LIBRARY, 
 
 LOS ANGELES, CALIF.
 
 RIVERSIDE TEXTBOOKS 
 IN EDUCATION 
 
 EDITED BY ELLWOOD P. CUBBERLEY 
 
 PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
 LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY 
 
 DIVISION OF SECONDARY EDUCATION 
 
 UNDER THE EDITORIAL DIRECTION 
 
 OF ALEXANDER INGLIS 
 
 ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
 HARVARD UNIVERSITY
 
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 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 IN THE 
 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 
 
 BY 
 
 GILBERT H. TRAFTON 
 
 INSTRUCTOR IN SCIENCE AT THE STATE NORMAL 
 SCHOOL, MANKATO, MINN. 
 
 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 
 
 BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO 
 
 3Z a
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1918, BY GILBERT H. TRAFTON 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
 CAMBRIDGE MASSACHUSETTS 
 U . S . A
 
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 i9i 
 
 TGT 
 
 <*>,! 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 
 
 ^ $ THAT we as a nation shall need to pay greater attention 
 
 \^ ' to instruction in science after the Great War than we did 
 
 1 , before it, now seems certain. The call for men trained along 
 
 scientific lines for work in the fields and in the shops will 
 
 \ inevitably be more insistent than any we have previously 
 
 L.. "t? known. Research, too, along scientific lines seems certain 
 
 ^ to be cared for in a new way and to be greatly extended 
 
 f\ in scope. Our leaders now see clearly that if this nation 
 
 <js is to hold its proper place in the life of the world it must 
 
 become, to a much greater extent than ever before, a sci- 
 
 v entific nation. 
 
 ^ To become a scientific nation, however, just as to become 
 TV an artistic, or a literary, or a moral, or a practical, or an 
 ^ economical nation, demands that the masses be trained in 
 the elements of these things, for from the many the great 
 <fl leaders must be drawn. This involves not only good instruc- 
 tion in the universities and secondary schools for those 
 possessing special aptitudes, but general instruction in the 
 elementary schools that the many may have any latent 
 possibilities awakened, and may also be brought into sym- 
 pathetic appreciation with the new turn it is desired that 
 our national life should take. 
 
 Science instruction, or the awakening during childhood 
 of an intelligent interest in the world of nature which lies 
 all about us, has an important educational as well as a 
 practical value. To become trained to observe plant and 
 animal life and the phenomena of the universe accurately 
 and appreciatively is a great educational asset. How to give 
 such instruction to children has long been one of the per- 

 
 vi EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 
 
 plexing problems faced by those charged with the responsi- 
 bilities of school administration. One of the chief difficul- 
 ties met with, especially in rural and village schools, has 
 been that the teachers themselves, untrained along scien- 
 tific lines, have not known what to do, how to do it, or 
 where to get materials. The abundance of possibilities for 
 instruction in scientific observation, the ease with which 
 simple scientific experiments may be performed in the 
 classroom, and the constant application of scientific truths 
 to the daily life of all have been lost sight of in the feeling 
 that only the most important things should be taught and 
 that expensive apparatus and equipment are necessary to 
 teach them. 
 
 The author of the present volume in this series of text- 
 books has tried, out of his long experience as a teacher of 
 elementary science to children and to prospective teachers 
 of children, to construct a simple and helpful volume for 
 the teacher who is called upon to teach elementary science 
 lessons, and yet has neither scientific training nor apparatus 
 for the work. He has selected and graded the easiest and 
 most interesting things to do in each of the main fields of 
 science, has prefaced this by a brief discussion as to aims 
 and methods, and has then supplemented it all by a de- 
 tailed outline of what may be done, by years and by grades, 
 by a teacher working alone and thrown upon her own 
 resources. The volume should prove helpful to all teachers 
 who are anxious to impart such instruction to their children, 
 yet who need a suggestive guide which will show them the 
 many possibilities lying within easy reach. That the work 
 suggested and outlined has been carefully tested by the 
 author, with children under actual school conditions, adds 
 much to the value of the outlines and suggestions here 
 presented. 
 
 ELLWOOD P. CTJBBERLEY
 
 PREFACE 
 
 THE part that science plays in modern life is so vital that 
 science teaching must inevitably have an important place 
 in the school curriculum. There has been some confusion 
 regarding the term to be used to cover the work in science 
 in the elementary school. "Nature-study" has been the 
 word in most common usage. But there is considerable 
 misunderstanding as to what is included under this term. 
 In recent years it has been used in an ever-broadening sense 
 till now the word is used by many educators to include all 
 phases of science adapted to the elementary school. But 
 among people in general the common notion still prevails 
 that nature-study includes only the study of wild plants 
 and animals. So that, considering all sides of the matter, it 
 has seemed better to the author to adopt the word " science " 
 instead of nature-study, as tending to involve less mis- 
 understanding and as helping to establish an appropriate 
 and standard term. 
 
 The modifying words, "elementary," or "introduction 
 to," seem superfluous. As we have history and English in 
 the grades, so we have science; and it is just as unnecessary 
 to speak of elementary science, or introduction to science, 
 as it is to speak of elementary history or introduction to 
 English. It is presupposed that any subject taught in the 
 elementary school is to be adapted to the needs and capa- 
 bilities of the children. 
 
 It should be clearly understood that nature-study and 
 science are not different subjects, but that they are two 
 terms variously used to cover the same subject-matter. 
 
 Three possibilities have presented themselves to the au-
 
 viii PREFACE 
 
 thor: first, to devote the entire space to subject-matter 
 alone; second, to devote the entire space to the teaching 
 side alone; and third, to cover both fields. The last possi- 
 bility seems out of the question because both phases can- 
 not be adequately treated within the limits of a single text- 
 book usually set by publishers. The first possibility was 
 rejected because so many good books have appeared cover- 
 ing nature topics. The author has accepted the second 
 possibility as offering the greatest need at the present time 
 and has devoted the entire book to methods of teaching 
 science. 
 
 The author has attempted to give a general view of the 
 principles involved in teaching science, and has suggested 
 the organization of a number of topics, leaving the details 
 to be worked out by the teacher, either from other books 
 or from her own experiences. 
 
 Special thanks are due Miss Helen M. Reynolds, Principal 
 of the Primary Department of the Mankato Training School, 
 for help in preparing the outline for the primary grades. 
 
 GILBERT H. TRAFTON
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PART I 
 THE PEDAGOGY OF SCIENCE INSTRUCTION 
 
 I. THE CONTENT AND PLACE OF SCIENCE . . . . S 
 
 II. AIMS OF SCIENCE TEACHING 10 
 
 III. MATERIALS AND CORRELATION 17 
 
 IV. MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING .... 26 
 V. METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 36 
 
 PART H 
 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE 
 
 VI. TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 49 
 
 VII. TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS . . . .69 
 VIII. PETS AND DOMESTICATED ANIMALS (for Primary 
 
 Grades) 82 
 
 IX. LESSONS ON TREES 88 
 
 X. LESSONS WITH FLOWERS 99 
 
 XI. SEED-DISPERSAL AND FLOWERLESS PLANTS . . . 105 
 
 PART m 
 AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE 
 
 XII. GARDENING 113 
 
 XIII. LESSONS WITH WEEDS . 135
 
 x CONTENTS 
 
 PART IV 
 HYGIENE 
 
 XIV. PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 143 
 XV. TEACHING HYGIENE THROUGH EXPERIMENTS . .159 
 
 PART V 
 PHYSICAL SCIENCE 
 
 XVI. PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 169 
 
 XVH. WEATHER AND SKY STUDIES 185 
 
 PART VI 
 OUTLINE OF SCIENCE INSTRUCTION 
 
 XVIII. BASIS FOR ORGANIZATION OF OUTLINE OF SCIENCE . 193 
 XIX. DETAILED OUTLINE OF SCIENCE BY TOPICS AND PROB- 
 LEMS, ARRANGED ACCORDING TO GRADES AND SEA- 
 SONS 205 
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHY 283 
 
 INDEX . 289
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE IN THE 
 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 
 
 PART I 
 THE PEDAGOGY OF SCIENCE INSTRUCTION
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE IN THE 
 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 THE CONTENT AND PLACE OF SCIENCE 
 
 Phases of science. There are four large phases of science 
 in the elementary school: the biological, the agricultural, the 
 physical, and the hygienic. Biological science is a term which 
 the author uses in a somewhat limited sense to include the 
 study of wild plants and animals. Agricultural science in- 
 cludes some phases of elementary agriculture, centering 
 chiefly around gardening and including some closely allied 
 topics, such as weeds and soils. Physical science includes 
 those phases of physics, chemistry, and astronomy which 
 are adapted to the elementary schools. The hygiene phase 
 of science includes the teaching of the laws of personal 
 hygiene and public sanitation. 
 
 Emphasis on phases. The emphasis to be placed on these 
 phases depends upon the age of the child and upon his en- 
 vironment. The biological phase receives special attention 
 in the lower grades, diminishing in importance in the upper 
 grades. The agricultural phase receives emphasis in the in- 
 termediate and grammar grades. The physical phase has its 
 beginnings in the intermediate grades and receives special 
 attention in the grammar grades. Hygiene receives some 
 attention through all the grades, beginning with the primary 
 and increasing in importance in the later grades. By this it 
 is not meant to imply that the health of the child in the 
 primary grades demands less attention than in the later
 
 4 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 grades; but it means that more time can be given to the for- 
 mal teaching of hygiene in the upper grades, because the 
 age of the children makes it possible to give more considera- 
 tion to the laws of hygiene and to the reasons for their ob- 
 servance. In the lower grades little time need be given to 
 formal lessons in hygiene, but emphasis should be placed on 
 the formation of proper health habits. 
 
 The distribution of these various phases of science accord- 
 ing to grades is shown graphically in the accompanying 
 diagram. 
 
 Physical Sci'e/xec 
 Hygiene 
 
 Agricultural ^ci'ence. 
 Biological .Science 
 
 7 8 
 
 FIG. 1. DISTRIBUTION OF PHASES OF SCIENCE THROUGHOUT GRADES 
 
 Child's need of science. It is a fundamental principle of 
 teaching that the child should be educated in terms of his 
 environment. His daily life is to be the guide for the school. 
 The underlying reason why the child needs science is because 
 science plays such a vital part in his every -day life. This is 
 a scientific age, when science dominates our life; and it will 
 continue to dominate it with ever-increasing power in the 
 future. In order that the child may play his part efficiently 
 in this scientific environment, it is necessary that he should 
 be educated regarding it in the schools. 
 
 Wild plants and animals in the child's environment. The 
 child is closely surrounded on every side with a great variety 
 of plant and animal forms, and these will continue to play an 
 important part in all his life. They constitute one of the most 
 evident and essential parts of his immediate environment. 
 Some of these forms, such as birds and forests, are of great 
 value to him. He should know this so as to protect them.
 
 THE CONTENT AND PLACE OF SCIENCE 5 
 
 Other forms, such as weeds and some insects, are injurious 
 to him. He should know this so as to protect himself from 
 them. Some of these plants and animals, such as birds, trees, 
 and flowers, are the chief factors that make outdoor life 
 attractive. He should know these so that he may better 
 appreciate this great source of enjoyment. 
 
 Why we fail to appreciate the importance of science. The 
 true value of nature knowledge in the child's life is not fully 
 appreciated because most people have had little of this train- 
 ing, and so do not understand its value. It is only when 
 one has once acquired it, and then imagines that he is to be 
 deprived of it, that he appreciates its real value. If we wish 
 to realize the true value of our railroads, let us imagine that 
 we are to be deprived of their services for a short time; and 
 yet people existed for thousands of years and made much 
 progress without any railroads at all. So people have gone 
 through our elementary schools without a study of nature, 
 and hence do not appreciate how much it would have meant 
 to them. Those persons who have acquired this knowledge 
 are the ones best fitted to judge of its value; and the general 
 consensus of testimony from these persons is that this ex- 
 perience forms a vital part of their life, from which they 
 could ill afford to part. This spirit has been well expressed 
 by a writer in the Nature-Study Review as follows: 
 
 The love of nature aroused in that schoolroom under the guid- 
 ance of a teacher who was herself a lover of the fields and woods, 
 has given more pleasure than all else in life combined. 
 
 Agriculture and the child's life. The whole human race is 
 indebted in the most intimate way possible to agriculture. 
 To the country child it is his father's vocation and he is living 
 constantly in the midst of agricultural activities and remind- 
 ers. They form a vital part of his life. They are also vital 
 to the town child, only removed one step farther, so that
 
 6 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 the connection is not so plain. But even here are seen the 
 elementary phases of agriculture in gardening, and the child 
 may himself engage in its activities and derive profit and 
 pleasure therefrom. 
 
 Applications of modern science. For the great majority of 
 those things that contribute to the comforts and necessities 
 of the child's daily life, he is indebted to modern means of 
 travel. The locomotive, the electric trolley, and the auto- 
 mobile are in constant use in carrying the child from place to 
 place. But of even greater importance is the part they play 
 in bringing into his home those things that he uses daily. 
 The steamboat and locomotive bring the child food and cloth- 
 ing from all parts of the world: fruits from Florida and Cali- 
 fornia, rice from China, and silks from France. The loco- 
 motive takes a letter from New York to San Francisco and 
 brings back an answer, all within a fortnight. 
 
 The water wheel, the motor, and the steam engine turn 
 the wheels in the factories where the child's clothing is 
 woven and much of his food is prepared. They run the 
 machines that saw the lumber out of which his home is con- 
 structed; they turn the lathes and run the saws that make 
 the tables and chairs used in his home. It is difficult to look 
 anywhere that one does not find evidences of the part that 
 these machines play in contributing to the child's every-day 
 conveniences. 
 
 The telegraph and the telephone make it possible through 
 the newspapers to keep informed of what is happening in all 
 parts of the world, only a short time after these events occur. 
 The telephone has come to be a daily necessity so closely 
 interwoven with our every-day activities as to be considered 
 almost as much an essential in a modern home as is a watch 
 or clock. 
 
 Many of the child's chief pleasures are made possible 
 through the applications of science. Probably no other one
 
 THE CONTENT AND PLACE OF SCIENCE 7 
 
 thing furnishes enjoyment to so many people, children and 
 adults alike, as the moving pictures. It has been estimated 
 that fourteen million people visit the moving pictures every 
 day in the United States. These pictures are made possible 
 through improvements in photography and devices for pro- 
 jecting pictures on the screen. The phonograph and the 
 great variety of musical instruments, such as the piano and 
 the violin, are applications of the physics of sound. 
 
 These examples that have been given are applications of 
 modern science in the child's every-day life, and they con- 
 stitute the chief reasons for the difference between life to-day 
 and life a hundred years ago. These well-known illustrations 
 have been cited to emphasize the fact that science plays a 
 dominant part in the child's life. Hence, as a natural result, 
 the study of science should have an important place in the 
 school curriculum. 
 
 Hygiene and life. And finally, underlying everything else 
 and more important than all else combined, is the conserva- 
 tion of the child's health. Teaching hygiene should form a 
 vital part of the science work. The condition of the body 
 underlies all that one does in life. The strong, healthy body 
 gives the possibility of a long, useful, happy life. The weak 
 body handicaps one in all walks in life in direct proportion 
 to the extent of this weakness. Good health is the most 
 precious thing that the individual can possess, and the con- 
 servation of this health should be the first consideration of 
 the school. 
 
 These statements are self-evident, and it would seem al- 
 most needless to restate them, were it not for the lamentable 
 fact that the laws of health are seriously violated by the in- 
 dividual, and the teaching of these laws is almost criminally 
 neglected by the public schools. Statistics show that the 
 death-rate in this country for people over forty years of age 
 is increasing. This means that people are failing to follow
 
 8 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 the laws of hygiene in their living. This is largely a matter 
 of habits, and correct hygienic habits of living should be 
 established during the school age of the child. 
 
 Quotations regarding the place of science. As evidence of 
 the need of science teaching in our schools the two following 
 quotations will suffice to indicate the opinion of educators 
 who look at the school problem from a general viewpoint, 
 and not merely from that of a specialist in science. Mr. 
 Abraham Flexner, hi his masterly and constructive paper 
 entitled, A Modern School, writes regarding the science 
 work : 
 
 The work in science should be the central and dominating 
 feature of the school a departure that is sound from the stand- 
 point of psychology and necessary from the standpoint of our 
 main purpose. Children would begin by getting acquainted with 
 objects animate and inanimate; they would learn to know trees, 
 plants, animals, hills, streams, rocks, and to care for animals and 
 plants. At the next stage, they would follow the life cycles of 
 plants and animals, and study the processes to be observed in in- 
 animate things. They would also begin experimentation physi- 
 cal, chemical and biological. In the upper grades, science would 
 gradually assume more systematic form. On the basis of abundant 
 sense-acquired knowledge and with senses sharpened by constant 
 use, children would be interested in problems and in the theoretic 
 basis on which their solution depends. They will make and under- 
 stand a fireless cooker, a camera, a wireless telegraph; and they 
 will ultimately deal with phenomena and their relation in the most 
 rigorous scientific form. 
 
 The Cleveland Survey volume on What the Schools Teach 
 and Might Teach says: 
 
 No elaborate argument should be required to convince the au- 
 thorities in charge of the school system of a modern city like Cleve- 
 land that in this ultra-scientific age the children who do not go 
 beyond the elementary school and they constitute a majority 
 need to possess a Working knowledge of the rudiments of science 
 if they are to make their lives effective. Considered from the stand-
 
 THE CONTENT AND PLACE OF SCIENCE 9 
 
 point of actual human needs, the present almost complete neglect 
 of elementary science is indefensible. 
 
 Science has long since passed beyond the stage of a fad ; 
 and is now a fundamental subject for the schools in the same 
 sense that any subject is considered fundamental; that is, if 
 the child has not had instruction in that subject, he has missed 
 a vital part of his life, as a result of which he will be handi- 
 capped in life; he cannot himself derive so much pleasure 
 from it, he cannot be so successful, nor can he be of so much 
 service to others.
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 AIMS OF SCIENCE TEACHING 
 
 THE aims of any subject should be as broad as life itself, 
 in so far as that subject touches the various phases of life. 
 Science is so closely related to many vital aspects of human 
 life that the aims of science teaching must be broad and 
 comprehensive. 
 
 In order to teach any subject effectively the teacher must 
 have clearly in mind the purposes to be served by that sub- 
 ject. This gives definiteness and directness to her teaching. 
 In teaching science there is another special reason why a 
 clear understanding of aims is essential for the best results. 
 The discussion of the previous chapter suggests the tre- 
 mendously broad field that science covers. It is self-evident 
 that only a small portion of this field can be studied. How 
 shall the teacher know which portions to cover? A clear 
 understanding of the purposes of teaching science will serve 
 as a guide in selecting from this large field. Those topics will 
 be selected which best help to serve those purposes. Those 
 portions which help least, or not at all, will be omitted. 
 
 Aims of education. In determining the aims of teaching 
 science the fundamental consideration is the aim of educa- 
 tion in general, as science is simply one subject in the school 
 curriculum, and all subjects must cooperate to a common 
 end. The purposes of education have been stated in many 
 forms by different writers. It is fairly inclusive to say that 
 education has four large aims: the vocational, the a voca- 
 tional, the social, and the hygienic. The vocational aim seeks 
 to teach the individual how to earn a living; the avocational 
 seeks to show him how to occupy his leisure hours, so that he
 
 AIMS OF SCIENCE TEACHING 11 
 
 may derive greater pleasure in living; the social seeks to 
 teach him his duties to his fellows; and the hygienic seeks to 
 teach him how to conserve health. The vocational aim has 
 no place in the elementary school, because the immaturity of 
 the children does not permit a vocation to be taught. This 
 leaves, therefore, a threefold aim for the elementary school 
 the avocational, the social, and the hygienic. 
 
 Science, as one of the subjects in the school curriculum, 
 can very clearly contribute its share toward fulfilling each 
 of these aims. So that we may take these same aims as our 
 guide in teaching science. It is convenient to consider also 
 the economic aim, which is not so much an additional aim as 
 it is a particular aspect of the other aims, which it seems best 
 for our purposes to treat separately under this head. 
 
 From still another more general standpoint, education has 
 two great functions to perform: to promote the welfare of 
 the individual and that of society. Both of these aspects are 
 included in these aims. The aesthetic or avocational aim 
 deals largely with individual welfare, the social aim with 
 social welfare, and the hygienic and economic aims with both 
 individual and social well-being. 
 
 Esthetic or avocational aim. One important aim of science 
 teaching is to furnish greater pleasure in living. Enjoyment 
 is an element necessary for the most successful living. Every 
 one demands and seeks some form of enjoyment, and rightly 
 so. Some of the pleasures thus obtained are positively harm- 
 ful, some are worthless, and others are helpful. One purpose 
 of teaching science is to furnish a helpful kind of enjoyment 
 that shall make life more worth living. The study of na- 
 ture furnishes many opportunities to derive such pleasure. 
 Through all his life one is surrounded with a wonderful 
 variety of beautiful plant and animal forms. People are real- 
 izing to-day as never before the advantages of living out- 
 doors in contact with nature. The enjoyment of life is
 
 12 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 greatly increased, oftentimes, perhaps unconsciously, if one 
 knows the trees that help so much to make the landscapes 
 beautiful, and can name the flowers that adorn the roadsides 
 and gardens, and sees and hears the birds that gladden the 
 spring-time by their beautiful colors and musical songs. 
 
 The raising of flowers, vegetables, and fruits in the home 
 garden is a source of much pleasure, as well as having 
 economic and hygienic bearings. 
 
 Young children derive great pleasure in keeping pets, and 
 the care of these pets has the further advantage that it helps 
 to develop in children a sense of responsibility. 
 
 The pleasures that nature furnishes are of almost univer- 
 sal application, in that nearly every one may derive some 
 enjoyment therefrom, if attention is called in school to these 
 possibilities and children are taught to know the common 
 forms of life that everywhere surround them. No special 
 training is needed to enjoy these pleasures, and they are free 
 to all. 
 
 The relative stress to be laid upon the various aims must 
 evidently depend upon the age of the child. The aesthetic 
 aim should be the dominant one for young children, and 
 should become relatively less important for the older chil- 
 dren, but should, however, be kept in mind throughout all 
 the grades. 
 
