withstand the criti- 
 cism of their associates. 
 
 215. What kind of oral parsing may be used? 
 
 That which properly may be denominated "collateral" 
 
ioS A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 parsing; where using the same form of outline as above 
 given — after a sentence has been written on the blackboard 
 or a line or two of poetry and prose recited by the teacher — 
 the pupils, " in turn," parse the word. 
 
 216. What are the especial benefits of this method? 
 
 Securing the attention of the class and developing the 
 faculty of criticism among the pupils. Necessary corrections 
 may be indicated by the upraised hand of the pupil. 
 
 217. Name the first requisite in the successful teaching of 
 any branch. 
 
 A thorough understanding of the subject by the teacher 
 himself. We should always be so thoroughly familiar with 
 it before coming to the recitation that we will not be obliged 
 to refer to the book. This will inspire confidence on the 
 part of the pupils, and it will encourage them to recite the 
 subject, since they will see that it is this which the teacher 
 knows rather than the set words of the text. 
 
 218. How may "routine teaching" in grammar be avoided? 
 
 By dispensing with the book, for the time being, as soon 
 as a knowledge of the noun has been obtained. Select 
 familiar sentences from their readers and have them simply 
 parse, outline, and diagram the noun until it is well under- 
 stood, and stop just before this subject even is monotonous. 
 So complete the study with these variations from text-book 
 to slate or blackboard, or both. 
 
 219. To what is this avoidance of routine essential? 
 
 To true progress in teaching. The children must be 
 taught the practical value of the lessons they are learning; 
 taught that they learn in order to become wiser and better 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 109 
 
 men and women, not merely for the sake of "getting over'* 
 each day's recitation. To accomplish this, the teacher must 
 give instruction by topics rather than by the strict order of 
 the book, and himself labor diligently to acquire, for his own 
 use, all the knowledge he can obtain outside of the book. 
 Every new idea will aid in making the recitation interesting, 
 and this is a great help. 
 
 220. How should the verb be introduced to the notice of 
 the class? 
 
 By following a similar plan concerning the noun. First 
 make the pupils familiar with this part of speech by numer- 
 ous illustrations and examples- They will then be ready for 
 the name verb, and possibly for a definition. The arrange- 
 ment of its properties and its construction naturally follows. 
 
 221. What definitions should be given in grammar? 
 
 Those of the simplest form and accurate in statement. 
 Teachers have not the time nor opportunity, in the ordinary 
 grade of schools, to enter into discussion with the pupils 
 regarding text-book statements. To commit and "parrot 
 off" the' definitions of others is time worse than wasted. In 
 schools of the higher grade there is time to investigate, to 
 decide, to point out errors, to carry a proposition to logical 
 conclusions, and to analyze these are positive advantages. 
 
 222. In view of this, what should characterize the teaching 
 of definitions? 
 
 The teacher must be in the position to have his state- 
 ments accepted by the pupils unquestioned. Necessarily he 
 should be correct. Do not accept the definition of a regular 
 verb as "one that adds d or ed to the present," as this would 
 include hear, an irregular verb; or "a regular verb is one 
 
-■1 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 whose past indicative and perfect participle end in ed" as 
 this includes the irregular verbs fed and led; but simply that 
 "a regular verb is one which adds ed to the present to form 
 the past indicative and perfect participle." 
 
 223. Should prosody be taught in the common schools? 
 
 It frequently happens that a teacher from a natural lik- 
 ing or knowledge of the subject, and sometimes simply as 
 the result of an affected conceit, attempts to give some 
 instruction in this division of grammar, but always with the 
 only result of having called the pupil's attention to a curi- 
 osity, or of wasting a few days of the school's recitations. 
 Properly, it should be left alone under these circumstances. 
 
 224. How much punctuation may be taught by the district 
 teacher? 
 
 Considerable. The knowledge which he may attain by 
 a study of any one of the half-dozen excellent little manuals 
 published on the subject, may be imparted to the pupils, 
 additional to that contained in their grammar, by writing 
 simple sentences on the blackboard, properly punctuated, 
 with specimens of the superscriptions of letters, forms of 
 address, letter headings, etc. The use of quotation marks, 
 interrogation and exclamation points, may be insisted upon 
 from the start. 
 
 225. Illustrate a Lesson in Grammar? 
 Write on the blackboard the following: 
 
 " The day is done, and the darkness 
 Falls from the wings of night, 
 As a feather is wafted downward 
 From an eagle in his flight. 
 
 "I see the lights of the village 
 
 Gleam through the rain and the mist, 
 And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me, 
 That my soul can not resist: 1 '— Longfellow. 
 
A XD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 226. What questions can then be asked? 
 
 1. Those relative to Punctuation and Capitals, (a) Call 
 the attention to the use of the comma in the series of nouns, 
 and then form a rule, (b) How many commas in the whole 
 lesson? (c) Name and use of the punctuation mark after 
 "resist." (d) Why is the dash used before the author's 
 name? (e) How many periods in this lesson? How many- 
 sentences? Why does each line commence with a capital 
 letter? 
 
 2. Regarding the Parts of Speech, (a) Write in col- 
 umn all the nouns. How many are there? (b) How many 
 nouns are plural? (c) Write the verbs. How many? 
 (d) How many times is the article the -used in this lesson? 
 The article a or an? (e) How many prepositions in the les- 
 son? (/') How many times is the conjunction and used? 
 (g) Name the pronouns? (h) How many paragraphs? How 
 many sentences? (i) Write from memory the first verse — 
 the second. (j) Compare with original and correct the 
 punctuation and other errors. 
 
 227. What may be said of the Composition problem? 
 
 The teacher could not be confronted by any more appall- 
 ing task than that of managing the compositions of a hundred 
 or more boys and girls — or even the lowest allotment of 
 twenty-five or thirty — who are neither innocent enough to 
 work for praise, nor experienced enough to know the value of 
 literary accomplishments. About equally convinced that 
 compositions are of no value in themselves, and that, if they 
 were he himself could never write anything worth reading, 
 the average boy teaches himself to look upon them as an 
 unmitigated nuisance, and upon the teacher who requires them 
 as an enemy to his happiness. 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 228. What are the "helps" to the teacher in this exercise? 
 
 He should remember that as there is a traditional antipa- 
 thy to the task, it is best in the first place not to insist upon 
 their production too often. During the first of the term they 
 may for a short time alternate weekly with map drawing. 
 Later, require them only once in three weeks, and if a holiday 
 occurs on Friday — the usual day for making the requirement — 
 delay the exercise until the next week. It gives an "air of 
 freedom" to the matter that is appreciated by the pupils. 
 Again, if possible, obtain their consent to write one complete 
 «ssay, treating a subject fully and written with especial care, 
 giving them an extension of time for its preparation. This 
 is of more value in developing the ability to compose than a 
 number of short ones. 
 
 229. What is one "practical form" of composition? 
 
 Letter writing. A matter that is sadly neglected in our 
 common, graded, and even many of our high schools. The 
 teacher should place upon the blackboard a drawing of a par- 
 allelogram — the ordinary shape of the envelope — and write 
 some three or four different forms of addresses. Then furnish 
 the pupils with an example of proper dating, letter heading, 
 the address of the letter itself, some hints relative to the 
 ■" body" of the epistle, showing them varying forms of closing, 
 and request them to bring in the composition, with a cancelled 
 stamp placed on the upper right hand corner, with an imita- 
 tion of the post-office stamp. 
 
 230. Of what should the subject consist f 
 
 Most anything. This form is only to be used after the 
 pupils have had some experience in composition writing. Tell 
 them to write you a letter of a visit or journey they have 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACH IXC 
 
 made, if even only a few miles away, or a description of some 
 subject that lias interested them, the books they wish to read, 
 or have read, the studies they like, or any ordinary incident 
 of home life. They will do it well, and be well pleased with 
 the novelty of the proceeding. 
 
 231. How long should this be continued? 
 
 Do not overdo it. Some schools will remain content 
 with half a dozen requisitions upon them for this exercise. 
 Others will tire after three or four efforts, and then is the 
 time to discontinue. It may be renewed, if advisable, at a 
 later period during the term. 
 
 232. What should be the first form of a composition? 
 
 Reproduction from memory . It demands a low grade of 
 the inventive, originating activity of the mind. The pupil 
 in trying to reproduce the idea calls into operation every 
 faculty of the mind to select the words most suitable for the 
 idea. Unsuccessful efforts to express are the best means of 
 teaching the value of the words. We learn the value of 
 words by needing them. Having really felt their want, when 
 we at last get them they are appreciated. The constant fail- 
 ure to express ideas Well, is the best possible training toward 
 ready language. 
 
 233. What subjects should be given for compositions? 
 
 Topics taken from the reading lesson may be used. An 
 excellent preliminary drill is to read to the class (grammar it 
 is presupposed) some short, interesting, spicy narrative, and 
 at its close request them to write it on their slates for your 
 inspection. Taking special opportunity for this, you may 
 correct these embryo theses while the pupils wait, reading 
 aloud certain portions that indicate discrimination or good 
 
1I4 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 judgment, or on the contrary require some present criticism, 
 grading them as you proceed. The name of the writer 
 should not be mentioned, and this applies only to a class 
 of twelve or fifteen members. 
 
 234. Should the teacher select the topics? 
 
 As a general thing yes. Don't ask young pupils to make 
 their own selection. It is cruel. It is shirking a duty which 
 is harder for them than for you. Don't make too much of 
 these efforts. Take time for it, and real, genuine healthy 
 progress will be your sure reward. 
 
 235. How often should the composition exercise be given? 
 This depends greatly upon the grade of the school, its 
 
 morale, the advancement of the pupils, and the efficiency of 
 the instruction. In the matter of grading, some district 
 schools are superior to those in town, and here elementary 
 composition writing in connection with the grammar may be 
 used daily; in others two or three times a week; in some once 
 a week only. In graded schools it is generally a requirement 
 made fortnightly from the pupils, alternating with map draw- 
 ing. In the grammar schools of the different cities various 
 exercises are demanded on succeeding Friday afternoons, such 
 as printing (in script, German text, etc.), compositions and 
 map drawing, so that this study conies up but once a month. 
 
 236. What success have you had in teaching composition? 
 Very good. We once asked the pupils to open their 
 
 geographies to the map of the British Isles, and then followed 
 a supposed route from the extreme southwestern point of 
 England, mentioning the larger cities, such natural curiosities 
 as came to our memory, reference to the poem in Home's 
 Douglass of " On the Grampian Hills," etc., an account of 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 "5 
 
 Balmoral Castle, the summer residence of the Queen, on to 
 "Duncansby Head. We then referred the class to the account 
 of John O'Groat given in the Webster's Unabridged lying 
 on the desk, supplemented it with some additional infor- 
 mation, and then announced as the topic "From Land's End 
 to John O'Groat's House." No copying was allowed during 
 the preliminary talk or from their text-books. Out of a class 
 of thirty-five, some six or eight compositions were produced 
 quite suitable for the columns of the town paper (weekly), 
 to which they were referred, and in which they were printed. 
 The class consisted of boys and girls, of very ordinary intel- 
 lect, from twelve to fifteen years of age. 
 
 237. How is a class to be instructed in original production? 
 
 This is the highest, most profitable, and if the matter is 
 properly managed, really the easiest form. It may be oral 
 or written. A thousand devices will lead to it. If the 
 Psalm of Life is the reading lesson, you may request the 
 pupils to be ready to tell what they would have their life to 
 be, as their next lesson. Have the relation of a military 
 funeral, a steamboat disaster, a great fire, a noted flood, a 
 terrible cyclone, the beauty and strength of the ocean, an 
 account of a field of waving wheat or other gram, with a 
 great selection of a variety of topics, such as meets the taste 
 or circumstances of the pupils, and after the oral recitation 
 ask for its "written account." 
 
 238. How may good results be secured? 
 
 By thoroughness and originality of treatment, freedom 
 of choice of subjects, definite instructions as to form, en- 
 couragement to boldness in developing the outline, length of 
 time allowed for preparation, persistent training in habits of 
 neatness and correctness in written work, and some schedule 
 
Ii6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 of marks of correction; and, where blank forms are unat- 
 tainable, a printed or written list of suggestions for the use* 
 of the pupils is beneficial. 
 
 239. Of what length should the compositions be? 
 
 It is quite difficult to regulate this matter. A hint pri- 
 vately given to a pupil furnishes better result than any other 
 form, though the general statement may be made that the 
 teacher desires nothing less than three or four or six pages of 
 note paper, as of sufficient length. To the boy or girl who 
 shirks and brings you but a page or a page and a half care- 
 lessly written in haste and badly composed, some special cor- 
 rection should be given by forcing him or her to prepare 
 a better substitute. In higher schools compositions are fre- 
 quently presented with the sheets stitched together and 
 fastened with ribbons in artistic fashion, and, in some cases, 
 accompanied with drawings of real excellence. There have 
 been presented compositions that were exquisite in tone and 
 almost faultless in penmanship and punctuation; and it is 
 quite possible to receive some very miserable " scrawls." 
 
 240. What "form" of composition can be taught? 
 
 Without trenching upon the advanced subject of essay 
 writing taught in high schools and required from the college 
 student in the guise of a theme, valedictory, etc., the pupil 
 of the common school may be taught to write biographical 
 sketches, commencing possibly with an autobiography, stat- 
 ing his name, date and place of birth, parents with ages and 
 occupation, first remembrances, where educated, personal 
 appearance, favorite occupation, characteristics, and plans 
 for the futuie. The teacher may aid materially by placing 
 upon the blackboard a skillfully arranged outline of this as 
 a preliminary movement. 
 
PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 117 
 
 241. What special principle applies to composition? 
 
 The same as belongs to oral reading: that ideas are of 
 more importance than words, and it is better, therefore, for 
 the pupil to express the thought, ungrammatically than not 
 at all, as in reading it would be better to miscall a word now 
 and then, while doing so understandingly, than to read all 
 the words correctly and have no idea. 
 
 242. What are the aids to language acquisition? 
 Committing passages to memory, more especially poetry. 
 
 This may contribute to knowledge, but it is not the best way 
 of imparting knowledge, and its value must be appraised 
 rather as regards language. It is, however, one of the oldest 
 devices of teaching; having the great merit of being plain 
 and manageable, it is adopted to the lowest teaching capacity, 
 and nobody can say' that it is devoid of useful results. It 
 certainly stamps upon the mind the material both of thought 
 and of language, and they must be very hopeless subjects 
 that can not turn it to some account. 
 
 243. What are the "weaknesses" of this exercise? 
 
 The sense of the words used should be understood by 
 the pupil. This may be done by the " drawing-out process" 
 on the part of the teacher before or after the recitation. It 
 often happens that poetry, above all other things, may be 
 committed to memory as three-fourths words and one-fourth 
 meaning. It is not sufficient that interesting emotions are 
 produced when only a vague thread of sense is traceable. 
 Prose passages are less easy to commit, but more likely to be 
 turned to account, than poetry. 
 
 244. To what practical use does this lead? 
 
 What we Avant for ready use is a well-turned sentence 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 form, or a suitable designation or phrase for some meaning 
 that we are at a loss to render. It is this innate desire of 
 human nature that is shown among the uneducated classes by 
 the reiteration of stale axioms and trite "sayings." The ora- 
 tor is frequently indebted to his momentary success by some 
 strong pregnant quotation, aptly illustrating his train of 
 spoken thought, and which serves as a "clincher" to his 
 argument or peroration. 
 
 245. Name one of the most valuable exercises in grammar. 
 
 It is the tilling up of omissions or ellipses, so common in 
 every language as to be an authorized fact of the language. 
 Half the difficulties of grammatical parsing grow out of these 
 ellipses. "Please to give me (or, more commonly, please 
 give me) something to drink" is a grammatical puzzle until the 
 full expression is given — "May it please you to give me some- 
 thing that I may drink." 
 
 246. What are the unnoticed ellipses? 
 
 The elliptical use of nouns, as "stone walls;" "walls 
 that are made of stones." Another important contraction is 
 the turning of clauses into abstract nouns — " What we see, 
 we believe," " seeing is believing," "sight is belief." 
 
 247. What forms of grammatical structure should the teacher 
 give? 
 The arrangement of words and clauses in sentences 
 admits of great variation, and many of the most successful 
 teachers in this study insist upon a lengthened drill in the 
 different placing of qualifying words, the substitution of sub- 
 jects, predicates, and the auxiliary elements (adjective, objec- 
 tive, and adverbial) in sentences lacking such. The teacher 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 119 
 
 can form to himself a scheme of variation, for which Gram- 
 mar and his own sense will be the guide. 
 
 248. When should advanced grammar be taught? 
 
 When pupils have arrived at a stage of intellectual 
 development to enable them to comprehend the principles of 
 language as a science. This can seldom be done in the 
 country school, but must be left to the instruction that can 
 be given under the favoring conditions of a high graded 
 school or the private academies and seminaries. 
 
 249. How is rhetoric taught? 
 
 As the subject is but a continuation of advanced gram- 
 mar its treatment must be similar, consisting largely of drills 
 in the correction of false forms of diction, construction, and 
 the avoidance of ambiguity of thought and expression. 
 
 250. By what is this followed? 
 
 By an exercise in the analysis of words in which the 
 pupil is made familiar with the results of modern Philological 
 research in regard to the formation of words and the growth 
 of language. By the careful study of his own vernacular, he 
 obtains a knowledge of the roots derived from all the lan- 
 guages which enter into the English; he gets nice and 
 discriminating use of words which is usually sought in the 
 study of a foreign language, and he acquires the power of 
 etymological analysis, which will be of great worth to him in 
 practical life, and in the continuation of linguistic studies. 
 
 251. Is etymology an advanced study? 
 
 Not necessarily. It may be introduced into classes of 
 ordinary advancement in grammar and especially with bene- 
 ficial results where there is no probability of the pupils 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 receiving higher instruction in a language course. A study 
 of this kind, while it can not take the place of a thorough 
 culture in the classic "tongues," will be found an excellent 
 preparation for such culture, and it will prove of much 
 greater practical value than superficial classic study. 
 
 252. How should it be taught? 
 
 Any good text-book on the subject indicates properly the 
 method of instruction which is supplying the definitions of 
 roots, prefixes, and suffixes (affixes) in addition to the drills in 
 original meaning of words, and the interchange of synonyms. 
 The better grade of readers furnish this latter exercise, which, 
 in connection with composition work, is of the greatest 
 benefit. 
 
 253. What is the highest form of word-memorizing? 
 
 That which leads to the study of literature as a distinct 
 branch. While studying the models of English composition, 
 the student should be assisted to undertake a course of read- 
 ing carefully planned by the teacher. Each author should be 
 thoroughly studied, and his characteristics as a writer, his 
 peculiarities, habits, tastes, personal appearance, etc., noticed. 
 Following this an exercise may be held each week, to which 
 all the members of the class are required to contribute some- 
 thing relative to the author. This can only be done, success- 
 fully, in the schools of our larger towns having ready access 
 to books of reference through the medium of public libraries. 
 
 254. Can literature be taught in the common schools? 
 
 Yes; and by an earnest teacher with the most gratifying 
 results. A small manual * placed in the hands of the pupils 
 as supplementary to the reading lessons and ultimately as a 
 
 * Short Studies in Literature. Eldridge & Bro., Philadelphia. Price 00 cents. 
 
ASD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 special study, has, in many cases, entirely revolutionized the 
 mental condition of a school and served as an intellectual 
 incentive to additional increased interest in other studies. 
 
 255. How should it be taught? 
 
 The probability is, that after the first fresh enthusiasm 
 that pupils always feel everywhere, in having possession of a 
 "new book," it will require some tact on the part of the 
 teacher to prevent the exercise from becoming dry and insipid. 
 A mere recital of the dates of birth and death of an author 
 with the list of his works is not literature, nor the study of 
 literature. It should be remembered that the knowledge of 
 the teacher must be sufficient to fill out and supplement the 
 brief descriptions of a text-book. As soon as practically con- 
 venient, have the class engaged in preparing topical outlines 
 of the authors, giving their birth, death, incidents in their 
 career, their married life, manner and conversation, striking 
 peculiarities, social standing, the financial reward of their 
 labors, list of productions, some leading familiar quotation or 
 "oft-repeated phrase," and their burial place. 
 
 256. Under what form may this topical outline be arranged? 
 By having the pupils place upon the blackboard — the 
 
 teacher should illustrate at first by some three or four 
 examples — a brace or any form of connecting outline filling 
 in similar to the following: 
 
 ("1564— April 23— Birth: Stratford-upon-Avon. 
 1582 — Marriage to Anne Hathaway. 
 1581 — Departure for London. 
 
 1598— Acted for the last time in Ben Jonson's Sejanus. 
 1611 — Returned home. 
 !Shakespeaee. I 1616— Death; on fifty-third birthday. 
 ! List of works. 
 I Familiar quotations. 
 
 I Personal appearance, characteristics, married life, style of 
 I handwriting, etc. 
 Note:— The " matter" following date of death is left unfilled, as sucli informa- 
 tion can be derived from the text-book. 
 
 William 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 257. How can pupils gain a knowledge of the author's life 
 and writings? 
 
 Naturally, no small text-book can supply else than a few 
 meager facts relative to an author, and offer but a few brief 
 selections from his works; but not only the teacher but the 
 pupils should have cultivated a disposition to search for 
 additional information and extracts. Hardly any community 
 is so isolated but what they are favored with their weekly 
 local paper, and hardly any rural publication but what will 
 contain, frequently, just such details, in the way of literary 
 gossip, clippings, stereotyped news, and some poetical select- 
 ions. To the schools in villages and larger towns the " daily" 
 and the circulating library, offer all that is needed. 
 
 258. What special effort should the teacher make in teach- 
 ing literature? 
 
 From the beginning, he should place himself within the 
 reach of all means tending to a full knowledge of the subject, 
 which he can do by subscribing to some two or three cheap 
 publications — as low as fifty cents per annum — and constantly 
 search the columns for such literary gems as will be useful. 
 A sci*ap-book containing all these cuttings will be of inesti- 
 mable value to him. Under passably favorable conditions, he 
 can secure the co-operation of his more intelligent pupils and 
 they, too, will furnish scrap books for use in the recitation. 
 
 259. How is the literary scrap-book to be used? 
 
 It should be remembered that all these remarks are based 
 upon the supposition — and such is frequently the case — that 
 the school is comparatively ignorant of the subject and that 
 even the teacher may be but indifferently prepared to give 
 instruction. In our larger towns and cities, where school 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 123 
 
 children have access to the morning and evening paper, the 
 school and public library, and a hundred-and-one mediums of 
 information, a love of literature — the study of good books — 
 is fostered from infancy, and the class accept an introduction 
 into the use of such text-book with more or less delight, 
 based naturally upon their inclinations, but it is in the 
 retired village or comparatively obscure and isolated district 
 school, that the scrap-book becomes the circulating library 
 and is the great incentive to the acquisition of more knowl- 
 edge. The teacher may loan his, under certain restrictions, 
 to the pupils, and those that have been "made" by them 
 should be at hand for ready use. The wise teacher will have 
 his prepared as an introductory movement in which to engage 
 the class. 
 
 260. By what further means can an interest be aroused in 
 
 the study? 
 
 By allowing the pupils at their Friday afternoon " exercise'* 
 to recite, as a class, selections from leading authors, in prose 
 or poetry, giving at the commencement or close the name of 
 author and extract. The teacher may question occasionally 
 as to the time that author lived, etc., that is, it would be, to 
 a certain extent, partly an examination. This exercise may 
 be held weekly, or only twice a month, basing its judicious 
 use upon the amount of interest shown by the class. If suffi- 
 cient interest is aroused, the teacher will be surprised at the 
 amount of literary "matter" the pupils have obtained. 
 
 261. What is one form of arousing interest in the study? 
 
 The recital of such anecdotes illustrating the whims, 
 peculiarities, struggles, rewards, and habits of authors, as 
 may come to the notice of the teacher — and there is an 
 immense fund of such "gossip" — by him to the pupils at 
 
I24 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 appropriate intervals, but exercising sufficient judgment to 
 prevent himself from degenerating into a mere story-teller. 
 It is quite impossible to have children like literature at first 
 from simply the innate beauty of the expression or the senti- 
 ment conveyed. Such appreciation is a "plant of slow- 
 growth," but it will come from these simple elementary aids 
 to be a matter of need producing that culture which tends to 
 the harmonious development of mind and soul. 
 
 262. What is one particular use of literature? 
 
 For the purpose of illustrating a moral truth, miscella- 
 neous literary selections may be substituted for the formal 
 reading lessons of the text-book. With a little care selec- 
 tions may be made that are adapted to any grade of school, 
 and to almost any special occasion. The value of the lessons 
 derived from these exercises is in direct ratio to the interest 
 which may be excited in discussing them. A mere reading 
 of the most exalted sentiments, without note or comment, is 
 productive of little or no good. Such practice is equivalent 
 to the teaching of morals by precept, the ideas failing to 
 reach the mind, and the words producing only reflex nervous 
 action. 
 
 263. How is the study of literature abused? 
 
 By a devotion to low and sensational literary works. 
 Like the growth of a poisonous fungus, the taste for this liter- 
 ature absorbs the vital forces and destroys all that is noble in 
 life. The teacher should do all in his power to extirpate this 
 evil and make every effort to cultivate a taste for the works 
 of the great masters of human thought. Experience shows 
 that there is no more effectual way to prevent the mind from 
 dwelling upon impure and gross subjects than by filling it 
 completely with those of an opposite character. 
 
AND PRACTICE nF TEACHING. 
 
 264. How should literature be taught in advanced classes? 
 
 As a part of human history, and as a result of human 
 effort, and such instruction should be introduced objectively 
 in the senior grades, and receive a more thorough treatment 
 in the academic department under the heads of English Lit- 
 erature and General Literature. 
 
 265. What methods are used in the higher grades of schools? 
 
 Frequently the leading authors are arranged in an inter- 
 esting chronology, and an attempt made to have this fixed in 
 the memory long before the characteristics of each can be 
 understood. Their lives also are read, as narrative interest; 
 including the mention of their works, the dates and subjects 
 of these, with a few necessarily vague expressions respecting 
 their merits. This is scarcely lesson work, however; it is 
 rather the amusement of growing minds. The teaching of 
 the subject has also taken the form of the study of selected 
 works from Chaucer downwards. High Schools and Colleges 
 are provided w r ith an ample series ot such works, with every 
 needful aid in the way of commentary or annotation. 
 
 266. How should the selections be treated? 
 
 The later authors are to be preferred to the earlier, and 
 the prose authors to the poets. The first of these two max- 
 ims arises from the fact that English prose style has im- 
 proved and is improving; while the thoughts and the gen- 
 eral interest are still more in favor of the moderns. The 
 pupil, at the outset, should see prose at its very best; and 
 should be led backwards to the less perfect examples. The 
 interest of many of the older prose writers, although not 
 entirely exhausted, undergoes an almost steady decrease with 
 the lapse of time. 
 
126 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 267. What is meant by the History of Literature? 
 
 Narrowed to its strict domain, it is the criticism of 
 literary works in all that relates to style or composition. 
 What makes the history is the regarding of our authors 
 (English and American) in a connected series, each having 
 more or less relation to the preceding. This historical treat- 
 ment of literature is itself a branch of the Belles Letters, 
 being always conducted with studious regard to the graces of 
 composition. 
 
 268. What is the purpose of spelling? 
 
 During the first year it is entirely to prepare for conl- 
 position or " talking with the pencil." Indeed, all spelling 
 is for the sake of composition, and it has no other purpose. 
 The words first taught on the blackboard in reading, and the 
 commonly used and constantly recurring words of the child, 
 in short, the script vocabulary, should be the words first 
 spelled. It should be remembered that those who do not 
 learn to spell when young seldom acquire the ability to do so. 
 Consequently make every step with the small child a success, 
 otherwise you may disgust the mind with its failures. 
 
 269. What is the proper function of oral spelling? 
 
 To describe word-forms already in the mind; not to bring 
 them into the mind by acts of imagination. The most natu- 
 ral and economical way of learning to spell, is to write 
 words until we can write them automatically. 
 
 270. To what should the child be led in writing words? 
 
 To copy sentences as soon as possible, and after that keep 
 to sentences, for they are the written forms of thought expres- 
 sion, and the stimulus of the thought enables the child to 
 
AXD PRACTICE <>F TEA-' HING. 
 
 "7 
 
 recall the word-forms in writing, just as it does in reading. 
 Do all this work easily and slowly, and in the doing of it, let 
 the child alone and don't "fuss" with him. If he makes 
 anything wrong, rub it out at once, make a sort of dissolving- 
 view. Have him acquire the power of copying from the 
 blackboard with perfect accuracy any sentence he can read. 
 Never accept any careless work. Don't scold, but let the 
 work vanish under the sponge with quiet celerity and have 
 the child do it over. A better vocabulary can be gained by 
 writing than by reading. Form, during the first year, a 
 nucleus vocabulary of written words, so distinctly fixed in 
 the mind that they can be reproduced instantly, without copy 
 and with perfect accuracy. 
 
 271. How is correct spelling to be attained? 
 
 By holding your pupils responsible for correct spelling 
 in every written exercise; otherwise the habit can not be 
 formed. Make and retain lists of words misspelled. Let 
 the practice be mainly on such words. Pupils learn to spell 
 by practice, not by studying columns of words. Accustom 
 them to observe carefully the spelling of words as they read, 
 The teacher can stop during the recitation to refer to the dic- 
 tionary, or from the abundance of his own knowledge refer to 
 the duplicate spelling of a word, or its obsolete use and 
 modernized version, and allow them to bring in lists of words as 
 test exercises. No pupil should be allowed to write a word 
 from dictation unless he knows exactly how it looks cor- 
 rectly spelled. Never let him guess, but draw a blank when 
 he is in doubt. 
 
 272. What are the benefits of practice in spelling by sound? 
 
 Training the organs of hearing so that children may 
 readily distinguish the sounds heard in speaking; that they 
 
128 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 may learn to produce the sounds correctly in using language; 
 and that they may acquire an articulation which shall be at 
 once both accurate and tasteful. 
 
 273. What may be said of the relative merits and demerits 
 of oral and written spelling? 
 
 Oral spelling secures correct pronunciation, and awakens 
 a keener interest in pupils; written spelling is the more prac- 
 tical, but is apt to become wearisome if carried on exclu- 
 sively. In written spelling, we have the use of the hand as 
 an aid to memory. With diacritical marks, the value of this 
 exercise is greatly increased, and should be written in con- 
 nection with written language lessons and drills in phonics. 
 A judicious combination can be made of oral spelling with 
 written exercises. With the writing exercise, after the paper 
 or slates are corrected, require pupils to rewrite their mis- 
 spelled words. 
 
 "274. What are general rules for primary spelling? 
 
 Practice oral spelling of each new word. Keep a list of 
 them, and review often. Above all, be guarded against mis- 
 pronunciation. Practice a clean-cut articulation, and insist 
 upon daily drill, with encouragement to find and write some 
 words each day that the pupil can not pronounce. At least 
 one word a day should be introduced in sentences written on 
 the board, the meaning of which is a blank to the pupil. In 
 fact everything taught in the primary school should minister 
 to the child's use of language. 
 
 275. What conditions are attached to oral spelling? 
 
 Words should be known by the pupils in their spoken 
 form, and in their use before he is required to use them. The 
 pupil should spell all the words in the range of his experience, 
 
! VD PR iCTL E OF TEACH1 \ l2 g 
 
 all he has occasion to use in his daily needs. He should read 
 any new word in an original sentence before he is required to 
 Bpell it. 
 
 276. By what moans should spelling be taught? 
 
 " J © © 
 
 The blackboard is possibly the best. Then the slate and 
 pencil, although the blank book or sheet of writing paper is 
 preferable — writing tablets and "scratch" books are to be 
 purchased for the veriest trifle — and with great care a spell- 
 ing book, if the teacher needs it. 
 
 277. Should the spelling book be abolished from the school 
 room? 
 
 It will be quite impossible to do so in the common 
 school; no matter how feasible such action may be in schools 
 of higher grades. The teacher is unfortunate who can see 
 nothing in a book but a succession of words to be spelled, 
 and nothing in a word but a string of letters whose chief use 
 is to be shouted across the school room. And it is quite 
 possible to use a spelling-book so as to interest the mind. 
 
 278. Have new methods of teaching spelling been of benefit 
 
 to the pupil? 
 
 Yes; with the advance of improved methods, instruction 
 in orthography has gradually bur radically changed. Within 
 the memory of even quite young teachers, in the best 
 schools, lists of words were presented to the child for memo- 
 rizing, and in very many instances not even the most dis- 
 tant idea of signification was entertained. In some cases, the 
 Jiberal use of the dictionary and of composition in connec- 
 tion with the spelling book, to some extent mitigated this 
 evil, but the permanent good at the best was meager, except 
 in the case of those whose power of memory predominated 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 over other faculties of the intellect. Many of our best 
 schools now entirely discard the "speller," but give very 
 thorough drill in the formation of words now occurring in all 
 the lessons of the day, but especially in the reader. Another 
 important change has taken place. Oral spelling, slow, and 
 practically almost useless, has given place to written spelling, 
 in which a large class, or indeed four or five classes, can 
 individually recite the whole lesson in the time in which form- 
 erly the members of a small class could recite but one or 
 two words each. Not only is much precious time saved 
 thereby, but more thorough spellers are produced. (This is 
 a pronounced opinion.) 
 
 279. Should the spelling lessons be kept? 
 
 With primary pupils it is hardly necessary, and where 
 there is nothing but slate or blackboard work it is naturally 
 quite impossible. With the higher classes, even in the com- 
 mon school, it is quite advisable to have the pupils use blank- 
 books for their spelling lessons, and the principle should be 
 instilled into them of keeping them neat and accept- 
 ing them as "records" of their lessons and addition- 
 ally as specimens of their penmanship exhibiting, it is to be 
 hoped, a noteworthy progress in both studies. Under certain 
 conditions in the "district," the teacher will not have the 
 power to insist upon an exclusive use of paper, though the 
 exercise of tact on his part will help to determine' the matter. 
 Naturally he will follow the expressed wishes of his patrons. 
 
 280. W T hat directions may be given to pupils for studying 
 their spelling lessons? 
 
 Tell them (1) To look at a word long enough to see it per- 
 fectly. (2) Shut the book; think how the word looks, then 
 write it upon the slate. (3) Compare the words as written 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 [31 
 
 with the printed page, and make a check against the errors. 
 (4) Repeat the process where mistakes have been made, look- 
 ing more carefully still at the words spelled wrong, until a cor- 
 rect image is made in the mind. It may be remarked here 
 that there is undoubtedly a "vain repetition" in spelling of 
 giving to pupils almost constantly the words which they do 
 not misspell. 
 
 281. Do you have spelling matches or "bees" in your school? 
 If so, why? 
 
 It is quite probable that many a teacher devotes too much 
 time to this pleasantry; that it has its merits there can be no 
 doubt, and it is a fact of self-experience that district schools 
 have frequently been taught but little else. The memorous 
 Wordwell, of the community, was the leading citizen in an 
 educational and always in a popular sense, but it is our duty 
 to supplant the constant use of this exercise, even if in 
 opposition to the expressed wishes of the pupils and the 
 inclinations of the parents, to some extent, by the introduc- 
 tion of some other form of mental advancement. Many 
 rural communities have gladly accepted, when initiated by a 
 teacher of tact, the reading club, the literary circle, and the 
 debating society. There can be no doubt, however, but what 
 the spelling match contains an element of popularity sub- 
 serving some good purpose, aud may be used, at long inter- 
 vals, in the graded school and schools of higher instruction, 
 as is frequently done. 
 
 282. Does constant spelling necessarily make a "speller"? 
 
 No; the verbal reiteration of long columns of words or 
 of words disconnected in sense, produces but very little good 
 results. In repetition of a previous statement there should 
 be a judicious combination of oral and written spelling, the 
 
132 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 latter increasing in use as the pupil advances in years. But 
 even this will prove comparatively unsatisfactory unless an 
 incorporation of the words into sentences is had, and, addition- 
 ally, their definitions and use as so defined. 
 
 283. To what does this lead? 
 
 To the formation of a "definition class." It is remark- 
 able with what avidity a class of boys and girls of common 
 advancement in their studies, and under the most ordinary 
 circumstances, will accept the introduction to this praise- 
 worthy mental exercise and the amount of work required 
 from them for its successful prosecution. If the school is 
 without an Unabridged and the teacher is unable financially 
 to secure one — though we have known of many instances of 
 impoverished teachers securing them as a premium by acting 
 as agent in getting subscribers for a paper, collecting a small 
 summer capita from the pupils and then adding the balance 
 necessary to make the amount of purchase money, even in 
 the "backwoods" — try to secure the co-operation of the 
 directors or the patrons of the school, or both, in raising the 
 sum necessary to buy one. If all this fails, you can certainly 
 secure the adoption of some three, four or half-a-dozen copies 
 of the smaller grammar school or academic editions. 
 
 284. How is the definition class to be taught? 
 
 Before the class is formed, require pupils occasionally to 
 define the simpler words, which they will naturally do to the 
 best of their ability, and to construct sentences showing the 
 meaning and the use of words. When the dictionaries are 
 introduced, give the- pupils a model similar to the following: 
 "John came slowly toward his cottage home." The under- 
 scored word indicates the one whose definition is required. 
 Some five or six sentences may be placed upon the blackboard 
 

 i33 
 
 daily, or simply that number of words, — to be incorporated 
 into original sentences by the pupils themselves, — for the 
 morrow's lesson. 
 
 . Name sonic of the valuable uses of the dictionary. 
 The pupils may obtain a better knowledge of ordinary 
 words: (1) Examples of simple words frequently mispro- 
 nounced; as aunt, God, won't, want, extant, etc. (2) Ex- 
 amples of simple words frequently misspelled; as cupful, 
 separate, repetition, until, etc. (3) Examples of simple 
 words frequently misused; as don't for doesn't; can, for may; 
 shall, for will; equals for equal; etc. In fact, the use of the 
 dictionary may be regarded as a variation of the work of the 
 spelling and grammar classes, and leads to the introduction 
 of the study of the distinct branch, etymol 
 
 280. What else may*be learned from the dictionary ? 
 
 The correct pronunciation of geographical names, many 
 of which are omitted from the vocabularies of geographies; 
 as Pompeii, Worcester, Balaklava, Trafalgar, Monaco, Bal- 
 moral, Alnwick. Seville, etc.; the correct pronunciation of 
 biographical names found in the lessons and in current litera- 
 ture; some account of the noted characters of fiction; history 
 and mythology, whose names are found in the reading lessons 
 and in various selections; the interpretation of foreign words 
 and phrases frequently met in our readings; and the origin of 
 many words in common use referring to customs, persons, 
 and events. 
 
 287. What is the connection of the teacher with this study? 
 It should be remembered that the best teachers are gen- 
 erally those who consult the dictionary most frequently; the 
 to be condemned are those who teach error rather than 
 
I3 4 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 make the exertion to ascertain what is correct and true, and 
 those who are disinclined to consult authorities before pupils, 
 fearing thus to expose their fallibility. Not only should the 
 teacher make frequent use of this book for himself, — he 
 ' should teach the school the value aud the use of this import- 
 ant work, assured that the lessons lie imparts and the habits 
 he thus inculcates will be of use to the members in all sub- 
 sequent life. 
 
 288. What is the best method of using the dictionary in our 
 common schools? 
 
 The teacher should refer to it in all cases of doubt and 
 require the pupils to do the same. Pupils should be 
 encouraged to write in a note book for future investigation 
 all words or expressions about whose spelling, pronunciation, 
 or correctness they have a present doubt, (a) meanings; (b) 
 pronunciations; (c) syllabication of words, and in advanced 
 classes (d), their synonyms which can be found in this book # 
 There are some 2,000 words in English as to the pronuncia- 
 tion of which there are important differences, and a great 
 many of accepted, varying orthography. Preference, there- 
 fore, must be given by teachers for the best usage and for 
 the simpler forms. 
 
 289. What is connected with this? 
 
 Drills on sounds and the names and uses of the diacriti- 
 cal marks — a subject generall}- very little understood, except 
 in the North Central States — though these are not necessary 
 to the skillful use of the dictionary. Definite drill on sounds 
 with chart — the teacher should have them written upon the 
 blackboard if he possesses no other '-appliances" — will famil- 
 iarize pupils by eye and ear at once, with the marks and 
 sounds they indicate. Attention should be given systematic- 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 1 35 
 
 ally to the reading matter at the beginning and end of the 
 book. Pupils are in danger of missing these laboratories of 
 learning unless made acquainted with them in school. Faith- 
 ful teachers will not omit the appendices, both for what is 
 curious and useful to the pupils and themselves. 
 
 290. In what respect are teachers deficient? 
 
 It is a fact, too well known for recapitulation, that appli- 
 cants for a teacher's certificate, are woefully lacking in the 
 triple subject of orthography, orthoepy, and etymology. 
 There is no excuse for this, as a strong elementary acquaint- 
 ance may be made with these studies at a slight cost,* and a 
 thorough knowledge of them tends to increased excellence in 
 other and advanced branches. 
 
 291. Name one disadvantage of written spelling. 
 
 In the closely crowded school-room, and such is fre- 
 quently the condition, especially in district schools, the 
 opportunities offered for "communicating" are increased 
 from the nature of the exercise. Additional watchfulness on 
 the part of the teacher, accompanied by an instantaneous pun- 
 ishment of this violation of a presupposed rule or law — 
 unwritten or expressed — is the sole remedy. The form of 
 punishment should be a removal from the class and association 
 with them for the instant, followed by a marking of demerits 
 and such remarks at the close of the recitation as show the 
 hurtful and immoral tendencies of the act of transgression. 
 
 292. What may be said of methods of teaching spelling? 
 There is yet a problem to solve before we shall be able 
 
 to bring out a generation of perfect spellers. Either a 
 
 No. to, <>r Orthography, Orthoepy, ami Etymology. 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK OJN THE THEORY 
 
 change in the language itself, or in the methods of teaching, 
 must be made. It is certain that after we leave school oral 
 spelling never conies into use; Ave use the pen or its equivalent 
 — the setting of type. It is believed by many that no one 
 thing will aid so much as the study of word-analysis. Mis- 
 spelled words should be written in a book that may be pre- 
 served, and in a special exercise drill on these words, pupils 
 exchanging papers, or slates, or places at the blackboard for 
 making the necessary corrections. 
 
 293. What are the "steps" given in teaching written spell- 
 ing? 
 
 First, the simple spelling or reiteration of the letters of 
 the word; second, the proper division of the word into sylla- 
 bles; third, the marking of the letters diacritically; and, 
 fourth, the proper accentuation of the word. Though objec- 
 tion is offered to the repetition of the syllables in oral spell- 
 ing as in innocent: in-in-no-no, i/mo, etc., it is the testimony 
 of many able educators that such use secures better articula- 
 tion, pronunciation, and spelling. It certainly cultivates the 
 habit of carefulness, a very desirable quality in the pupil. 
 
 29-f . Give your method of teaching spelling. 
 