 Economic aim. Somewhat in contrast with the aesthetic 
 aim stands the economic aim, dealing with practical affairs. 
 In the great variety of wild life are found both beneficial 
 and injurious forms, the former of which should be protected, 
 and the latter destroyed or controlled. Among birds we 
 and that the great majority are beneficial. Among insects 
 ire found some of man's worst enemies. In the vegetable 
 garden, in the fruit garden, among the field crops, and in 
 the household are troublesome and dangerous pests which 
 must be controlled. Some are even dangerous to human
 
 AIMS OF SCIENCE TEACHING 13 
 
 life. On the other hand, there are many insects that are of 
 great value to man. Weeds are another great pest wherever 
 crops are raised. Every citizen needs to know something 
 of the economic aspects of these numerous forms of life, in 
 order that he may guide his actions more efficiently. 
 
 Gardening has an economic aspect worthy of careful con- 
 sideration. The constant upward trend in the cost of living 
 presents a serious problem for the great majority of people. 
 A garden, even though small, may be one factor in helping 
 to reduce the cost of living, and at the same time it may 
 furnish the most healthful kinds of foods. 
 
 There are many applications of physical science, such as 
 the telephone, the steam engine, and the automobile, which 
 play so vital a part in modern life that some knowledge of 
 their significance is essential to an intelligent existence amid 
 present-day surroundings. 
 
 The economic ami may be kept in mind to some extent 
 in the intermediate grades, and may share with the social 
 aim the dominant place in the grammar grades. 
 
 Social aim. During recent years, the social ami of educa- 
 tion has been strongly emphasized, and properly so. Man 
 above all other forms of creation is a social being. As modern 
 improvements and increase in population bring people 
 closer together, both potentially and actually, and make 
 them more dependent on each other, the duties that one 
 owes to his fellows become of increasing importance. Co- 
 operation, not competition, is the watchword of our advance 
 to-day in all phases of activity political, religious, and 
 industrial, as well as educational. 
 
 In the teaching of science there are opportunities to show 
 children how they may best perform their social duties and 
 cooperate with others to promote the best welfare of all. 
 Some forms of wild life, such as birds and forests, are of 
 great value to the entire country, and should be protected
 
 14 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 and preserved. During the years past the true value of birds 
 and forests has not been appreciated, and these natural 
 resources have been squandered even to the point of extinc- 
 tion of some species, of which the passenger pigeon is a 
 recent example. We may teach our boys and girls that 
 preservation of birds and forests is one of the duties of 
 citizenship, and that for this cooperation is necessary. 
 
 And most important of all is the protection of the health 
 of the community. For this cooperation is absolutely es- 
 sential. As people are more and more gathering in towns 
 and cities the necessity of w r orking together becomes in- 
 creasingly important. When a man lived on a farm far re- 
 moved from neighbors many of his health problems were 
 entirely personal, and concerned himself and family alone. 
 But with the grouping of people in towns in close proximity 
 many health problems must be solved in common, such as 
 keeping the water supply pure, controlling contagious dis- 
 eases, and disposing of garbage and sewage. 
 
 Thousands of people are killed every year through the 
 agency of the fly and the mosquito in carrying diseases, and 
 yet practically all of these deaths are needless, because by 
 proper cooperation the citizens of a town can control these 
 pests. The work in science may well be a means through 
 which such an interest will be aroused in both children and 
 parents, that efforts will be made which will lead to the con- 
 trol of these insects. 
 
 The wide extension of modern applications of science has 
 done much to draw people of distant States together and to 
 produce a feeling of unity and a greater toleration for others' 
 viewpoints. This has helped to make a people more homo- 
 geneous in ideals and to produce a feeling of oneness that 
 underlies a true national spirit. 
 
 The social aim may find its beginnings in the intermediate 
 grades as soon as the age of the children enables them to
 
 AIMS OF SCIENCE TEACHING 15 
 
 appreciate some of its phases, and should be one of the 
 dominant aims of the grammar grades. 
 
 Hygienic aim. The need of a healthy body as the basis of 
 all activities of life is self-evident, as is also the need of teach- 
 ing boys and girls how to keep their bodies healthy. But, 
 unfortunately, the practical working-out of the teaching of 
 physiology in the schools seems to have been unsuccessful. 
 It is difficult to get children interested in health for health's 
 sake, but we may connect hygiene with other science topics 
 and activities in which the child is interested. In connection 
 with gardening may be taken up the question of exercise, 
 and the study of fruits and vegetables as foods. In connec- 
 tion with the methods of heating the home there naturally 
 arises the question of ventilation. The study of the fly brings 
 up the subject of bacteria in relation to disease. And with 
 other topics of hygiene it is believed that better results will 
 follow if they are arranged as an organic part of the science 
 course. The work in hygiene has been so incorporated in the 
 outline of science given in chapter XIX. 
 
 The hygienic aim should be kept in mind throughout all 
 the grades, beginning with the youngest children and in- 
 creasing in importance as the advancing age of the children 
 enables them better to understand the need and laws of 
 hygienic living. 
 
 Abandoned disciplinary theory. In the years past the dis- 
 ciplinary aim of education has been dominant, in accord- 
 ance with which the chief aim of education was to discipline 
 the various powers of the mind, such as the powers of ob- 
 servation, reasoning, and memory in the belief that after 
 these had been trained in school the powers thus acquired 
 could be turned to use in any walk of life. In connection 
 with science it was common to emphasize the value of train- 
 ing the power of observation. The researches of modern 
 psychology compel the abandonment of this theory of gen-
 
 16 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 eral discipline and the substitution of the theory of specific 
 discipline, in accordance with which training that is received 
 in school becomes useful elsewhere only when applied to the 
 same or similar conditions. It would be beyond the purpose 
 of this book to enter into a discussion of the theory of formal 
 discipline; it will suffice merely to state that the results of 
 numerous experiments have led practically every educator 
 and psychologist in the country to abandon the theory of 
 formal discipline, which has dominated our schools for so 
 many years, and from whose shackles, unfortunately, many 
 of the school subjects have not yet freed themselves. 
 
 In accordance with the modern interpretation the child 
 should be taught in science to observe and reason about 
 those things in school which it is desirable for him to observe 
 and reason about in actual life. The use of the power of 
 observation is a method by which science is taught, but the 
 training of this power should not be the aim. It is a means, 
 and not an end. 
 
 Another serious objection to the disciplinary theory is the 
 fact that it is non-selective in its functioning. An aim should 
 serve as a guide-post to the teacher, pointing out the things 
 to be taught. The disciplinary aim does not serve this 
 function, for the study of any one form of life will serve the 
 purpose of developing the power of observation as well as 
 the study of any other related form. 
 
 .al Aim 
 Hygienic Aim 
 Economic Aim 
 
 ic A'im 
 
 7 5 * 
 
 FIG. 2. RELATIVE EMPHASIS ON AIMS OF SCIENCE IN DIFFERENT GRADES 
 
 The above diagram will suggest the relative stress to be 
 placed on the various aims of science in the different grades. 
 The distance of the curve above the base line represents the 
 relative importance of that aim.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 MATERIALS AND CORRELATION 
 
 Materials 
 
 ONE of the features that characterizes science and makes it 
 ivorth while is the fact that it deals largely with the concrete 
 things in the child's environment. In order that the child 
 may derive the most benefit from his study, it is necessary 
 that he should have actual concrete materials to use hi his 
 lessons. The procuring of materials for science lessons, then, 
 is something for which the teacher should make definite 
 plans. Frequently the assistance of the children may be 
 sought in securing material, and this forms a valuable ex- 
 perience for the children. 
 
 Types of materials. The great mass of materials available 
 may be classified into the following groups: (1) living things 
 in their natural environment; (2) living things in the school- 
 room; (3) preserved material; (4) pictures; (5) apparatus for 
 demonstration and experiments. 
 
 (i) Living material in natural environment. The best kind 
 of material for the study of plants and animals is the living 
 object in its natural environment, because this is the way it 
 is actually seen in the life of the child. This study of material 
 outdoors may be carried on in two ways: by means of indi- 
 vidual studies made by the children under the suggestions 
 of the teacher, and by means of field trips hi which the 
 teacher accompanies a group of children. Both of these 
 methods are desirable. 
 
 Individual observations by children. The first method of 
 ,tudying life in its natural environment, by encouraging and 
 expecting the children to make studies by themselves, is
 
 18 THE TEACHING OF SCIENC 
 
 one of the most valuable lines of work that ca 
 of the applications which it is desirable that 
 make throughout his life is the observation 
 around him; and the more closely we can ! 
 school the application desired in life, the 
 probability that this application will be ma 
 
 be done. One 
 the child shall 
 f the wild life 
 >proximate in 
 greater is the 
 e. In connec- 
 
 tion with each lesson the teacher may suggest some ques- 
 tions that the child may answer from outdoor studies of the 
 topic of the lesson. For the older children these questions 
 may be written on the board. At the next lesson an oppor- 
 tunity should be given for the children to make reports on 
 what they have observed. As the children become more 
 observant and self-reliant, fewer details will need to be given, 
 and finally they may be thrown on their own responsibility 
 regarding the points to be studied. One purpose of a lesson 
 should be to arouse enough interest so that the children will 
 want to make further studies of the topic under discussion. 
 At first there will be many children who will not make these 
 studies, but the number who do make them can be greatly 
 increased by expecting the children to do this, the same as 
 any home work, and by giving frequent opportunities for 
 them to report on their observations. 
 
 This work will be greatly stimulated by keeping spring 
 calendars of birds and flowers, in which a record is kept of 
 the name of the bird or flower seen, the date when first seen, 
 and the name of the child first reporting it. This record may 
 be kept either on the blackboard or on a large piece of card- 
 board. Similar calendars may be kept of the leafing and 
 flowering of trees in the spring and of the coloring and fall 
 of the leaves in the autumn. 
 
 Field trips. The final desired end is that the child shall 
 be observant of nature when by himself, and one of the 
 chief values of the formal field trip with the teacher is that 
 these trips may lead to this end. The teacher may arouse
 
 MATERIALS AND CORRELATION 19 
 
 an interest in the child and she may suggest what to study 
 and how to observe. Thus the child will be led to individual 
 observations. 
 
 This kind of work should be strongly emphasized wher- 
 ever possible. The conditions in many of our schools are 
 such that it is not practicable to take many field trips. 
 But plans can often be made to take at least one trip a 
 term. If a class is too large to be taken altogether, fre- 
 quently arrangements can be made to take half of the class 
 at a time and leave the other half in charge of the prin- 
 cipal. This half may then be taken on a trip at some later 
 time. 
 
 Careful preparation should be made by the teacher for 
 this trip. She should go over the ground a day or two before 
 the trip is to be taken and see just what material is available, 
 and decide definitely on what the children are to study. 
 She should make the purpose of the trip very clear to the 
 children before starting, so that they may have a definite 
 aim to guide them. There are so many distracting things 
 that it is specially important that they should start out with 
 this definite purpose. After certain outdoor studies have 
 been made it may be wise in some cases to gather material, 
 when feasible, and take it back to the schoolroom, where 
 it may be studied more carefully with fewer things to dis- 
 tract the attention of the children. 
 
 (2) Living material in the schoolroom. In some ways the 
 most practical kind of material is the living specimen kept 
 in the schoolroom. Here the environment is missing, but 
 life is still left. There is a great abundance of material 
 available here. Various kinds of pets, including canaries, 
 may be kept in the schoolroom for a short time. A great 
 many insects, such as crickets, grasshoppers, caterpillars, 
 and many others may be kept in glass jars covered with 
 mosquito netting; mosquito wigglers may be kept in turn-
 
 20 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 biers; fishes, tadpoles, snails, toad's eggs, and many kinds 
 of water insects may be kept in glass jars filled with water. 
 Nearly all kinds of plants may be kept in the schoolroom, 
 such as flowers, leaves of trees, ferns, and mushrooms. 
 Experiments may be performed with seeds and seedlings; 
 and house plants, such as ferns, geraniums, and bulbs, can 
 be kept permanently in the room. 
 
 (3) Preserved specimens. In the group of preserved 
 specimens life and environment are both missing and only 
 the form is left, but for some topics this kind of material 
 serves the purpose well. Children can be set to work making 
 collections, and thus while looking for materials they will 
 find objects in their natural environment. Some of these 
 materials may be collected and kept in the schoolroom 
 without any preparation to preserve them; such as bird's 
 nests, galls, cocoons, wasp's nests, tree fruits, specimens of 
 woods, woody mushrooms, weed seeds, ears of corn, plants 
 of wheat, and other cereal crops. Some materials, such as 
 flowers, ferns, weeds, leaves of trees, shrubs, and vines, 
 may be preserved by pressing them between the leaves of 
 books or between the folds of newspapers, with weights 
 placed upon them. Insects may be kept in glass mounts 
 made of old negatives. The older boys, in connection with 
 the work in manual training, may make a simple museum 
 case in which these materials may be kept. 
 
 (4) Pictures. In the picture not only are the environment 
 and life gone, but the thing itself as well, and we are dealing 
 with only a representation of the real thing. But pictures 
 have their place, and for some objects form very desirable 
 material, as in the case of birds. These show the colors well, 
 and many suggest something of the environment. 
 
 (5) Apparatus for demonstration and experiments. For 
 much of the work in physical science, and for some work 
 in hygiene and with plants, simple apparatus will be needed
 
 MATERIALS AND CORRELATION 21 
 
 for demonstrations and experiments. Suggestions are given 
 in the chapters dealing with these topics. 
 
 The topic to be studied should be so chosen according to 
 season that the illustrative material may be easily available. 
 In many cases the children will help the teacher secure the 
 material, but the teacher herself must take the final respon- 
 sibility to see that the material is actually present when 
 needed. 
 
 Amount of material. The amount of duplicate material 
 needed for a lesson varies according to the topic. In some 
 cases each child may be provided with a specimen for study, 
 as with weeds, leaves, seeds, and many flowers. This makes 
 an ideal situation, because each child has opportunity to 
 make his own individual studies without depending on any 
 one else. In many cases it is not feasible to procure material 
 for each child. In some of these cases the teacher may plan 
 to secure a specimen for each row of pupils. In still other 
 cases only one specimen may be available for the whole 
 room. 
 
 In the experimental work done in physical science one 
 set of apparatus will be sufficient. The experiment may be 
 performed by the teacher for the entire class, oftentimes 
 with the assistance of some of the pupils. 
 
 How to use material. In using material one important 
 principle should be kept in mind, that enough time should 
 be taken to allow each child to study the material. Recent 
 experiments have shown that the time factor is an impor- 
 tant element in observation; that one of the chief ways to 
 insure accurate observation is to allow plenty of time for 
 the object to be studied. When only one specimen is avail- 
 able this thought should be especially kept in mind, because 
 when the teacher simply holds up the material in the front 
 of the room, only the few children near the teacher have a 
 satisfactory opportunity to study the specimen, while those
 
 22 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 in the rear of the room may get very little from the lesson. 
 The material should be passed around by the teacher or 
 some child, or else groups of children may come up in turn 
 and study the specimen. This will take more time, but it is 
 necessary if all the children are to derive the full value of the 
 lesson. When only one specimen is available an excellent 
 way to have it studied by all is to leave it on the table or 
 window sill for several days, and suggest that the children 
 study it at odd moments during the day. 
 
 If a specimen is provided for each row it may be studied 
 by each child individually and handed back from seat to 
 seat, or the children in each row may study it as a group. 
 
 One point to consider in the use of material by the chil- 
 dren is the fact that when children handle material they 
 are using another sense, that of touch as well as that of 
 sight, and hence they learn more quickly than they would 
 by sight alone because they are acquiring knowledge through 
 two avenues. 
 
 Relation of science to other subjects 
 
 The nearer our schoolroom procedure can approach life 
 conditions, the more effective will our teaching be, as the 
 greater are the probabilities that the child will make use of 
 that which he learns in school. Correlation is the natural 
 and common procedure in ordinary life. The unit here is 
 not the subject-matter involved, but the activity in which 
 the person is engaged, and our ordinary activities involve 
 a great variety of subjects. Hence, natural correlation is 
 a desirable thing to be made an organic part of teaching. 
 Convenience seems to demand that the various subjects 
 should be taught separately, and hence there is all the more 
 need that there should be found some interest which shall 
 unite and correlate these various subjects. 
 
 Furthermore, psychology teaches that when a topic is
 
 MATERIALS AND CORRELATION 23 
 
 approached from several standpoints and taught in its 
 relation to other things, it becomes more surely a part of 
 the child's experiences than if taught disconnectedly. 
 
 Science and art. There are many opportunities for nat- 
 ural correlation in teaching science. This is specially true in 
 connection with art, literature, and language. Many sci- 
 Tice topics permit of correlation with art. Much of the 
 jjiaterial used in the science lessons may be reproduced by 
 the child by means of free-hand drawings with colored 
 crayons for younger children, and outline drawings and 
 paintings in water-colors for older children. For young 
 children a large amount of hand work is necessary through- 
 out all departments of school work, and the drawings may 
 furnish some of this in connection with the nature-study 
 lessons. 
 
 Science and literature. In literature will be found many 
 references to nature, and he who would most truly appreci- 
 ate literature needs to know something of the plants and 
 animals to which reference is made. Our poets write often 
 of birds, flowers, and trees; and whenever these forms are 
 studied in the science lesson the study of some appropriate 
 poem will add greatly to the child's appreciation of the 
 object studied. It is also true from the standpoint of liter- 
 ature that the child's appreciation of the poem is increased 
 through a study of the forms to which reference is made. 
 
 Science and geography. In home geography the correla- 
 tion between nature-study and geography is so close that 
 frequently the two are taught together for the first two or 
 three grades under the name of nature-study. The relation 
 between these subjects is also close in the later grades, 
 geography is constantly dealing with science topics, thus 
 presenting a natural opportunity for correlation. 
 
 Other opportunities for correlation. There are also op- 
 portunities for the correlation of science with manual train-
 
 24 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 ing in making bird-houses and fly-traps and in connection 
 with the study of gardening. Problems for arithmetic may 
 be found in connection with the study of birds, trees, and 
 weeds. Opportunities for correlation with language are con- 
 stantly presenting themselves. Reports by the children ci* 
 what they have observed outdoors or what they have don<_ 
 in connection with outdoor activities, furnish excellent op- 
 portunities for teaching the correct use of English. 
 
 Methods of correlation. Correlation may be brought 
 about in several ways. If it is desired to correlate science 
 and art the following possibilities arise: first, during the 
 art period a brief study from the science standpoint may 
 be made of the material being drawn; second, during the 
 science period drawings may be made of the materials being 
 studied; and third, the same topic may be studied in both 
 the science and art periods in one from the science stand- 
 point, in the other from the art standpoint. The method 
 to be used will depend upon the conditions existing in the 
 school. The last arrangement seems from some standpoints 
 the ideal one, but under present conditions it is difficult to 
 bring it about in the graded schools. If both subjects to be 
 correlated are taught the methods suggested under one and 
 two offer the best opportunity. If only one of the subjects 
 is taught in the school the only possibility is to correlate 
 with the other subject during the regular period of the first 
 one. The writer suggests that the teacher may occasion- 
 ally utilize a part of the science period for art work or for 
 the study of literature appropriate to the topic. 
 
 The chart on page 25 may suggest some of the possibili- 
 ties of correlation with a few leading science topics.
 
 i 
 
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 III 
 
 
 
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 8 
 
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 111 
 
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 111* 
 
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 l 
 
 I.I 
 
 in 
 
 IP! 
 
 .(d 
 
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 11} 
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 CHAPTER IV 
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 
 
 ONE of the first and most fundamental things to which 
 Ihe teacher of science should give attention is proper moti- 
 vation of the subject on the part of the child. Motivation 
 involves three steps: first, a consideration of the children's 
 experiences so as to make the proper connections; second, 
 a problem to arouse the children's interest and to guide 
 them in their work; and third, the use of what they have 
 learned as the final outcome of what precedes. There has 
 been in the past, and unfortunately still is, too much pur- 
 poseless teaching of science and of other subjects as well; 
 but it seems as though the defect were especially inexcus- 
 able in science, because the subject touches the child's life 
 at so many vital points. The efficiency which modern life is 
 demanding of the schools must cause us to substitute for 
 this aimless, unguided study of nature topics a vital, pur- 
 poseful study of those things that are worth while in the 
 child's life. 
 
 The child and the curriculum. The first essential in proper 
 motivation, is that the thing being done should be worth 
 while from the child's standpoint. This brings us at once 
 to the fundamental principle that the child is the deter- 
 mining factor in the school. Life must be viewed through 
 the child's eyes, and the curriculum planned accordingly. 
 Not only the method of teaching, but the content of the 
 course must find its basis in the child's life. In the centu- 
 ries past both the method and content found their basis in 
 the life of the adult and not in that of the child. As a result 
 of the psychological studies of the past century the principle
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 27 
 
 that the method of teaching should find its basis in the 
 child's life has been universally accepted. The consequent 
 practice of this principle has become fairly well established 
 in our schools. 
 
 The studies of recent years have established the principle 
 that the content of the school curriculum should also find 
 its basis in the child's life. We are now in the midst of actu- 
 ally putting this principle into practice in our school pro- 
 cedure. 
 
 Fallacies of storage system of education. The old con- 
 ception of basing the content of the course on the adult 
 needs, on what the child might need when he becomes 
 an adult, is based on a number of misconceptions of the 
 value and fullness of child life, and on a misunderstanding 
 of the laws of psychology. The old conception that the 
 school should teach the child what he will need when he 
 grows up has been aptly termed the storage system of edu- 
 cation. The idea back of this is that the child's mind may 
 be stored with facts that will prove useful in later life, and 
 that they will be retained there and can be used whenever 
 the adult finds need for them. This is based on two falla- 
 cies: First it assumes that knowledge which the child learns 
 can be retained in mind a long time, even when not used, 
 and then applied in later life. This assumption is false, be- 
 cause experiments have shown that knowledge is soon lost 
 unless it is used. The second fallacy on which the storage 
 system of education rests is the idea that child life in itself 
 is barren and incomplete, and that it is only in adult life 
 that experiences become really worth while. 
 
 Richness of child's life. Even a very hasty glance at 
 child life shows that it is rich and full in those experiences 
 that go to make up life, and that it is full of opportunities 
 to make present use of knowledge. The bodily needs that 
 relate to health are the same as those for the adult. The
 
 28 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 same underlying principles of hygiene regarding food, air, 
 and cleanliness apply to both alike. These laws of hygiene 
 require constant daily application. 
 
 In enjoyment the child's life is a full one. Play naturally 
 makes up a large and vital element in his life. He enjoys 
 many of the same things as does the adult, of which the 
 "movies" are a constant reminder. The child's enjoyment 
 of physical bodily activities exceeds that of the adult. 
 
 The child's temptations and sorrows are just as real and 
 varied to the child as they will be later in his adult life. 
 True, his sorrows are transient, but nevertheless real. Per- 
 haps hi some ways the child is exposed to a greater variety 
 of temptations than the adult, because the adult has most 
 of his habits of life well established, and things which in 
 earlier years were a constant temptation while habits were 
 being formed, have now ceased to be temptations because 
 established habits of right conduct have eliminated them. 
 
 Children's experiences abound in social life and its corre- 
 sponding duties. The child's play life is largely a social life. 
 To even a larger extent than the adult, children are together 
 in their various activities. And in these gatherings there 
 arise the same problems that arise in adult gatherings: 
 leadership, duties to each other, the establishment of a ba- 
 sis on which intercourse is possible, the punishment of those 
 who offend these requirements, and so on through a long 
 list of social activities. 
 
 And so from morning till night the child's day is full of 
 its activities and needs, quite as varied as those of the adult, 
 and offering equal opportunities for the application of useful 
 knowledge. The school should seek to give the child those 
 things that these present activities demand. 
 
 Relation of present and future needs. In basing the con- 
 tent of the school subjects on the child's possible future 
 needs as an adult, we find the serious difficulty that no one
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 29 
 
 knows what a person will be doing and where he will be in 
 the future, and, as a result, no specific individual education 
 is possible, but only a vague general education. And even 
 when one can see some things that the adult will need, such 
 as the ability to read, still we must find the basis for teach- 
 ing reading in the use that the child makes of it in his present 
 life. And if one can foresee what the child will need later 
 in life, but does not need and cannot use in his present, it 
 will be useless to teach these things to the child, because 
 they will soon be forgotten unless the child finds some im- 
 mediate use for them. And, furthermore, many of the 
 children will never live to reach adulthood, so that if we are 
 thinking only or chiefly of the future, in these cases the en- 
 ergy and time spent in the education of the child have been 
 wasted from the standpoint of both the child and the State. 
 
 The school should so educate the child as to give him the 
 things he needs most up to any given moment. At every 
 stage of the child's development the educational system 
 should be complete and symmetrical up to that point, ac- 
 cording to the needs of the child. And as the child develops 
 the educational system should adapt itself accordingly to 
 the changing needs of the child. Each need should be met 
 when it arises. It is not a proper figure to use to say that 
 in the early years of the school course the foundation of 
 the building is laid, and that, as the child grows older, the 
 other parts are added till the building is complete when 
 the child becomes an adult. Rather should we say that at 
 each and every stage of the school course we have built a 
 complete structure, and that in later years the building 
 simply grows larger. 
 
 Stressing of the present in education. This stressing of 
 the present life of the child does not mean the neglect of 
 the future, but, on the other hand, it represents the only 
 effective means of preparing for the future. The fulfillment
 
 SO THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 of the child's present needs is the best possible preparation 
 for whatever later needs may arise. It is like the young 
 apple tree. The first year it is set out it must be given the 
 care that it demands for that particular year and season. 
 Then the second year the care needed for that season must 
 be given, and so on until finally the tree reaches maturity 
 and bears fruit. 
 
 This principle is recognized in the care of the child's 
 physical needs. In order that the child may be a strong, 
 healthy adult, we take those steps necessary to keep him 
 healthy as a child. Likewise in the moral field, in order to 
 develop a man with a proper perspective of life who shall 
 perform his duties toward his fellows, the child is taught 
 year by year the moral precepts that he needs for that par- 
 ticular age. And so in the mental life of the child the same 
 principle holds, in order to develop a man who can make the 
 best use of his mind in the part that he is to play in life, 
 we must help the child in each stage of his development to 
 make the best possible use of the mental powers which he 
 possesses at that time. 
 
 Motivation through children's problems. The way to 
 secure motivation is to center the school work around the 
 real problems of children. These must have their source in 
 the children's present activities, and must appeal to some 
 interest or fill some real need that the child feels. A sharp 
 distinction should be drawn between children's problems 
 and adult problems. Much attention is being given to the 
 problem method of teaching, but in many cases the problems 
 used are adult problems, and so do not serve to arouse the 
 children's interests. In order that the problem may func- 
 tion in furnishing motivation it is necessary that it should 
 find its fulfillment in the present or immediate future of the 
 child, because the farther away in time the fulfillment is 
 the less it appeals to the children, till no appeal at all is
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 31 
 
 made if the time is very long. With young children in the 
 primary grades the interest is carried forward only a very 
 short time, while, as the child grows older, the time ahead 
 during which interest may be aroused becomes longer. 
 
 External and internal stimuli. The chief value of chil- 
 dren's problems lies in the fact that they act as a stimulus 
 to arouse the children's interest. Too often the stimulus 
 that directs the child in school is an external one, imposed 
 from without, in the form of love for or fear of parents or 
 teacher. The real problems of children serve as a natural 
 internal stimulus arising from the child's interests and guid- 
 ing him to do things because they appeal to him and seem 
 worth while. Successful teaching consists largely in arous- 
 ing and directing children's interests. After the children 
 are really interested the rest of teaching follows easily and 
 naturally. 
 
 The right kind of children's problems is a powerful means 
 of awakening interest, and thus supplying motive power for 
 the work to be done. Children want to do things, not be- 
 cause they are commanded by some one in authority over 
 them, but because they can see some benefit to them from 
 doing a certain thing. And this internal stimulus leads to 
 much more effective and lasting results than the external 
 stimulus. It will make the children aggressive in encour- 
 aging self-activity, instead of being mere passive listeners. 
 The external stimulus leads only to temporary results, 
 while the internal leads to permanent results. As soon as 
 the cause of the external stimulus is removed the child's 
 interest is lost and the thing ceases to play any part in his 
 life, but if the stimulus is a true internal motive it stays 
 with the child constantly and guides him, not merely in 
 school, but outside as well. 
 
 In seeking to motivate the work of the children the 
 teacher should see to it that the motive is a real one in the
 
 32 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 child's life, and not simply a passing interest aroused by 
 the strong personality of the teacher or by skillful methods 
 of teaching. The author has observed strong, vivacious 
 teachers who could sweep along a roomful of children by 
 their enthusiasm, and arouse a temporary interest in the 
 most abstract and meaningless topics. But there was no 
 real inherent motive on the part of the children, and, after 
 the lesson was over, the matter dropped from their minds. 
 
 So that in judging teaching it is not enough merely to 
 ascertain whether the children are interested; we must go 
 farther back and seek the cause of this interest. Is there 
 back of it a real child's motive, or is there simply an artificial 
 incentive furnished by the teacher's personality? A teacher 
 who has the power of arousing temporary interest, even in 
 abstract topics foreign to the children's experiences, has a 
 talent for teaching, but how much greater the returns if 
 this talent is turned toward directing children along lines 
 of their natural interests. 
 
 Interest and learning. Children's problems are a means 
 of arousing interest, and interest plays a fundamental part 
 in the process of learning. It is necessary for the best 
 development of the child. The child works with greater 
 speed and with more accuracy; facts are remembered longer 
 and more easily. The apparent fatigue of children in the 
 afternoon has been shown to be not a real mental fatigue 
 due to overwork, but to be due simply to lack of interest. 
 
 As a result of being guided by these definite purposes 
 the children develop more initiative and independence in 
 their work. This gives the children more enthusiasm for 
 their task, which leads to more vigorous efforts, resulting in 
 greater success. This, in turn, is a powerful incentive for 
 continued endeavor. Thus is the problem of discipline 
 largely solved, because the children are occupied in doing 
 something that appeals to them as being worth while.
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 33 
 
 Awakening dormant interests. One purpose of science 
 teaching is to arouse new interests in the children. One of 
 the chief reasons why so few people appreciate and enjoy 
 nature is simply because no one has called their attention 
 to the great possibilities of enjoyment to be found here. 
 One of the important purposes of teaching science is to lead 
 the child to see and appreciate some of the great variety of 
 beautiful and interesting things which everywhere abound 
 in nature, but which otherwise remain as a closed book to 
 him. 
 
 The children's interest is easily aroused in these subjects. 
 .These interests have been lying dormant, merely waiting 
 to be awakened. So that the test of what to teach in science 
 is not merely and only that for which the child already has 
 a feeling of interest or need, but also that for which he can 
 be led to have such a feeling. If the interests thus awak- 
 ened have their fulfillment in the present or immediate 
 future of the child, his life has been enriched thereby. The 
 interests that we seek to arouse are of this kind, because we 
 wish to lead the child to see and appreciate the things about 
 him. As soon as he sees them, they function at once in his 
 experiences. The reason they have not previously functioned 
 has not been because they were foreign to his interests or 
 because their fulfillment was far in the future; but it has 
 simply been because he has not known of these things in 
 his environment. Thus education should ever seek to 
 broaden and enlarge the child's experiences and to arouse 
 dormant interests of the right kind so that the child may 
 grow. 
 
 Elimination. This discussion of motivation leads to one 
 very important conclusion, namely, that only those things 
 should be taught that are useful in some way to the child, 
 and hence have a meaning to him. It is psychologically 
 impossible for a child to have a real motive for doing things
 
 34 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 that are meaningless to him. The teacher may arouse a 
 temporary interest in such things, but there is no real 
 motive back of it. This means the elimination of much 
 useless material from the school subjects. It is already be- 
 ing done in arithmetic, grammar, spelling, and other sub- 
 jects. It should also be done in science. This is especially 
 true of physiology. A large proportion of the time has 
 been devoted to topics that are entirely meaningless to 
 the child, such as most of the anatomy and physiology. 
 Practically all of this should be eliminated and the time 
 devoted to hygiene. In elementary agriculture also much 
 has been taught that is foreign to the child's interests and 
 capacities. The whole field of agriculture needs to be gone 
 over very carefully, with the child's needs and interests in 
 mind, and much material eliminated. 
 
 Perhaps the chief elimination in science should come, not 
 so much in the topics studied as in the facts about the topics 
 that are considered and in the observations made. In some 
 cases a topic which in itself is worth while may be chosen 
 for study, but the time may be occupied with many mean- 
 ingless observations and the real points of interest may be 
 obscured in a mass of detail. These meaningless observa- 
 tions should be eliminated. 
 
 Specific motives in teaching science. In concluding this 
 chapter some definite motives that may be used in teaching 
 science may be suggested. Science touches the child's lifr> 
 in so many vital points that there seems little excuse for no 
 properly motivating this subject. It is easily done. Some of 
 these motives may be briefly listed as follows: 
 
 1. Identification of common plants and animals, such as 
 birds, trees, and flowers. 
 
 2. Earning money, as in gardening, poultry-keeping, and 
 selling bird-houses. 
 
 3. Care of pets and domesticated animals.
 
 MOTIVATION OF SCIENCE TEACHING 35 
 
 4. Competition for prizes, as in gardening and building 
 bird-houses. 
 
 5. Making collections, as of seeds, leaves, weeds, flowers, 
 newspaper clippings. 
 
 6. Making things, as bird-houses and window-boxes. 
 
 7. Games and sports, as skating, coasting, playground 
 apparatus, movies. 
 
 3. Study of the operation of machines, as engines, motors, 
 and automobiles.
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 
 
 IN order to procure proper motivation it is suggested thai; 
 the three following points be considered by the teacher in 
 planning her lessons: first, the child's problem; second, the 
 development of the lesson; and third, the application. The 
 most important thing is the child's problem, because this is 
 the center that determines the development of the lesson 
 and its application. 
 
 Value of a problem. In the previous chapter the value 
 of the child's problem in arousing interest and motivating 
 the work was shown. The problem will also be a great help 
 to the teacher as she plans her lesson, both in selecting and 
 in organizing the subject-matter. 
 
 It also serves as a guide during the lesson for both teacher 
 and children, in determining what shall be included in the 
 lesson. Many times when the lesson is begun without any 
 definite purpose on the part of the children, some little 
 incident may deflect the discussion entirely away from that 
 which the teacher had in mind to accomplish, and she is 
 perplexed to know how to direct the lesson back to the 
 desired end. With a definite problem before the children 
 this difficulty is solved, because the problem is a constant 
 guide. If the recitation is getting away from the problem, 
 mere calling attention to it will enable the children them- 
 selves to determine whether the points under discussion re- 
 late to the problem; and if not, the children may orient 
 themselves. It thus serves as a guide to both children and 
 teacher. 
 
 One of the chief values of the problem lies in the fact that
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 37 
 
 it permits so much of the initiative for what is being done 
 to come from the child. The child's problem, and not the 
 teacher, is the determining factor. 
 
 Lack of a problem in teaching illustrated. As a definite 
 illustration of the aid that a child's problem gives the 
 teacher in selecting and organizing material, and gives both 
 teacher and children in guiding the lesson, we will take a 
 lesson on a maple tree. If the teacher is to give a lesson on 
 this topic, and has no definite problem in mind, she does 
 not know what points to take up. The whole discussion is 
 confused and indefinite. Not having any definite purpose 
 to accomplish the teacher does not know when the lesson has 
 ended. 
 
 Many insignificant details may be observed about the 
 leaf, such as length of petiole, color of petiole, length and 
 breadth of leaf, number of points or lobes on the margin, 
 color of upper and lower surfaces, general shape, roughness 
 and hairiness of surfaces, number and arrangement of 
 veins, and so on indefinitely, observing petty points, most 
 of which have no significance to the child. The points that 
 do have meaning to him are buried in such a mass of detail 
 that he does not see their significance. Anything about the 
 tree may be considered, the lesson may be extended to any 
 length of time, there is no special reason why the maple 
 tree should be studied, and no use of the knowledge gained 
 is called for. 
 
 Value of a problem in teaching illustrated. But how 
 different the situation becomes when we start with a definite 
 problem like the following: "We will study the maple tree 
 so that we can tell it from the elm tree as we see it growing." 
 Now the points to be taken up stand out sharply; they are 
 the differences between the maple tree and the elm tree. 
 If the lesson is an indoor one, the leaves may be studied to 
 note their differences in shape, margin, veining, etc.; like-
 
 38 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 wise for the features seen only outdoors, differences in the 
 shape and method of branching of the trees. All these 
 points, otherwise disconnected, fall into a regular orderly 
 series, and thus the problem helps not only in the selection, 
 but in the arrangement of material as well. Large groups 
 of differences stand out first; such as differences in leaves, 
 in fruit, in bark; then each of these has its subdivisions. 
 
 Thus this definite problem serves as a central thought 
 for the whole lesson, a definite aim toward which all may 
 work, and as a result they know when they have reached 
 the goal and the purpose of the lesson has been accom- 
 plished. And the statement of the problem suggests in itself 
 the use to be made of the knowledge gained, namely, to 
 find the two trees growing and to distinguish them. 
 
 Can any one doubt what the difference will be between 
 these two lessons in the attitude of both teacher and 
 children and in the interest shown? One has but to visit 
 schoolrooms and observe the two types of lessons, one 
 aimless, the other definitely motivated, to be thoroughly 
 convinced of the vast gulf that separates these two meth- 
 ods of teaching. 
 
 In order that a problem may accomplish its purpose of 
 arousing the interest of the child, it must be very definite 
 and specific. Broad general purposes such as the teacher 
 may have in mind make little appeal to the child. His 
 problem must be one that is possible of immediate fulfill- 
 ment. 
 
 Presenting problem to children. If the problem is to serve 
 as the guide and motive power for the lesson, it is self- 
 evident that the first step of the teacher is to get the 
 problem clearly before the children, and to show the rela- 
 tion between the work to be done and the end that the child 
 seeks. In bringing the problem before the children use 
 ohould be made of the principle of apperception. The knowl-
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 39 
 
 edge which the children already possess regarding the 
 problem or some topic related to it should be brought out 
 by questioning, and then the problem should be presented 
 to the children. The skillful introduction to the problem 
 plays an important part in arousing the interest of the 
 children in the problem itself. The problem must be clearly 
 shown to be related to the children's experiences, to some- 
 thing regarding which they already have some knowledge. 
 The child has no interest in what is absolutely foreign to 
 his experiences. 
 
 Development. The development should be so planned as 
 to answer the question raised in the problem. Enough points 
 should be included to answer the question satisfactorily, 
 and those points which have no bearing on the problem 
 should be omitted. Here is where the matter of elimina- 
 tion comes in, eliminating, not the whole topic, but those 
 phases of the topic which have no meaning for the problem 
 involved. 
 
 After those points have been selected which are needed 
 to solve the problem, the next matter to consider is the 
 organization of this material. This means first putting 
 together in large groups those things that naturally belong 
 together, and then, secondly, making the proper subdivi- 
 sions of each group. And, finally, there is the matter of se- 
 quence, as to which point shall come first and which last. 
 This organization should be made from the standpoint of 
 the child and not from that of the adult. In those problems 
 which involve some manual activity, such as gardening and 
 building bird-houses, the most natural sequence from the 
 child's standpoint is the order in which the various things 
 are actually done, those which are done first being con- 
 sidered first, and so on till the last step is reached. The 
 child's problem will prove a great help in organizing the 
 subject-matter.
 
 40 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Application. The final step comes in the application or 
 use of what the child has learned. The use of knowledge is 
 the chief end of education. A lesson without application 
 means wasted effort. One of the vital things in planning 
 a science lesson is to consider how the children may be 
 encouraged to make use of what they have learned. If the 
 problem does not seem to allow of any application, we may 
 well inquire whether the problem is really worth while. 
 And, indeed, the best kind of problem suggests the applica- 
 tion, because it is the possibility suggested by the problem 
 of helping the child do something which he wants to do 
 that furnishes the main element in motivation. 
 
 The word "application" is used in a very broad sense to 
 include any use of knowledge that has any worth to the 
 child; it may be in deriving greater pleasure in life, or it 
 may be in aiding him better to perform his home duties. 
 Knowledge is useful when it helps in any way to make life 
 more worth living. 
 
 During the lesson the teacher should suggest ways in 
 which the children may make use of what they have 
 learned, and do what she can to encourage it. The children 
 may be asked to do certain things, and at the beginning of 
 each science lesson opportunity may be given for them to 
 report on their observations. This method may be used fre- 
 quently in the effort to awaken dormant interests in nature. 
 If the children are asked and expected to make these ap- 
 plications, and opportunities are given for reporting to the 
 teacher or class, this will serve as an additional stimulus. 
 It will be found that the number of children who report 
 on their observations may be gradually increased by con- 
 stant encouragement. 
 
 Following are suggested some ways in which application 
 may be made: (1) actually doing things suggested in the 
 lesson, as in planting a home garden, destroying insect pests
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 41 
 
 and weeds, building nesting-boxes for birds, planting trees, 
 helping parents at home, forming hygienic habits; (2) watch- 
 ing others doing the things studied, as the farmer and gar- 
 dener ploughing their fields or harvesting their crops; 
 (3) making outdoor observations on the topics studied, 
 such as flowers, trees, birds, and insects in their natural 
 environment, and observations of the structure and working 
 of common applications of science, such as the automobile 
 and telephone; (4) bringing specimens to school to show the 
 children's ability to identify the form studied, such as 
 flowers, weeds, and leaves of trees; (5) making collections, 
 such as weed seeds, woods, nests, woody mushrooms, 
 flowers, leaves of trees, ferns, and insects; (6) talking over 
 with the parents at home the topic studied; (7) cutting out 
 clippings from newspapers and magazines relating to the 
 topic under consideration. 
 
 A few suggestions regarding the working-out of the vari- 
 ous parts of a lesson plan are summarized below in brief 
 outline form. 
 
 Summarized Suggestions for Lesson Plan 
 
 A. Introduction to child's problem, 
 
 1. The introduction to the child's problem should deal with 
 the children's experiences. 
 
 2. It should be appropriate to the problem. 
 
 B. Statement of child's problem. 
 
 1. The child's problem should relate to those things for which 
 the child already has a feeling of interest or need, or for 
 which he can be led to have such a feeling. 
 
 2. It should find its basis in the child's present life, or in that 
 of his immediate future. 
 
 3. It should be worth while. 
 
 4. It should be definite. 
 
 5. It should deal with only one main thought. 
 
 6. It should be clearly stated in children's language.
 
 42 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 C. Development. 
 
 1. All points included in the development should relate to the 
 problem. 
 
 2. Enough points should be included to answer the problem. 
 
 3. The development should be well organized with reference 
 to the problem. 
 
 4. Provision should be made for summarizing the essential 
 points. 
 
 D. Application. 
 
 1. The application should be the doing of something which 
 interests the child and which can be done naturally in his 
 ordinary life. 
 
 2. It should suggest the doing of only a few things, preferably 
 of only one thing. 
 
 3. It should be stated clearly and with sufficient detail so that 
 the child understands what he is to do. 
 
 As a definite illustration of these suggestions the fol- 
 lowing lesson is given for a third grade: 
 
 An Illustrative Third-Grade Lesson 
 
 I. Topic: Elm and maple tree. 
 II. Grade: Third. 
 
 III. Season: Fall or spring. 
 
 IV. Materials: A maple and elm leaf for each child; a cluster of 
 elm and maple leaves showing arrangement. 
 
 V. The Lesson. 
 
 A. Child's problem. 
 
 1. Introduction to child's problem. 
 
 How many children have trees in your yard at home? 
 How many different kinds have you? Have you noticed 
 how many kinds of trees there are in our school yard? 
 Would you like to know the names of these trees so that 
 you can call them by their names as you do your friends? 
 The trees growng in our yard are the elm and the maple. 
 2. Statement of child's problem. 
 
 I have here some leaves from these trees, and we will 
 study them to see how they differ, so that we can tell the 
 elm from the maple tree by means of their leaves.
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 43 
 
 #. Development. 
 
 Outline of points Questions 
 
 1. Shape of leaf.. What differences do you find in these 
 
 leaves? How are they different in shape? 
 Several may go to the board and make a 
 drawing of each leaf, and we will ask the 
 class to decide which shows the shape 
 best. 
 
 2. Size Is there any difference in the size? 
 
 3. Margin Are the edges alike? Make a drawing on 
 
 the board of the edges of the two leaves. 
 
 4. Veining Do the veins run in the same way in both 
 
 leaves? Can some one make a drawing 
 to show the difference? 
 