 All new words should be given a special drill in the way 
 of using them in statements, and marking the sounds of the 
 letters. Let the new words with* some of the more difficult 
 ones in previous lessons be placed upon the blackboard. 
 Have them drilled upon in a variety of forms. Let the word, 
 correctly spelled, be always before the children when you 
 have oral spelling. If not, there is danger of heedless 
 Tommy spelling chief with the " e" before the "i," and 
 inattentive Nellie may do the same, while bright little Jen- 
 nie, in the next row, has heard the incorrect spelling twice, 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 137 
 
 and wheD in the evening she is thinking of her lesson, she 
 puzzles her little brain with which was right, "chief" or 
 "cheif." From this cause, children would receive as many 
 
 wr«»ng impressions as right, when the right is the only one 
 they should be allowed to receive. 
 
 After sufficient oral drill upon words have them erased 
 from the board, teacher pronounce and children write on 
 slates. If the teacher has not time to look over each slate — 
 and such work in school hours is a bad precedent — marking 
 the incorrect words, she should spell the words, having the 
 children mark their own work and correct it; after this is done 
 let them spell orally from their slates. Arrange 'once a week, 
 at least, to have a written review, and let the teacher look- 
 ing over each ^slate thus obtain a good idea of what her 
 pupils are doing. This plan will " work well" in primary or 
 intermediate schools; in higher grades, pupils should do more 
 of the work themselves. 
 
 The written reproduction is preferred to the oral, for the 
 reason that if a child has been careless and writes a word 
 incorrectly only himself is harmed; whereas, if he mis- 
 spelled it orally, he docs an injury to the whole class. 
 
 295. What would vou advise as the best way of teaching 
 
 spelling? Are you in favor of teaching the sounds of 
 the letters to primary pupils? 
 
 "I would use no spelling book, but teach all new words 
 found in the reading lessons, and any other words from other 
 lessons which you may wish to teach. I would have two 
 recitations a day devoted to spelling. One in the morning, 
 called the "preparation" hour, and one in the afternoon 
 called the "reproduction" hour. It is the better plan to have 
 the preparation hour the first recitation in the morning, as 
 then you can teach all new words the cla^s is to have that day 
 
I3 8 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 in reading at that time, and they will be nicely prepared with 
 the words by the time the " preparation" reading hour comes. 
 In the preparation spelling, write all the words you wish to 
 teach on the board in a column. Have the class spell each 
 word when written orally in concert, but do not have pro- 
 nunciation of syllables. There are many forms, of drill 
 which are interesting. For example: Have some pupil point 
 to any of the words and those in their seats spell. Have 
 one name a word for another pupil to find and then spell. If 
 small children, have them lind in what words the letter e, o,a, 
 etc., occur. After this drill have the class copy on slates the 
 words from the blackboard. The teacher must be particular 
 to see that each pupil does his work well. Much attention 
 should be given to the writing of the words, and a habit of 
 writing carefully at all times will be thus formed. Writing 
 the words two or three times when there is time is beneficial. 
 In the afternoon (reproduction hour) the teacher should pro- 
 nounce the words and class write them on their slates. Then 
 pupils exchange, the teacher spelling — at times call upon some 
 member of the class to do this — and have them correct by 
 drawing a line through the misspelled words. In the repro- 
 duction hour, blackboard work by the class is helpful, and 
 may be used with advantage. 
 
 "I would teach the sounds of the letters incidentally, in 
 primary grades. Exercises using sounds of letters are good 
 for articulation. E?cereist: j s using the vowels are also hope- 
 ful."— A V. Finch. 
 
 296. Give some of the rules for the new spellings. 
 
 1. Omit <i from the diagraph ea when pronounced as e 
 short, as in lied, helth, etc. 2. Omit silent e after a short 
 vowel, as in hav, giv. etc. 3. Write/ f or ph in such words 
 as alfabet, fantom, etc. 4. When a word ends with a 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 139 
 
 double letter omit the hist, as in shal, clif, eg, etc. 5. Change 
 ed final to i where it has the sound of t, as in lasht, mixt, etc. 
 
 297. What are the objections to the spelling reform? 
 
 "The objections to a change in our orthography are the 
 same in kind which meet the introduction of any improved 
 machinery for common work; as the sewing machine, the 
 type writer, or the metric system of weights and measures. 
 Everybody knows the old way; nobody knows the new. The 
 new apparatus is at first imperfect and costly. The old must 
 be mostly lost. These objections to the spelling reform, for 
 the most part, disappear when confronted with a properly 
 constructed phonetic alphabet. The change in the characters 
 will be so slight that it will be easy for persons familiar with 
 the old orthography to read the new, and rising generations 
 will, from necessity, be instructed in both the new and the 
 old. Scholars have lost all patience with the etymological 
 objection. All true philologists and philological bodies uni- 
 formly brand it as a monstrous absurdity, both from a practi- 
 cal and scientific point of view/' — J. Baldioin. 
 
 298. Will the proposed change be adopted? 
 
 It is difficult to tell. The objections made to it are in 
 their nature based upon different grounds than those usually 
 made against "reforms." Professor Lonnsbury, of Yale 
 College, speaks of the change as one "which numbers among 
 its advocates every linguistic scholar of any eminence what- 
 ever, and which, in addition, includes every one who has 
 made the scientific study of English a specialty. It may be 
 taken as certain, and agreed by all whose judgment is enti- 
 tled to consideration, that there are no sound arguments 
 against phonetic spelling to be drawn from scientific and 
 historical considerations. These all make in its favor. But 
 
QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 suppose they did not. The prevailing interest in spelling is 
 not to be found in historical or etymological considerations — 
 a hundred etymologists, a million men and women. The 
 objectors are mostly found among the class of half-taught 
 dabblers in philology." On the contrary, Dean French has 
 written as strongly in opposition to its adoption. 
 
 299. How is orthographic parsing to be taught? 
 
 By a thorough drill in the distinct science of orthogra- 
 phy, united with a knowledge of phonetics, accentuation, and 
 elementary etymology. The means for acquiring a knowl- 
 edge of this are placed within the reach of every teacher at a 
 very slight cost. 
 
 300. Should the teacher possess a knowledge of Psychology? 
 
 Most assuredly. That knowledge of human nature, and 
 more especially of child nature, is one of the prominent 
 characteristics of a successful teacher. It aids in imparting 
 instruction, in securing attention, and in exercising easy con- 
 trol over the pupils. The psychological principles which 
 apply to the work of teaching are the following: 1. The 
 intellectual faculties are distinguished from each other in the 
 order of their development. 2. The activity of the higher 
 powers is conditioned upon the activity of the lower. 3. The 
 mind tends to act again in the same way, or in a similar way 
 to that in which it has acted before. 4. The mind naturally 
 proceeds from the specific to the general; from the concrete 
 to the abstract; and other relations which are but a repetition 
 of Pestalozzi's laws. 
 
 301. What connection lias Mental Philosophy with the 
 teacher's work? 
 
 This and moral philosophy and psychology, should be 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TE WHING 
 
 I 4 I 
 
 studied by the teacher who desires to attain prominence in 
 his profession. There are small manual's upon the subject 
 readily obtained, and though the subject may be "dry read- 
 ing," the sooner it is recognized by him that there is a Science 
 of Education roundel upon mental laws, and that the way 
 to true success in teaching can only be found by a close study 
 of that science, the sooner and better will he be placed upon 
 the royal road of well doing. 
 
 302. How should Natural History be taught? 
 
 In endeavoring to teach science, a method has extensively 
 prevailed which admirably illustrates the process of how not 
 to do it. The student is referred to a book, instead of natural 
 objects, to procure his preliminary ideas in regard to the sub- 
 ject. He is required to accept authority, in the place of 
 making personal investigation. He learns a formula of 
 words, which is said to be a law, or rule, or definition, when 
 he is utterly ignorant of the facts upon which the law or rule 
 is based, and of the knowledge embodied in the definition. 
 The whole performance is a substitution of apparent for real 
 knowledge, and, whether resulting from ignorance or design, 
 is a practical fraud, by which not only are time and labor 
 lost, but the mind becomes so deteriorated as to be unable to 
 distinguish between the spurious and the real, the false and 
 the true. 
 
 303. What are the uses of natural science V 
 
 They furnish the knowledge which is indispensable for 
 the purpose of research into the secrets of Nature, and 
 which is the most fundamental of all. The scope of these 
 sciences is broad. They make us acquainted with the inor- 
 ganic world; with the two grand divisions of the organic 
 
I4 2 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 world; and with the forces which control the action of mat- 
 ter in masses and atoms. 
 
 304. Of what practical benefit is a knowledge of natural 
 science? 
 
 As it makes us acquainted with our environment, with 
 the relations of our surroundings to ourselves, and with all 
 the conditions necessary to be observed for the preservation 
 of our own existence, a neglect of the truths taught entail 
 upon us disease, suffering, and death. An intelligent com- 
 prehension of these truths enables us to avoid, in a large 
 measure, the causes of disease, to diminish suffering, and to 
 prevent the premature termination of life. 
 
 305. What effect has science teaching upon the pupil? 
 
 It infuses vigor and mental action upon the part of the 
 boy or girl. In the district school a five minute "talk" can 
 be given upon the rudimental facts in general science, and 
 this, supplemented by a "query box," has never yet failed as 
 an element of popularity, interest, and increased strength in 
 the school and its progress. David P. Page, in his Theory 
 and Practice of Teaching, gives a most interesting sketch of 
 a lesson upon an ear of corn, under the suggestive title of 
 " Waking up Mind." This work was first published in 1847, 
 and the lesson in question was one of the first expositions of 
 the nature and value of object-lessons ever made in this 
 country. 
 
 306. What defect in teaching do scientific studies remedy? 
 It is probably the case that much work done in the 
 
 school-room is of a fragmentary character; that although it 
 arouses the attention and trains the observing powers, it 
 often fails to show the relation of one lesson to another, and 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 H3 
 
 to give that connected chain of thought that scientific reason- 
 ing will. 
 
 307. What special benefit is derived from the study of 
 Physics, Chemistry and Physiology? 
 
 From these sources flow innumerable streams of fertiliz- 
 ing information, diffusing themselves in all the arts and con- 
 duct of life. Not only are they at the basis of many special 
 crafts, but they provide guidance to every human being in 
 endless variety of situations. For some kinds of knowledge 
 we can trust to a skilled adviser; but every denizen of 
 the globe needs perpetually to apply physical, chemical, or 
 physiological laws, in circumstances where no adviser can be 
 near. 
 
 308. What can be taught in connection with Natural Phi- 
 losophy? 
 
 Without a text-book even the teacher should be able to 
 impart instruction in the applications of this science appar- 
 ent in the familiar operations of everyday life. The man- 
 agement of household tools and implements; the circulation 
 of water and the principles of hydrostatics and hydraulics; 
 the gaseous operations in the admission and the egress of air, 
 in warming and ventilating, and in the use of coal-gas for 
 illumination. 
 
 309. What practical chemistry can be taught? 
 
 A certain amount involving a knowledge of the corrod- 
 ing effect of acids and of alkalies, the solvent action of 
 spirits of wine and of oil of turpentine for varnished sur- 
 faces that are unaffected by water, the protection of dresses 
 and of furniture from dangerous chemicals used in household 
 work; as well as many things connected with washing, with 
 
i 4 4 - 4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 cookery, and with the keeping of household stores. Life 
 may be saved by simply knowing that lime thrown down an 
 unused well or opening, will destroy the fatal carbonic acid 
 gas by converting it into carbonate of lime. 
 
 310. What branch of study is almost entirely neglected in 
 our common schools? 
 
 Physiology. This assertion does not apply to the schools 
 of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, New York, and Kansas, where 
 this branch of study is required by law in examination and 
 teaching, but in a great majority of the States it is an un- 
 known factor in education. Many graded schools and some 
 district schools in which Algebra, Physical Geography, 
 Physics, and other advanced branches are taught, do not 
 have "the science of the body" enrolled in their list of studies. 
 
 311. What are the important results of this study? 
 
 Those embodied in practical measures as to the need of 
 pure air, sufficient and wholesome food, alternation of rest 
 and exercise, the dependence of the mental powers on bodily 
 conditions, and the sanitary conditions of the school room, 
 with their influence upon the mental and moral natures of 
 the pupils. 
 
 312. How should physiology be taught? 
 
 The best means of studying this subject, and, indeed all 
 the Natural Sciences, is by outlines prepared by the pupils. 
 These will, in some cases, be " Study" work, frequently 
 " Revieios" and will always enter partly into "Examina- 
 tions" 
 
 313. With what results is this " method" followed? 
 
 The effort to grasp the subject for the purpose of arrang- 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 145 
 
 ing its heads in logical order, such as the outline requires, 
 soon gives the pupils such a mastery of the subject of a lesson 
 that any one, when called upon, will take up the proper 
 topic, and discuss it fully without question or suggestion 
 from the teacher, but usually with correction and criticism 
 from his fellow pupils. 
 
 314. What primary instruction may be given? 
 
 The very simplest explanation of how we live, explain- 
 ing the uses of the heart and lungs, locating and naming 
 some of the principal bones, arteries, etc.; with particular 
 lessons, lectures or talks on exercising care of the eye and 
 preservation of the general health. 
 
 315. Of what value is a knowledge of physiology to the 
 teacher? 
 
 Even if he does not teach it nor expect at any time to 
 give instruction in this deeply interesting study, he will gain 
 a knowledge of its application to the pupil when to induct 
 him into the use of a certain study. For instance: Anato- 
 mists tell us that the brain grows with great rapidity up to 
 seven years sf age; it then attains an average weight of forty 
 ounces (in the male). The increase is much slower between 
 seven and fourteen, when it attains forty-five ounces; still 
 slower from fourteen to twenty, when it is very near its 
 greatest size. Consequently, of the more difficult intellectual 
 exercises, some that would be impossible at five or six are 
 easy at eight, through the fact of brain-growth alone. It 
 often happens that you try a pupil with a peculiar subject at 
 a certain age, and you entirely fail; wait a year or two, and 
 you succeed, and that without seemingly having done any- 
 thing expressly to lead up to the point; although there will 
 
 LO 
 
I 4 6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 inevitably be, in the meantime, some sort of experience that 
 helps to pave the way. 
 
 316. What may be required in addition to the " outlines"? 
 
 Neat drawings of the parts of the human system should 
 be frequently requested and preserved by the teacher for 
 grading and contrast. Many pupils can draw well if oppor- 
 tunity is afforded them, and it will be found that good or bad 
 drawing is a most efficient aid to thoroughness and definite- 
 ness of knowledge. 
 
 317. What may be said of School Hygiene? 
 
 There is, states a leading authority, a movement all 
 along the school line upon the subject of hygiene. School 
 houses are overhauled, and any infringement of sanitary laws 
 mercilessly exposed. The proper directions for seating pu- 
 pils with reference to light, the floor, space, and air supply 
 of rooms, the sanitary conditions of play-grounds and out- 
 buildings, the limitation upon study and study hours, all 
 these are the preliminary steps of investigation. The physi- 
 ological conditions of the pupil are the ground work of the 
 discussion. tk No theory of education is satisfactory that 
 does not claim the whole child." How to get the greatest 
 possible good with the least possible harm out of school life, 
 for both mind and body, is the present problem in education. 
 
 318. How has the subject been taught? 
 
 Where in use it seems to have been generally regarded 
 as somewhat of a useless complement or as an occasional sup- 
 plement to other studies. No attention has been given to its 
 purpose as a "moral factor" in teaching boys and girls the 
 right knowledge of its practical application to the daily needs 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 M7 
 
 of life, and of the evil consequences arising from a neglect of 
 
 an observance of the laws of nature. 
 
 319. What moral lessons are to be instilled? 
 
 Every teacher in whom there is a spark of patriotism 
 and righteous care for the children in his charge must see the 
 necessity there is that they should not only be warned against 
 the evils of intemperance, but taught to despise alcoholic 
 drinks and stimulants, and narcoties of all kind. The lessons 
 should be given both directly and incidentally as the occasion 
 is offered. The two States of Xew York and Michigan now 
 insist upon a thorough knowledge of this subject from the 
 teacher and a capability of imparting to the pupil the evil 
 effects of all these death-dealing drugs upon the human system. 
 
 320. What other division of the subject can be taught? 
 
 What to do in case of accident. The power to be able to 
 act promptly and rightly in case of an emergency is one of 
 the grandest ever given to mortal, and a youth may be taught 
 this important knowledge. 
 
 321. What is the teacher's duty"/ 
 
 Children should not be allowed to grow up in ignorance 
 of the most important health requirements. But there is a 
 prevailing lack of knowledge of the subject everywhere at 
 present. Men and women whose views on other subjects are 
 given with a meaning, the result of earnest thought, on ques- 
 tions of hygiene, show a degree of ignorance which, to the 
 professional man, woidd be ridiculous. 
 
 322. Why has the study of physiology been pronounced 
 " dry and repulsive"? 
 
 Simply because teachers neither know how to teach nor 
 pupils how to learn. Co nmntting to memory the chapters or 
 
Ia& A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 divisions of a text-book is wrong. The error consists in tax- 
 ing the memory with that which is neither deducible from 
 a process of reasoning, nor associated either by laws of 
 similarity and contrast, or evident co-ordination and subordi- 
 nation. That system of teaching which appeals to the 
 memory alone, will certainly fail to educate. 
 
 323. How should the teacher exercise care of pupils? 
 
 This is a practical demonstration ot physiological knowl- 
 edge that receives attention in our larger cities and towns 
 principally from the fact that suggestions made by the super- 
 intendent and rules adopted by the board of education, bear 
 directly upon the observance of such attention on the part of 
 the teacher. But in many of the smaller towns and villages 
 teachers never give a thought to the health and comfort of 
 the children committed to their care. 
 
 324. What should be the teacher's first care? 
 
 As even many of the larger children do not realize the 
 importance of putting on their garments before leaving the 
 room, but will often defer "wrapping up" until the open air 
 is reached, or hastily arrange them while passing out of the 
 building, it is the teacher's duty to see that sufficient time is 
 allowed for the putting on of overshoes and all other "pro- 
 tections" that have been provided. 
 
 325. Why is this attention demanded from the teacher? 
 
 Because children fail to realize the difference in tempera- 
 ture existing between the atmosphere outside of the building 
 and that within; and although they may be old enough to 
 properly attend to their wrappings they are naturally inclined 
 to be careless. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 '49 
 
 326. What relation does this subject bear to the teacher as 
 an individual? 
 
 To teach well requires a sound body. This is one of 
 the first requisites of a good teacher. Mens sana in corpore 
 sam ("A sound mind in a sound body") is a well-established 
 axiom. Though it is not necessary that he should be a prac- 
 tical gymnast or a teacher of physical culture, a knowledge 
 of calisthenics should be his, and a few minutes drill in this 
 mild exercise will create a feeling of rest, vivify the sluggish 
 and apathetic nature of your pupils on a dull winter's after- 
 noon, and cause them to turn to their studies and recitations 
 with renewed interest. 
 
 327. What are the benefits of calisthenic exercise? 
 
 "If properly directed," says Dr. Austin Flint, Jun., of 
 New York, himself famous for his fine physique, "gymnas- 
 tics will enlarge and strengthen the muscles of the trunk, 
 legs, arms, and neck, will expand the chest, so giving the 
 lungs free room to play; will render the joints supple, and 
 impart grace, ease, and steadiness of carriage, combined with 
 strength, quickness, and elasticity of movement." 
 
 328. What fault is to be avoided by the teacher of physi- 
 
 ology? 
 That of making a constant hobby of this interesting 
 science. Each profession is inclined to think its own work 
 the most important. So in educational matters, the mathe- 
 matician worships figures; the grammarian, words; the his- 
 torian, dates and deeds, and the geographer tries hard to 
 make of his study a universal science. A Louisiana profes- 
 sor of physiology and hygiene, however, thinks he has dis- 
 carded all prejudice when he writes: " Common sense would 
 
n;o A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 convince one that it is better to teach a child something of 
 the great stream of blood that flows through his own body, 
 than of some stream of water which flows through his coun- 
 try; and to teach him something of the abuses to which his 
 own body is daily subjected by himself, his parents, and his 
 neighbors, than of the abuses to which his ancestors were 
 once subjected to some despotic ruler, unjust law, or great 
 misfortune." 
 
 329. How is the school-room to be ventilated? 
 
 The usual plan adopted is to open the windows or swing 
 back the door. Sometimes this is the very best and the only 
 thing to do. Our school houses all over the land need better 
 ventilation — automatic, if possible — that is, such as will 
 regulate itself. 
 
 330. Have new methods of ventilation come into use? 
 
 Yes; into a few of our new and expensive buildings, 
 improved methods are being introduced, and generally in con- 
 nection with the heating. The favorite plan has always 
 been to have in use a movable bound pane of glass swinging 
 on hinges. There is no chance to allow the airs of heaven 
 to draw through the mental warehouses, or tight brick walls 
 of the old-time school house in village or town. 
 
 331. Give a method for ventilating the school room. 
 
 When there would be danger of a too sudden cooling of 
 the room, or the making of a dangerous draft by opening 
 doors or windows, then the following plan can be used: 
 Raise each window about six inches, and in the open space 
 beneath the sash lit a plain board, leaving it short enough to 
 be removed at pleasure. Upon this let the lower sash rest. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 332. How may this method be improved? 
 
 This simple "expedient is already known to many, but its 
 ventilating capacity can easily be more than doubled by a 
 simple modification of it, not so widely known. Tims where 
 more air is wanted, but a direct horizontal draft from the 
 bottom of an open window is objectionable, then fit the 
 board into vertical slots fixed to the window casing a few 
 inches from the sash and resting on the sill. 
 
 333. What may be said of physical training in the school 
 
 room ? 
 
 It is necessary, as no where else will the majority of pu- 
 pils receive the necessary attention. Within the past few 
 years great attention has been given to the development of 
 the child's physique in the schools of many of the "centers 
 of wealth" and with much benefit. There is, of course, still 
 a feeling of conservatism amomg school committees and di- 
 rectors. The proper teaching of physiology in connection 
 with physical culture, can not but be attended with the best 
 results. 
 
 334. What may be taught in connection with this subject? 
 
 As a form of life, primary instruction may be given in 
 botany, of so-called " plant lessons." Secure the attention 
 of the child and cultivate its powers of observation by hav- 
 ing them study the germination of little sprouts, and notice 
 for themselves what has taken place. Question them of the 
 number of parts they may find, where one part has grown, of 
 its name, tell them of the stem and leaves, give them seeds, 
 and instruct them niton their divisions. Explain to them how 
 the little plant gets its food, and how it obtains it from the 
 earth. Illustrate by having some very small piece- of sponge 
 
152 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 tied to strings and the strings tied together, and dipping the 
 ends in water, show how the sponges suck up the water. A 
 first lesson in capilarity. 
 
 335. Where can this be taught most successfully? 
 
 In the country school. Learn the names of every way- 
 side flower, both botanical and provincial designations, and 
 teach them to the little folk, who will remember such in- 
 struction longer than their arithmetic or grammar lessons; 
 will gain as much discipline in learning it, will enjoy it bet- 
 ter, and will be none the less proficient in other studies be- 
 cause of this systematic diversion out of school. 
 
 336. How is the teacher to make proper preparation for this 
 instruction? 
 
 There are books now published that enable one to supple- 
 ment his knowledge of plants, and if he or she or both will 
 begin with the wayside flower of the early spring they can 
 grow with its growth and multiplicity without apparent effort. 
 
 337. What may be said of the influence of scientific studies? 
 
 W T hile it must be conceded that force of expression and 
 facility in the communication of thought are best to be ac- 
 quired through the philosophical, dialectical, rhetorical 
 studies and exercises which in the main compose the curricu- 
 lum of the older institutions of our country, the teacher must 
 know that we live in an age of science study, and that the 
 faculties of clear perception, of careful discrimination, and 
 of just generalization are developed by the study of natural 
 history, of chemistry, of physics, as they can be through no 
 other educational means. 
 
 338. How is the perfection of ventilation to be reached? 
 
AXI> PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 53 
 
 When the air of a room is as pure as that out of doors. 
 To accomplish this result, it is necessary to allow for each 
 person eight hundred cubic feet of space, while ventilation is 
 going on in the best manner known. 
 
 339. What is of the utmost importance to the teacher? 
 
 The careful use of all means tending to his own health 
 while watching for myopia, color blindness, the stooping 
 posture, weak chests, and sinking shoulders among his pupils. 
 " There is no kind of achievement you could make m the 
 world that is equal to perfect health. What to it are nug- 
 gets and millions? The French financier said: 'Why is 
 there no sleep to be sold?' Sleep was not in the market at 
 any quotation." — Thomas Carlyle. 
 
 340. What is a practical illustration of the uses of hygiene? 
 
 As injury from burns are very common, every child 
 should know what is to be done. It is found that after a 
 large burn the blood becomes thick and does not flow. As 
 this results from the absence of blood-water, owing to its 
 rapid exudation from the inflamed surface, the treatment 
 should be to arrest this flow and soda and water put on. 
 
 341 . By what method can geography best be taught in the 
 country schools? 
 
 By the usual mode of recitation from any good text- 
 book of the grade adapted to the age and capacity of the 
 pupil, with oral explanations of wall maps and a good globe. 
 
 342. Why should a pupil be taught the geography of his 
 home before he is taught that of the earth? 
 
 Because he can comprehend that which he can see better 
 than that which he can not see, and you can give him an 
 
I 5 4 A QUIZ-BOOK 0N THE THEORY 
 
 idea of the general surface of the earth by showing him par- 
 ticular portions of it. Also, it is of more importance that 
 he should know his own locality, than it is for him to know 
 all about countries " across the sea," and yet be ignorant of 
 his own immediate surroundings. 
 
 343. How would you show a child that the appearance of a 
 ship at sea is a proof of the earth's rotundity? 
 
 By a drawing on the blackboard, or by calling its atten- 
 tion to a carriage or wagon coming or going over the hill. 
 
 344. What should be the method of teaching geography? 
 
 That of retaining the pupil's interest. The study of 
 the continent of Asia may be irksome to a pupil who has 
 little or no knowledge of geography, while the study of the 
 township or county in which he resides may be to him a 
 source of great pleasure. 
 
 345. Should the subject be studied in detail? 
 
 No; only by the topical method can it be of interest and 
 benefit. Supt. Luckey has stated that in Pittsburgh's public 
 schools the geography was only a book of reference, the 
 daily newspapers being the means by which this branch was 
 taught. By being made familiar with the news, the children 
 associated places and events and seldom forgot either. 
 
 346. What are the conditions of primary geography teach- 
 
 ing? 
 
 It is to be remembered that much more opportunity is 
 offered for oral instruction in the lower departments of a 
 graded school, than in simply a building of one or two 
 rooms. The purpose is to have the pupil when the name of 
 a country or product is mentioned, to go in imagination to 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 5F, 
 
 that region, and not to the side of some map on a certain 
 page. Taking a primary class by surprise and asking them 
 to point to the North, they will, in many instances, point to 
 the ceiling, for that the top of the map is north, has become 
 a habit. 
 
 347. What is the origin of this fault? 
 
 It arises from the fact that even among the leading 
 pupils there is a habit of referring everything to a map, that 
 leads to unavoidable errors. The ordinary boy or girl will 
 frequently decide that Paris is west of him, because it is on 
 the left side of the map. 
 
 3474. How is the study of geography to be introduced to 
 the pupil? 
 
 The approved way is by drawing the picture of the 
 school-room, the yard, town, city, etc., and then by the 
 moulding-board go <>n to form and illustrate the continents. 
 
 348. Describe a "recitation" at the moulding-board table. 
 After securing loam — moulding sand from the foundries 
 
 is preferred — moisten it sufficiently and just so much that it 
 will not stick to the hands and yet retain the form given it. 
 Take for the first trial. South America. Let five or six pupils 
 go to the moulding-board' while the rest of the class stand 
 near to suggest and citicise. Direct the pupils, letting them 
 use their hands or flat pieces of wood, to put ihe loam on the 
 board into such shape as will represent the outline and sur- 
 face of the continent. Let the pupils work, and if, after a 
 while, the lesson lacks point, suggest what to do, and even 
 trim the outline here or there, or change the surface. For 
 aid have a wall map before the class all the while, and use 
 also the relief maps as found in Appleton's, Swinton'g, or 
 
156 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Monteith's Geographies. The first trial may not be very suc- 
 cessful, but practice will cause the pupils to improve, and 
 after two or three trials a fine model will be produced. 
 When moulded, lay pieces of colored worsted upon the 
 moulded continent for rivers, and round pieces of paper for 
 the cities. 
 
 349. How has primary geography been taught? 
 
 Facts are most readily stored in children's minds by 
 means of picture or anecdotes, and many successful teachers, 
 of this grade, have taught by a generous supply of stories, 
 taking their class " a trip around the world in less than eighty 
 days" as a general review. As in the case of the moulded 
 continent of South America, pupils were asked to bring in 
 from home some salt petre, cayenne pepper, coffee-berries, 
 wool, pieces of iron, something to represent gold and silver, 
 leather, tobacco-leaf, bits of glass for diamonds, etc., and 
 these placed in their proper localities upon the "mould" as 
 representative products; so in this primary class the pupils 
 utilized their knowledge of the zoological garden by locating 
 the animals, and brought to the school-room specimens of 
 tropical woods and fruits, curious bits of Chinese or 
 Japanese embroidery or painting, pieces of fine India crepe 
 or muslin, a beautiful brocade and other specimens. 
 
 350. How else may this method be advanced? 
 
 By obtaining a large collection of the products of our 
 own country; various ores from the mines, fossil plants in 
 coal measures, pictures of mines and miners, with a descrip- 
 tion of one or two noted mines, specimens of bark, leaves, 
 stones, salt, the various metals, and labeling them with the 
 name of special district or districts in which they may be found. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 351. When should map drawing be commenced? 
 
 From the earliest moment. Primary classes can be 
 trained in this useful adjunct, and a' rapid development of 
 the drawing faculty is most always seen in the higher 
 grades. When pupils can draw most excellent maps, ac- 
 curate in outline and artistic in design, from memory alone, 
 the highest perfection of geography instruction has been 
 reached. 
 
 352. Should maps be used in giving primary instruction? 
 
 It is the method of some of the best teachers to discard 
 their use entirely for the first two or thrfee years. They make 
 the sun the object of reference in reality. Having made the 
 pupil discover where the sun rises, they take him in imagina- 
 tion on board an ocean steamer, and sail seven days and 
 nisdits toward the rising sun until he is shown a new land — 
 Ireland or England. 
 
 353. How are geographical cabinets formed? 
 
 Teachers who have taken these imaginary "trips" with 
 their pupils, have kept the specimens, distpibuted by them- 
 selves and the pupils, in a box or case on the east side of the 
 room while traveling toward the rising sun, and a similar 
 collection on the west side of the room indicating the articles, 
 curiosities, specimens and products of the countries visited 
 while going toward the setting sun. 
 
 354. How can the " cardinal points" be practically taught? 
 
 The direction of east and west naturally from the 
 rising and setting orb of the day. The north can be found 
 by observing their shadows at noon, and better yet, by be- 
 coming familiar with the position of the north star. In all 
 this primary work the imagination has had full swing, and 
 
1 58 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 best of all, the habit of referring everything to its proper 
 place on the earth's surface, and not to some page or spot on 
 a map, has become fixed. • 
 
 355. How should map-drawing be taught to small children? 
 
 As they find it difficult to understand the measurements 
 well enough to copy a map from the board, a text- book 
 should be given them. If it is inconvenient or impossible to 
 furnish them with a geography containing suitable maps for 
 drawing, the teacher will find a writing pad a great blessing. 
 Drawing the map, measuring always by the inch, . they ink 
 it, place it upon the pad* and print off as many copies as are 
 needed. 
 
 356. What should be the first instruction in map-drawing? 
 
 That of their immediate surroundings, the. townships, 
 counties of the state, and state. Some teachers have intro- 
 duced this exercise by having the children draw a map of 
 the school house, calling upon them to make the necessary 
 measurements and to copy the map after it is drawn. 
 
 357. What has been given as an elementary exercise? 
 
 The class is divided into companies of four, and each 
 provided with a large board, a basin of sand and some sticks 
 with which they built a representation of the school house 
 and the fence around it. The pupils are sent after twigs of 
 pine to put in for trees, and whenever a dispute arises as to 
 the location of anything, one is sent out to investigate. It 
 will be a noisy exercise, but full of practical interest to the 
 children. 
 
 358. By what may this be followed? 
 
 Taking the next district in a similar manner, telling them 
 
AND I'll M "VICE OF TEACHING 
 
 l S9 
 
 about the school officers, and placing a list of their names 
 upon the board to be copied by the pupils, as well as the 
 name of any hill or creek that may be in the district. Suc- 
 ceed this by a description of the town or township and 
 county, etc. 
 
 359. How much time should be devoted to this^exercise? 
 
 Two days may be allowed for the drawing of the map, 
 and one for the copying of names. The class exercises con- 
 sist in learning the directions and locations, " talks" about 
 the resources and occupations, and in connection with the 
 State, something of the history of it. 
 
 360. ' What is the "new method" of studying geography? 
 
 To illustrate by a veritable class recitation, the pupils 
 are studying the shape, surface, and general features of the 
 continent of Australia. One of the class is appointed to act 
 as a scribe, and write out the facts as learned. The pupils 
 are supposed to have read their books, and are now up for 
 examination. On a table before the class is a pile of brown 
 moulding sand. The first step is to spell the name Aus- 
 tralia. 
 
 361. What are the succeeding " steps "? 
 
 The study of the shape of Australia, its surface, moun- 
 tain ranges, and plains, is performed entirely with the mould- 
 ing sand. Each pupil volunteers a fact concerning the mat- 
 ter, and illustrates it in the heap of sand. 
 
 362. How are errors made by the pupil to be corrected? 
 
 If there is a mistake made there is a vote taken to see if 
 the majority of the class can correct the error. Every sub- 
 ject in geography is illustrated on the table. The child is 
 
160 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 not told to read in a book that "an island is a portion of 
 land entirely surrounded by water." These children are 
 given a lump of clay and instructed to make an island of 
 clay on the table, and then to cover the top of the table with 
 water, to show that the island is really surrounded by water. 
 
 363. What is the true idea in geography instruction? 
 
 That pleasant associations must be made to cluster about 
 all the dry details of the study of this subject. The earth 
 must not be considered merely as a skeleton. It must be 
 vivified with life. The teacher should travel with the pupil 
 in imagination. 
 
 364. In what are teachers lamentably deficient? 
 
 In a lack of being sufficiently practical in their methods 
 of instruction. The leading facts and terms of descriptive, 
 physical, and mathematical geography can all be learned 
 within a few miles of every school house in the land. 
 
 365. Should memorizing of the text be allowed? 
 
 Never. Pupils have been taught to memorize indis- 
 criminately, and without any appreciation of the meaning 
 involved, whole pages pertaining to distant countries which 
 they never expect to see — possibly hope they never will — 
 while they are kept in profound ignorance of the natural, 
 historical, political, social, commercial, religious, and educa- 
 tional facts and statistics of their own township, county, or 
 State. 
 
 367. What forms the basis for all accurate geographical 
 study? 
 
 Mathematical geography; for by the knowledge we ob- 
 tain of the earth in its relations to the other members of the 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 161 
 
 solar system, we are enabled to form clearer conceptions of 
 the laws that govern terrestrial phenomena. 
 
 368. How can the monotony of a geography recitation be 
 relieved'? 
 
 Use a copying.pad that will give forty or fifty copies. 
 Draw a map — the State of California for instance — and 
 mark rivers by letters, and twenty cities by figures. Desig- 
 nate the coal, gold and mineral sections. Give a copy to 
 each pupil and have them recite by calling the numbers, and 
 answering by mentioning the name of the place, and vice 
 versa. 
 
 369. What other "diversions" can be used? 
 
 Copy off the most common words, cut in slips of five or 
 six, and give them out to be copied and marked with accents, 
 diacritical marks, syllables, and have them formed into sen- 
 tences. 
 
 370. Give a common method of teaching geography? 
 
 The teacher assigns the lesson, probably a half column 
 of map questions for review. For instance, on the map of 
 Africa, the cities, capes, lakes, rivers, and mountains are given 
 as the subject. All must be learned alike — committed to 
 memory. The pupil must be able to tell in what part of 
 what country, and on which side of what river each city or 
 town is situated. 
 
 371. How does the teacher conduct the recitation? 
 
 During the class hour she sits at her desk with her book 
 open before her, one index finger carefully keeping the place 
 in the column of questions, the other industriously racing 
 around over the map, like a bound hunting a lost track, try- 
 
1 62 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 ing to find the place, in order to be able to say "right" or 
 " wrong" when it is located by the pupil. This gives the 
 latter an excellent opportunity to take a peep at a concealed 
 book to refresh his memory. Thus the whole list is asked in 
 the exact order of the book — not one place omitted. The 
 next lesson is assigned and the class is dismissed, apparently 
 as well satisfied with the performance as the teacher. 
 
 374. What is your method of teaching geography? 
 
 Select from the list the places that are most important 
 from a commercial or other standpoint, arouse the interest 
 of the class by giving a short description of some city, or of a 
 noted structure in some country — e. g., the pyiamids of 
 Egypt, or the ruins of Thebes, or the great Suez Canal, the 
 Kremlin of Moscow with its King of Bells, the Bank of 
 England, or the Brooklyn Bridge — encourage them to learn 
 from the Encyclopaedia, Pronouncing Gazetteer, books of 
 travel, or other sources, interesting descriptions of the peo- 
 ple, products, animals, and " curiosities," the origin of 
 names, and the "history and romance" of the country. In 
 the recitation the pupils are encouraged to tell what they 
 haye learned about the places mentioned; one pupil is sent 
 to the outline map, pointer in hand, to indicate the places 
 designated. 
 
 376. How may this method be improved? 
 
 By the introduction of map-drawing When the lesson 
 is assigned, the teacher draws the map on the blackboard, 
 taking the pupils on an imaginary voyage as he draws the 
 outline, marking the principal gulfs, bays, capes, and cities 
 along the coast as he comes to them, stopping occasionally to 
 throw in a lively description, to retain the interest of the 
 class. When the coast is completed, a journey is made 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 163 
 
 through the interior, locating in order, the principal cities, 
 rivers, lakes and mountains. 
 
 378. When should reviews be given? 
 
 A little time — five or six minutes — is always taken at 
 the beginning of the recitation for a rapid review of previous 
 lessons. At the close of the recitation, and before assigning 
 the next lesson, a few minutes are allow T ed for criticising the 
 maps that have been drawn on the blackboard, and grading. 
 Some of the best maps drawm on paper are used for orna- 
 menting the room. 
 
 379. What aid may the teacher secure in teaching geogra- 
 pin- 
 
 If he sees an article in the papers on the way the pro- 
 ducts of other countries are obtained, a traveler's account of 
 adventures, or the descriptions of the customs and manners 
 of the people, he should cut it out and keep it to read to the 
 geography class. 
 
 380. How is advanced geography to be taught? 
 
 Beginning with the smallest divisions of a country, 
 require a given number of the names of the principal natural 
 divisions to be written and their location memorized. Ask 
 them to learn from the text all they can of the surface, 
 climate, soil, productions, and occupations. The next day 
 the map is drawn, and, for a class exercise, tell them of the 
 history of the country, its noted cities and objects of interest. 
 Then read to them some interesting description of the people 
 or places. 
 
 381. What may be used in connection with this class? 
 Relief maps or models, the best material for which con- 
 
^ A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 sists of a thorough incorporation of the requisite amount of 
 linseed oil with pure Spanish whiting; in other words, good 
 putty of the right consistence. The plastic material rolled 
 in the hand, is laid of suitable height to represent mountains 
 and plateaus. The valleys, rivers, and lakes are then exca- 
 vated, and the model is ready. To represent snow moun- 
 tains, either plaster of Paris or zinc white may crown the 
 summits. A mountain can be shown to be an active volcano 
 by a small amount of dry vermillion placed in the crater. 
 
 382. What further representations can be made? 
 
 The ocean is made, upon the planed surface of the board, 
 by using oil with chrome green, and the lakes, oil with some 
 blue. This system is in practical use among the pupils of 
 the schools of Indiana (Mitchell Normal School) and some 
 Western States, and is attended with the greatest success. 
 
 383. What study is useful in connection with geography? 
 
 Astronomy, which is more than any other science, valu- 
 able to the youth. "None will seize so strongly and fully 
 upon the youthful mind. It hardens the body, sharpens the 
 senses, practices the memory, nourishes the fancy with the 
 noblest images, developes the power of thinking, destroys 
 all narrow mindedness, and lays an immovable foundation 
 for faith in God. If it should be attempted to use astronomy 
 as a means of training the mental powers, as the ancient 
 languages are used, how strongly would the young be inter- 
 ested in it, and how valuable would be the results. For 
 often * the letter killeth.' Here, the unadorned truth of 
 astronomy would awaken the youthful mind; then he will 
 wonder that great minds could have devoted themselves to 
 penetrating the sanctuary of antiquity, instead of studying 
 
A ND P RA < 'TICE OF TEA < 'HING. 1 65 
 
 the works of the eternal. Astronomy, moreover, forms a 
 noble entrance way to geography." — F. Q. L. Greszler. 
 
 385. How is a topical recitation given? 
 
 Placing the word "Races" on the blackboard, for 
 instance, have the pupils define the term, and tell why it is 
 applied to the different divisions of man. Let them tell 
 where they are chiefly found, the features, characteristics, 
 etc., of each race in an oral recitation. Having written the 
 outline on the blackboard, take up the classes, needs, and 
 occupations, throughout the topic. 
 
 387. To what may the attention of pupils be called? 
 
 To the fact that distinctively English names have but a 
 slight penetration beyond the Atlantic coast, except in 
 Canada. The French follow a well marked line up the St. 
 Lawrence and down the Mississippi. Dutch and German 
 names give local color to the Hudson Valley and parts of 
 Eastern Pennsylvania; and the Spanish have a broad occur- 
 rence in the far Southwest. Indian names occur everywhere, 
 from the euphonious Minnesota to the doubtful Tuscaloosa 
 and the abrupt Oshkosh. This location " of place-names" or 
 the study of "geography below the line" is full of interest 
 to teacher and pupil. 
 
 388. What do you know of the "new standard of time "? 
 Canada and the Provinces are on the sixtieth meridian 
 
 (60) west of Greenwich; Maine to Florida, Ohio to Alabama, and 
 the Lower Lakes, on the seventy-fifth (75); the Mississippi and 
 Missouri Valleys, the Upper Lakes and Texas, on the ninetieth 
 (90) ; the Rocky Mountain Region, on the one hundred and fifth 
 (105); and the Pacific States and British Columbia, on the 
 one hundred and twentieth (120). The names of the "time" 
 
1 66 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 are respectively Eastern, Atlantic, Valley, Mountain, and 
 Pacific. It is perhaps the most important change that has 
 taken place since dollars and cents were substituted for 
 pounds, shillings, and pence. Where formerly there were 
 fifty-three different standards of time, there are now five, 
 and these arranged so systematically that each standard is 
 only one hour slower than the time of the next section east. 
 It was generally adopted throughout the United States, on 
 the 18th of November, 1883. 
 