 5. Arrangement. . .Look at these clusters I have here and 
 
 see if the leaves are placed the same on 
 both trees. 
 
 Which do you think is the surest way 
 to tell these leaves apart? 
 
 C. Application. 
 
 When school is dimissed you may look carefully at the leaves 
 of the trees in the school yard and find a maple tree and an elm 
 tree. Bring in a leaf from each tree. To-morrow I will ask each 
 of you to tell the class exactly where these two trees are. When 
 the leaves begin to change color, we will watch these two trees 
 and see if their leaves turn the same color. 
 
 D. Correlated work. 
 
 1. Art. 
 
 A few children may be asked to make drawings of the 
 leaves on the board, and besides this, at the close of the 
 lesson, each child may make a free-hand outline drawing 
 of each leaf with pencil, or a mass drawing may be made 
 with green crayons. Free-hand cuttings may be made, 
 then colored with crayons. Blue prints of the leaves side 
 by side may be made. 
 
 2. Literature. 
 
 After the lesson on the trees has been given, some of the 
 following literature may be read to the children: 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 203.
 
 44 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Stone and Fickett, Trees in Poetry and Prose, pages 25- 
 39; 81-93. 
 
 Wait and Leanard, Among Flowers and Trees unth the 
 Poets, pages 286; 297-300. 
 
 In the development the outline suggests the main points 
 to be brought out that will help to solve the child's problem. 
 The exact questions to be asked cannot be definitely planned 
 beforehand. It is better to ask a few leading questions than 
 many minor ones. The question involved in the statement 
 of the problem, "What differences do you find in these 
 leaves? " would be sufficient to bring out most of the points 
 in the lesson. After the children have exhausted their 
 answers to this question, if some other points of difference 
 have been overlooked the teacher may then ask other ques- 
 tions to direct the children's attention to these points. The 
 questions given in this lesson are intended for this purpose 
 in case some point is overlooked. It is not expected that it 
 will be necessary actually to ask all these questions. 
 
 Place of observation in teaching science. The abandon- 
 ment of the old faculty psychology, and the very radical 
 modification of the theory of formal discipline now gener- 
 ally accepted, must have an important bearing on aims and 
 methods of teaching science. We can no longer entertain 
 the idea that there is a general power of observation which 
 can be trained by observing anything, and that this power, 
 once trained, can then be turned to use in any field. The 
 power of observation is specific. Instead of being content 
 to allow the child to observe any material that may be 
 available, we must direct the child to observe those things 
 which in themselves are worth observing on account of the 
 relation which they bear to his life. If there seem to be in 
 nature some things which the child should observe, then 
 specific training in the observations of these particular 
 objects should be given.
 
 METHODS OF TEACHING SCIENCE 45 
 
 Thus, in the first place, a very careful selection of topics 
 is necessary. Furthermore, having decided on the objects 
 worth observing, it will not suffice merely to have the child 
 observe anything and everything about the object in ques- 
 tion, but he should be led to observe those features which 
 are worth observing. Thus, there is necessitated not only a 
 careful selection of topics, but also a careful selection of 
 the line of observation to be followed. 
 
 The relation which these things bear to the child's life 
 may be taken as the basis for this selection. The child 
 should see that the work is related to something that inter- 
 ests him, and so is worth while. The observation should be 
 guided by specific, clear-cut problems within the child's 
 comprehension, which in themselves suggest and limit the 
 points to be studied. The amount of observation called for 
 will depend upon the nature of the problem. In some cases 
 it may be an important factor; in others it may play but a 
 minor part. 
 
 Elimination of worthless observation. Just at the present 
 time one of the needs in science teaching is the elimination 
 of much worthless observation of insignificant details that 
 have no meaning. For instance, one type of lesson is to 
 take some material, such as a flower, and have the chil- 
 dren make all possible observations on it without any 
 special purpose, except that the children see all they can 
 about the flower. This seems to be a sort of simplified form 
 of the analysis blanks formerly used so much in high-school 
 botany, on which were recorded in tiresome details a great 
 mass of meaningless observations. 
 
 Observation for its own sake cannot be justified as an 
 aim of science teaching. This narrow conception has helped 
 to bring the subject into disrepute, and has sometimes been 
 the cause of an apparent conflict between agriculture and 
 nature-study. Observation is not an end in itself, but
 
 46 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 simply a means to an end. The introduction of this new 
 method of study was such a radical departure from the 
 method in common use that it is not to be wondered at that 
 for a while undue emphasis was laid upon it. It should now 
 be given its proper place as secondary to, and controlled 
 by, some large aim expressed in terms that interest the child. 
 The effect of applying the suggestions here given might 
 seem to lessen the importance attached to observation, but 
 it would give a more rational and symmetrical perspective to 
 the whole subject of science. Too often the work in science 
 has consisted merely of aimless observation alone, and the 
 work has stopped there, whereas this should be but the 
 starting-point. Observation is simply a means of gathering 
 the raw material which is to be used, and the chief value 
 of observation consists in the fact that it constitutes an 
 effective way of gathering this material, quite different from 
 the book method used in most school subjects. But the 
 work should be organized around a vital problem and 
 carried through to some real issue. A science lesson which 
 consists of observation alone may be quite as deficient as 
 one in which observation forms no part. It is not the 
 writer's intention to minimize the value of observation, but 
 simply to attempt to point out its true place, and to hint 
 at some of the larger and more vital problems which are 
 possible in teaching science.
 
 PART II 
 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 
 
 Motivation of bird-study. Bird-study is a topic that is 
 easily and naturally motivated. Birds are a common and 
 noticeable form of life in the child's environment. One of 
 the first motives appealed to is the desire to know the names 
 of these common birds. The identification of birds may form 
 an important part of the work in the primary grades. The 
 bright colors of many of our birds and the activities of bird 
 life make a combination that appeals strongly to children. 
 After a child has once begun to notice bird life the interest 
 naturally grows. 
 
 The manual activities involved in building bird-houses are 
 other features that appeal to children. The older children 
 are interested in the practical value that birds are to man, 
 so that their economic value may be studied in the upper 
 grades. Children of all ages are interested in the formation 
 of bird clubs for the study and protection of birds. They 
 are interested in reporting observations they have made 
 on birds. A spring calendar is an excellent means for 
 stimulating these observations. The teacher should encour- 
 age these observations and give opportunities for reports 
 to be made to the class. In the autumn a collection of 
 nests may be made for the school. Many of the lessons 
 taught in the schoolroom may furnish topics for conver- 
 sation at home. The older children may be encouraged to 
 cut out clippings relating to birds from magazines and 
 papers, and to bring them to school to put on a bulletin 
 board.
 
 50 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Materials for bird-study. The best and final thing for the 
 child to study is the living bird outdoors. For the school- 
 room lessons some material is needed to create an interest 
 which shall lead the child to this outdoor study. In most 
 schools mounted birds cannot be obtained, and it is ques- 
 tionable whether these would be desirable, especially for 
 young children. As an introduction to bird-study sometimes 
 it may be possible to keep a pet canary in the schoolroom 
 for a few days. 
 
 Pictures. There is a substitute for mounted birds that 
 can be used, which serves the purpose exceptionally well, 
 namely, colored pictures. Very good pictures can now be 
 obtained from the following sources: 
 
 1. National Association of Audubon Societies, 
 
 1974 Broadway, New York City. 
 About ninety pictures have been published, to which 
 six are being added each year. The price is two cents 
 apiece, including, besides the picture, an outline draw- 
 ing and a four-page pamphlet descriptive of the bird's 
 habits. On application to the above address a list of 
 pictures for sale will be furnished. The Association 
 has recently published the Audubon pocket bird col- 
 lection. This is a folded card, about nine by seven 
 inches, containing small colored pictures of birds. It 
 is easily carried in the field and makes a ready means 
 of naming birds. Case number 1 contains sixty-three 
 pictures of winter birds of the Eastern United States. 
 Case number 2 contains eighty-two pictures of birds 
 common in the Southeastern States. Case number 3 
 contains seventy-four figures of March and April mi- 
 grants of Eastern United States. Case number 4 
 contains eighty-four figures of the common winter 
 birds of the Western United States. The price is ten 
 cents for each case.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 51 
 
 2. G. P. Browne Company, 
 
 Beverly, Massachusetts. 
 
 About three hundred and fifty pictures have been 
 published. The price is two cents each. These may be 
 obtained on light-weight mounts for four cents each. 
 
 3. Massachusetts Audubon Society, 
 
 66 Newbury Street, Boston. 
 
 This society sells pictures mounted as charts. There 
 are three charts, known as the " Audubon Bird Charts," 
 twenty-seven by forty-two inches, arranged so that 
 they can be hung in the schoolroom. Charts Numbers 
 1 and 2 each contain twenty-six common birds, and 
 Chart Number 3, twenty winter birds. The price of 
 each chart is $1.50. 
 
 4. The Bureau of Biological Survey has issued a large 
 poster on the feeding of winter birds. This may be 
 obtained free on application to the Bureau at Wash- 
 ington, D.C. 
 
 Hand work. For young children it is important that a 
 large amount of hand work should be provided, as children 
 acquire knowledge faster by this means. Colored pictures 
 furnish material for this kind of work. The children are 
 given outlines and, with the colored pictures before them, 
 color in the outline, using either colored crayons or water- 
 colors. The outlines may be obtained in two ways: first, 
 the teacher, by means of a mimeograph or other device, 
 may make enough outlines to supply the class; second, the 
 children may make the outlines themselves. The older 
 children may make free-hand drawings of the outline from 
 the picture. 
 
 The younger children may trace the outlines. For this 
 purpose two grades of paper are needed, the ordinary 
 drawing-paper on which the final outline is to be colored, 
 and some paper thin enough for tracing; thin typewriting
 
 52 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 paper will do. The paper is held over the picture and the 
 outline of the bird traced. When this is finished it is turned 
 over and placed on the ordinary drawing-paper with the 
 outline next to it. The child takes his pencil and marks 
 back and forth a number of times across the paper, just 
 over the outline already drawn. This causes enough of the 
 pencil mark to be rubbed off to reproduce the outline on 
 the second paper. The child may go over this outline with 
 a pencil to make it clear, and then color it. Free-hand out- 
 lines of birds may be cut from paper or cardboard, and then 
 colored on both sides with crayons. These may be suspended 
 by means of thread to represent flying birds. 
 
 The purpose of this work is to enable the children to 
 identify the birds hi the field more easily, because they have 
 noted the colors and their location, and they should be 
 encouraged to look for these birds. If this hand work 
 stops hi the schoolroom without leading to the study of 
 birds outdoors, it may be questioned whether it is worth 
 while. 
 
 Bird calendar. A spring bird calendar is a source of never- 
 failing interest, beginning even with the very youngest 
 children and extending up through the grades. A calendar 
 may best be kept on a large piece of heavy paper or card- 
 board. At the top should be some artistic decoration appro- 
 priate to the subject. ' For the young children the reports 
 may be arranged in four columns: 
 
 Name of bird 
 
 Name of child first reporting 
 
 Date first seen 
 
 Where seen 
 
 
 
 
 
 For the older children the following columns may be 
 added:
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 53 
 
 Date when abundant 
 
 Date when nesting 
 
 Remarks 
 
 
 
 
 The competitive element suggested in having the child's 
 name appear on the calendar stimulates the children and 
 arouses much interest. Several precautions will need to be 
 observed by the teacher. Children will often report very 
 positively the appearance of a bird a month before it is due 
 to arrive. If the teacher has access to a local calendar kept 
 by some bird-student, it will help her in knowing when to 
 expect certain birds. The migration dates for several locali- 
 ties in the Eastern United States are given in Chapman's 
 Handbook of Birds. If the children report birds several 
 weeks ahead of the dates given on some reliable migration 
 record, probably they have made a mistake, and they 
 should be told so by the teacher. 
 
 After it is probable that the bird has arrived, it must be 
 understood by the class that no bird's name is to go down 
 on the calender till the child has given such a good descrip- 
 tion of the bird that there is no doubt about its being seen. 
 In case of doubt the name should not be put down. 
 1 Bird games. The game element may profitably be intro- 
 duced into bird-study, especially with young children. Fol- 
 lowing are some games which the author has seen used that 
 help the child in describing and identifying birds: 
 
 Games with colored pictures. Game Number 1. The 
 teacher shows the pictures one at a time to the children, 
 keeping the name covered. The child who first correctly 
 names the bird takes the picture. The child who has the 
 most pictures at the end of the game wins. 
 
 Game Number 2. This may be used with older children.
 
 54 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 A large number of pictures are hung around the room and 
 numbered, the names being covered. Each child writes the 
 list of numbers on a piece of paper, and opposite the number 
 the name of the bird. The child who names the most wins. 
 
 Game Number 3. The teacher pins the picture of some 
 bird on a child's back and shows the picture to the class. 
 The child stands before the class and asks questions of any 
 one he wishes about the bird, till he guesses it correctly. 
 He then names some one else to take his place. 
 
 Game Number 4. The pictures are placed on a table or 
 stood on the blackboard railing, with the names covered. 
 The children are asked in turn to pick out the picture of a 
 certain bird. The child who picks out the most correctly 
 wins. 
 
 Game Number 5. A child stands before the class with a 
 collection of pictures, the names being covered. He names 
 them one at a time till he makes a mistake. The child who 
 first corrects the mistake then takes his turn in naming the 
 pictures. 
 
 Game Number 6. The names of birds are written on 
 separate slips of paper, and these are placed on the edge of 
 the blackboard. The pictures of the birds are placed on the 
 table with the names covered. The children are asked to 
 pick out a picture and place it beside its name. The purpose 
 of the game is to see which child can match the largest 
 number of pictures and slips. 
 
 Games vnthout pictures. Game Number 7. A child stands 
 before the class and describes some bird which he has in 
 mind. The children try to guess the bird from the descrip- 
 tion. The child who first guesses it correctly then begins 
 the description of another bird. 
 
 Game Number 8. This is a slight modification of the 
 previous game. A child stands before the class and has 
 some particular bird in mind. The children take turns in
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 55 
 
 asking questions about the bird, its color, size, etc., till some 
 one guesses the bird. This child then takes his turn in 
 answering questions about some other bird. 
 
 Dramatization. Children enjoy dramatization and learn 
 much thereby. Some simple bird play could easily be ar- 
 ranged and the parts taken by the children. The Liberty 
 Bell Bird Club has arranged three plays: The Workers, The 
 Bird's Return, and The Birds' House-Hunting, which may 
 be obtained of the Farm Journal, Philadelphia, for three 
 two-cent stamps each. Probably Percy MacKaye's Sanc- 
 tuary could be adapted for grammar grades. 
 
 Bird clubs. Much enthusiasm can be aroused by the 
 organization of bird clubs. A local bird club can be formed 
 anywhere, but more interest will be aroused if this is formed 
 in connection with some large organization. There are at 
 least two ways in which this can be done. One is through 
 the National Association of Audubon Societies. Each child 
 who wishes to join pays ten cents. The names are sent by 
 the teacher to New York City to the Association at 1974 
 Broadway. Each child receives in return eight colored bird 
 pictures, the Audubon pocket bird collection, and an Au- 
 dubon button, which has on it a picture of the robin and 
 the words "Audubon Society." If there are fifteen or 
 more members, the teacher receives Bird-Lore for one 
 year. 
 
 Another means is through the Liberty Bell Bird Club of 
 the Farm Journal, Philadelphia. The following pledge is 
 written at the top of a sheet of paper, and the children who 
 wish to join write their names under this pledge: "I desire 
 to become a member of the Liberty Bell Bird Club, and 
 promise to study and protect all song and insectivorous 
 birds and to do what I can for the club." 
 
 This list is sent to the Farm Journal at Philadelphia. 
 Each child in return receives a little pamphlet, entitled,
 
 56 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Guide of the Liberty Bell Bird Club; he also receives a bird 
 button, which has on it a picture of a swallow and of the 
 Liberty Bell, and printed across it the motto, " Protect Our 
 Feathered Friends," and around the circumference, "Th' 
 Liberty Bell Bird Club." 
 
 The advantage of the first club is that each child receives 
 pictures and leaflets which may be used in connection with 
 the meetings of the club. The advantage of the second club 
 is that no money is required. The teacher can select which- 
 ever seems best suited to the locality where she is teaching. 
 Except with the very young children it is well to elect 
 officers and to allow the children to assume the chief respon- 
 sibility for the work of the club under the supervision of the 
 teacher. 
 
 There is a great variety of things that may be done at the 
 meetings of the club. If the colored plates are used the 
 children may color some of the outlines. Any one of these 
 birds may be taken as the topic of the meeting, and the 
 pamphlet and other references studied in preparation, dif- 
 ferent children being assigned topics to look up. About a 
 week before the meeting the bird to be studied should be 
 announced, so that the children may be watching the birds 
 outdoors and report what they have seen. A meeting may 
 be held to discuss the making of bird-houses, and at another 
 meeting these may be brought together and compared. A 
 number of field trips should be taken to study the birds 
 out of doors. All of the above can best be done in the 
 spring. In the autumn nests may be collected and studied. 
 In the whiter the subject of winter feeding may be taken 
 up. 
 
 What bird clubs may do. From a number of letters pub- 
 lished in Bird-Lore explaining about the work of the clubs, 
 the following list is taken of the things which were done by 
 the various clubs :
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 57 
 
 Prizes offered for the following: 
 
 Best bird-houses, greatest number of bird-houses for differ- 
 ent birds, longest list of birds identified from pictures, best 
 bird records, best composition showing intimate knowledge o;' 
 birds, best colored drawing of some bird, prize to the schoo 
 or room having the largest number of clippings in their bird- 
 clipping book. 
 
 Making bird-houses, feeding devices, and fountains for the home 
 yard. 
 
 Building bird-houses to put up in school yard. 
 
 Exhibition of bird-houses open to the public. 
 
 Members of clubs give talks to children in other buildings. 
 
 Demonstration of tying suet to branches of trees. 
 
 Debates on such questions as, "Should the crow be protected?" 
 
 Providing Christmas trees for the birds. 
 
 Field trips. 
 
 Publication of a paper containing articles about birds. 
 
 Playing bird games. 
 
 Spring migration records of birds kept by club. 
 
 Attending illustrated lecture given by some one who has lan- 
 tern slides. 
 
 Meetings of bird clubs. The following are the suggestions 
 for meetings as given in the Guide of the Liberty Bell Bird 
 Club: 
 
 First. Repeat in concert the pledge of the Liberty Bell Bird 
 Club. 
 
 Second. Members report all the different varieties of birds seen 
 since the last meeting. This report to be written, read, and 
 given to the teacher or director and to be filed. 
 
 Third. Recitation or reading a bird poem or a bird story. 
 Many good ones appear from time to time in the Farm Jour- 
 nal's Bird Club page and elsewhere in the paper. 
 
 Fourth. Members report what they have observed, and all 
 special bird work done by them. 
 
 Fifth. Composition on one of the articles in the Bird Club page 
 of the Farm Journal. Subject to be given by the teacher or 
 director. 
 
 Skth. Question Box.
 
 58 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Seventh. Work outlined by teacher or director for the following 
 
 week. 
 Eighth. Adjournment. 
 
 In many cases enough interest is aroused so that the 
 members of tlie club meet during the summer vacation at 
 the homes of the members. 
 
 The child's activities. One of the most effective phases 
 rf nature-study is that which calls into play the manual ac- 
 iivities of the child in providing opportunities himself for 
 making a study of the life about him. Bird-study is es- 
 pecially well adapted to make use of these activities in 
 building nesting-houses, in feeding the winter birds, and in 
 providing fountains. The very fact that the child is doing 
 something for the birds is a means of developing that 
 helpful sympathy with nature which may prove such an 
 important factor in all his subsequent life. And, further- 
 more, excellent opportunity is given for watching the birds 
 that may come in response to the attractions offered. 
 These observations will be carried on with much greater 
 ardor and thoroughness because the child has himself helped 
 to furnish the conditions which make his observations 
 possible. 
 
 Nesting-houses. Perhaps there is no one line of work that 
 interests the children so much as the making of bird-houses, 
 especially in the primary and intermediate grades. Even 
 very young children are interested, and when they are too 
 small to make the houses themselves, some one of the 
 family at home may help them. The houses can be built 
 at home or in the manual-training department. Children 
 may be asked to bring materials, and then some one may 
 help them in the manual-training shops. Many children 
 will be interested to the point where they will make houses 
 at home. As an added incentive they may be asked to bring 
 their houses to school on a certain day, so that a picture of
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 59 
 
 the children with their houses may be taken. The problems 
 which arise in connection with the construction and location 
 of bird-houses should be talked over with the children and 
 the important precautions to be observed explained to 
 them. The really essential features having been made clear, 
 the children should be allowed to use their ingenuity and 
 individuality about arranging details. 
 
 If the school building is favorably situated, houses may 
 be put up in the school yard. If these are occupied oppor- 
 tunity will be given the school for bird-study at close range. 
 It would be well worth while to see if the park boards would 
 not cooperate with the schools, so that the children might 
 make bird-houses and place them in the parks. Such a plan 
 was carried out in Jackson and Washington Parks, Chicago, 
 where the children made several hundred wren and blue 
 bird houses. 
 
 Difficulties. The children should understand the difficul- 
 ties to be met, so as to avoid undue disappointment, and 
 should be prepared to overcome them as far as possible. 
 The greatest obstacle of all is the English sparrow. One of 
 the most effective devices for keeping this bird out of the 
 nesting-boxes is to make the hole so small that the sparrows 
 cannot enter, but large enough for the wren and the chick- 
 adee. With houses for blue birds and tree swallows, prob- 
 ably the most effective thing which the children can do is 
 to make the houses so that the tops can be easily lifted, and 
 then to remove the sparrows' eggs once a week or as fast as 
 they are laid. This often causes the sparrows to leave the 
 nesting-house. If nothing else can be done the entrance can 
 be covered or the house taken down as soon as it is evident 
 that no other bird is going to use it. This will prevent the 
 sparrows from rearing their young. Of course, killing the 
 sparrows cannot be recommended to children. Whatever is 
 done along this line must be left to adults.
 
 60 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Feeding the winter birds. The introductory work of feed- 
 ing the winter birds should be done in the late fall. A 
 talk on the food of birds may be given, so as to bring out 
 the two classes of foods, animal and vegetable. The kinds 
 of food to put out and the methods of putting it out may be 
 discussed. The necessity of providing a constant supply of 
 food should be emphasized, and also of seeing that there is 
 R, good supply immediately after a snowstorm. The children 
 aay occasionally be reminded of the feeding so that they 
 will not neglect it too long. The possibility of taming the 
 birds to feed from the hand should be brought to the chil- 
 dren's attention. The construction of winter-feeding devices 
 may be made a part of the manual-training work. While 
 the children are being encouraged to feed the birds at home, 
 a lunch-counter may be provided in the school yard, if the 
 conditions will allow it. Committees may be appointed 
 among the children to see that the counter is provided with 
 food. 
 
 Field trips. There is but one way to know the birds, and 
 that is to study them in the field. In the schoolroom the 
 children may be prepared for field studies, and may learn 
 about the value of the birds and how to protect them, but 
 without a knowledge of the birds themselves enthusiasm 
 will be lacking. 
 
 The ordinary class of thirty to forty children is too large 
 for the teacher to attempt a field trip with them all, but 
 frequently some arrangement may be made with the prin- 
 cipal by which half of the class may be taken at one time. 
 Sometimes walks may be taken with a few children who are 
 especially interested. 
 
 Both teacher and children should start out with a very 
 definite purpose in mind. The teacher should prepare and 
 plan for the trip very carefully. One purpose may be to see 
 how many kinds of birds can be identified, and to make a
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 61 
 
 list of them. Another purpose may be to make a special 
 study of one or two kinds of birds, noting the size, general 
 colors, song, nesting-habits, and methods of locomotion. 
 
 Whether field trips with the children are taken or not, 
 the teacher should constantly encourage the children, when 
 by themselves as they pass to and from school and when at 
 home, to study the birds and report their observations to 
 the class. 
 
 One of the chief purposes of the field trips taken by the 
 teacher with the children is to stimulate them to observe 
 birds when by themselves. 
 
 Bird Day. Bird Day is observed often in connection with 
 Arbor Day. Bird Day is now officially recognized in nine 
 States. In observing this day one special feature to be em- 
 phasized is doing something for the birds, such as putting 
 up houses at home or in the school yard. The program 
 should not be so formal as to obliterate this important 
 feature. 
 
 The following are suggestions for a few general lines 
 of work that may be carried on: 
 
 1. Reading of proclamation. 
 
 2. Talk by some one outside of the schools. 
 
 3. Talk by teacher. 
 
 4. Original essays by children. 
 
 5. Reports on outdoor observations. 
 
 6. Recitations and readings. 
 
 7. Dramatic presentation. 
 
 8. Songs. 
 
 9. Putting up bird-houses and planting shrubs in school yard 
 to attract birds. 
 
 Correlation with other subjects. Bird-study may do 
 much to aid other lines of school work and may also itself 
 be made more interesting by proper correlation. Many 
 opportunities present themselves in connection with several
 
 62 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 subjects, especially with art and literature. The children 
 may make outlines of birds and color them, as explained in 
 previous pages, and the older children may paint the birds 
 free-hand with water-colors. The children may help make 
 artistic decorations for the bird calendar. A large amoun' 
 of splendid literature has been written, and this should forn. 
 an important part of the work with birds. 
 
 Arithmetic and bird-study. Some problems in arithmetic 
 relating to the number of insects eaten by birds, the number 
 of birds, and other topics may be given the children. A few 
 are here suggested : 
 
 A. Problems on the number of insects eaten by nestlings. 
 
 1. A pair of wrens were observed to feed their young 17 times 
 in an hour. The parents fed their young from 5 A.M. 
 till 8 P.M., and the young remained in the nest 15 days. 
 Assuming that one insect was brought at each visit, how 
 many insects were destroyed by this brood of wrens? 
 
 2. Many birds on the average feed their young about 200 
 times a day, and the young stay in the nest about two 
 weeks. After the leaves have fallen, count the number of 
 nests in a certain area and then estimate the number of 
 insects that have been destroyed by the birds reared in 
 these nests, assuming one insect brought at each feeding. 
 
 B. Problems on amount of food eaten by adult birds. 
 
 1. A study made of owls during the winter months showed 
 that they destroyed 2 mice a day. It has been estimated 
 that each mouse does damage to the extent of 2 cents each 
 year. How much is an owl worth a year? 
 
 2. A study made by the Biological Survey of the red-shoul- 
 dered hawk showed that out of 214 birds, 3 had eaten 
 poultry and 102 had eaten mice. What per cent of the 
 birds had eaten poultry and what per cent mice? 
 
 C. Problems on the number of birds. 
 
 1. A census made of birds in the eastern United States 
 showed that there was an average of 6 pairs of robins to 
 each farm of 58 acres. There are about 4,000,000 farms 
 east of the Mississippi, averaging 93 acres each. How
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 63 
 
 many robins are there on the farms east of the Mississippi 
 River? 
 
 2. This census also showed that for every 100 robins there 
 were 83 English sparrows, 49 catbirds, 37 brown thrashers, 
 28 house wrens, 27 kingbirds, and 26 bluebirds. How 
 many individuals of each kind of birds are there on the 
 farms east of the Mississippi River? 
 
 3. This census also showed that there was an average of one 
 pair of birds per acre. How many birds are there altogether 
 on the farms east of the Mississippi River? 
 
 D. Problems on migration. 
 
 1. The robin as a species travels from Iowa to Alaska, a dis- 
 tance of 3000 miles, hi 78 days. How many miles does the 
 robin average to travel in a day? 
 
 E. Miscellaneous problems. 
 
 1. A study of hawks made by the United States Department 
 of Agriculture showed that 5 kinds were harmful, 7 kinds 
 were neutral, and 35 kinds were beneficial. What per 
 cent of the hawks respectively are harmful, neutral, and 
 beneficial? 
 
 Seasons and grades. Most of the bird work should be 
 done in the spring, excepting a few lessons in the winter on 
 winter birds and their feeding. There is something of inter- 
 est about birds for every grade. The younger children are 
 interested especially in the bright colors and in learning the 
 names of birds. The children in the intermediate grades are 
 interested in the same things, but in addition they show a 
 great interest in the manual activities involved in building 
 bird-houses. They begin to show some appreciation of the 
 economic value of birds. In the grammar grades this eco- 
 nomic aspect may be strongly emphasized together with 
 the subject of bird protection. 
 
 The following brief outline suggests the distribution of 
 a few topics according to grades and seasons. More de- 
 tailed suggestions are given in the outline in Chapter 
 XIX:
 
 Autumn 
 
 Winter 
 
 Spring 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Primary grades Intermediate grades Grammar grades 
 
 
 Nest census 
 
 Game birds 
 
 
 
 Fall migration 
 
 
 Feeding birds 
 
 Hawks and owls 
 
 
 
 Economic value of 
 
 
 
 birds 
 
 Study of a few 
 
 Nesting-boxes 
 
 Bird enemies 
 
 brightly colored 
 
 Bird club 
 
 Bird protection 
 
 birds 
 
 Nesting-habits 
 
 Bird songs 
 
 Calendar 
 
 Calendar 
 
 Bird migration 
 
 
 Recognition of 
 
 Study of common 
 
 
 common birds 
 
 birds not taken in 
 
 
 
 lower grades 
 
 Series of lessons on birds. The three groups of lessons 
 here given are type lessons for the primary, intermediate, 
 and grammar grades, and are illustrative of what may be 
 done by teachers. 
 
 A. Lessons for primary grades 
 TOPIC: THE BLUEBIBD (SPRING) 
 Materials : Colored picture of a bluebird. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we tell the bluebird when we see it? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Color. 
 
 A, on back. 
 
 B, on breast. 
 
 2. Size. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch for a bluebird, and report to the class 
 the first one they see. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 
 Art. Have the children color outline of bluebird. 
 Literature. 
 
 Wiggin and Smith, Poy Ring, page 68. 
 Wright, Gray Lady and the Birds, page 318.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 65 
 
 TOPIC: WREN'S HOUSE (SPRING) 
 
 Materials: Picture of house wren, wren's nest, several types of 
 wren houses. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 We will learn to-day what kind of a house we should make for a 
 pair of wrens to nest in. 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Kinds of material to use. 
 
 2. Size of house. 
 
 3. Shape of house. 
 
 4. Entrance hole. 
 
 A. Size. 
 
 B. Shape. 
 
 C. Location. 
 
 5. Provision for fastening. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to make a bird-house at home and then bring it 
 to school so all can see it, and a picture may be taken of the 
 children with their bird-houses. If the children cannot make 
 the house themselves, they may be asked to bring materials 
 to school where the teacher or older children will help them. 
 
 B. Lessons for intermediate grades 
 TOPIC: THE WINTER BIRDS 
 
 Materials : Samples of food that may be used, such as grains, nuts, 
 etc. ; a few simple feeding devices, such as shelves, hoppers, and 
 a suet basket. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we help the birds this winter? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Kinds of food. 
 
 2. Methods of putting it out. 
 
 3. Birds that may come. 
 
 4. Taming birds to feed from hand. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have a feeding-station put in the school yard and food pro- 
 vided by children. Encourage children to feed the birds at 
 their homes and to report the results.
 
 66 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Manual Training. 
 
 Have the children in the manual-training department make 
 various feeding-devices, such as suet-baskets, shelves, hop- 
 pers, moving counters, and a large feedery for the school yard. 
 Literature. 
 
 McMurry and Cock, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 130. 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 272, 273. 
 Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, pages 278, 290, 317, 318. 
 Wright, Gray Lady and the Birds, pages 27, 131, 187, 293, 300, 
 301, 355. 
 
 TOPIC: IDENTIFICATION OF BIRDS (A REVIEW LESSON) 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the most common colors found on birds by which we 
 may identify them? 
 
 Write on the board a list of all the birds the children know. 
 Then put the following table on the board and have the chil- 
 dren fill in the names of the birds in the proper columns : 
 
 Birds marked with 
 
 Red 
 
 Blue 
 
 Yellow 
 
 Brown 
 
 Black 
 
 Gray 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 TOPIC: WORK OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES 
 
 Materials: Samples of the leaflets published by the Auduboi 
 Societies; a November-December issue of Bird-Lore, which con- 
 tains the annual report of the National Association of Audubon 
 societies. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the Audubon Societies doing to protect birds? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Legislation. 
 
 2. Wardens.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT BIRDS 67 
 
 3. Lecturers. 
 
 4. Bird reservations. 
 
 5. Publications. 
 
 6. Junior Audubon Societies. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children form a Junior Audubon Class to help protect 
 the birds. 
 
 C. Lessons for the grammar grades 
 TOPIC: HAWKS AND OWLS 
 
 Materials: Pictures of hawks and owls and of the animals they 
 eat. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 Should hawks and owls be protected? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Beneficial species. 
 
 2. Neutral species. 
 
 3. Harmful species. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children look up the State Law to see which hawks 
 and owls are protected. Have the papers watched and clip- 
 pings made. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 
 Burroughs, Songs of Nature, page 31. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 232. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, page 229. 
 
 Wright, Gray Lady and the Birds, pages 164, 170. 
 
 TOPIC : WORK OF THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT IN PROTECTING 
 BIRDS 
 
 Materials : Sample of bulletin published by the Bureau of Biologi- 
 cal Survey, map showing location of bird reservations, copy 
 of the Migratory Bird Law. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What is the National Government doing to protect birds?
 
 68 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Work of the Bureau of Biological Survey. 
 
 2. Bird reservations. 
 
 3. Law protecting migratory birds. 
 
 4. Tariff restrictions on feathers. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch the papers for items concerning an> 
 of the above, especially number 3, and bring the clippings to 
 class.
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 
 
 Motivation. Children need a series of specific aims that 
 shall serve to motivate their work. These aims must be 
 sought in the part that insects play in the child's life. In- 
 sects are the most abundant form of life in the child's 
 environment. He sees them at every turn. His first interest 
 then is to become familiar with a few of the common forms, 
 and to learn something of their life activities, how they eat, 
 breathe, and move. Another point of contact is through 
 flowers. He is naturally curious to know what the insects 
 are doing there. 
 
 The child's gardening experiences form another avenue 
 of approach. A great variety of insects are found in the 
 garden. The child wishes to know what relation these 
 insects bear to his garden. In some cases he can see the 
 harm they do, and he wishes to know how to control them. 
 In the case of beneficial insects the relation is not so self- 
 evident. And then finally such pests as the fly and the 
 mosquito are abundant everywhere, and the child is inter- 
 ested to know the harm they do and what he can do to 
 control them. 
 
 The thought of using what one learns is a very important 
 factor in motivation. The best kind of problem is one whicl 
 from its very nature suggests the doing of something. The 
 application for the study of common insects and their 
 activities is to find these insects and observe them in their 
 natural environment. The application of studies of injurious 
 insects is to observe their activities and the harm done and 
 to apply the remedies to control them. If a child is too
 
 70 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 young to take an active part in the work against injurious 
 insects, he may observe what other people are doing. The 
 application of the study of beneficial insects is to recognize 
 some of the more common forms when one sees them, and 
 to observe the good they do. 
 
 The children may make collections of those insects which 
 are shown to bear a close relation to their life. The home 
 and school life may be brought together by having the child 
 talk over these topics at home. The older pupils may watch 
 newspapers and magazines for clippings regarding insects. 
 
 Materials (cages for living insects). Living insects are 
 easily kept in the schoolroom in some simple apparatus pro- 
 vided for this purpose. One of the simplest outfits is a glass 
 canning-jar or tumbler, with netting tied over the top. 
 Another simple form is made by cutting a large hole in the 
 cover and bottom of a shoe-box, and covering these holes 
 with mosquito netting. A string is tied around the box to 
 keep the cover on and the box set on edge; or a hole may be 
 cut in the cover alone. This has the advantage of conven- 
 ience in that the cover may be easily removed in order to 
 feed the insects. 
 
 A chalk-box or cigar-box may be used and covered with 
 a pane of glass. A very satisfactory combination is to fill a 
 flower-pot with sand and to place on this a lantern globe 
 with a piece of mosquito netting fastened on top, or a pane 
 of glass placed across. 
 
 The cage must be kept clean, and the insects given fresh 
 food every day. Sometimes moist dirt or a sod may be kept 
 on the bottom of the cage. The grass in the sod will furnish 
 food for some insects. When possible they should be given 
 the same kind of food as that upon which they are found. 
 If one does not know the food of the insect, grass and various 
 kinds of leaves, such as cherry, may be tried. Clusters of 
 leaves may be kept moist by placing the stems in a bottle
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 71 
 
 filled with moist sand, or with water if the mouth is filled so 
 full that the insects cannot creep into the water. 
 
 A great variety of insects may be kept in these cages, 
 such as grasshoppers, crickets, caterpillars, galls, and the 
 various insects found in the garden. Water insects may be 
 kept in a jar filled with water. 
 
 Insect nets. For collecting butterflies, dragon-flies, and 
 other swiftly flying insects a net is necessary. One can 
 easily be made by the children. Procure an old broom 
 handle and a piece of stiff wire about four feet long. Bend 
 this in the form of a circle about a foot in diameter, crossing 
 the wires about six inches from the ends. Give them two 
 firm twists. Bend each wire at right angles, about a half- 
 inch from the twist, so that the two ends extend parallel 
 about one inch apart. Place these two wires over one end 
 of the broom handle and fasten one on each side of the handle 
 by means of wire or heavy string. 
 
 Around the wire stitch a narrow border of sheeting, two 
 or three inches wide. Make a net about thirty inches long 
 out of cotton tulle or light cheesecloth. Sew this into a round 
 bag at the bottom and attach the top to the border of the 
 cloth on the wire. Mosquito netting may be used, but it is 
 easily torn. The net should be at least twice as long as the 
 diameter of the wire, so that when insects are caught in it, 
 they may be imprisoned by a quick turn of the handle. One 
 way to collect insects is to beat the top of grass back and 
 forth with the net, when one will catch many insects that 
 had not previously been seen. 
 
 Collections. The older children may make insect collec- 
 tions. For this purpose a cyanide bottle is needed for killing 
 the insects, and some device for mounting them. The author 
 believes that the best plan for school use is the one described 
 in chapter IV of Hodge's Nature-Study and Life, to which 
 the reader is referred.
 
 72 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Calendar. One way of stimulating the observation of the 
 children is to keep an insect calendar in the spring. In its 
 simplest form it may consist of the following columns : 
 
 Name of insect 
 
 Date first seen 
 
 Child first reporting 
 
 
 
 
 If desired, other points may be added, such as place 
 where seen, date when abundant, and kind of food. 
 
 Correlation (arithmetic). Insect study may be correlated 
 with arithmetic, drawing, and literature. The following are 
 given as suggesting the possibilities of insect problems : 
 
 1. A mosquito lays about 200 eggs, and under favorable condi- 
 tions these may develop into adult mosquitoes in 10 days. If 
 one half of these eggs develop into females, each of whicji lays 
 200 eggs, how many mosquitoes would there be at the end 
 of a month if all lived? 
 
 2. A young American silkworm of the polyphemus moth which 
 had just hatched was weighed and found to weigh one twen- 
 tieth of a grain; when 30 days old, 31 grains; when 56 days 
 old, 207 grains. How many times its first weight was its 
 weight at each of these days? 
 
 3. During these 56 days it consumed three fourths of a pound 
 of leaves. How many times greater was this than its original 
 weight? Than its weight when 56 days old? 
 
 4. An average locust weighs about 15 grains and is capable of 
 consuming each day its own weight of standing crops, such 
 as corn and wheat. Assuming that these crops are worth 
 $10 a ton, and that there is 1 grasshopper to every square 
 yard, how much damage do the grasshoppers do in a day on 
 each acre? How much damage to the wheat and corn crop of 
 Minnesota in which State about 7,000,000 acres are planted 
 to these crops? 
 
 5. The United States Bureau of Entomology has made the fol' 
 lowing estimate of the per cent of damage done to crops by
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 73 
 
 insects. Work out the money loss in the last column for each 
 crop and the total : 
 
 Product 
 Cereals 
 
 Values 
 $3,000,000,000 
 
 Percentage 
 of loss 
 10 
 
 Amount 
 of loss 
 
 Hay and forage 
 Cotton 
 
 665,000,000 
 850,000,000 
 
 10 
 10 
 
 
 Tobacco 
 
 100,000,000 
 
 10 
 
 
 Truck crops 
 
 300,000,000 
 
 20 
 
 
 Sugars 
 
 95,000,000 
 
 10 
 
 
 Fruits 
 
 150 000,000 
 
 20 
 
 
 Farm forests 
 
 110,000,000 
 
 10 
 
 
 Miscellaneous crops . 
 Total 
 
 3,000,000,000 
 
 10 
 
 
 6. Bring a grasshopper into the schoolroom. Measure the length 
 of its body. Measure the distance and the height the grass- 
 hopper jumps. How many times its own length are these 
 distances? If a boy could jump as far in proportion to his 
 height as a grasshopper, how far and how high could he jump? 
 
 Correlation (art). Paper cuttings may be made of some 
 of the larger insects. Colored drawings may be made of 
 moths and butterflies, either with crayon or with water- 
 colors. Or these may be cut free-hand first and then colored. 
 When cocoons are kept in the room and the moths emerge, 
 a good opportunity is afforded for this kind of work. Charts 
 may be made of pictures and the children's own work in 
 illustrating insect groups. The older children may make 
 outline drawings of the insects studied, and paint the but- 
 terflies and moths in water-colors. 
 
 Grades and seasons. There is something of interest about 
 insects for every grade, so that the study may extend all 
 the way through the grades. The best time for most of the 
 insect study is the autumn, because insect life is so abun- 
 dant at that time. The study of the fly and mosquito may 
 be taken up in the spring, because this is the best time to
 
 74 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 take measures to control them. If collections of materials 
 are made in the autumn, such studies as cocoons, galls, and 
 wasp's nests may be taken up in the winter. 
 
 The following brief outline suggests the work adapted 
 to the different grades and seasons. Detailed suggestions 
 are found in the outline at the end of the book: 
 
 Season Primary grades Intermediate Grades Grammar Grades 
 
 Autumn 
 
 Grasshoppers 
 
 Insect activities 
 
 Pests of household 
 
 
 Crickets 
 
 How they eat, 
 
 Enemies of garden 
 
 
 
 breathe, and 
 
 
 
 
 move 
 
 
 
 Caterpillars 
 
 Social insects 
 
 Friends of garden 
 
 
 Mosquitoes 
 
 Water insects 
 
 Insects and flowers 
 
 
 Insect homes 
 
 
 
 Spring 
 
 Butterflies 
 
 
 Fly and mosquito 
 
 
 Moths 
 
 
 
 Series of lessons on insects 
 
 A. For primary grades 
 TOPIC: GRASSHOPPERS (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Keep grasshoppers in a breeding cage, as described 
 in the first part of chapter, and feed every day with fresh grass. 
 Let one grasshopper escape into the room, so as to watch it 
 jump and fly. Have some of the children see how far and 
 how high they can jump. Then compare with the distance the 
 grasshopper jumps. 
 
 Child's problem.. 
 
 We will watch these grasshoppers to see how they move. 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Jumping. 
 
 2. Crawling. 
 
 3. Flying. 
 
 4. Organs used: 
 
 A. How used. 
 
 B. Structure. 
 
 a. Difference between wings. 
 
 b. Difference between legs.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 75 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask children to watch grasshoppers out of doors, and notice 
 which method of moving they see the grasshopper use the 
 most. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 139. 
 
 Other lessons may be given on how the grasshopper cleans itself, 
 eats, and breathes. 
 
 TOPIC: GALLS (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: A collection of a number of common galls, such as can 
 be found on the goldenrods, willows, and oaks. Cut a section 
 through one of each kind. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What kind of homes do the gall-dwellers live in? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Plants on which found. 
 
 2. Parts of plants on which found. 
 8. Material of which made. 
 
 4. How made. 
 
 5. Differences in galls. 
 
 A. In shape. 
 
 B. In size. 
 
 C. In color. 
 
 D. In internal structure. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to look for galls during the following week and 
 see who can bring the most kinds to school. Have a school 
 collection of galls made. 
 
 B. Lessons for intermediate grades 
 TOPIC: INSECT ACTIVITIES (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Some water insects, such as the backswimmer, kept 
 in a tumbler of water, a living grasshopper, butterfly, and bee- 
 tle. The grasshopper possesses the biting mouth parts and
 
 76 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 the method of using them may be shown by feeding it grass. 
 The butterfly possesses the sucking mouth part, and its action 
 may be shown by placing the butterfly on a bouquet of flowers. 
 The motions of breathing may be seen in the abdomen of the 
 grasshopper. The grasshopper illustrates three types of loco- 
 motion, jumping, crawling, and flying, using one pair of wings. 
 The butterfly illustrates flying, using both pairs of wings. The 
 backswimmer illustrates swimming. The beetle illustrates run- 
 ning. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How do insects eat, breathe, and move? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Eating. 
 