 389. Who are the most successful teachers of geography? 
 
 Those who mix most of historic, commercial, or scientific 
 incidents with their instruction. 
 
 390. What study is the natural ally of geography? 
 
 History, and the two ought never to be separated. The 
 former is place; the latter, events. Events without place 
 are merely stories. Place without events is simple emptiness. 
 Events imply places, but place alone means nothing. History 
 includes geography, anol, when well and properly taught, 
 gives the best and most lasting knowledge of the latter study. 
 Geography, pursued by itself, is one of the most sterile of 
 studies, as it affords little mental exercise save to the 
 memory, and upon that it makes no lasting impression. The 
 use of maps is like the use of the dictionary, a life-long need 
 of every intelligent reader. 
 
 391. How should history be taught? 
 
 Lessons in this study should be assigned by topics, and 
 not by pages. All verbatim recitations of sentences and 
 paragraphs should be strictly forbidden, and the pupils 
 should be required to state the facts in their own language. 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 167 
 
 392. How would you teach history in our common schools? 
 
 By topics and outlines. It can not be taught success- 
 fully on the memoriter plan. The leading purpose should be 
 to awaken an interest in the study that will induce pupils to 
 read extensively, and enable them to classify and arrange 
 historical events and facts so as to be easily remembered. 
 
 393. How is an interest to be awakened in the study? 
 
 Principally, by supplementing instruction on the part of 
 the teacher. Information outside of the text-book, will 
 gradually be seized upon with avidity, and a hint from the 
 teacher will result in pupils preparing themselves with pass 
 books or memorandums, in which they will "note" the 
 more interesting facts. Unfortunately, errors in text-books 
 of history are the rule and not the exception. 
 
 394. In what way are historical errors to be detected? 
 
 By reference to encyclopaedias, dictionaries, gazetteers, 
 and other works of established authority. Smaller books* 
 have been prepared for this especial pupose, in which state- 
 ments are made from a personal knoAvledge of the geography 
 and typography of the scene of the event and the descrip- 
 tion taken as given by eye-witnesses or in more ancient times 
 from the traditions of the people, or from the writings of the 
 first relator of the event. 
 
 396. How is history to be taught in primary grades? 
 
 The leading events in U. S. History, with their dates, 
 may be given to the pupils in a series of talks of which 
 every "live" teacher will avail himself. 
 
 397. What are the means to be used? 
 
 * Quizzism ; and Its Key. 
 
1 68 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 The blackboard and the slate. Occasionally, insist upon 
 their making a memorandum of some special date. A daily 
 drill with a review of previous lessons will accomplish won- 
 ders and give the pupil a most thorough preparation for the 
 study of the text-book. 
 
 398. What is meant by the ethics of history? 
 
 Nothing else that is taught in the public schools has so 
 much to do with forming characters as the reading lessons. 
 Especially is this true of the prose lessons in biography, in 
 history, and in eloquence, and of nearly all the poetical 
 pieces found in the well-edited readers. The teacher of a 
 reading class, therefore, may be a moral teacher in the best 
 sense of the word; almost without appearing to do so, he can 
 inculcate patriotism, truth, honor, reverence, and most of the 
 moral virtues. 
 
 399. How is the reading lesson to be used as an historical 
 study ? 
 
 If you want your pupils to glow with patriotism at 
 recitals of the doings of the boys, real live boys, of the 
 Revolutionary times; to hear the dip of the oar and the ring 
 of the hoofs of the steed as we read of Paul Revere's ride; 
 see the quiet Acadian village and feel the injustice of Eng- 
 land when she forced a simple, sincere people from their 
 homes, it needs but the beautifully told story of Evangeline 
 to bring it all before them. When they learn of the battle 
 of Bunker Hill they will be led to enter into Warren's spirit, 
 in the lines of the stirring little poem: 
 
 " Stand! the ground's your own, my. braves." 
 
 401. To what does a study of history lead? 
 
 Such a knowledge of history as can be given to the 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 169 
 
 lower classes in school as well as to those more advanced, 
 will awaken in the pupil a desire to read such books as w T ill 
 not poison their minds by bringing on that mental intoxica- 
 tion produced by the trashy literature of the day. This 
 introduces the use and study of good literature. 
 
 402. How may the study of literature be made to subserve 
 the study of history? 
 
 By making full use of biography and such selections as 
 have a historical connection with the subject. Your class 
 will hardly fail to respond with feeling, to a well-given 
 reading of The Rising, by Thomas Buchanan Read; The 
 Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers, by Mrs. Hemans. Extracts 
 from Bancroft's and Hawthorne's account of the Boston 
 massacre will give your pupils a vivid picture of the " lob- 
 sters" who entered the quiet streets and brought with them 
 riot and death. Have them read Sheridaii's Ride when they 
 reach that part of the history that calls for it — and, with the 
 story of Barbara Freitchie, we add one noble character to 
 our list of patriotic women, and gain an insight into the 
 manly disposition of the brave Stonewall Jackson. 
 
 403. Should the text-book be discarded with advanced 
 classes? 
 
 It is probably best to retain it for nothing else than a 
 work of reference. Outlines and topical analyses can be 
 formed from its contents. The one grand purpose is to turn 
 the attention of the pupil to biography, which has well been 
 termed "the soul of history." Youth turns to it by an 
 instinctive proclivity, preferring it to other channels of 
 literature, and by a fortunate coincidence it is the one 
 effective medium through which the ethics of history can be 
 placed in bold relief. " I would throw away the text-book 
 
j^O A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 altogether, as sack, and take the subject wholly out of the 
 list of text-book studies. I would let no stated formal exam- 
 inations be in wait for it, those premiums on narrow, technical 
 teachings. The teachers should be free from every trammel 
 — free to make the instruction so delightful and winning as it 
 may lie within their ability to accomplish. There should be 
 no tasking study connected with it — none whatever. It 
 should be imparted by means of a carefully selected course 
 of reading, by visible illustrations, and by quickening oral 
 information out of the stories of the teacher's personal intel- 
 ligence. — Supt. Harrington. 
 
 405. Should mnemonics be used in teaching history? 
 
 Systems of mnemonics, by which is meant the method of 
 recollecting facts by associating them arbitrarily with some 
 order of letters or characters, are generally not to be recom- 
 mended, for when the effort to remember is over, the whole 
 system is liable to go with the fact. The law of natural 
 association is the one to be followed. 
 
 407. How do you assist pupils in memorizing dates? 
 
 By fixing the events, which occur at certain dates, so 
 vividly in the mind, through the medium of instruction, 
 relation, or reading, that the dates will be memorized as a 
 matter of secondary importance. 
 
 408. Should history lessons be read? 
 
 Never make the history lesson a reading exercise. This 
 obsolete usage is, unfortunately, too frequently in vogue in 
 many of our common schools. 
 
 409. What is to be especially regarded in teaching history? 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 171 
 
 The use of variety , and in no other study can there be 
 given as much as in a recitation of this branch. 
 
 410. How is the pupil's interest in the study to be obtained? 
 
 The wise teacher will remember that a pertinent anec- 
 dote, judiciously told, will frequently do more to impress an 
 historical fact than twenty stereotyped questions that might 
 be asked during the same time. 
 
 41 1. How is an advanced class to be taught? 
 
 With larger students, never use a uniform text-book. 
 Place the topics for the following day's lesson on the board 
 to be copied on paper by each pupil. In the recitations en- 
 courage discussions as much as possible. If the class be a 
 large one, convert the entire recitation into a debate, dividing 
 the class into two divisions, and appointing leaders for each. 
 
 412. What use is to be made of dates in teaching history? 
 
 When prominent dates occur, place them upon the 
 blackboard. Call attention to them frequently and use them 
 for monthly reviews. Do not insist, however, upon the pupils 
 retaining all the dates; it not only consumes valuable time 
 but is the principal source of the complaint that the study is 
 "dry." 
 
 413. What are the benefits resulting from a study of 
 
 history? 
 
 An English author writes as follows: "I regard history 
 as a subject to be taught, from first to last, to young and old; 
 as being part of the necessary furniture of the mind for the 
 conduct of life; as opening up opportunities for training the 
 reasoning and the moral faculties from the earliest ages; as 
 
172 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 a science of the highest importance to humanity, in which we 
 must train many that a few may be real experts, keep the 
 sacred fire burning, and hand on the torch undimmed. I 
 regard it as a study where formalism, excess of detail, mere 
 memory-work, great condensation, are especially dangerous 
 and deadly, and may become excessively rife." It should not, 
 therefore, argues the writer, be taught for an examination. 
 
 414. What is the great principle in the teaching of history? 
 
 It is in harmony with the thought that all instruction is 
 a comparative failure that does not induce much of reading 
 beyond the necessarily skeletonized school text-book, how- 
 ever high the per cents, may be that are secured in such text- 
 book. Many schools offer additional credits to the pupils 
 for the reading of Plutarch's Lives, and a corresponding per 
 cent, for any biography of ancient distinguished men by the 
 Abbotts or any other authors, and sketches of Shakespeare's 
 Julius Cesar, Cariolanus, or Mark Antony; Herodotus; the 
 historical works of Miss Yonge, Arnold, Merivale, Mommsen, 
 and fiction such as the Last Days of Pompeii, The Victor 
 
 Vanquished, Hypatia, etc. In American history, the pupil 
 is induced to read Irving's Columbus, and Voyages of 
 
 Columbus and His Companions; Bancroft's History; Capt. 
 John Smith's Generall Historie; Palfrey's History of New 
 England, and a variety of sketches, to which the teacher 
 may make reference. 
 
 416. How should primary instruction be commenced? 
 
 When a child is old enough to know a forest when he 
 sees one, or to notice the building of a house, the condition 
 of this country and the kind of people that lived here before 
 it was discovered by Europeans may be described to him. 
 The fact should be emphasized that there were no roads or 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING 
 
 173 
 
 railroads, no steam boats, no mail carriers, no books nor 
 newspapers. He may be taught the salient points in the 
 history of his own town, and the origin of its name, the 
 townships, the county, the state, and as soon as he has a 
 knowledge of the geography of his country, the story of the 
 settlements of Virginia and Massachusetts. 
 
 417. What then should be the grand object of the teacher? 
 
 To cultivate in pupils a desire for collateral historical 
 reading. 
 
 418. What is a noted weakness in our schools? 
 
 The shameful dearth of general information among 
 teachers. It is a very unfortunate fact, that many teachers 
 know very little of current history. There are some half 
 dozen publications, weekly and monthly, that give an accu- 
 rate record of the political, scientific, and industrial news of 
 the day, and with all this the teacher should keep pace. One 
 State Superintendent (Graham, of Wisconsin,) has put it on 
 record that " public opinion should call for a reform in this 
 particular, and should demand that a teacher who does not 
 keep intelligently abreast of the events of the day is not fit 
 to take charge of a school." 
 
 419. How may this current history be taught? 
 
 By a free, full, and judicious use of the "News Bulletin," 
 to which reference has already been made, and the pinning 
 upon the walls or arranging in a case prepared for the pur- 
 pose, printed items clipped from the papers, of local or gen- 
 eral interest. A school can thus be as thoroughly informed 
 upon an Egyptian war, or a tariff discussion, or the progress 
 of the work upon the Panama Canal, as any adult reader. 
 Their interest will also be shown by bringing to the teacher 
 
I74 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 clippings bearing upon the subject and a friendly competition 
 to furnish " matter" for the bulletin, which they should be 
 allowed to enter in their own handwriting. 
 
 420. What form of topical outline is to be used? 
 
 An exact duplication of that used in teaching literature. 
 The biographical outline of a noted statesman, warrior, or 
 legislator, must ne*. 'ssarily be similar to that given of an 
 author. The topic oi a war or wars, or a certain " period" 
 may have its divisions and subdivisions separated by brace 
 connections as in a grammatical diagram. But this is a 
 mere form to be supplemented by a vivifying oral recitation. 
 
 421. What division of this study is sadly neglected? 
 
 That of Civil Government. A growing demand from 
 examiners that the youth of the country should be instructed 
 more £ully in this fundamental branch of study, is producing 
 good results, and arousing an interest which has been 
 increased by the recent publication of many text books upon 
 the subject. 
 
 422. How should the subject be taught? 
 
 A topical outline of "The Senate " and "The House of 
 Representatives" should be presented to the pupil. The 
 necessary qualifications of age and time of residence, their 
 eligibility, and duties of the senator and representative 
 should be firmly impressed upon their minds. Many of our 
 best text-books on history show their realization of the im- 
 portance of the subject by a set of graded questions in con- 
 nection with the Constitution treating of the powers and 
 duties of Congress, the " rights " of each separate branch 
 
A XD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 175 
 
 of the Government, and a definition of the various laws and 
 the legal and technical phraseology nsed. 
 
 424. How may the interest of the pupil be increased? 
 
 By having some of the older pupils present in the form 
 of a composition, the qualifications, duties, term of office and 
 salary of the officers of government and have the same read 
 to the school. Select some one to collect from the daily 
 papers the acts of Congress, and have him read them to the 
 school, from time to time, in the form of an essay, or as a 
 simple statement. Furnish to them the biography of some 
 past or present noted man, who has represented their county, 
 district, or state in the hails of the nation. 
 
 425. How often should a recitation be held? 
 
 It is a wrong principle to delay instruction until near the 
 close of the term or the completion of the text-book on 
 history. Weekly and semi- weekly drills may be give^i from 
 the first few weeks of school. Do not attempt to teach but 
 a few of the powers of Congress at a time; have an occasional 
 concert drill upon them, and always precede the lesson by a 
 review. 
 
 426. What are useful auxiliaries to these studies? 
 
 Charts of history and of civil government, which are 
 usually supplied in the schools of cities and towns, and 
 occasionally in those of the country. 
 
 427. What is it necessary that the pupil should know? 
 
 A knowledge of the ways in which acts of Congress 
 become laws; of the veto power, and who exercises it, then a 
 comparison of the powers of the president with those of the 
 
I 7 6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 governor; whether the governor has the vetoing power or 
 not; the names of chief magistrates of other states; and 
 finally the names of the rulers of other powers of the earth 
 with their forms of government. 
 
 428. What is the sum total of teaching history? 
 
 Study, acquire facts and anecdotes, clothe the skeleton 
 outline with data gleaned here and there; if you put enough 
 of this work and of yourself into your history class, you will 
 be amply rewarded by the lighting of the eyes and increasing 
 interest of these young people whom you are to help on to 
 manhood and womanhood. 
 
 429. What is the highest form of history teaching? 
 
 That which leads to the study of historical etymology, 
 and philology, and the distinct science of ethnology, for an 
 enormous fund of history is embodied in the language of a 
 
 people. 
 
 • 
 
 430. How has a knowledge of pre-historic people been 
 
 obtained? 
 By reasoning from a variety of objects, pictures, works 
 of art, and relics, such as the old Greek drinking horn, which 
 while it held from one to two quarts was so made that when 
 once filled it must be drained before it could be laid down, 
 shows the way that people dealt with the temperance 
 problem. Not only, indeed, has this method created our 
 knowledge of the mound builders of America and the lake 
 dwellers of Switzerland, but it has extended our knowledge 
 of people who come within the bounds of modern history. 
 
 431. What should be the pupil's position while writing? 
 The body must always be in a position nearly erect, near 
 
.4 .YD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 177 
 
 to, but never leaning upon or touching the desk. The feet 
 must have a direction corresponding to the slant of the let- 
 ters. The hands must always be at right angles to one 
 another, or in other words an easy, convenient, and healthful 
 position. — Spencerian Key. 
 
 432. When should instruction in writing be given to the 
 pupil? 
 
 This "neglected art" should receive attention from the 
 first, and the pupil be taught to write as he is to read. " Sys- 
 tems" of penmanship are not to be drilled into the young 
 child. 
 
 433. How may pupils be taught to practice writing? 
 
 They are benefitted in many ways by copying a reading 
 lesson or the literature gems the teacher may have written 
 on the board, and which they should commit to memory. 
 
 434. How is penmanship to be taught ? 
 
 For primary classes and pupils in the intermediate depart- 
 ments of schools it is best for the teacher to devise a set of 
 writing exercises that will secure first, free and easy move- 
 ments, then the subject of shading, and afterward, attention 
 may be paid to angles, height, etc. 
 
 435. Should a manual be used by the teacher? 
 
 Never in giving instruction to the younger pupils, and 
 unless judiciously used with the more advanced, its use 
 results in the formation of crooked letters, distorted features, 
 and cramped and palsied fingers. In this branch of "work" 
 practice makes perfect. The blackboard is a far better means 
 than the copy-book. 
 
 12 
 
j^S A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 436. How has penmanship been taught? 
 
 In many of the graded schools of the country, town, or 
 city, the writing-hooks are distributed by monitors, and at 
 the word of command the pupils take pen, uncover their ink- 
 wells, open the day's lesson, and commence to write. This 
 lesson covers a designated period of time. Similar com- 
 mands are given at the close, the monitors taking the books 
 and replacing them in a case or rack used for this especial 
 purpose. Seldom, if ever, the teacher passes around to 
 criticise, aid, or suggest. This system ensures quietude and a 
 clock-like precision of manners, and that is about all. 
 
 437. What drills may be given by the teacher? 
 
 To advance pupils, attention may be called to the angles 
 of slant and correction, an exposition of " The Nine Prin- 
 ciples" may be given, and the similarity of construction of 
 many of the small letters, and the fact that the Capital Stem 
 enters into the formation of one-half of the capital letters; 
 but movement drills and exercises in forming ovals, con- 
 tinuous circles, and all such combinations that are necessary 
 to secure ease and grace, and make the ready penman, will 
 prove highly beneficial. 
 
 438. What means will secure good writing by your pupils? 
 The frequent use of the blackboard in all the recitations 
 
 of grammar, arithmetic, spelling, history, geography, and 
 literature. 
 
 439. By what means are primary children to be taught? 
 One excellent method is to prepare the slates by ruling 
 
 one side of them permanently, by scratching, as copy books 
 are ruled — slates are sold with the lines painted — with equi- 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACH1XC. 
 
 179 
 
 distant lines and three spaces, or with two lines to indicate 
 the height of the small letters, and a line above and one 
 below to indicate the length of loop letters. Great care 
 should be taken to first teach the pupils how to form the 
 letters. Teach them to draw straight lines; vertical and 
 slanting, equal spaces distant, and one, two, or three spaces 
 high on the ruled slate. 
 
 440. How can the pupils be interested in writing? 
 
 Many primary teachers use the method of writing letters 
 occasionally to their pupils and have them reply. For this 
 purpose a "letter-box" should be kept on the teacher's table. 
 
 411. What division of this subject is neglected? 
 
 That of letter-writing. It is strange that a branch of 
 learning so eminently practical and so indispensable to every 
 one as this, should be almost entirely unknown as a " factor" 
 in our common schools. It is the duty of the teacher to 
 instruct in the superscription of the envelope, the correct 
 placing of the stamp, the address, heading and closing terms 
 of an ordinary epistle. The treatment of the " body" of 
 the letter is a matter of composition, grammar, and rhetoric. 
 Every year the mails are disgorged of thousands of letters 
 containing thousands of dollars worth of property that find 
 their way to the Dead Letter Office from a lack of the simple 
 knowledge that could readily and easily be conveyed to the 
 writer. 
 
 442. What are the uses of drawing? 
 
 The development of observation, culture, and the train- 
 ing of the eye and hand. Primary children may be taught to 
 d raw the simpler geometric forms, as they are practically by 
 the arrangement of sticks on their desks or the teacher's table. 
 
!8o A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 443. What does industrial drawing represent? 
 
 Objects that exist or are to be made. By its means we 
 express ideas that can not be represented in any other way. 
 The most practical instruction is that which requires pupils 
 to first observe objects, and afterward express what they have 
 observed by drawing directly from objects. 
 
 444. How is drawing to be taught? 
 
 Copying, which must necessarily be the first step, is 
 often a thoughtless imitation of the result of other people's 
 observation. Experience has shown that flat copying alone 
 does not give pupils the power of expressing freely their own 
 ideas; so that, while useful in certain directions, copying 
 should be practiced to a limited extent. If it is impossible 
 to introduce a set of drawing books into the school, the 
 teacher should purchase for his own use one or two drawing 
 manuals, teach the pupils the laws of perspective, from the 
 blackboard, and then require a drawing of the trees, houses, 
 school-house, and objects of interest about their homes. 
 
 445. What are the benefits claimed for industrial drawing? 
 
 Lying, as it does, at the foundation of excellence in 
 industrial pursuits, it can not be too carefully taught. The 
 best interests of a free people demand that the daily work 
 of the laborer should be considered in shaping the education 
 of his children. 
 
 446. Can all pupils be taught to draw? 
 
 Yes; in degrees more or less advanced. It is not a 
 " special gift," though naturally, the artist-genius, like the 
 poet, is born and not made, and this popular feeling should 
 be removed from the belief of the young child. Their work 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 181 
 
 must be inspected and commented upon, and in this there is 
 demand for consummate skill. 
 
 447. What should be the length of a recitation in drawing? 
 
 One hour a week, which may be divided in two lessons 
 of one-half hour each, or a still smaller division of time. 
 Pupils should be forbidden to measure, to rule, to erase 
 lines, excepting in mechanical drawings. It should all be 
 regulated by instruction from the teacher. 
 
 448. How is drawing usually taught? 
 
 In the majority of the graded and high schools of the 
 country, the subject is merely mentioned in the course of 
 study to which vague suggestions are sometimes added, but 
 these are of little practical value to teachers, who, left with- 
 out any intelligent idea of the object or aim of the instruction, 
 do little or nothing with it. Even with the employment of 
 special instructors, there is no fixed purpose or aim in the 
 teaching and the system or method is therefore changed as 
 often as there is a change of teachers. 
 
 449. What is the purpose of discipline in a school? 
 
 To exclude that which is bad and unnecessary, so that 
 which is good and necessary may have proper attention. 
 
 450. What should be the first aim of a teacher in managing 
 a school? 
 
 He should rely upon his ability to keep all the pupils 
 pleasantly and profitably employed. 
 
 451. What is the chief object of school government? 
 
 A school can not exist as a school without some kind of 
 government, for it must either govern itself or be governed 
 
!8 2 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 by a teacher. That teacher who succeeds in making a 
 school govern itself has reached perfection in this line. 
 
 452. State the advantages and disadvantages of a self-sup- 
 porting system in school government? 
 
 The pupil should be led to investigate and to think for 
 himself — to be a self -instructor; so the government of a 
 school should be a system of self-government, that the 
 pupil's moral faculties, or sense of right and wrong, may be 
 developed by being called into use. The advantages of a 
 self-supporting system are that the pupils are trained to a 
 feeling of trust and responsibility from manly and honorable 
 incentives, and not forced to proper conduct through fear of 
 bodily punishment or excommunication. The disadvantage 
 of such a system is that through inefficient administration, it 
 sometimes leads to dissolute habits and lawlessness. It is, 
 however, Republican in principle, and should be cultivated. 
 
 453. What is the secret of school government? 
 
 It lies almost wholly in the ability of the teacher to give 
 every pupil something to do just suited to his capacity. 
 This may seem at first sight very easy, but it is extremely 
 difficult, and requires much study and great discernment on 
 the part of the teacher. To assign exactly the same work to 
 a class of twenty pupils is like furnishing the same diet to all 
 the patients in a hospital where there may be a dozen 
 different diseases under treatment. A successful life usually 
 results from the fact that the successful man found the right 
 thing to do. Let the teacher remember that school is not 
 merely a preparation for life ; it is a }jart of life. 
 
 454. What great principle lies in securing government? 
 That kindness must be accompanied by firmness. Say 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 183 
 
 to the pupils only what you mean and keep your word. 
 Check the first instances of disobedience. It is much easier 
 to prevent an evil than to correct one. If a pupil of whom 
 you are particularly fond presumes upon, his familiarity 
 and ventures to take liberties not in accordance with thorough 
 discipline, reprove him. Do it with tact and he will finally 
 admit the justice of your course. Never allow yourself to 
 argue with a pupil on a question of duty; unquestioning 
 obedience must be the rule. It is a fact that stern teachers 
 never fail. 
 
 455. Should the teacher act the petty tyrant? 
 
 By no means. It is generally admitted that the ideal 
 teacher is a person of kindly disposition and generous 
 sympathies, capable of understanding the feelings of his 
 pupils and of appreciating the force of the temptations 
 which cause them to disobey. It is only from a strict sense 
 of duty that a teacher of this class makes use of harsh words 
 or of any means of punishment. Nor can he even refuse to 
 grant any trivial but improper liberties without a pang at 
 sight of the displeasure which his arbitrary words have 
 caused, until he learns by experience the necessity for 
 thorough maintenance of just restrictions. 
 
 457. What are the external conditions of good discipline? 
 
 Suitable buildings, freedom from over-crowding, good 
 lighting and ventilation, suitable desks and benches, suffi- 
 ciency of means for isolating classes, good organization, and 
 a well-constructed order of exercises. These tend to greatly 
 facilitate and promote discipline, but they are not absolutely 
 indispensible, for " good order" has been maintained under 
 the most disadvantageous circumstances. 
 
184 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 458. How is discipline secured with little children? 
 
 It is a fact that they will derive more benefit from well- 
 devised educational games to which they do attend, than 
 from formal instruction to which they do not attend. It was 
 the great merit of Frcebel, the founder of the Kindergarten, 
 that he took the pains to ascertain what the primitive natural 
 instincts of children are, and that he devised means by 
 which those instincts might be utilized for the purpose of 
 education. 
 
 459. Should the teacher threaten in order to secure obedi- 
 ence? 
 
 No, never; do not use language which implies that your 
 pupils will desire to violate the orders you give. Threats, 
 so far from inspiring dread, sometimes tempt bold natures 
 to commit the deed which is prohibited. Besides, constant 
 threats are incompatible with that natural affection and con- 
 fidence which ought to exist between the teacher and his 
 pupils. 
 
 460. Should the teacher have a set of rules? 
 
 No. The mistake should not be made of asking your 
 pupils pointedly to obey your laws, because you as teacher 
 make them. Better have no published laws, or "rules," as 
 they are more frequently called; but as occasion demands, 
 appeal to the reasonableness of those other higher laws that 
 will include any petty enactments of your own, as the greater 
 always includes the less. Regulations there should be, but 
 not " rules." 
 
 461. What are the objections to the "self -reporting" 
 system of government? 
 
 The chief objection is that it holds out such strong 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 1 85 
 
 temptation to report incorrectly that the majority of pupils 
 are not able to resist it; hence a habit of untruthfulness is 
 formed. Again, it is inconsistent, showing a lack of the 
 teacher's interest, duty, and attention. 
 
 462. What effect has " appearance" upon securing dis- 
 cipline? 
 
 A teacher wearing a new dress, governs more easily 
 than when the dress is threadbare. In a school with new 
 furniture, clean floors, and good walls, days, weeks, and 
 even months, elapse without one word of reproof from the 
 teachers. The influence of cleanliness upon the order of a 
 school is undeniable, and we all instinctively behave our- 
 selves in the presence of beauty. 
 
 463. How would you act in case a boy refused to recite? 
 
 The question of tact is such an all-important factor in all 
 the operations of the school-room that we cannot forbear 
 frequent reference to this most desirable quality. The fol- 
 lowing anecdote will illustrate its use in one special case: 
 "George was told that he would not be allowed to leave the 
 school-room until he had spelled the word correctly. A 
 fiendish look, which the teacher was not slow to comprehend, 
 arose upon his face, as he said to a companion, 'I'll keep 
 her here all night ! ' A night in a country school-house with 
 a vicious boy was not an agreeable subject for contemplation, 
 and the folly of making such a rash threat was apparent. 
 The teacher therefore put her wits to work to gain by 
 strategy what she knew could never be obtained by force* 
 Recess passed with the boy in his seat. Just before closing, 
 the teacher proposed that all should choose sides. The sides 
 were chosen, and, in the excitement of spelling down, our 
 contumacious boy fell into the trap set for him by his wily 
 
1 86 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 instructor. Watching for a moment of preoccupation on his 
 part, she gave him the word fawn. 'F-a-w-n', spelled he. 
 The victory was gained. The boy was caught." 
 
 So, in the case of a large girl who had been obstinate, 
 disobedient, and saucy, the teacher, after lecturing her in 
 tones of courteous sarcasm — he had a most excellent use of 
 language — in such a manner that he won the entire good- 
 will of the remainder of the school, and consequently a 
 feeling of opposition to the girl, bade her take her books, 
 stand up, and then leave the room. The evident disapproba- 
 tion of her companions had completely humbled her, and 
 she showed no hesitation in obeying the last command. 
 Accompanying her to the door, the teacher mildly intimated 
 that neither her parents nor relations would be allowed to 
 interfere in the matter. Meeting her a few days after pur- 
 posely, he spoke to her kindly and asked her to return. The 
 girl burst into tears, acknowledged her error, came back to 
 school, and was the model pupil ever afterward. 
 
 In another case, the teacher strongly suggested his 
 inclination to assist the young lady to leave by force. His 
 strength and firmness, well-known to her and all the pupils, 
 caused her to obey in a sulky manner. Going to her parent's 
 residence that evening — bearding the lion in his den — the 
 matter was "talked over" and the girl was sent back to 
 school, behaving ordinarily well to the close of the term. 
 Prompt, energetic action, in whatever device the teacher 
 may use, is the only absolute rule for the disposition of 
 "hard cases." 
 
 464. What principle on the part of the teacher is an aid in 
 securing government? 
 
 That of Humor. As the good order and quiet work of 
 some schools is due to to the orderly march to and from the 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHIXG. ^7 
 
 play-ground, so this feature of a teacher's character will aid 
 him greatly, for he that can turn a good-natured laugh on a 
 refractory boy, will secure his obedience far more safely than 
 by punishing him. How can this quality be acquired? 
 With some, naturally, it is innate, and may be further 
 cultivated; but this much one can do — keep on the look-out 
 for everything humorous that will illustrate the ordinary 
 work of the school-room. 
 
 465. How may a bad boy be controlled ? 
 
 To win the good-will of a bad boy is to permit him to 
 do you favors. It shows him that you have confidence in 
 him and can trust him. In some cases, and under certain 
 restrictions, he may be invested with the power of hearing a 
 class recite. The bad boy is very apt to have confidence in 
 himself, and will make an especial effort to retain your 
 confidence in him. It increases his self-respect when vested 
 with authority. 
 
 466. What other influence has an effect upon the govern- 
 ment of the school? 
 
 The personality of the teacher; voice, manner, and a 
 friendly expression. This is the side of allurement or 
 attraction. The other side is the stately, imposing, and 
 dignified bearing, by which the master can impersonate 
 authority and be a standing reminder of the evil disposed of 
 the flock. 
 
 467. What line of conduct is to be avoided by the' teacher? 
 
 He should remember that any prominent displays of 
 swagger and self-conceit operate against his influence, and 
 incite efforts to take him down. Much of course depends 
 upon tact; meaning by that a lively and wakeful sense of 
 
1 88 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 everything that is going on. Disorder is the sure sequel of 
 the teacher's failure in site or hearing; but even with the 
 senses good there may be absent the watchful employment of 
 them. 
 
 468. Name another valuable adjunct to discipline. 
 
 That quietness of manner that comes not of feebleness, 
 but of restraint and collectedness, passing easily into energy 
 when required. To be fussy and flurried is to infect the 
 class with the same qualities. The teacher must know that 
 any mistake, miscarrage, or false step on his part is for the 
 moment fatal to his ascendency. 
 
 469. How is the discipline of a school impeded? 
 
 By two sorts of pupils; those that have no natural liking 
 for the subject, and those that are too far behind to under- 
 stand the teaching. 
 
 470. What fact should be fully impressed upon the teacher? 
 
 That the first requisite to successful teaching is ability 
 to govern a school. If a school is well taught, good order 
 necessarily follows. But a teacher, well armed, may have 
 good external order, and do no good teaching. Such order 
 is not "Heaven's first law." Perfect silence, unbroken 
 stillness, are not in themselves desirable for young children, 
 however necessary for good school-work. Giggling and 
 tittering should be forbidden as unbecoming, but a genuine 
 hearty laugh indulged in by both teacher and pupils for a 
 proper reason, may be repeated often with the best results. 
 
 471. How is discipline aided by tact in "seating"? 
 
 The seats of individuals of a class will be determined 
 by considerations not always to be made public. Sometimes 
 
AXD PRACTICE OF TEACHING. ^9 
 
 they may be seated so as to make a regular gradation of 
 height for appearance's sake. Sometimes the unruly ones 
 are placed in front, as a punishment. The privilege of 
 choosing seats may be allowed, with the understanding that 
 retaining them depends on behavior. 
 
 472. How may the teacher gain the assistance of his pupils? 
 
 By displaying those characteristics that gain their good 
 will. The average boy admires decision. It suggests power, 
 and he is a great worshipper of power. For weakness, either 
 mental or physical, he has only contempt. He also admires 
 courage, and he hates sham, or can't, or pretence. When he 
 detects these they color all of the teacher's actions. He has 
 a well-defined code of honor which must be respected, and 
 he admires rigid discipline when it is reasonably enforced. 
 
 473. What is an effective element of disciplinary power? 
 
 Uniform cheerfulness on the part of the teacher, and 
 not solemn stolidity. A sick teacher may arouse sympathy, 
 but he soon becomes tiresome. A worried teacher is his own 
 worst worry. An indifferent teacher soon forfeits respect 
 and authority. Petulancy provokes irritation. But a 
 constant, all-pervading, genial cheerfulness will win love. 
 It means self-control and will command respect. It indicates 
 character and will therefore prove the basis of genuine 
 authority. It takes the zest completely out of the occupation 
 of that youth who worries his teacher " just for the fun of 
 it." It is worry that wears, and not work. In a grotesque 
 " summing": 
 
 Worry + Work = Leanness. 
 
 Winsomeness + Work — Fatness. 
 
 474. What should be the discipline of the first day of school? 
 
igo A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 This great point is to be remembered — that you should 
 commence on the first day, just as you determine to have the 
 term. Any sign of weakness by you is so much more to be 
 overcome. The poise and self-control of the teacher, and 
 the concentration of many minds, control those who are 
 inclined to be restless and inattentive. 
 
 475. Of what should the teacher have a thorough knowl- 
 edge? 
 
 Human nature. Many a boy has a "bad name" simply 
 because of the rapidly developing faculties within him that 
 are seeking employment. Juvenile depravity is not the depth 
 of wickedness. Mischief is not meanness; it is misdirected 
 energy. The force of temptation and impulse overcomes his 
 own choice and power of resistance, while the imprudence, 
 ill-temper, or reckless haste of the teacher sometimes prompts 
 him to make, an example of such an unlooked for infraction, 
 lest advantage be taken of it to overthrow good order. 
 
 476. What object is to be secured by discipline? 
 
 It is two-fold, viz. : School vices must be prevented or 
 cured, and school virtues must be cultivated. 
 
 477. What is one reason of " poor" government in schools? 
 
 It is afforded by the fact that young and inexperienced 
 teachers find so ready and so general employment. The 
 wise and effective government of the school is really a deli- 
 cate and difficult work. For, consider how few are the 
 accessible guides to the successful accomplishment of that 
 work; how subtle and often profound are the principles 
 embraced in its philosophy; how varied and perplexing must 
 be its practical adjustment; how manifold the difficulties to 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 I 9 I 
 
 be encountered; and how sad may be the results of failure to 
 govern wisely and well. 
 
 478. Should the teacher have "pets"? 
 
 Never show any partiality toward a pupil or set of pupils. 
 It creates dissatisfaction and tends to the destruction of 
 good government. Teachers who gain a reputation for being^ 
 "no respecter of persons," in the sense of having no favorites, 
 are universally liked, especially in the country districts. 
 
 479. What are the "chronic diseases" of the school-room? 
 
 Stupidity, stolidity, inaptitude for special studies, 
 vicious tendencies, rudeness, and indolence. The special 
 treatment of these must be a remedy devised by the teacher, 
 guided by the time and circumstance. The habit of obedience 
 should take the first place in the school. Many teachers of 
 morality unfortunately, destroy the good effects of judicious- 
 counsel by too much talk, as a chemical precipitate is 
 re-dissolvent in an excess of the precipitating agent. You 
 must interest your pupils. The law of activity governs this. 
 It is to be remembered that like the ancients we must teach 
 virtue as well as smartness. 
 
 480. How is indolence in the pupils to be cured? 
 
 Tardiness in coming to school is frequently the fault of 
 the parent. The non-preparation of home-lessons is usually 
 the result of an injudicious mode of instruction pursued by 
 the teacher, and here the simplest remedy is to change the 
 teacher. In our city schools these difficulties are settled by 
 rules and regulations by which the pupil is suspended, or 
 "dropped," or retained in the same grade for the following 
 year. 
 
1 92 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 481. What means are best to secure a full, prompt, and 
 regular attention? 
 
 As far as the pupils are concerned by making the school- 
 room pleasant and attractive, as any teacher of tact and 
 ability should know how to do. 
 
 482. What is considered a proper punishment for tardiness? 
 
 It is sometimes customary to recompense tardy pupils in 
 kind, that is, to detain them at the close of the school for a 
 sufficient time to exact an adequate recompense; but this 
 principle is wrong, and it reacts on the teacher. It is better 
 to have your opening exercises of such an interesting and 
 enlivening character, that the pupil will feel the loss by not 
 being at school in time. 
 
 483. How may the pupil be interested? 
 
 When teachers complain of the general listlessness and 
 stupidity of their classes, let them beware lest the cause of 
 such widespread indifference may lie in themselves, and not 
 in their pupils. Every lesson should be discontinued as soon 
 as the pupils show signs of weariness, otherwise the atten- 
 tion will flag, and that class will have received one lesson in 
 indifference to school work. 
 
 484. How are stubborn children treated? 
 
 The adult intellect is sharper than that of a child. The 
 teacher's will-power is, or should be, better disciplined, and, 
 therefore, more forceful; but rarely should he attempt to 
 hammer down the mere brute will of a pupil by his own 
 stronger will. Neither should he use that form of the 
 doubtful method called "coaxing." "Coax" him, if you 
 
AXI> PRACTICE OF TEACHING. ^3 
 
 must, but let it be of that better sort that leads him without 
 his knowing it. 
 
 485. What knowledge is of the most use to the teacher in 
 
 these cases? 
 
 That of human nature. Stubbornness frequently arises 
 from an awkward bashfulness, especially in the case with 
 some overgrown boys of backward knowledge when called 
 upon to recite, and this feeling they attempt to hide under 
 a mask of lawlessness and vulgarity. The pupil should be 
 excused before he or the rest of the school imagine the con- 
 cession to be anything else than courtesy on the part of the 
 teacher. Talk to him in private; give him a few minutes 
 extra for a private recitation at first; have him do you some 
 personal favor; do anything that will arouse in him any 
 latent element of goodness he may possess. 
 
 486. What is a good motto in the management of a school? 
 "Make the child think well of himself." We do not 
 
 mean by this to develop any affectation or conceit, but self- 
 confidence in the best sense, confidence in his mental possi- 
 bilities, moral heroism, and qualities of disposition. Some 
 teachers seem to enjoy "taking the child down," as though 
 a great point had been gained when the self-esteem was 
 taken out of him. Life has enough in it, from boyhood to 
 the grave, to weaken a man's confidence in everything, most 
 of all in himself. 
 
 487. Who object to the discipline exercised by the teacher? 
 
 They may be classified as follows: (a) Those who are 
 brutal at home; (b) those who can never see any good in 
 anybody; (c) the would-be autocrats (of the village and 
 country districts); (d) the busy-bodies and gossips; (e) those 
 
194 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 who dislike the teacher; (f) those who are envious of the 
 teacher; ( g) those who never visit the school. 
 
 488. What authority has the teacher in matters of 
 organization and discipline? From whom is this 
 authority derived? 
 
 In a private school the principal has the authority of a 
 contract, implied by the placing of the pupil under his 
 charge, to manage his own school in his own way. The 
 parties to the contract are parent or guardian and principal, 
 the latter acting in loco partitiis during the pleasure of the 
 parent. Public School Laws are the authority for Public 
 Schools. 
 
 489. What is the whole principle of school government? 
 
 Endeavor to make your school the center of civility, 
 politeness and good manners. The true teacher employs the 
 forms of the beautiful, day after day, in training the child. 
 By ornamenting the school-room with pictures and mottoes, 
 and by tasteful dress, she exercises a silent but untold 
 influence upon the pupil. There is no limit to the civilizing 
 influence of a gentle woman or gentleman in a school. 
 
 490. What are the principal causes of disorder in schools? 
 
 Idleness and lack of proper interest in studies, with 
 want of respect for the teacher. The remote but chief cause 
 is usually in home training. 
 
 492. Should corporal punishment be inflicted in the school- 
 room? 
 
 There are occasions undoubtedly, when it is necessary 
 to have recourse to force, but it is a mistake to whip for 
 disciplinary purposes merely. Whipping should be used as 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 1 95 
 
 a reformatory agent only. The teacher who resorts to its 
 frequent use as a means of securing discipline is either 
 excessively lazy or weak. "Much whipping, bad order; 
 little whipping, good order; least whipping, best order." 
 
 493. How should the teacher punish? 
 
 It is a mistake to punish without explanation, for as 
 punishment is a judicial act it should be administered 
 judicially. A boy has the right to know why he receives 
 punishment before it is inflicted. If the teacher does not 
 take the trouble to give him this explanation in a perfectly 
 candid manner, he gives the pupil just cause for regarding 
 him as a petty tyrant, who punishes merely for the personal 
 gratification it affords him. 
 
 494. When is the teacher amenable to the law of the State 
 for the punishment of a pupil? 
 
 When he punishes him in an angry manner so that it 
 may be considered assault and battery. 
 
 495. Should children be corrected constantly? 
 
 To punish children for trifling offenses continually, at 
 home, or in schools, has a bad effect, It is confusing to a 
 child, and does not tend to make distinctions between right 
 and wrong which do exist but does between those which do 
 not. Strictness alone is not the means to preserve good 
 order. A too frequent infliction of punishment is prejudicial 
 to good order; it must be inflicted at the right time and in 
 the right manner. 
 
 496. How is the bad boy to be treated? 
 
 The teacher should not strive to crush the manhood of 
 the child, but create in it the firm resolve to do the right 
 
196 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 and discard the wrong. A rigid espionage deadens laudable 
 emulation; and suspension, in many cases, is a hardening 
 instead of a reformatory measure. He is expected to con- 
 form to the requirements of the room as a matter of justice 
 to the school; that he wrongs the school by his disobedience 
 and does himself no good. If he is still maliciously disposed, 
 a sound threshing has frequently been a curative agent, But 
 the teacher of tact never whips. Sometimes giving the boy 
 a "new sensation" will stop him in his attempts at evil. 
 