 A. Comparison of grasshopper and butterfly. 
 a. Kind of food. 
 6. Method of obtaining it. 
 c. Structure of mouth parts. 
 
 2. Breathing. 
 
 A. Motion of abdomen of grasshopper. 
 
 B. Number of breaths in a minute compare with child. 
 
 C. Number and location of breathing pores. 
 
 3. Moving. 
 
 A. Jumping. 
 
 B. Crawling and running. 
 
 C. Swimming. 
 
 D. Flying (differences between grasshoppers and butter- 
 flies.) 
 
 E. Organs used. 
 
 a. Method of using them. 
 
 b. Structure. 
 
 c. Differences between wings of grasshopper and 
 butterfly. 
 
 d. Differences between legs of grasshopper and of 
 backswimmer. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Put the following tables on the board and have the children fill 
 in with as many insects as they can, as the result of continued 
 observation.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 
 
 77 
 
 Methods of locomotion among insects 
 
 Flying 
 
 Jumping 
 
 Running or 
 walking 
 
 Surimming 
 
 
 
 
 
 TOPIC: WATER INSECTS 
 
 Materials: Water strider, whirligig-beetle, glass dish. These and 
 other water insects may be collected with an ordinary insect 
 net, or with a handled strainer with wire on the bottom, such as 
 is found in the kitchen. These insects may be kept several days 
 without feeding. If desired to keep longer, feed with flies or 
 raw meat. Perform the experiment of floating a needle on water. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 How do some insects live on the surface of the water? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Method of floating. 
 
 A. Compare with needle. 
 
 B. Shadow of water strider. 
 
 2. Method of moving. 
 
 3. Breathing of whirligig-beetle below water. 
 
 4. Differences between the beetle and strider. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children watch streams or ponds and report where they 
 find these insects. 
 
 C. Lessons for grammar grades 
 TOPIC: THE MOSQUITO 
 
 Materials: Water stages of mosquito in glass tumblers covered with 
 netting; kerosene, goldfish, tadpoles. The wigglers may first be 
 studied to learn their habits. Then experiments in extermina- 
 tion may be tried. Place a counted number of wigglers in a jar 
 with a fish. Note how long a time elapses before they are all 
 eaten.
 
 78 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 In another dish place some wigglers with a tadpole. 
 
 Try various kinds of water insects with the wigglers. 
 
 In another tumbler covered with netting and containing 
 larvae, pupae, and adults pour a few drops of kerosene on the 
 surface of the water and note results. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 What may be done to get rid of the mosquito? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Life history of mosquito. 
 
 A. Larvae. 
 
 a. Method of breathing. 
 6. Method of moving. 
 c. Position when at rest. 
 
 B. Pupae. 
 
 a. Compare with larvae in the three points given 
 above. 
 
 C. Adult. 
 
 a. Note resting position. 
 
 b. Compare male and female. 
 
 c. Mouth parts. 
 
 2. Destruction and control of mosquito. 
 
 A. Natural enemies. 
 
 a. Fish. 
 
 b. Tadpoles. 
 
 c. Water insects. 
 
 d. Spiders. 
 
 B. Kerosene on water. 
 
 C. Destroy breeding-places. 
 
 D. Cover breeding-places. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children search the neighborhood to find places where 
 mosquitoes are breeding. Have a map made of the neighbor- 
 hood to show the location of these breeding-places. Then 
 have a campaign started by the children to prevent the mos- 
 quitoes from breeding, either (1) by putting oil on surface of 
 pools; (2) by covering rain barrels; (3) by filling or draining 
 pools; (4) by seeing that cans in dump heaps are turned bot- 
 tom side up, or crushed.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 79 
 
 TOPIC: THE HOUSE-FLY (SPRING) 
 
 In the late winter or early spring start a campaign of trapping 
 the early flies. Send five cents in stamps for a fly-trap pattern to the 
 International Harvester Company, Harvester Building, Chicago, 
 Illinois. This gives detailed directions for making a fly-trap so that 
 a child can do it. For fifty cents there may be obtained from the 
 same company a set of about ten stencils, three feet square, of the 
 house-fly, giving drawings that may be reproduced on the black- 
 board, on paper, or on cloth, which may be kept as permanent 
 charts. Directions accompany these stencils showing the use that 
 can be made of them. 
 
 TOPIC: THE LADY BEETLE 
 
 Materials: Secure the adult and larva of the lady beetle and keep 
 it in a breeding-cage. The larva may be found on almost any 
 plant infested with plant lice. Bring in a piece of plant with the 
 lice and larva on it, and place the end in a bottle filled with 
 moist sand. These lice are the food of both the larva and the 
 adult beetle. When these are all eaten others should be brought 
 in. In this connection the harm done by the lice may be studied. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 How is the lady beetle beneficial? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. The larvae. 
 
 A. Appearance. 
 
 B. Method of feeding. 
 
 C. Comparison of pupse with larvae. 
 
 2. The adult. 
 
 A. Appearance. 
 
 B. Method of feeding. 
 
 C. Comparison with larvae. 
 
 D. Method of flight. 
 
 E. Method of protection. 
 
 3. The lice. 
 
 A. Their appearance. 
 
 B. Method of feeding. 
 
 C. Harm done.
 
 80 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children watch the house plants at home for these 
 beetles to see what they are doing; also watch plants outdoors 
 to find colonies of plant lice with the beetles and larva among 
 them. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, page 203. 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 168, 169. 
 
 TOPIC: SPIDERS (AUTUMN) 
 
 (Spiders are not insects, but they are closely related to them and 
 will be taken up in this connection.) 
 
 Materials : If the class is taken for a field trip, webs for study may 
 be easily found; or a web may be studied indoors. A web and 
 spider may be found on a branch which may be brought into the 
 schoolroom, and the branch stuck into earth in a flower-pot. 
 Or a spider alone may be placed in a large breeding-cage with a 
 few stems of plants to which it may attach its web. The spider 
 may spin its web here. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 How is the web of an orb weaver made? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Position of web. 
 
 2. Parts of web (radii, spiral and guy lines). 
 
 3. Two kinds of thread. 
 
 A. Difference in elasticity and adhesiveness. 
 
 B. Parts of web made of each kind. 
 
 4. Position of spider in web. 
 
 5. Method of catching insects. (Throw some insects, such as a 
 fly, into the web.) 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch for spiders' webs and note the kinds 
 of insects that they find in them, or note the different places 
 where they find the webs.
 
 TEACHING CHILDREN ABOUT INSECTS 81 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings made of the web, either on the board or on 
 paper at the seats. Cuttings of webs may be made by the 
 younger children. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 147, 222. 
 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 158. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, page 208. 
 
 Other lessons may be given on a funnel web and cobweb, and 
 on a jumping, a running, and a flying spider, and on the nests in 
 which the eggs are placed.
 
 CHAPTER Vin 
 
 PETS AND DOMESTICATED ANIMALS (FOR PRIMARY 
 GRADES) 
 
 THE care of a pet is a splendid experience that every 
 child should have. In caring for his pet he develops a sense 
 of responsibility and the need of doing certain things at 
 regular times. Through this care he comes to develop a 
 friendly feeling for his pet and this gives him a more thought- 
 ful feeling toward all animal life. And finally the child 
 derives much pleasure from association with his pets through 
 play and other means. 
 
 The studies made of pets may be carried on in two places; 
 at home and in the schoolroom. Pets may be kept in a cage 
 in the schoolroom where their habits may be studied, and 
 points may be given for the children to observe in their 
 pets at home. Such pets as the dog and the cat may be 
 brought each day when needed, by the various children for 
 a day only. Such pets as the rabbit and the squirrel may be 
 kept in a cage in the schoolroom for several weeks. A cage 
 may easily be made from a large box and some inch-mesh 
 galvanized wire netting. This is better than mosquito net- 
 ting. Some sawdust or dry dirt may be spread on the bot- 
 tom of the cage. In order to avoid offensive odors, the ani- 
 mals should be fed on dry foods such as oats, corn, bread 
 crust, nuts, and an occasional piece of some green stuff such 
 as grass or lettuce. A pan of drinking-water should be kept 
 in the cage. The cage should be kept clean. Another pet 
 that can easily be kept in the schoolroom is the canary. 
 
 In connection with the study of the cat the children should
 
 PETS AND DOMESTICATED ANIMALS 83 
 
 be taught how they can care for their cat so as to lessen as 
 far as possible the harm it does in killing birds. Most of this 
 harm is done to young birds in the spring and early sum- 
 mer, during the nesting season. Hence children should be 
 taught to take special care of their cats during this season. 
 The most harm is done during the early morning. During 
 the nesting season of birds, cats should be shut up, espe- 
 cially at night and during the early morning; and at all 
 times should be well fed, so that they will not have hunger 
 added to their natural instinct as a stimulus to catch birds. 
 The children should be taught that it is a cruel thing to the 
 cat to abandon it when leaving their summer homes as so 
 many people do. 
 
 Series of lessons on pets 
 
 In order to show the possibility of a series of lessons on 
 one animal the three following lessons on the dog are given, 
 based on an outline furnished the author by Miss Helen 
 M. Reynolds, Principal of the Primary Department of the 
 Training School at Mankato, Minnesota. 
 
 TOPIC: KINDS OF DOGS 
 Materials: Pictures of dogs. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How many different kinds of dogs are there? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Pointers. 
 
 2. Hunters. 
 
 3. Hounds. 
 
 4. Spaniels. 
 
 5. Shepherd dogs. 
 
 6. Eskimo dogs. 
 
 7. St. Bernard dogs. 
 
 8. Differences in appearances. 
 
 9. Differences in uses.
 
 84 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to look carefully at all the dogs they see and 
 try to tell what kind each one is. Report to the class what 
 they have seen. Make a list on the board of all the kinds that 
 the children can find in town. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Cuttings may be made of different kinds of dogs and of a dog 
 in different positions; and a chart made to show the differ- 
 ent kinds. Model in clay some of the different kinds of 
 dogs. 
 
 TOPIC: USES OF DOGS 
 Child's problem. 
 
 In how many ways is a dog useful? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. To the grown-up people. 
 
 A. Hunting. 
 
 B. Herding sheep or cattle. 
 
 C. Protecting children. 
 
 D. Watching the house. 
 
 E. Performing labor. 
 
 a. Turning chum. 
 
 b. Drawing loads. 
 
 F. Find lost travelers in Alps. 
 
 G. Used as horses, Eskimo dogs. 
 H. As companions. 
 
 2. To the children. 
 
 A. As a playfellow. 
 
 a. Sports in which dogs join. 
 
 b. Tricks played by dogs. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to notice all the helpful things they see dogs 
 doing between now and the next lesson, and report to 
 class. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, pages 213, 214.
 
 PETS AND DOMESTICATED ANIMALS 85 
 
 TOPIC: CARE OF DOGS 
 
 Materials : A dog may be kept in the schoolroom so as to watch its 
 manner of eating. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How may I take the best care of my dog so he will be healthy 
 and happy? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Food. 
 
 A. Kind of teeth. 
 
 B. Kinds of food needed. 
 
 C. Number of meals in a day. 
 
 2. Water. 
 
 3. Shelter. 
 
 4. Baths. 
 
 5. Protection from fleas. 
 
 6. Kindness. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Find out what care the children are giving their dogs, and if any 
 are not giving the proper care, encourage them to do so, 
 specifying what they should do. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have dog kennel made out of paper. 
 
 TOPIC: THE CAT 
 
 Materials: A cat may be kept for a while in the schoolroom where 
 its habits may be watched, and observations may be made by 
 the children at home. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 To what extent can cats take care of themselves. 
 
 Outline of development. 
 1. Obtaining food. 
 
 A. Kinds of food. 
 
 B. How found keenness of senses. 
 
 C. How caught. 
 
 a. Method of walking and springing. 
 
 b. Use of claws.
 
 86 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 2. Protection. 
 
 A. From enemies. 
 
 a. Keen senses. 
 
 b. Claws. 
 
 c. Running away. 
 
 B. From cold weather. 
 
 a. Fur. 
 
 b. Finding sheltered spot. 
 
 3. Cleanliness. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch cats and see to what extent they are 
 taking care of themselves without help from man. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Children may make free-hand cuttings of cat or model one 
 in clay. 
 Literature. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, page 211. 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, pages 
 52, 294. 
 
 TOPIC: THE Cow 
 
 Materials: Samples of the products obtained from cows, such as 
 cheese, butter, leather, gelatine, some milk which has been 
 standing long enough for the cream to rise. It interests the chil- 
 dren to make some butter in the schoolroom. To do this, put 
 some sour cream into a quart Mason jar and screw on the top 
 tightly. Pass it around and allow each child to shake it till 
 the butter forms. Remove the lumps, wash in cold water, then 
 mix it till the water is squeezed out. Add a little salt. Crack- 
 ers may be provided and spread with butter and the children 
 may have a little lunch. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 In what ways is the cow useful to us? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 1. Milk. 
 
 A. Use uncooked.
 
 PETS AND DOMESTICATED ANIMALS 87 
 
 a. Use of whole milk for drinking, cereals, etc. 
 6. Products from milk. 
 
 (1) Cream. 
 
 (2) Butter. 
 
 (3) Cheese. 
 
 (4) Uses of each. 
 
 B. Use of milk in cooking. 
 
 C. Forms in which kept for a long time. 
 
 a. Evaporated. 
 
 b. Condensed. 
 
 c. Dried. 
 
 2. Meat. 
 
 A. Steaks. 
 
 B. Roasts. 
 
 C. Stews. 
 
 3. Leather. 
 
 A. Shoes. 
 
 B. Harnesses. 
 
 C. Miscellaneous uses. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to observe during a day the things they use, 
 and notice how many of them come from the cow. In the 
 grammar grades, especially in the country, the Babcock test 
 may be demonstrated. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Draw or make free-hand cuttings of cow, or model one in 
 
 clay. Make a chart of a "Barnyard scene," or make it on a 
 
 sand table. 
 Literature. 
 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 86. 
 
 Wiggin and Smith, Posy Ring, page 114. /
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 
 
 Motivation of tree-study. In many ways trees are the 
 most satisfactory topics to take up in nature-study. They 
 are common, large, beautiful, easy of access, always avail- 
 able all the year round, and they pass through an interest- 
 ing series of changes from season to season. The children 
 have many interesting experiences with trees which serve 
 as a foundation for the work to be done. Trees furnish 
 shade in the hot weather, the tree is the center of the Christ- 
 mas festivities, in the autumn children play in the fallen 
 leaves, they like to climb trees and build houses in their 
 branches, and in the autumn they go nutting. The boys in 
 manual training enjoy the use of tools with wood. All these 
 activities furnish an abundance of experiences with which 
 the school work can be linked. 
 
 Children delight in bright colors, and in the autumn work 
 with the colored leaves appeals strongly to the young chil- 
 dren. The desire to know the names of the trees is present. 
 The collecting instinct may be appealed to throughout 
 all the grades in collecting leaves or specimens of woods. 
 Many games with leaves may be devised for the primary 
 grades, as suggested on page 92. 
 
 The use of these lessons in the child's life may be sug- 
 gested by encouraging him to find growing outdoors the 
 trees studied, and to bring leaves to the class or to report 
 where the tree was seen growing. A map may be made of a 
 certain section near the school and all the trees growing 
 there marked on it and named. The children may be asked 
 to observe the shade trees to see if they are receiving proper
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 89 
 
 attention, with reference to pruning and protection. They 
 may be encouraged to talk over the topic of the lesson with 
 their parents and friends, and report what they learn. The 
 older children may be asked to watch the newspapers and 
 magazines for references to forest fires, and other items 
 regarding trees and forests. These clippings may be cut 
 out and brought to school and posted in an area reserved 
 for this purpose. 
 
 Materials. A great abundance of material may easily be 
 obtained. In the autumn, when the leaves begin to fall, they 
 may be secured in sufficient quantities to supply each pupil 
 with material. At this same season many fruits of trees, 
 such as acorns and nuts, can be obtained. During and just 
 after the Christmas season branches of various kinds of 
 evergreens may be secured. During the winter twigs of 
 trees may be brought into the schoolroom. In the early 
 spring twigs may be brought indoors and forced to develop 
 earlier by placing in water. It is well to cut off about a half- 
 inch from the lower end of the twigs every week or two. 
 The best twigs to select for this purpose are those that open 
 quickly and have large parts, such as the horse-chestnut, 
 lilac, pussy-willow, and fruit trees. In the spring flowers of 
 trees may be secured. Those which have conspicuous flow- 
 ers, such as fruit trees, locusts, horse-chestnut, and catalpa, 
 are better adapted for this purpose for the primary grades. 
 For the older children the less conspicuous flowers of other 
 trees may be obtained. The fruits of the elms and white 
 and red maples may be obtained during the spring term. 
 
 Collections. Children are interested in making collec- 
 tions. One may be made showing how trees scatter seeds. 
 In the grammar grades collections can be made of the 
 different kinds of woods used in carpentry, and of small 
 limbs of trees from one to two inches in diameter. These 
 specimens may be neatly cut up into uniform sizes, and the
 
 90 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 cut surfaces polished to show the structure. Cuts may be 
 made to show cross, tangential, and radial sections. These 
 specimens may be kept loose or mounted in a frame. 
 
 Collections of leaves. Collections of leaves are easily 
 made, and the gathering and labeling of the specimens lead 
 to identification of the trees. These collections may be 
 made in three ways: first, by pressing and mounting the 
 leaves; second, by waxing and ironing the leaves; third, by 
 making blue prints. The fall is the best time to make these 
 collections, as the leaves may be gathered when they begin 
 to show their autumn colors. 
 
 Pressing leaves. In order to press the leaves secure two 
 pieces of board about a foot long and eight or nine inches 
 wide, old newspapers, and a heavy weight, such as a stone. 
 The leaves are placed between the folds of a newspaper, 
 several leaves to one piece. These papers are put one on 
 top of the other with extra folds of paper between, so as to 
 absorb the moisture. This pile of papers is arranged on one 
 of the boards, the other board is set on top, and on this 
 is placed a stone. This is allowed to stand for a week or two. 
 For a still simpler method the leaves may be laid between 
 the leaves of an old book and a weight set on the book. 
 The leaves may be mounted on unruled notebook paper by 
 means of glue or gummed paper. 
 
 An interesting project for the older children is to collect 
 the leaves of all the deciduous trees in the locality and make 
 an exhibit, to which the friends and parents of the children 
 are invited. The children may be divided into groups, and 
 each group assigned a certain family of trees to collect; such 
 as the maples, the elms, the oaks, the birches, the willows, 
 the poplars, the ashes, the nut trees, the locusts, and a few 
 trees will be left which may be placed in a miscellaneous 
 group. These leaves may be pressed and mounted as ex- 
 plained above. The fruits may also be collected. The chil-
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 
 
 91 
 
 dren may be asked to look up interesting facts about the 
 group of trees they are collecting, so that they may be able 
 to answer questions and give explanations at the exhibit. 
 
 Waxing leaves. The autumn colors are best preserved 
 by waxing the leaves. Scatter over the leaf small bits of 
 wax or paraffin, then pass over these a moderately hot iron. 
 Treat the other side in the same way. The leaves may also 
 be dipped in melted paraffin. Still better is to cover them 
 lightly with melted paraffin, using a small soft brush. The 
 leaves may then be mounted on paper with glue. 
 
 Blue prints. A collection of blue prints of leaves is very 
 attractive. These prints are easily made and show not only 
 the outline, but sometimes the veining, of the leaf. A blue 
 print is put on a piece of cardboard, the leaf is arranged on 
 this, and a piece of glass placed over all. These are held in 
 position by clips or by the hand and exposed to the bright sun 
 till the paper turns to a bronze shade. This is then washed 
 in running water or several changes of water and then dried. 
 
 Calendars. Calendars are a means of arousing the chil- 
 dren's interest and of stimulating their observations of 
 trees. A large piece of cardboard may be used for these 
 calendars. Each one should have some artistic decoration 
 suggestive of the topic to be recorded. These may be kept 
 in both the spring and fall. In the spring two kinds may be 
 kept as the buds open, one of the first appearance of the 
 leaves, and another of the first appearance of the flowers. 
 These may be kept in a form like the following: 
 
 Flower calendar of trees 
 
 Name of tree 
 
 Date first flower seen 
 
 Location of 
 tree 
 
 Name of child 
 first reporting 
 
 
 

 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Leaf calendar of trees 
 
 Name of tree 
 
 Date first leaf seen 
 
 Location of 
 tree 
 
 Name of child 
 first reporting 
 
 
 
 
 
 In the autumn two calendars may be kept, one of the 
 coloring of the leaves, and one of their fall : 
 
 Calendar of leaf-coloring 
 
 Name of tree 
 
 Date first 
 colors seen 
 
 Colors 
 seen 
 
 Location of 
 tree 
 
 Name of child 
 first reporting 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Calendar of leaf -fall 
 
 Name of tree 
 
 Date first 
 leaves fall 
 
 Date when 
 all leaves 
 have fallen 
 
 Location of 
 tree 
 
 Name of child 
 first reporting 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 In keeping the last two calendars the children should be 
 expected to bring the leaves to school before the record is 
 put on the calendar. 
 
 Games. The use of the game element will interest the 
 children and may be used as a means to help them identify 
 the leaves. The same sort of games may be played with
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 93 
 
 leaves as with bird pictures, a list of which is given on 
 page 53. 
 
 Arbor Day. In those States where Arbor Day is observed, 
 some special program should be arranged. The central idea 
 should be the planting of some tree, shrub, or vine; and the 
 children should be encouraged to plant something at home. 
 The formal exercises may consist of a talk by the teacher or 
 by some one outside of the school, reports of the children 
 on their observations of trees, original essays by the older 
 children, recitations of poems and prose selections about 
 trees, and appropriate songs. 
 
 Correlation. Tree-study lends itself admirably to corre- 
 lation with other subjects, especially art and literature. In 
 the autumn much interesting work can be done with colored 
 leaves. The younger children can make free-hand cuttings 
 and then color them with crayons. The older children may 
 make drawings of leaves or paint them with water-colors. 
 Cuttings may be made showing the shape of whole trees. 
 Charts may be made showing how trees are cut, how the 
 wood gets to us, and the uses made of wood. Blue prints 
 may be made of leaves and of the opening buds. The work 
 that the children have done for a year showing the trees at 
 different seasons may be bound together to form booklets. 
 Shapes of trees, nuts, and fruits may be modeled in clay by 
 the primary children. 
 
 Grades and seasons. There is something of interest about 
 trees for every grade. In the primary grades studies may be 
 made of the colored leaves in the autumn and the children 
 may be taught to identify a few common trees from their 
 leaves, including a few Christmas trees. In the intermediate 
 grades the children may be taught to recognize a larger 
 number of the common trees, and some study of their uses 
 may be made. In the grammar grades special attention may 
 be given to the uses of trees and to the subject of forestry.
 
 94 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Every season has something of interest. In the autumn 
 the leaves and fruit may be studied and the coloring and 
 fall of the leaf. In the winter evergreens and the bark, 
 branching, shape, and twigs of the deciduous trees may 
 be studied. In the spring the opening of the buds and 
 the flowers found at this time may be noted. The topic 
 of forestry may be taken up during any portion of the 
 year. 
 
 The following table suggests in a concise form the dis- 
 tribution of the topics according to grade and season: 
 
 Season 
 Autumn 
 
 Winter Christmas trees 
 
 Spring 
 
 Primary Grades 
 
 Colored leaves 
 Identification of 
 a few common 
 trees 
 Nuta 
 
 Intermediate Grades 
 
 Study of groups of 
 trees, as shade, 
 fruit, and nut 
 trees 
 Tree fruits 
 Calendars 
 
 Grammar Grades 
 
 Forest trees 
 Forest fires 
 
 Opening buds of 
 trees studied 
 in fall 
 
 Flowers of fruit 
 trees 
 
 Evergreens Value of forests 
 
 Winter characters Enemies of forests 
 
 shape, barks, Identification of 
 
 buds of decidu- deciduous trees 
 ous trees 
 
 Opening buds of 
 trees studied in 
 fall 
 
 Flowers of trees 
 
 Calendars 
 
 Conservation of 
 forests 
 
 Series of lessons. A few lessons on trees are suggested 
 below in brief outline form. In the study of particular kinds 
 of trees one species should be followed through the whole 
 year, so as to notice the changes through which it passes: 
 the foliage in the early autumn; the leaf -coloring and fall in 
 the late autumn; the shape, branching, and bark in the win- 
 ter; and the opening buds in the spring.
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 95 
 
 A. Lessons for primary grades 
 AUTUMN LEAVES (FIRST GRADE) 
 
 The first study of trees may well be made with the colored leaves. 
 A pile of leaves should be provided illustrating as great a variety 
 of colors as possible. 
 
 Have the children group the leaves according to color into sepa- 
 rate piles one for red, one for yellow, one for brown, and one for 
 green. 
 
 The leaves may be grouped again according to the combina- 
 tions of colors; those in one pile that have both red and yellow; in 
 another pile those that have both yellow and brown and so on. 
 
 The leaves may be grouped according to shape; those of similar 
 shape being put in one pile; they may be grouped again according 
 to size. 
 
 The children may cut leaves free-hand from paper and then 
 color them with crayons, or the coloring may be done without 
 cutting. Some of the prettiest leaves may be waxed, as explained 
 in a previous part of the chapter. 
 
 Some of the following poems may be read to the children: 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 29, 203-206, 208. 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 16. 
 
 TOPIC: CHRISTMAS TREES 
 Materials: Twigs of several kinds of evergreens. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we tell the different kinds of Christmas trees apart. 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Shape of leaves. 
 
 2. Size of leaves. 
 
 3. Arrangement of leaves. 
 
 4. Kind of fruit. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to bring to school twigs of Christmas trees and 
 name them. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have free-hand cuttings made showing the shapes of Christmas 
 trees. Drawings with colored crayons may also be made.
 
 96 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 285. 
 Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, page 295. 
 Wiggin and Smith, Posy Ring, page 265. 
 
 J5. Lessons for intermediate grades 
 TOPIC: THE MAPLES 
 
 Materials: Leaves of maples growing in the vicinity, including the 
 box-elder. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we tell the members of the maple family apart? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Differences in shape of leaves. 
 
 2. Differences in margin of leaves. 
 
 3. Differences in kind of leaves (simple or compound). 
 
 4. Differences in color of under side of leaves. 
 
 5. Differences in autumn colors. 
 
 6. Differences in bark. 
 
 7. Differences in fruit. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to look for each of these kinds of maples and 
 bring a leaf of each to school, or report where they saw the 
 trees growing. Have them watch the autumn coloring for any 
 differences. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have the children make outline drawings of leaves or blue 
 
 prints. 
 Literature. 
 
 Wiggin and Smith, Golden Numbers, page 17. 
 
 Stone and Pickett, Trees in Prose and Poetry, pages 32-41. 
 
 TOPIC: USES OF WOOD 
 Materials: Samples of the more commonly used woods. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the most important uses made of wood?
 
 LESSONS ON TREES 97 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. For building. 
 
 2. For furniture. 
 
 3. For musical instruments. 
 
 4. Miscellaneous uses. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to note especially for a few days the uses they 
 see made of wood and report any new uses, and find out what 
 kinds of wood are used most commonly. Have a collection 
 made of the different kinds of wood. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 29. 
 
 C. Lessons for grammar grades 
 
 TOPIC: FOREST FIRES 
 Materials: Pictures showing effects of fires and men fighting fires. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 How may forest fires be controlled? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Causes of fires. 
 
 2. Damage done. 
 
 3. Kinds of fires. 
 
 4. Preventing fires. 
 
 5. Putting out fires. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch the papers for reference to fires and to 
 cut out the clippings and bring to school. 
 
 TOPIC: WORK OF NATIONAL GOVERNMENT TO PROTECT 
 FORESTS 
 
 Materials: Map showing location of national forests; pictures of 
 rangers at work in forest; samples of bulletins published by the 
 Forest Service. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 What is our National Government doing to protect our forests?
 
 98 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Outline of development. 
 1. National forests. 
 
 A. Location. 
 
 B. Number and uses. 
 
 C. Care and use. 
 , 2. Forest Service. 
 
 A. Work at Washington. 
 
 B. Work in the forests. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch the papers and magazines for refer- 
 ence to the national forests or the Forest Service, and to bring 
 clippings to school.
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 LESSONS WITH FLOWERS 
 
 The study of flowers. There is something about flowers 
 that appeals to every one, both young and old. The young 
 child is interested in the bright colors and wishes to know 
 the names of the flowers. In the primary grades the chief 
 thing to emphasize is identification. After a flower is studied 
 in the schoolroom the children should be encouraged to find 
 the flower growing in its natural environment. Care should 
 be taken to see that flowers are not picked needlessly, espe- 
 cially the rare ones, some of which are in danger of exter- 
 mination in the neighborhood of cities. 
 
 There is one set of flowers to be studied in the spring and 
 another set for autumn. Something of interest may be 
 found for study in every grade. The purpose of the study 
 of flowers should be to acquaint the children with the more 
 common forms of wild flowers, so that they may know and 
 appreciate them, and thus want to preserve them. The 
 older children may be taught something about the economic 
 side of pollination. 
 
 Materials. A freshly picked bouquet of the flowers to be 
 studied can usually be obtained, so that there will be plenty 
 of material for schoolroom use. During the spring a single 
 plant of the various flowers studied may be dug up with 
 some soil and put in a flower-pot. This may be kept in the 
 schoolroom and watered. In this way the whole develop- 
 ment of the plant may be followed from the opening bud to 
 the fruit. While the children are interested chiefly in the 
 flowers of plants, attention should also be called to the leaves 
 and fruit of the various plants studied.
 
 100 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Calendar. The flower calendar is always a means of 
 arousing interest and of stimulating outdoor observation on 
 the part of the children. A large piece of cardboard should be 
 secured, and at the edge or top should be placed some artis- 
 tic decoration suggestive of flowers. The cardboard should 
 then be ruled off into columns for keeping the records of the 
 flowers brought in. The following outline is suggested : 
 
 Flower calendar 
 
 Name of flower 
 
 Date brought in 
 
 Name of child 
 first bringing it 
 
 Place where 
 found 
 
 
 
 
 
 Another way of keeping a calendar is to press and mount 
 the flowers as they are brought in, as explained on page 90, 
 for the leaves of trees. On each card put the four facts 
 called for in the headings given above. These cards may be 
 hung on the walls of the room. Both lands of calendars may 
 be kept in either spring or fall. 
 
 Games. The bird games suggested on page 53 may be 
 easily adapted to flower games. For these games a bouquet 
 of a number of different kinds of flowers will be needed. 
 Another game called "the florist" may be played. Bouquets 
 of both wild and cultivated flowers are placed on the desk. 
 One child sits at the desk and supposes that he is a florist 
 with flowers for sale. The other children in turn come to the 
 desk and ask for a certain flower. If the florist gives the 
 wrong flower, some other child takes his place. 
 
 Wild-flower garden. If there is a shady corner of the 
 yard that is not used, it may be spaded up and made into 
 a wild-flower garden. During the spring the roots of vari- 
 ous kinds of wild flowers may be dug up and transplanted
 
 LESSONS WITH FLOWERS 101 
 
 into this garden. In a few years a collection of the more 
 common flowers may thus be secured in the school yard. 
 
 Correlation. Flower-study lends itself splendidly to cor- 
 relation with art. In connection with the science lessons, 
 following the study of a flower, the children may draw the 
 flowers with colored crayons or paint them with water- 
 colors. The best drawing of each flower may be selected 
 and put on the wall, and thus a collection may be made of 
 the best drawings. 
 
 Blue prints may be made of some of the flowers. These 
 will show the outline of the leaves and something of the 
 shape and grouping of the flowers. A flower garden may be 
 made in the sand table. 
 
 There is a large amount of good literature on flowers, and 
 some of the best of these selections may be read in connec- 
 tion with the study of the flowers. Flower-study may also 
 be correlated with language lessons. Topics about which 
 the children are to talk or write may be selected from their 
 observation of flowers. 
 
 Series of lessons on flowers 
 
 A. Lessons for primary grades 
 
 GENERAL STUDY OF FLOWERS (AUTUMN) 
 
 Secure a bouquet containing a great variety of flowers. Have 
 the children sort the flowers by colors into separate piles, each 
 color by itself. When more than one color is found on a flower, 
 use the most prominent one for sorting. 
 
 Again have the children sort the flowers into two piles, one con- 
 taining the large flowers and the other the small flowers, first select- 
 ing some flower for a standard size. 
 
 Sort the flowers into two piles, those that the children know and 
 those that they do not know. The names of the unknown flowers 
 may he written on slips of paper, and a slip given to each child who 
 is asked to pick out this flower. 
 
 Sort the flowers into two piles, those having a distinct odor and 
 those having little or no odor.
 
 102 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 TOPIC: GOLDENROD (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Bouquet of goldenrods, enough so each child can have 
 a spray. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we tell the goldenrod from other fall flowers when we 
 see it growing? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Color. 
 
 2. Size of flowers. 
 
 3. Grouping of flowers. 
 
 4. Arrangement on stem. 
 
 5. Place of growth. 
 
 6. Height of plant. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask each child to find a goldenrod growing, and to bring one to 
 school the next day to make a bouquet for the schoolroom. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have the children draw pictures of the goldenrod, using 
 
 colored crayons. 
 Literature. 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 193. 
 
 B. Lessons for intermediate grades 
 TABLES FOR REVIEW 
 
 Toward the end of the spring and again in the fall, about the 
 time that the last flowers appear, the children's knowledge of 
 flowers may be briefly reviewed by using the following tables. 
 These may be put on the board and the names of the flowers that 
 the children know put in the proper columns. 
 
 Flowers grouped according to color 
 
 Red 
 
 Yellow 
 
 Blue 
 
 Pink 
 
 White 
 
 
 
 

 
 LESSONS WITH FLOWERS 103 
 
 Flowers grouped according to habitat 
 
 Flowers growing 
 
 In woods 
 
 Infields 
 
 In pastures 
 
 In swamps 
 
 By roadside 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 TOPIC: POLLINATION OF APPLE BLOSSOMS (SPRING) 
 
 Materials: Enough apple blossoms to supply each child with a 
 specimen. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 In what ways is the apple blossom adapted to bring about insect 
 pollination? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Reason for insects' visits. 
 
 A. Nectar. 
 
 B. Pollen. 
 
 2. Means of attracting attsntion of insects. 
 
 A. Colors. 
 
 B. Odors. 
 
 3. Value to flower of visits. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch an apple tree and see what insects 
 they find visiting the flowers. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings made with crayons or water-colors. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, page 75. 
 
 Wiggin and Smith, Golden Numbers, page 63.
 
 104 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 TOPIC: VINES (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Obtain illustrations of as many of the following types 
 as possible: twining stems (bittersweet, morning-glory, moon- 
 seed), twisting petioles (nasturtiums, clematis), tendrils (sweet 
 pea, grape), suckers (woodbine). 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the different ways in which vines climb? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. By twining stems. 
 
 2. By twisting petioles. 
 
 3. By tendrils. 
 
 4. By suckers. 
 
 5. Support required by each of the above. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to observe a number of vines before the next 
 lesson, and notice the method by which each climbs. Report 
 to class. From these reports determine which is the most com- 
 mon method. 
 
 Have a collection made of the leaves and climbing portions of 
 the vines. These should be pressed and mounted on a large 
 cardboard. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings made of each of the above types. 
 Literature. 
 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, page 72. 
 
 Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, pages 323, 324.
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 SEED-DISPERSAL AND FLOWERLESS PLANTS 
 1. Seed-dispersal 
 
 SEED-DISPERSAL is a topic that always appeals to chil- 
 dren. Nearly every child has blown on a head of dandelion 
 seeds to see if his mother wants him. The material is 
 abundant in the autumn, and easy to secure. 
 
 One of the most interesting lines of work is to have col- 
 lections made of the various seeds. These may be mounted 
 in several ways. One way is to secure from the drug-store 
 a number of small vials with stoppers, and place one kind 
 of seed in each bottle. These bottles may be mounted on a 
 cardboard by means of a piece of elastic, and the names may 
 be written on the cardboard beneath the bottle, or a label 
 may be pasted on the bottle; or the seeds may be fastened 
 directly onto the cardboard by means of glue or mucilage. 
 These collections may be class affairs, all the children help- 
 ing to furnish seeds for the collections. 
 
 For the younger children the following topics for collec- 
 tions are suggested: Seeds that fly. Seeds that steal a ride. 
 Seeds scattered by birds. Seeds scattered by the plant itself. 
 
 For the upper grades two central topics may be taken for 
 the collections : dispersal of tree seeds and of weed seeds. 
 
 Series of lessons for primary grades 
 TOPIC: SEEDS THAT FLY (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Seeds to illustrate the four types of distribution men- 
 tioned below; such as milkweed, dandelion, aster, maple, ash, 
 box-elder, tumbleweed, bladder nut, hop. Allow the children to 
 blow some seeds to see how they float and how far they travel.
 
 106 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How are some seeds made so that they can fly? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Seeds with hairs. 
 
 2. Seeds with wings. 
 
 3. Comparison of two types. 
 
 A. Method of flying. 
 
 B. Distance carried. 
 
 4. Tumbleweeds. 
 
 5. Inflated pods. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children make a collection of seeds that fly. One 
 third might collect seeds with hairs, another third seeds with 
 wings, and another third inflated pods. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 15. 
 
 A special lesson may be given on one plant alone, such as the 
 dandelion or milkweed, making a study of the whole plant, includ- 
 ing stem, leaves, fruit, and flower. 
 
 TOPIC: SEEDS THAT STEAL A RIDE 
 
 Materials: A variety of seeds distributed by animals; such as bur- 
 dock, clotbur, pitchforks, tick-trefoil. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How are some seeds made so that they can steal a ride? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Adaptation for sticking. 
 
 A. Burdock. 
 
 B. Pitchforks. 
 
 C. Tick-trefoil. 
 
 2. How carried. 
 
 A. By animals. 
 
 B. By man. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children make a collection of "Seeds that steal a 
 Ride," trying to see how many kinds they can find.
 
 SEED-DISPERSAL AND FLOWERLESS PLANTS 107 
 
 Correlated work. 
 The children may use the burdock burs to make various objects; 
 
 such as baskets, chairs, tables, houses, etc. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 122. 
 
 A separate lesson may be given on the burdock alone, making a 
 study of the whole plant. 
 
 2. Flowerless plants 
 
 Mushrooms. Mushrooms have a number of characters 
 that make them interesting objects for study; some of them 
 are edible, some are brightly colored, there are many differ- 
 ent kinds, and they are of wide distribution. They are of 
 further interest on account of their method of getting food. 
 They cannot make their own food, but get it from other 
 plants or animals, either living or dead. 
 
 Their food value has been exaggerated. Their chief value 
 is as a food accessory. There is no easy and infallible way 
 by which one may separate the edible from the poisonous 
 species. The only safe way is to collect only those species 
 which are known to be edible and leave the unknown alone, 
 if one is collecting for eating. There is no danger in handling 
 the poisonous species. Certain kinds of mushrooms, such 
 as the coral mushrooms, are all edible, and so may be col- 
 lected and eaten without danger. 
 
 Lesson on mushrooms (intermediate grades) 
 
 Materials: Several days before the lesson is to be given, the children 
 should be asked to collect all the mushrooms they can and bring 
 them to school. Most of the common kinds can be put into one 
 of the groups given below. Have spore prints made of several 
 species. Cut off the stems near the cap, and place the cap gills 
 down on a piece of paper. Cover the whole with a dish and allow 
 to stand overnight. The spores will fall down and form a spore 
 print on the paper. If it is desired to make permanent prints, 
 spread a thin coating of mucilage over the paper, and support 
 the cap on each side with matches so that the gills do not touch
 
 108 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 the mucilage. When the mucilage becomes dry, the print may be 
 stored away and kept. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How do mushrooms differ from each other? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Gill-bearing mushrooms. 
 
 2. Pore-bearing mushrooms. 
 
 3. Spine-bearing mushrooms. 
 
 4. Puffballs. 
 
 5. Coral mushrooms. 
 
 6. Cup fungi. 
 
 7. Characters of each of the above groups. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to look for the different kinds of mushrooms 
 and report of which kind they see the most during the fol- 
 lowing week. Have a collection of spore prints made on mu- 
 cilaged paper. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art 
 
 Have drawings made of some of these forms either with pen- 
 cil or water-colors. 
 
 Ferns. Ferns are attractive on account of the "beauty of 
 their foliage. They may be grown as house plants or set 
 outdoors in some shady place. An appropriate place in the 
 school yard may be selected and specimens of the dif- 
 ferent kinds of ferns found growing in the neighborhood 
 may be dug up in the spring and transplanted here. These 
 will add to the beauty of the yard and also furnish ma- 
 terials for science lessons. 
 
 Study of ferns (intermediate grades) 
 
 Materials: Fronds of at least two species of ferns. The house fern 
 may be used for one. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the differences in ferns by means of which they may 
 be told apart?
 
 SEED-DISPERSAL AND FLOWERLESS PLANTS 109 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Leaves. 
 
 A. Size. 
 
 B. Number of times divided. 
 
 C. Edges. 
 
 2. Fruit dots. 
 
 A. Position. 
 
 B. Arrangement. 
 
 C. Shape. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Have the children make a collection of as many kinds of ferns 
 as they can find. These may be pressed and mounted like 
 leaves, as explained in the chapter on trees, or blue prints 
 of small portions of the frond may be made. A series of paint- 
 ings, mounted specimens, and blue prints for each species 
 would make an interesting and valuable collection. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings or paintings made of the various species. 
 Literature. 
 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs qf Tree-Top and Meadow, page 15.
 
 PART III 
 AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 GARDENING 
 
 The home-garden movement. In recent years there has 
 developed in this country a great movement to encourage 
 home gardening by children. In some cities the movement 
 has been carried on by civic organizations. In other cities 
 it has been under the supervision of the schools. This latter 
 method seems the better and final solution of the problem, 
 because if it is done as a part of the school work it will be- 
 come permanently established. In order that the garden 
 work should be carried on most effectively, there should be 
 some one employed to visit the home gardens during the 
 summer and give such help as may be needed. The National 
 Bureau of Education is advocating that school boards 
 employ one teacher for twelve months, who shall have 
 supervision of the home gardens during the summer and 
 teach some of the regular school subjects during the rest 
 of the year. In some towns the instructor in agriculture in 
 the high school supervises the children's gardens during 
 the summer. 
 
 Frequently prizes are offered for the best gardens, or 
 pupils are given school credit for the work done hi the home 
 gardens. But even without a special supervisor much can 
 be done on the part of the regular teachers who can seek to 
 interest the children and teach the steps necessary to start 
 their garden. And if a supervisor is provided, the help of 
 the teachers is needed to cooperate with her. 
 1 One effective way of getting the children to start a garden 
 is to give them a means of buying penny packets of seeds.
 
 114 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 A number of firms are now selling seeds at this rate to school 
 children. 
 
 Children's interests in kinds of gardens. Young children 
 are more interested in the flower and vegetable gardens than 
 in the fruit garden, because the latter requires such a long 
 time before any returns are secured, excepting the fall 
 strawberry. The relative interest in the flower garden and 
 vegetable garden depends on the age and sex of the chil- 
 dren. In general, girls are more interested in the flower 
 garden, and boys in the vegetable garden; and the younger 
 boys are more interested in the flower garden than are the 
 older boys. The financial side of the vegetable garden 
 appeals quite strongly, however, to all children. In many 
 portions of the country girls' clubs are being formed for the 
 raising and canning of vegetables. 
 
 Value of gardening. Every child should have some ex- 
 perience in gardening. It teaches children many valuable 
 lessons. Dr. Hodge has well said: "The vandalism, juvenile 
 and even adult, that renders pursuit of horticulture in a 
 New England city or town well-nigh impossible, must be 
 accounted a first fruit of this universal neglect" of the study 
 of gardening in the schools. 
 
 A large amount of pleasurable and profitable work in 
 growing plants is possible in the home grounds. Even in 
 the small city lot, with only its back yard available, a great 
 deal can be done; while, as the size of the yard increases, the 
 possibilities increase accordingly. 
 