 497. In what tone should commands be given? 
 
 They must manifest themselves as the law of morality, 
 Hot as the emanation of ill-humor and arbitrariness. The 
 teacher must present in his own person the fulfillment of 
 the precepts which he gives. 
 
 498. What may be said as to the general use of corporal 
 punishment? 
 
 As is well known its use has been abolished in many 
 large towns and cities (and by law in the State of New 
 York), and yet the government of those schools is all that can 
 be desired. Good order can not be maintained by its use 
 alone, and it should be restricted as much as possible. 
 Where children are properly trained at home, its use is 
 seldom necessary in school. To the question: Why not 
 abolish it altogether? the following answer has been given: 
 "As long as the influences of the streets are what they are; 
 as long as parental authority is enforced in the manner it is; 
 and as long as teachers are limited in teaching tact and 
 governing-power, so long must the power to punish corporally 
 be given to the teacher." 
 
 499. What are the chief means by which the necessity of 
 punishment may be prevented in a school? 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. [97 
 
 In the various ways previously enumerated of clean- 
 liness, brightness, color, the personality of teacher, etc., but 
 the leading way is to interest the pupils and keep them busy. 
 A mild form of punishment is sometimes more effective than 
 harsher means. For instance, if the pupil has tried to 
 disturb the the well-being of the school by deceit in any 
 form, it is logioal that he can be so seated that he can not 
 conceal books or papers, and so that the teacher can overlook 
 him at all times. 
 
 500. Write a short essay on school punishments, discussing 
 the objects of punishment; the principles regulating 
 it; proper and improper modes. 
 
 Objects. — The reformation of wrong-doers; the warning 
 of those who are in danger of becoming wrong-doers; and 
 the manifestation of the teacher's disapprobation of the act. 
 
 Principles. — That punishments should invariably follow 
 offences; that all offences should be punished in proportion 
 to their magnitude; that each class of offences should have 
 its own kind of punishment; that all punishments are con- 
 nected to offences as effects to causes. 
 
 Improper Methods. — Those that from their nature excite 
 in the pupil a feeling that an indignity has been committed 
 against his person, and these imply in the inflictor a loye of 
 prolonged torture. 
 
 Proper Methods. — " Kind reproofs; loss of privileges; 
 restraint or confinement; humiliation; imposition of a task; 
 and actual chastisement with the rod. 1 ' — Pagers Theory and 
 Practice, pp. 179-193. 
 
 A teacher should never resort to such personal indignities 
 as pulling the hair or snapping the ears of a pupil, because it 
 is brutal and endangers the life and health of the child. He 
 should never apply such epithets as "stupid," "clown," 
 
198 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 "liar," etc., because it is not only ungentlemanly and coarse, 
 but gives evidence of a brutal nature on his part. Govern 
 without whipping. 
 
 501. What is attention? What of its importance in edu- 
 cation? How best secured? 
 
 Attention is holding the mind to on© thing, to the 
 exclusion of everything else. Adults can and must compel 
 attention to what they are doing, and so can children in a 
 lesser degree. All school- work can not be made attractive, 
 any more than dish-washing can be made fascinating. The 
 power to control one's attention is the result of education. 
 We are taught to control our attention by that grim, stern 
 teacher — experience. We meet with accident or failure in 
 work and naturally say, "There! that will teach me to mind 
 what I am doing." 
 
 502. What are the means for securing attention? 
 
 The first requisite in securing attention is to have every 
 pupil assume a proper attitude; erect, easy, and with eyes 
 fixed on the teacher. Everything that is within reach of the 
 hand, and that is calculated to divert attention, should be 
 put aside. Lounging, and a listless attitude and manner, 
 should not be permitted. Should the members of the class 
 generally be interested in something foreign to the lesson, 
 like a game in which they have been engaged, a story that 
 has just been told, or an interesting piece of news, the 
 teacher should seek to turn their thoughts in a new channel 
 by some anecdote or pleasantry, which will gradually lead 
 to the work on hand. 
 
 503. How is attention to be retained? 
 
 When once secured, the teacher may keep it by thoroughly 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 199 
 
 understanding the subject; must know how to adapt this 
 instruction to the condition of the pupil; and he must be 
 able to present the subject in such an interesting manner, 
 that the mind will be constantly stimulated to reach out for 
 new ideas. The new ideas to be presented must be related 
 to those which the pupil already possesses, and not so far 
 in advance but that these relations may be readily discovered. 
 
 504. What devices may be used in securing attention? 
 
 The following excellent rules concerning questioning a 
 class, have special reference to securing attention : 
 
 "Do not ask questions in rotation." 
 
 " Do not point to the pupil you wish to answer, while 
 giving the question." 
 
 " Do not even look fixedly at the pupil whom you wish 
 to answer, while giving the question." 
 
 "State question to the class as a whole. Ask one 
 member for the answer." 
 
 "Do not wait an instant for the answer, when reviewing 
 most subjects." 
 
 "Do not look steadily at the pupil who is answering." 
 
 "Do not repeat a qestion to oblige those who are 
 inattentive." 
 
 " Be sure to ask questions of those who are in the 
 slightest degree i?iattentive." 
 
 505. How may the teacher gain this control? 
 
 If he is worried by listless pupils let him ask himself the 
 honest question: "If I taught better would not my class 
 attend to my teaching?" It is difficult work to give contin- 
 uous, undivided attention, and the successful and wise 
 teacher will never continue the strain longer than it can be 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 secured by awakening a healthful interest in the subjects 
 under consideration. 
 
 506. What relation does teaching power bear to this 
 
 subject? 
 
 Teachers who possess it, generally govern well. They 
 exert a power which magnetizes the pupils. To teach well, 
 means power to secure attention and study. 
 
 507. How may the teacher expect to secure attention? 
 
 The teacher that expects to have attention in the 
 recitation, simply because he commands, because he has 
 authority, will not have it long. He must obtain it and hold 
 it by his power to please, to instruct, to inspire, to move, and 
 not by a command. 
 
 508. How would you act to gain the attention of your 
 pupils? 
 
 By telling the child something which pays him for 
 giving attention. By giving information in snch a manner 
 that the pupil will count it worth his hearing. Awaken his 
 sympathy with the subject, and he will give earnest attention. 
 Excite curiosity in the mind, and cheerful, earnest attention 
 follows. 
 
 509. How can you fail in securing attention? 
 
 By demanding it as a right. By begging it as a great 
 favor. By scolding the pupil for not giving it. It can not 
 be scared by threats. Hearing the lesson rather than 
 attempting to teach it, will not be likely to gain attention. 
 Reading the lesson from a book will not fasten the mind 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 upon it. Presenting a confused combination of ideas will 
 prevent the attention of the pupil. 
 
 510. What is " the highest art" of the teacher? 
 
 The ability to solicit and exact the absolute attention of 
 the pupil. It is pre-eminently essential as a means of success. 
 
 511. Can the attention of every pupil be gained? 
 
 There will always be some whose inactivity of mind y 
 indolence of nature, and indifference to the proprieties of 
 life make it too great a tax upon the teacher to attempt to 
 win their attention. Of such, she must quietly but firmly 
 exact as close attention as may be reasonably expected of 
 them. There is a false sentiment that would lay upon the 
 teacher the duty of winning every child, a thing as impracti- 
 cable as to run a government without laws, courts, or 
 penitentiaries. 
 
 512. How should pupils be dealt with at the beginning of 
 their school experience? 
 
 Kindly, and in a way to secure their confidence and 
 esteem. Rarey, the horse- tamer, could show many teachers 
 how to do this. Let the pupil understand just what is 
 expected of him, and from him, and why it is expected. 
 
 513. What are the preliminaries of the first day of school? 
 
 The teacher should be in the district several days before 
 the opening. If he is an old teacher in that district he will 
 have abundant work to do in advising with his old pupils, as 
 to their studies, and in arousing a thorough interest in the 
 coming session. Let him not rest his success on former 
 work and merits. Each term, as well as each day, must 
 depend on its own merits. 
 
2Q2 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 514. What should be his line of conduct when a stranger 
 to the community? 
 
 Naturally these remarks refer entirely to the work of the 
 district school. In cities, the new teachers make the 
 acquaintance of their pupils on the first day of school. It is 
 not considered necessary or desirable that they should do 
 more than receive previous suggestions from the principal or 
 superintendent, or both. But in the country the teacher 
 should get acquainted with some of his patrons and with 
 some of his pupils, should learn the history of his school, but 
 should not be influenced by any gossip he may hear. The 
 majority of the common schools, according to the evidence 
 of the community, have a "hard name." Preparatory to the 
 opening day he should know just what classes his predecessor 
 had, how far advanced, should see specimens of their written 
 work, if possible, and know the methods of teaching and 
 governing, and the statistics left him by his predecessor. 
 
 515. How should he act on the first day of school? 
 
 " In the first place you want to grasp your little pupil 
 warmly by the hand, to let him know that you love him. 
 Then lead him into the school-room, not to a prison-like 
 apartment with high, bare walls, but a nice warm room with 
 tinted wall-paper, plants in the window to give it a cheerful 
 appearance, and a desk for our little one to give him 
 individuality." — F. W. Parker. This natnrally applies to 
 the primary department of a graded school under the most 
 favorable conditions. The teacher can always have this 
 pleasant manner, but no amount of adornment will take the 
 place of a good teacher. If the school yard must be cleaned, 
 and he has not been able to gain the consent of the directors 
 to have it done previous to the opening day, if the school- 
 room needs cleaning and decorating, or if suitable apparatus 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 203 
 
 has not been provided, then is the time to obtain the good 
 will of the pupils and have them personally interrested in 
 immediately making these necessary changes, alterations, 
 and improvements. 
 
 516. What is the teacher to especially remember? 
 
 To be "on hand" in time. One motive to check tardi- 
 ness is that of the practice of the teacher. He has no right 
 to ever be late or absent. He should begin work promptly, 
 call the school to order with but little noise, establish order 
 at once by the manner in which he acts himself and by his 
 manner of moving the school. Place a few problems in 
 arithmetic on the blackboard for solution, and copies for 
 slate work, before the opening hour. Keep the pupils 
 engaged all the time and keep them interested in their work. 
 Your school should be in full "running order" the first day 
 of school. Under favorable conditions, teaching a country 
 school is to be preferred to any graded or high school work 
 in the country. 
 
 517. Of what should the opening exercises consist? 
 
 They may be varied by using any or all of the following, 
 frequently changing the order of exercises: 1. Singing of 
 hymn. 2. Responses. 3. Lord's prayer in concert. 4. Song. 
 The responses may be, especially in primary grades, alter- 
 nately the "Beatitudes," or appropriate selections taken 
 from the Bible, or gems of children's poetry, written upon 
 the blackboard, copied and committed by the pupils. The 
 teaching of moral precepts, in any manner, must be wholly 
 unsectarian. 
 
 518. What are the principal features of a good school 
 programme ? 
 
 The time should be so divided as to do justice to all; 
 
204 A QUIZ- BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 the times of day which different branches may best be 
 studied; different grades should alternate in recitations. 
 The programme should be written on the blackboard the 
 first day of school and that space wholly for its use. It 
 should be varied occasionally to prevent any feeling of 
 monotony, and its use and purpose should be explained by 
 the teacher in the five or ten minutes "talk" with which he 
 opens the school. In this talk, do not refer to "rules and 
 regulations." Simply state that you desire to have a " good" 
 school and expect their assstance. 
 
 519. What are the advantages of a programme? 
 
 It gives system and order to the work of the school, and 
 enables pupils to prepare their lessons at the proper time. 
 Pupils will then have no excuse for a lack of preparation for 
 the recitation. 
 
 520. Give the three principal objects of recitation. 
 
 They are Examination, Instruction, and Cultivation. 
 By the first, the teacher finds out what the pupils know and 
 is then better able to assign future lessons, or impart instruc- 
 tion. The pupil also gains strength and fixes in his mind 
 what he has learned. By the second, the pupil receives 
 information imparted by the teacher or other pupils. The 
 third includes the other two, and also such other criticisms 
 as the teacher and other pupils may give, and the benefit 
 derived from class drills and from written work. 
 
 521. What are the essentials of a recitation? 
 
 1. A brief reproduction of the preceding lessons. 2. 
 A brief review of the preceding lesson. 3. Rehearsal and 
 critical examination of the daily lesson. 4. Recapitulation 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 2 0§ 
 
 of the daily lesson. 5. Adequate preparation for the 
 advanced lesson. 
 
 522. What is the purpose of the recitation? 
 
 To develop individuality; to encourage originality; to 
 cultivate self-reliance and self-possession; to cultivate senti- 
 ments of justice, kindness, forbearance, and courtesy; that 
 the development and the growth of the pupils, physically, 
 intellectually, and morally, may be carefully nurtured, and 
 bravely prepare them for life's service. 
 
 523. Why should a recitation test the pupil's preparation of 
 the lesson assigned? 
 
 That the teacher may be able properly to assign future 
 lessons, and also to impart additional information. 
 
 524. What may be considered the ends of the recitation? 
 
 "To develop the power of quick and accurate percep- 
 tion, of close observation, and generally, of clear and exact 
 thought; to cultivate the power of concise and ready 
 expression; to determine the extent and accuracy of the 
 learners' attainments; to add to the knowledge the class have 
 acquired during their study hours; to determine the pupils' 
 habits and methods of study, and to correct whatever is 
 faulty in manner or matter; to cultivate sentiments of justice, 
 kindness, forbearance, and courtesy." — Phelps* Teachers' 
 Hand Book. 
 
 525. What is one "crying evil" of this subject? 
 
 That teachers have too many recitations. We have seen 
 "model programmes" that allotted a recitation for every five 
 minutes in the day. The principle is wholly wrong. It is 
 not uncommon for the teacher of a countrv school to have 
 
2o6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 twenty-five or thirty recitations per day, and frequently a 
 school has as many classes as it has pupils. No teacher can 
 do justice to a class of the larger pupils in less than a half 
 an hour's time. If the older pupils desire to study history, 
 physiology, algebra, book-keeping, etc., it will be better to 
 teach only half the advanced branches at a time. Teach 
 history and algebra for two months, or half the term, and 
 then the other studies for the remainder of the time. 
 
 526. What expedients have been resorted to by teachers? 
 
 That of conducting two recitations at the same time by 
 giving questions or work to each class alternately. The 
 added confusion and the division of the teacher's attention 
 makes this plan of questionable benefit. It is but little 
 better to leave one class in the charge of a pupil, for the 
 confusion will exist to a still greater degree, and the work of 
 the assistant's class will generally be poorly done. To 
 alternate classes on different succeeding days, time may be 
 gained for the recitations, but interest in the studies is lost 
 between "times." 
 
 527. What plan should be adopted by the teacher? 
 
 That of throwing any intermediate grade into one set of 
 " general exercises" as often as possible. Occasionally, the 
 recitation of a certain study may be omitted from the day's 
 work with good effect. With primary pupils, necessarily, 
 the recitations should be short and frequent. But when 
 there are twenty or thirty classes for one teacher to hear, 
 the work will necessarily be done in a very superficial man- 
 ner. Aim to have as few classes as possible and to place each 
 pupil just where he belongs. Do not be arbitrary about it. 
 Show them the necessity of such classification and arrangement. 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 207 
 
 528. Are uniformly perfect recitations desirable? 
 
 No; heretical as such an avowal may appear, there is a 
 a truth in it that needs emphasis. There will be little 
 progress, mental development, or real breadth where the 
 chief aim is a perfect recitation in the ordinary acceptation 
 of the term. It is high a"rt to know how to read rapidly, 
 selecting that which is profitable and desirable.. 
 
 529. Should a teacher make special preparation of the 
 lesson for each recitation? 
 
 Unless the teacher is perfectly familiar with the lesson 
 and its bearing, so far as they ought to be presented to the 
 class, and beyond that, he should make special preparation 
 for each recitation; because to teacn a lesson well, one should 
 know much more of it than the lesson contains. He ought 
 to have a reserve fund of information upon it. A teacher 
 should be so well prepared with each lesson, that were he 
 called upon to recite it, he would be able to do so better 
 than the best pupil in the class. 
 
 530. Should the teacher have a "plan" for each recitation? 
 Yes; he should invariably have it thought out before the 
 
 class appears. Yet, the presence of the class, the develop- 
 ment of matters at the very outset or during the progress of 
 the recitation, may suggest a radical change, and very much 
 for the better. This he does not fail to adopt, though 
 prepared for something else. Thorough preparation is the 
 foundation of all genius. 
 
 531. Should a teacher confine himself to the text-book dur- 
 ing the recitation? 
 
 The principle is, to use the text-book as little as possible. 
 It would be better, were it possible, to use no book at all 
 
2o8 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 during recitation. The text-book hampers the teacher in 
 proportion to his dependence upon it. Still most teachers 
 have neither the time nor the talent to memorize everthing 
 they have to communicate, and there is, therefore, to be 
 some use made of helps, in the shape of text-books, or their 
 equivalents. It is difficult to mike a general rule on the 
 subject, but the text book may be used by the teacher during 
 recitation in those branches in which it is necessary for the 
 exact words of the text to be repeated by the teacher, or 
 pupil. Above all, teachers should be accurate, and therefore, 
 while the use of the text-book should be reduced to the 
 minimum, it should be at hand for an emergency. 
 
 532. Should the pupils bring their text-books to the class? 
 
 No; with the exception of the arithmetic (and its use 
 should be reduced to the minimum), no text-book should be 
 allowed within reach of the pupil while reciting. 
 
 533. Why should not a teacher follow the text-book ques- 
 tions? 
 
 He should not confine himself to the printed questions 
 of the author, because a pupil may answer the printed 
 questions correctly, and yet not know the meaning of it. It 
 is better for the teacher to make his own questions, even if 
 they are not quite so good as those in the book; a slight 
 variation of them has some excellence — because if he depends 
 constantly for his questions on the book, he will never 
 acquire the art of questioning. 
 
 534. What are faulty questions? 
 
 Those that require a mere echo of some statement just 
 made by the teacher. The same evil attends all tasks com- 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 209 
 
 mitted to incin. -:y. if not intelligently prepared; a slovenly 
 preparation tor a repetition lesson of poetry familiarizes the 
 mind with a careless habit of using words that are partly or 
 altogether misunderstood. 
 
 535. What kind of questions should the teacher use? 
 
 Those that require a selection of the mind of a child. 
 1. Of clear ideas. 2. Of clear and concise language. He 
 should see that the answers are expressed, if the age of the 
 child permits, in a full grammatical sentence. He must be 
 patient with answers that are imperfect both in form and in 
 idea, or incorrect grammatically; the other members of the 
 class will correct them; if the ideas are nearly correct, 
 disentangle the truth from the error; but do not be led into 
 digressions by discussions of answers that are in great 
 measure incorrect. Do not require an answer in any 
 particular formula of words; homely words, familiar to the 
 children, will represent their ideas most forcibly. 
 
 530. What advantages are secured by the promiscuous 
 method of calling upon pupils to recite? 
 
 1. It compels all to get the whole lesson, since no one 
 can know how much he will be called upon to recite, or 
 when, or where. 2. It checks any disposition on the part of 
 the pupil to be inattentive, since each one is liable, at any 
 moment, to be called upon to. recite. 
 
 537. Name the adyantages and the disadvantages of concert 
 recitations. 
 
 The advantages are, (1) that it is useful in awakening 
 an interest in class and in school; (2) that it aids those who 
 may be too timid otherwise to recite, to overcome their 
 diffidence; (3) that it gives all an opportunity to recite the 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 whole or the greater part of the lesson in the same time; 
 (4) that it offers the best opportunity to secure uniformity, 
 and to cultivate the voice. The disadvantages are, (1) that 
 it offers an opportunity to any that do not know the lesson 
 very well, to attach themselves to those that do and thereby 
 appear to better advantage than they really deserve; (2) that 
 it a£tids an opportunity to those who may desire to conceal 
 mistakes, intentional deviations and ignorance, to effect 
 their purpose; (3) that it has a tendency to cultivate an 
 unnatural and monotonous style; (4) that it destroys the 
 pupil's independence by taking away his individuality. 
 
 538. What are the benefits of the "individual method"? 
 
 Quite the opposite extreme from the concert method is 
 that which, for convenience, may be called by this name, 
 but the only advantage claimed for this method is, that the 
 individual laggard can not screen his deficiencies, as he can 
 * when reciting in concert. His own individual knowledge, 
 or ignorance, stands out. This is clear, and so far it is an 
 advantage. But ascertaining what a pupil knows of a lesson, 
 is only one end, and that by no means the most important 
 end of a recitation, 
 
 539. What is a remedy for whispering? 
 
 The interested occupation of the pupils in their own studies. 
 
 540. Is it a benefit to have a " whisperless" school? 
 
 He who thinks himself a good teacher because he 
 possesses such power of control over his pupils that he can 
 hold them at all times in "a solemn stillness," but who fails 
 in methods of instruction and in arousing in their young 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 hearts a love of knowledge and a high purpose in life, makes 
 a woeful mistake. 
 
 541. How can the pupil be prevented from wanting to 
 whisper? 
 
 The usual way is to have a rule against it, and a penalty, 
 but this is a wrong principle. Noise and study are incom- 
 patible. Explain this to the pupils, and enlist their aid in 
 the matter. Cause them to know that you want to make the 
 room pleasant; that you do not want them to be troubled and 
 harassed by others interrupting them. You may ask them 
 to go without whispering for a half hour, or hour, and at the 
 end of that time ascertain who have done so. Or you may 
 have a period set apart for speaking, by having a large card 
 marked "Study Hour" on one side, and "Needful Speech" 
 on the other. At the end of each hour, turn this card. 
 
 542. What other "means" maybe used? 
 
 Keep an eye on the noisy ones and give them separate 
 seats, not so much as a punishment as to prevent their 
 troubling others. Keep are cord of those who whisper much, 
 and class them as " disorderly," and lower their standing for 
 good behavior. Detain those who are noisy, and try tp 
 influence them by a kind personal talk. 
 
 543. What wide distinction should the teacher make? 
 
 He should readily recognize the difference in the conduct 
 of those who whisper about their studies, and those who 
 whisper about mischief. Quietness can pervade the school- 
 room without that repressed feeling that comes from arbitrary 
 rule and the fear of severe punishment. 
 
 546. Is the " no recess" plan advisable? 
 
 The idea should not be entertained for a moment in the 
 
A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 district school. There the recess will always be a justifiable 
 necessity. In several of our larger cities, notably in those 
 of New. York State, the no recess plan is working with 
 admirable results, according to the testimony of superin- 
 tendents and principals. Its use has been universally 
 advocated upon the following grounds: (1) That recesses 
 are filled with moral danger to pupils; and (2) that they 
 weaken the discipline of the school. To this its opponents 
 reply, that in every well-disciplined school the opportunities 
 for vicious contamination are almost absolutely nil; and that 
 if any mischief should result from the association of pupils, 
 it is far more likely to arise from their being out together 
 between recesses, when their actions can not be observed by 
 their teachers; and again that if children were sent to school 
 for the sole purpose of their being kept still — a thought not 
 entertained by any rational educator — the second argument 
 might have some weight; but quietness is in no way desirable 
 except in so far as it contributes to the success of this work. 
 It is a means to an end, and not an end in itself. A certain 
 degree of quietness must be had, or the main purpose of the 
 school must fail. And the well-being of the child's physical 
 nature is not to be overlooked. As means of ventilation in 
 lime cases out of ten are utterly inadequate, the pupil can 
 only obtain pure air in out-door exercise. 
 
 549. What are the " Seven Laws of Teaching''? 
 
 Dr. J. Baldwin, with a few remarks upon each, advances 
 the following list, which teachers may enlarge upon to an 
 unlimited extent: 
 
 I. Know thoroughly what you would teach. 
 II. Secure attention by sustaining interest. 
 
 III. . Use language which your pupil* understand. 
 
 IV. Proceed from flu known t<> the unknown by easy steps. 
 
. 1 ND PEA < TI( /•; ( )F /•/•:. Kill NG. 2 1 3 
 
 A". Lead your pupils to find out by themselves. 
 VI. Manage to havt the pupils re-state, in their own 
 language, the truths taught, giving their own illustrations and 
 proofs. 
 
 VII. Ri view, Review, REVIEW. 
 
 551. Should "Friday afternoon" exercises be given? 
 
 Undoubtedly! Make them the happiest half-days of the 
 week. With this object and that of instruction in view, 
 success will surely follow. Pupils may be led to do much 
 work under the impression that they are playing. Among 
 the many tilings that you may do, the following are presented 
 as examples: 
 
 (1) Have a pronunciation test. Prepare and place upon 
 the blackboard at least ten words commonly mispronounced. 
 Do this soon enough to enable the earnest pupils to consult 
 the dictionary. (2) Devote twenty minutes to "spelling 
 down,' 1 using a list of words commonly misspelled. (3) Have 
 a cliart or map exercise. (4) Read a short sketch, and have 
 pupils reproduce the thought orally or in writing. (5) Let 
 each pupil give a sentiment from a standard author. If 
 possible, induce the pupil to develop the thought in his 
 sentiment. (6) Place "queer queeries" on the board for 
 investigation. Do this a week in advance. It will stimulate 
 investigation. Parents will grow interested. (7) Give a 
 practical lesson in civil government. (8) Conduct an exer- 
 cise in false syntax. (9) Ask for recitations of poetry and 
 prose of genuine literary merit from older pupils. (10) Have 
 declamations. Some if not all of these can be used in any 
 school. 
 
■^-ABSB^BJl.-^- 
 
 Hints, Helps, Means, and Cautions. 
 
 BEHAVIOR. 
 
 Rules of conduct should be given pupils from time to time, accompanied by 
 such precept and example as shall prompt to habits of obedience to such rules. 
 There is liability of neglect in this regard because other and more definite matters 
 press for our attention. All that is required is a definite purpose to give each class 
 a comprehensive code by which their moral and social life should be gauged, and 
 then a systematic arrangement of these rules, checking them as we teach them. In 
 this wav the work will have been done before we suspect it. 
 
 MANNERS. 
 
 1. Children are supposed to learn manners at home, or to take them on 
 unconsciously from intercourse with their schoolmates; but it is exceedingly 
 desirable that manners should be made the subject of definite instruction in every 
 school. It is said that the winning manners of Henry Clay were owing, in no 
 small degree, to the careful training of his early teachers. 
 
 2. "A beautiful behavior is the finest of fine arts."— Emerson. 
 
 3. "Give a boy address and accomplishments, and you give him mastery of 
 palaces and fortunes wherever he goes."— Ibid. 
 
 4. ''A noble and attractive every-day bearing comes of goodness, of sincerity, 
 of refinement; and these are bred in years, not moments. The principle that rules 
 your life is the sure posture-master." — Huntington. 
 
 5. "I wish good behavior might enter into the curriculum of every school in 
 our country. Under this head should be taught such things as how to enter a room, 
 meet with the person upon whom the pupil is supposed to be calling, pass the com- 
 pliments of the day, peacefully and quietly leave the room; how to introduce 
 persons in a proper manner; and also under this head you may teach how to write 
 notes of invitation and acceptance." — J. H. French, Institute Conductor, New 
 York. 
 
 RULES OF POLITENESS. 
 
 Let your pupils copy the following rules into their blank-books. Add other 
 directions as circumstances may require, those given here being merely a suggestive 
 model. Make each direction the subject of a conversation with your pupils: 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 
 
 215 
 
 1. True politeness consists in having and showing due regard for the feelings, 
 comfort, and convenience of others. 
 
 2. Avoid giggling or tittering in school or in company. 
 
 3. Avoid loud talking or laughing in school or in company. 
 
 4. Avoid the use of slang. 
 
 5. Be particularly courteous to new scholars. 
 
 6. Never laugh at the mistakes or blunders of other scholars or persons. 
 
 7. Look persons in the eye when they speak to you, or when you speak to them. 
 
 8. Whispering at lectures, places of amusement, or in public, is both rude and 
 vulgar. 
 
 9. Be respectful to your elders in tone, look, and manner. 
 
 10. Be as polite to your father and mother, to your brothers and sisters, as yon 
 are to strangers. 
 
 THREE LEADING QUESTIONS. 
 
 The thoughtful and conscientious teacher, in beginning to give instructions in 
 any subject, finds three questions presenting themselves to him, and demanding 
 clear and satisfactory answers: 
 
 1. What is it that I am to teach? What is the nature of the subject in itself 
 considered? What are its limitations? How related to, and distinguished from, 
 other kindred subjects? 
 
 2. Why am I to teach it? What are the uses to which it can be put by the 
 learner? What is the end or purpose aimed at in giving instructions in it? 
 
 3. How am I to teach it? By what means and by what method can the end 
 proposed be best secured? 
 
 The nature and relations of a subject determine the importance of knowing it; 
 hence a comprehensive answer to the first question suggests an answer to the 
 second. 
 
 The nature of a subject, and the seasons for knowing it; hence the answer to 
 the first and second questions, together with the nature of the mind, and the laws 
 of its activity, furnish material for the answer to the third.— Hodgiri's Outlines. 
 
 TACT. 
 
 A famous teacher, celebrated for his shrewdness in handling the irresistible 
 American boy in the school-room, tells us that he succeeded in breaking up a 
 disagreeable habit of crunching apples and eating molasses-candy in his school, by 
 placing a peck of apples and a platter of candy on his desk, and insisting that every 
 offending boy and girl should march up and partake in the presence of the whole 
 crowd. That style of recitation was an effectual cure, being founded on a law of 
 human nature, that a good way to cure a bad habit is an overdose of the forbidden 
 fruit. 
 
 SUPERINTENDENTS AND PRINCIPALS. 
 
 In the West, where the graded-school system has been quite fully developed, it 
 is usual to appoint a superintendent when the aggregate enrollment is twelve 
 hundred or upward. The tendancy is to appoint a special officer in schools con- 
 siderably smaller; and in many schools of three or four hundred pupils the 
 
2i6 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 principal teacher styles himself superintendent. This, however, is a perversion of 
 language. The time of a superintendent is exclusively, or very largely, employed 
 in the general oversight of teachers and schools; he is rather an officer of the Board 
 than a member of the corps of teachers. The principal teacher in a smaller school, 
 on the other hand, is almost exclusively engaged in teaching, and his legitimate 
 title is Principal. This unauthorized as kness somewhat peculiar 
 
 to the West, where almost every man in charge of a school with one assistant is a 
 "Professor." This fondness for titles very justly exposes the profession of teach- 
 ing to ridicule, and confounds ideas which should be kept distinct. 
 
 THE ART OF QUESTIONING. 
 
 The art of questioning must be cultivated by the teacher with the utmost skill 
 and persistency. There is a power in questions carefully put that the average 
 teacher little suspects. A shrewd supervisor, instructor, or superintendent of 
 schools can judge of a teacher's real merit by hearing her ask questions, better than 
 in any other way. If the teacher follows the book-questions it indicates an 
 inactive mind; if she questions freely but at random, it indicates lack of appre- 
 ciation of the force of logical questioning. It is as vicious for a teacher to ask 
 disjointed questions as for a preacher to ignore all system and plan in his sermon, 
 or for a lawyer to address a jury without arranging his points. If we would make 
 our profession honored, we must honor it as others do their professions. 
 
 DONT'S. 
 
 Don't scold continually, or for every little trifling offense; "familiarity breeds 
 contempt," and your pupils will soon come to think that scolding is your forte, and 
 you do it for fun. Thus its effect upon them when deserved is lost. 
 
 Don't attempt to teach by comparison until you weigh well that the minds of 
 children are easily confused, and in your care to teach the correct, by showing the 
 incorrect, you run the risk of impressing upon them the very thing you seek to 
 eradicate. 
 
 Don't try to have your pupils learn too many things, or spend your strength in 
 advancing them too rapidly. You might as well " pour water through a sieve." 
 
 Don't forget that your pupils are rational beings, and that they have a code of 
 rights that should be respected as sacredly as should be the rights of their elders. 
 
 Don't forget the time when you was a soldier in the battle of child-life; try to 
 have your pupils feel that your own childish trials and discomforts are still fresh 
 in your memory. 
 
 Don't forget that your pupils are the men and women of to-morrow; that they 
 are essentially what they are made, either by precept or example; that to primary 
 pupils, example is of more value than precept. 
 
 Don't think that order consists in the quietness of the tomb, or fancy that the 
 air of an Egyptian mummy is creditable in a child. 
 
 Don't be late. Don't threaten. Don't "show off" pet classes or pet pupils. 
 Don't have " pets." Don't think that one teaching of a subject will be sufficient. 
 Don't ask general questions. Don't dismiss the class without order. Don't have 
 too many rules. Don't attempt to make your pupils think you know more than 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACH IXC. 
 
 you really do know. A teacher should not fear to say: "I don't know, but I will 
 try to find out." This will show that the teacher is both honest and industrious. 
 
 BENEFITS OF SCHOOL-KEEPING. 
 
 More than one great man has acknowledged the benefit of an early experience 
 in teaching a common-school. In a conversation held in November, 1821, the then 
 venerable ex-President, John Adams, gave his views as to the benefits he had 
 
 received from teaching school in his youth. His remarks are quoted from a diary 
 by a relative of the Hon. Josiah Quincy : 
 
 " Mr. Adams talked freelj and said, 'After I left college, I came home to 
 Braintree to see my friends, and then went to Worcester to keep school to support 
 myself, while at the same time 1 studied law with Judge Putnam. I advise every 
 young person to keep school. I acquired more knowledge of I niman nature while 
 I kept that school than while 1 was at the bar; than while in the world of politics, 
 or at the courts of Europe. 1; is the best method of acquiring patience, self-com- 
 mand, and a knowledge of character. 1 " 
 
 SCHOOL DISCIPLINE. 
 
 The following things aid in securing good discipline and preventing disorder: 
 
 1. See that the school-room is well warmed, ventilated, cleansed and lighted, 
 and adorned with pictures, mottoes, and flowers. 
 
 2. Give pupils plenty to do. 
 
 3. Approve work when well done. 
 3. Carefully inspect pupil's work. 
 
 5. Keep up an interest in work. 
 
 6. Few rules uniformly executed. 
 
 7. Frequent changes of exercises. 
 
 8. Control by kindness and firmness. 
 
 9. Make the school and its exercises popular. 
 10. Pile on motives. 
 
 QUALIFICATIONS OF A GOOD TEACHER. 
 
 No knowledge, however profound, can substitute a teacher. A teacher must 
 have knowledge, as an orator must have kowledge, as a builder must have 
 materials; but as, in choosing the builder of my house, I do not select the man who 
 has the most materials in his yard, but I proceed to select him by reference to his 
 skill, ingenuity, and taste, so also in testing an orator or teacher, I satisfy myself 
 that they fulfill the comparatively easy condition of possessing sufficient materials 
 of knowledge with which to work; I look then to those high and noble qualities 
 which are the characteristics of their peculiar calling. There were hundreds at 
 Athens who knew more than Demosthenes, many at Rome that knew more than 
 Cicero; but there was but one Demosthenes and one Cicero. — Lord Ashburtori's 
 Address to Schoolmasters. 
 
 Carlyle wrote: " For many years it has been one of my most constant regrets 
 that no schoolmaster of mine had a knowledge of natural history 7 , so far, at least, 
 as to have taught me the grasses that grow by the roadside, and the little winged 
 
2l8 A QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 and wingless neighbors that are constantly meeting me with a salutation which I 
 cannot answer as things are. 
 
 "Why did not somebody teach me the constellations, too, and make meat 
 home in the starry heavens which are always overhead, and which I don't half know 
 to this day? I love to prophesy that the time will come when the schoolmaster 
 will be strictly required to possess these two capabilities, and that no ingenious 
 little denizen of this universe be thenceforth debarred from his right of liberty in 
 these two departments, and doomed to look on them, as if across great fences, all 
 his life." 
 
 Educational Aphorisms. 
 
 Boys ought to learn what they should practice when they become men. 
 
 —Agesilaus (King of Sparta). 
 
 Awake your senses, that you may the better judge. —Shakespeare. 
 
 It is better that a boy should like his lesson, than learn it. 
 
 —Sir John Lubbock. 
 
 Science properly taught is one of the best means of educating the faculties of 
 the human mind. —William Rushton. 
 
 Object-lessons, giving the pupils ideas and thoughts with which they are 
 familiar, are to be avoided. The interest of a lesson depends very much upon its 
 novelty, and if this element is wanting, there is very little left to create a perma- 
 nent impression. — James Johonnot. 
 
 As to reading (i. e. learning to read), a great care is to be taken that it be never 
 made as a business to him, nor he look on it as a task. * * * * 
 
 * * I have always a fancy that learning might be made a play and 
 
 recreation to children. * * * * Thus children may be cozened 
 
 into knowledge of the letters; be taught to read without perceiving it to be any- 
 thing but a sport; and play themselves into which others are whipped for. 
 Children should not have anything like work, or serious tasks laid on them; neither 
 their minds nor bodies will stand it. —Locke. 
 
 All teaching should be tested by its quality. —F. W. Parker. 
 
 In mental food, as in physical, what is one man's meat is another's poison; 
 and a wide latitude of choice is necessary. — Schoolmaster (Eng.) 
 
 It is better for boys to see something, than to say something. — Ruskin. 
 
 Our earliest teaching must be things, not words. —Barnard. 
 
 INDUCTIVE METHOD. 
 
 It must be acknowledged that the methods of disquisition and teaching may be 
 sometimes different, and on very good reasons undoubtedly; but for my part I am 
 
AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING. 219 
 
 convinced that the method of teaching which approaches most nearly to the 
 method of investigation is incomparably the best: since, not content with 
 serving up a few barren and lifeless truths, it leads to the stock on which they 
 grew; it tends to set the reader himself in the track of invention, and to direct him 
 into thoBe paths in which the author has made his own discoveries, if he should be 
 so happy as to have made any that are valuable. —Edmund Burke. 
 
 Do not expect, even by the very best teaching, to make good scholars out of all 
 your pupils. —John Swett. 
 
 I hate by-roads to education; endeavoring to make children prematurely wise 
 is useless labor. —Dr. Johnson. 
 
 Impressions received through the eye are the most definite and indelible. 
 
 — Joseph Henry. 
 
 Pestalozzi found for education the formula development, but applied this 
 almost exclusively to intellectual training, basing upon it his alphabet of intuition. 
 Frcebel extended this into evolution, applying the law to all phases of being, and 
 furnishing an alphabet of doing, of skill, of expression. 
 
 Amenities and Tribulations of Teaching. 
 
 Delightful task! to rear the tender thought, 
 To teach the young idea how to shoot. 
 
 —Thomson's Spring. 
 
 To sentence a man of true genius to the drudgery of a school, is to put a race- 
 horse in a mill. —Colton. 
 
 Taught or untaught the dunce is just the same; 
 Yet still the wretched master bears the blame. 
 
 —Dry den. 
 
 The schoolmaster is apt to be a favorite with the female part of creation, 
 especially in the rural districts. —Irving. 
 
 Uneasy lie the heads of all who rule; 
 
 The most so his whose kingdom is a school. 
 
 -0. W. Holmes. 
 
 I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done than to be one of the 
 twenty to follow my own teaching. —Shakespeare. 
 
 And while a paltry stipend earning, 
 
 He sows the richest seeds of learning; 
 
 No joys, alas! his toil beguile, 
 
 His mind lies fallow all the while. 
 
 —Robert Lloyd. 
 
.4 QUIZ-BOOK ON THE THEORY 
 
 Worried and tormented into monotonous feebleness, the best part of life ground 
 out of him in a mill of boys. —Dickens. 
 
 She dwells by great Kenhawa's side. 
 
 In valleys green and cool, 
 And all her hope and all her pride 
 
 Are in her village school. —Longfellow. 
 
 If a student convinces you that you are wrong and he is right, acknowledge it 
 cheerfully, and— hug him. —Emerson. 
 
 The twig is so easily bended, 
 
 I have banished the rule and the rod; 
 I have taught them the goodness of knowledge, 
 
 They have taught me the goodness of God. 
 
 — Charles Dickinson. 
 
 If vexed with a child when instructing it, try to write with your left hand. 
 Remember a child is all left hand. —J. F. Boyes. 
 
 To rear, to teach, 
 Becoming as is meet and fit, 
 A link among the days to knit 
 
 The generations each with each. —Tennyson. 
 
 What comfort some pedagogues might derive from the thought that wise pupils 
 can learn as much from a fool as from a philosopher. — Vedder. 
 
 And when the world shall link your names 
 
 With gracious lives and manner's tine, 
 The teacher shall assert her claims, 
 
 And proudly whisper, "These were mine!" 
 
 — Whittier. 
 
 The eminences of their scholars commend the memories of schoolmasters to 
 posterity, who otherwise, in obscurity had been altogether forgotten. 
 
 —Thomas Fuller. 
 
 O'er wayward childhood wouldst thou hold firm rule, 
 And sun the in the light of happy faces, 
 Love, Hope, and Patience — these must be thy graces, 
 
 And in thine own heart let them first keep school. 
 
 — Coleridge. 
 
 Enny man who has kept a skool for ten years ought to be made a Major 
 Gineral and have a penshun for the rest of his nateral days, and a hoss and waggin 
 to do his going around in. —Josh Billings. 
 
 Still to be pinioned down to teach 
 
 The Syntax and the Parts of Speech, 
 
 Or deal out authors by retail, 
 
 Like penny pots of Oxford ale; 
 
 O 'tis a service irksome more 
 
 Than tugging at the slavish oar. —Robert Lloyd. 
 
ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
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 •HTie ^ Schoolmaster * is * Abroad-^ 
 
 Some Papers About Pedagogues. 
 
 BY JAMES BALDWIN, Ph.D., 
 
 Author of "^English Literature and Literary Criticism,, 1 '' etc.,etc. 
 
 " The Schoolmaster " is a series of eleven papers supposed»to have been pre- 
 sented to a company of teachers who were forever talking "shop." The author 
 begins by saying: 
 
 " We were a company of Teachers just returned from the great national meeting 
 at Madison:— 
 
 " Theodosia, who has taken a course in three Normal Schools. 
 
 "Mary Jane, a young teacher from the country. 
 
 " Agamemnon, old and decidedly behind the times. 
 
 " Charles Augustus, a Noianal graduate. 
 
 "Myself, a Schoolmaster who is supposed to be abroad." 
 
 " Naturally enough, all our conversation was about schools, school-keeping, 
 and kindred topics; and the occasion was favorabl j for the reading of a few papers 
 which had been prepared on educational topics. The desire expressed by the com- 
 pany for these papers in a more permanent form is my only excuse for introducing 
 myself and them to the public." 
 
 Each one of the above characters takes part in every discussion, and they keep 
 things at a "white heat." 
 
 Old Agamemnon turns the pompous Charles Augustus upside down, and gives 
 Miss Theodosia a few ''left handers" that make her feel like taking two or three 
 more courses in a Normal, and The Schoolmaster himself is occasionally "wakened 
 up" in a lively manner. The last chapter of the work, entitled, 
 
 "THE COMMON SCHOOLS OF A QUARTER CENTURY HENCE," 
 
 Is the paper read before the Indiana State Teachers' Association in 1883 by the 
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 — •—iLogansport, Ind.i— ♦—