 ^Esthetic value. One of the chief values of gardening is 
 the aesthetic value. One derives a great deal of pleasure in 
 raising plants and watching them grow. It is a source of 
 never-ending pleasure to start each spring with the seeds 
 and watch the wonderful changes that occur till the mature 
 plant is formed. The foliage of some garden plants is attrac- 
 tive. In the case of the flower garden there is an added
 
 GARDENING 115 
 
 pleasure on account of the beauty of the flowers that one 
 can raise. Garden work leads to the cleaning-up of the back 
 yards, thus adding to the beauty of the home grounds. 
 
 Economic value. The home garden has a very important 
 place for its value in reducing the cost of living. The un- 
 precedented rise in the cost of foodstuffs during the last few 
 years presents a serious problem to the great majority of 
 people. This financial stress may be greatly relieved by 
 raising vegetables in the home garden. Even a small garden 
 will furnish enough vegetables for a family during the sum- 
 mer, and a medium-sized garden will furnish in addition 
 enough to can or store in the cellar for winter use; while as 
 the garden becomes larger, some of the produce may be 
 sold. This possibility of earning money is a motive that 
 appeals strongly to children. 
 
 A child with a garden including twenty-five hundred 
 square feet should be able to raise at least ten dollars' worth 
 of produce. In larger gardens some city children have made 
 from one hundred to three hundred dollars. With proper 
 direction a large number of children should be able to earn 
 one hundred dollars. When we think of the army of over 
 twenty million school children in this country, most of 
 whom are free from school duties during the summer, we see 
 the tremendous possibilities. If one half of these should 
 have a garden, and each raise only ten dollars' worth of 
 produce, that would mean a total of one hundred million 
 dollars, or an average of one dollar to every man, woman, 
 and child in the United States. Surely this would be worth 
 while from the economic standpoint alone, without refer- 
 ence to the many other values of gardening. 
 
 Hygienic value. Another value of gardening is found in 
 its effect on health. This is produced in two ways. First, 
 there is the value of exercise in the open air. Exercise is one 
 of the essentials in maintaining health, and gardening fur-
 
 116 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 nishes a valuable kind. A second effect on health is pro* 
 duced because the garden furnishes a healthful kind of food 
 and it may be obtained fresh, which makes it more health- 
 ful than the vegetables that one buys at the store, which 
 have been standing some time. Many people eat too much 
 meat food and their health is injured thereby. Anything 
 which encourages eating less meat and more vegetables and 
 fruits, as a home garden does, makes for better health. And 
 when one cans his own fruits and vegetables he may be 
 sure that they are clean. 
 
 Ethical value. And finally, and perhaps of more impor- 
 tance than anything else, are the lessons that the child learns 
 which affect his character. The care of the garden develops 
 in the child a sense of responsibility and respect for the 
 property rights of other people through his feeling of owner- 
 ship for his own garden. And through his own labor he 
 develops an appreciation of the dignity of labor. 
 
 It is a great misfortune that so many children have 
 nothing to occupy their attention during the long summer 
 vacation. As a result they acquire habits of idleness; or 
 even worse, in their efforts to find something to do, many 
 acquire habits which are positively harmful. Gardening fur- 
 nishes the children something definite to take their atten- 
 tion and to occupy their time in a profitable way, allowing 
 them to earn money as a result of their labors. In marketing 
 the products they also acquire a desirable business experi- 
 ence. Thus the child acquires habits of thrift instead of 
 habits of idleness. 
 
 Another advantage of the home garden is that it con- 
 nects the school life of the child with his home life, and 
 brings the teacher and parents together and produces a 
 better understanding between them. 
 
 Motivation in gardening. There are three main motives 
 to which appeal may be made to induce the child to start a
 
 GARDENING 117 
 
 garden: the desire to earn money, the desire to eat products 
 of his own raising, and the pleasure that the child derives 
 from the various garden activities. The desire to earn 
 money is a strong motive. The produce can be sold, either 
 at home or to neighbors who have no garden, or to the stores. 
 In some towns prizes are offered for the best gardens, and 
 the game element of competition enters to furnish an addi- 
 tional stimulus. And even if no produce is sold, there is the 
 appeal that comes from having the products of his labor for 
 his own use. The children are interested also in the manual 
 activity involved and in the fact that it is done out of 
 doors. The rapid changes that take place in the plant as 
 the seed germinates and the plant grows hold the child's 
 interest. 
 
 The work in gardening as it may be carried on in the 
 schoolroom may be divided into four groups, as follows: 
 
 I. A study of the products of gardening. 
 
 A. Cultivated flowers. 
 
 B. Vegetables. 
 
 C. Fruits. 
 
 II. Lessons to encourage home gardening. 
 
 A. Reasons why the children like to have a garden. 
 
 B. Give means of securing penny packets of seeds. 
 
 C. Making plans of home gardens. 
 
 D. How to prepare the soil. 
 
 E. How to plant seeds. 
 
 F. How to transplant seedlings. 
 
 G. How to thin seedlings. 
 
 H. How to care for the gardens. 
 
 III. Growing house plants in the schoolroom. 
 
 A. Flowers from bulbs. 
 
 B. Growing other house plants. 
 
 C. Propagation of house plants. 
 
 IV. Experiments with plants. 
 
 A. Raising plants in schoolroom from seeds. 
 1. To obtain the final product.
 
 118 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 2. To raise seedlings to transplant in the home gar- 
 dens. 
 
 3. To watch changes in seeds and seedlings. 
 
 4. To make an eggshell garden. 
 B. Germination experiments. 
 
 1. Conditions for germination. 
 
 2. Depths of planting. 
 
 3. Testing vitality. 
 
 4. How a squash seedling gets out of the seed coat. 
 
 5. What happens to the cotyledons. 
 
 6. How seedlings break the soil. 
 
 7. Use of cotyledons to seedlings. 
 
 8. To show the expansive power of germination of 
 
 C. Work of roots. 
 
 1. Absorption of water. 
 
 2. Root hairs. 
 
 3. Direction of growth. 
 
 4. Food storage carrot basket. 
 
 D. Work of stem. 
 
 1. Passage of liquid up. 
 
 2. Passage of liquid down. 
 
 3. Direction of growth. 
 
 E. Work of leaf. 
 
 1. Transpiration. 
 
 2. Light and starch-making. 
 
 3. Leaf exposure to sunlight. 
 
 4. Sleep movements of leaves. 
 
 5. Effect of light on growth of stem and leaves. 
 
 1. Study of products of the garden 
 
 Most of this work can best be carried on during the 
 autumn and winter, excepting for a few plants that mature 
 during the spring term, such as strawberries. The purpose 
 of this study is to arouse more interest in garden pro- 
 ducts through a better understanding of their value and of 
 how they have been raised, and thus to create an interest 
 in the children to have a garden of their own. 

 
 GARDENING 119 
 
 Lesson on products of the garden 
 
 A. For primary grades 
 TOPIC: THE NASTURTIUM (AUTUMN) 
 Materials: Nasturtium flower and leaf for each child. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How can we tell the nasturtium from other flowers the next 
 time we see it? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Color of flowers. 
 
 2. Shape of flowers. 
 
 3. Size of flowers. 
 
 4. Shape of leaf. 
 
 5. Height of plant. 
 
 0. Place where plant grows. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask each child to bring a nasturtium to school to make a bou- 
 quet for the room, or to notice all the places where they see 
 nasturtiums growing and report to the class. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have the children draw the flower, using colored crayons. 
 Blue prints of the leaves may be made. 
 
 \ 
 
 TOPIC: THE TOMATO 
 Materials: Ripe and green tomatoes, flowers, piece of plant. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What things have been done so that we might have these 
 tomatoes? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Saving seeds. 
 
 2. Starting seeds indoors. 
 
 3. Transplanting. 
 
 4. Hoeing. 
 
 5. Making support for the plant. 
 
 6. Harvesting. 
 
 7. Stages of development.
 
 120 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to watch people who have tomatoes in their 
 gardens and see what they are doing to them at this time o 1 " 
 the year, and later when the first frost comes. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have the children model a tomato in clay, or draw both green 
 and ripe tomatoes with colored crayons. Cut sections across 
 tomato and have the children draw. 
 
 B. Lessons for intermediate grades 
 TOPIC: THE MARIGOLD AND COSMOS 
 Materials: Flowers and leaves of the marigold and cosmos. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 Which flower would you prefer to have in your garden, the mari- 
 gold or the cosmos? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Comparison of colors. 
 
 2. Comparison of foliage. 
 
 3. Length of time in bloom. 
 
 4. Height of plants. 
 
 5. Effect of first frosts. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to look and see which flower is more com- 
 monly grown in their neighborhood, also to notice after the 
 first frost if there is any difference in the effect on these 
 flowers. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have paintings made of flowers and leaves in water-colors. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 130, 198. 
 
 TOPIC: CORN (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: An entire corn plant dug up, including the roots, silk, 
 and tassel, and ears of corn in different stages of development.
 
 GARDENING 121 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What are the parts of a corn plant that help to grow the ears of 
 sweet corn? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Roots. 
 
 A. Ordinary soil roots. 
 
 B. Prop roots. 
 
 C. Work of the root. 
 
 2. Stem. 
 
 A. Nodes and internodes. 
 
 B. Appearance of cross-section. 
 
 C. Work of the stem. 
 
 3. Leaves. 
 
 A. Length. 
 
 B. Edges. 
 
 C. Sheath. 
 
 D. Rain guard. 
 
 E. Work of leaf. 
 
 4. Flowers. 
 
 A. Tassel 
 
 B. Silk. 
 
 C. Compare with ordinary flower like nasturtium. 
 
 D. Work of flower. 
 
 5. Ears. 
 
 A. Relation to tassel and silk. 
 
 B. Number to a plant. 
 
 C. Position on stem. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to observe other corn plants growing and to 
 notice how they differ from the plants studied. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings made of the whole plant; also of cross-section 
 
 of stems. 
 Literature. 
 
 Ingpen, One Thousand Poems for Children, pages 164-65. 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, pages 227-28. 
 - Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, pages 233-37. 
 Wiggin and Smith, Golden Numbers, pages 82, 84. 
 Wiggin and Smith, Posy Ring, pages 93, 248.
 
 122 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 C. Lessons for grammar grades 
 TOPIC: STORING VEGETABLES (AUTUMN) 
 Materials: One sample from each of the groups outlined below. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 In what ways may vegetables be stored for winter use? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Temporary storing of tomatoes after frosts. 
 
 2. Storing in cellar at medium low temperature (squash, pump- 
 kin). 
 
 3. Storing in cellar at low temperatures (but not freezing) pota- 
 toes, beets, carrots, turnips (the last three in moist sand). 
 
 4. Allowing to stay outdoors and freeze (parsnips, oyster plant). 
 
 Application. 
 
 Suggest that those who have gardens at home find suitable 
 conditions for storing their vegetables, so that they can have 
 them next winter. Those who do not have gardens may watch 
 other people to see how they store their vegetables. 
 
 TOPIC: CANNING FRUITS (SPRING) 
 Materials: Pictures showing canning outfits. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How may fruits be canned? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Kinds of fruit best adapted for canning. 
 
 2. Principles involved. 
 
 A. Killing bacteria. 
 
 B. Preventing other bacteria from entering. 
 
 3. Outfit needed. 
 
 4. Sterilizing jars. 
 
 5. Heating fruit. 
 
 6. Covering jars. 
 
 7. Testing jars. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Suggest that the girls try canning some fruits at home during the 
 summer, or have them report on the methods their mothers
 
 GARDENING 12S 
 
 S. Encouraging home gardening 
 
 Much can be done on the part of the teacher to arouse 
 the interest of the children and to encourage them to plant 
 a garden. One lesson may be given on why the children 
 would like to have a garden. During the winter the teacher 
 should send to a number of seed firms for catalogues. The 
 pictures found here may be used to interest the children 
 and to help them decide what to plant. The topics are so 
 arranged in the outline in the last chapter that the plants 
 specially suggested for planting in spring are the ones that 
 have been studied the previous fall. These points may be 
 briefly reviewed to lead the children up to the matter of 
 planting these seeds. It is not expected that the children 
 will plant only the seeds here suggested, but they should be 
 encouraged to include these in their list, because the seeds 
 have been so apportioned in the various grades as to in- 
 clude the most common types of flowers and vegetables, so 
 that if the child raises those suggested each year he will 
 have a fair idea of a great variety of plants. 
 
 Charts for primary grades. A great variety of charts may 
 be made in connection with the subject of gardening. For 
 making the charts a large piece of heavy paper will be 
 needed. Each chart should represent some specific idea. 
 Oftentimes the heading may be printed across the top of the 
 chart in large letters, such as the following: "Vegetables 
 that grow below the ground"; "Vegetables whose leaves 
 we eat"; "Flowers from mother's garden"; "Fruits that 
 are raised in our State." The purpose of the chart is ex- 
 plained to the children and they are asked to bring appro- 
 priate pictures. Catalogues of seedsmen and advertisements 
 in magazines and papers will furnish abundance of material. 
 The children may cut out the pictures and paste them on 
 the chart.
 
 124 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Penny packets of seeds. One way to induce the children 
 to start a garden is to give them an opportunity to secure 
 seeds at a penny a packet. A number of firms are now selling 
 seeds to children at this rate. One of the best-known is 
 the Children's Flower Mission, of Cleveland, Ohio. The 
 teacher sends to the firm asking for as many order blanks 
 as she thinks she can use. Or a better way is for all the 
 teachers in a building or in a town to send together. These 
 blanks are sent free. They are given out to the children, 
 who take them home and, after talking the matter over with 
 their parents, fill out the blanks and bring them to school 
 with the money. The blanks and money are sent to Cleve- 
 land, and after a short time the seeds are sent back to cor- 
 respond with the orders. The express is paid by the firm, 
 so that the teacher has no expenses involved. After the 
 children have bought their seeds, they will usually plant 
 them and care for the plants. At the proper time lessons 
 should be given on the various steps in gardening. 
 
 Plans of gardens. In the late winter or early spring the 
 teacher may help the children make plans of their gardens. 
 Each child should draw on a paper lines to represent the 
 boundaries of his garden. On this may be drawn lines to 
 represent rows, and on these may be written the names of 
 the seeds to be planted and the distances between the rows. 
 In this way the child can plan just what he is to plant, and 
 how many rows of each vegetable, so that his plans may be 
 made to agree with the size of his garden. 
 
 A second lesson may be given on the preparation of the 
 soil. The two chief things to consider here are the enrich- 
 ment of the soil by fertilizer or manure and the spading of 
 ihe soil and getting it ready for the seeds. 
 
 A third lesson may be given on how to plant seeds. This 
 may be worked out as follows:
 
 GARDENING 125 
 
 TOPIC: PLANTING SEEDS (SPRING) 
 
 Materials: Box of dirt, seeds, hand weeder. The children should 
 be allowed to do the various things with the seeds and dirt as 
 the lesson progresses. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 What is the proper way to plant radish seeds? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Getting soil fine. 
 
 2. Depth of planting seed. 
 
 3. Distance apart. 
 
 A. Between rows. 
 
 B. In rows. 
 
 4. Time of planting. 
 
 5. Covering. 
 
 6. Firming soil. 
 
 Application. 
 
 This lesson should be given at the prooer time for planting seeds 
 outdoors, so that the children may plant seeds at once in their 
 home gardens. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Literature. 
 
 Lovejoy, Nature in Verse, page 14. 
 Lovejoy, Poetry of the Seasons, page 45. 
 McMurry and Cook, Songs of Tree-Top and Meadow, pages 
 12, 110. 
 
 Transplanting and thinning. When the time comes, for 
 transplanting and thinning, lessons should be given on the 
 proper way to do them, using seedlings raised in the school- 
 room as a result of the previous lesson. These lessons should 
 be given at the proper time to do the work outdoors, so 
 that the children may apply the lessons at once. The teacher 
 should ask the children about their gardens and remind 
 them at the appropriate times of the things to be done. 
 
 Garden calendar. Additional interest may be aroused in 
 the garden work by keeping a garden calendar on which
 
 126 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 the children may record the happenings in their garden. In 
 its simplest form it may consist of the following columns : 
 
 Garden activity observed 
 
 Date 
 
 Name of child first reporting 
 
 
 
 
 3. House plants in the schoolroom 
 
 Flowers from bulbs. One of the most satisfactory means 
 of securing flowers in the winter is through the use of bulbs. 
 All the work can be done by the children and the whole 
 cycle may be carried on during the school year. These 
 bulbs may be started at any time in the autumn or early 
 winter. For this purpose secure some flower pots, six 
 inches or larger, ordinary garden soil, and bulbs. The 
 drainage holes in the flower pots should be covered with 
 something which will allow the water to drain out, but keep 
 the soil in. Fill with dirt to within a half -inch of the top 
 and plant the bulb so that the tip is barely covered. Water 
 it thoroughly. The pot must be put in a location that meets 
 two requirements; it must be dark and cold. The Chinese 
 lily, paper-white narcissus, and Roman hyacinth cannot 
 stand freezing, but the daffodil and Dutch hyacinth can. 
 Usually some place can be found in the basement, but it 
 must not be where the furnace keeps it warm. Bulbs that 
 can stand freezing may be placed outdoors on a board and 
 covered with leaves or straw with some weight to keep them 
 on. During this period the soil must be kept moist. Usually 
 if they are well watered when put away and then kept 
 covered, this watering will be sufficient. 
 
 During this period a root system is forming, so that when 
 the plant is brought into a light, warm room, the stem grows
 
 GARDENING 
 
 127 
 
 quickly. The length of time required for these roots to form 
 varies according to the bulb. The time to keep out the vari- 
 ous bulbs before they may be brought in is given below in 
 a table. This is the least time. They may be kept as much 
 longer as desired. When brought in, they should be cared 
 for like any ordinary house plant. 
 
 A convenient way for school use is to put the bulbs away 
 in October or November, and bring them in just after the 
 Christmas vacation. The bulbs which the author has found 
 most satisfactory for school use are given below. In order 
 to secure a continuous succession of bloom, either different 
 kinds of bulbs may be chosen, or the same kind may be 
 brought in at different times. 
 
 Name 
 
 Time to keep in 
 dark 
 
 Time to bloom 
 after brought to 
 light 
 
 Time remaining 
 in bloom 
 
 Chinese lily 
 Paper-white 
 narcissus 
 
 2 weeks 
 5- 6 weeks 
 
 5-6 weeks 
 6-6 weeks 
 
 3 weeks 
 3-4 weeks 
 
 White Roman 
 
 7_ g weeks 
 
 3-4 weeks 
 
 34 weeks 
 
 Daffodils 
 
 8-12 weeks 
 
 4-6 weeks 
 
 2-3 weeks 
 
 Dutch hyacinth .... 
 
 10-11 weeks 
 
 6-7 weeks 
 
 2 weeks 
 
 Chinese lily in pebbles. The Chinese lily may be very 
 successfully grown in a dish containing some pebbles and 
 water. A shallow dish is half filled with pebbles and the 
 bulbs are placed among them so as to be supported by them. 
 Water is added till it touches the bottom of the bulb. The 
 dish is placed in a dark closet for about two weeks, during 
 which time the roots grow, and then the dish is brought to 
 the light. Water should be added occasionally so as to keep 
 the base of the bulb wet.
 
 128 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Window boxes. To grow house plants in the schoolroom 
 large flower pots or window boxes may be used. These 
 window boxes can be made by the boys in the manual- 
 training department. Among the best plants to grow in 
 the schoolroom are ferns, asparagus sprengeri, and gerani- 
 ums. For shady situations, aspidistra, begonia, English ivy, 
 oxalis, and primroses also do well. Heliotrope, wandering 
 Jew, and fuchsia are well adapted for sunny locations. The 
 chief things to consider in the care of house plants are to keep 
 them watered and to protect them on cold winter nights. 
 
 Propagation of house plants. Geraniums may be easily 
 raised by means of soft-wood cuttings taken from the 
 growing part of the stem. If only a few cuttings are to be 
 raised, an ordinary flower pot may be used. This should be 
 partly filled with clean moist sand well pressed down. To 
 make the cutting, a growing tip two to four inches long is 
 cut just below a node. The lower leaves are removed so as 
 to leave at least an inch of free stem. To reduce the evapo- 
 rating surface still more, it is well to cut off about half of 
 each of the remaining leaves. By means of a knife an inci- 
 sion is made in the sand, and into this the cutting is inserted 
 for about an inch and the sand pressed firmly about it. 
 To prevent too much evaporation a glass jar or tumbler is 
 inverted over the cutting, leaving it raised a trifle on one 
 side to admit air. The sand should be kept moist. The 
 cutting should be left till new leaves begin to form. This is 
 evidence that new roots have formed and the plant may be 
 then transplanted. 
 
 If it is desired to raise a large number of cuttings, a win- 
 dow box may be used in place of the flower pot. This may 
 be covered with a pane of glass. 
 
 Other plants that may be raised in this way are wander- 
 ing Jew, begonia, carnation, chrysanthemum, coleus, rose, 
 and fuchsia.
 
 GARDENING 129 
 
 Cuttings of the wandering Jew and of some geraniums 
 may be successfully started in a tumbler filled with water, 
 and then transplanted after the roots have formed. 
 
 This work can all be done by the children, and after the 
 cuttings have become well started in the schoolroom, they 
 may be taken home by the children and cared for. 
 
 4. Experiments with plants 
 
 A. Raising plants. A great amount of interesting and 
 instructive work can be done with seeds and seedlings in the 
 schoolroom. But this work should all be done with a definite 
 purpose. It is not sufficient merely to plant seeds and then 
 let the seedlings die from neglect. The work should be clearly 
 motivated from the start. The following purposes are sug- 
 gested to guide this work: 
 
 1. To raise mature plants and secure the products in the 
 schoolroom. Radishes may be matured here large 
 enough to eat, and nasturtium flowers may be secured. 
 
 2. To raise seedlings early in the season so that later they 
 may be taken home and transplanted in the children's 
 gardens. Among those that can be raised in this way 
 are lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes, and a great variety of 
 flowers. 
 
 3. To see the changes that take place in the parts of the 
 seed and seedlings as the plant grows. Have some 
 device by means of which the growth of the root may 
 be watched. One very simple way is to take a tumbler 
 and roll up a piece of blotting-paper so that it just 
 fits the tumbler. Fill the space in the center of the 
 blotting-paper with moist sand. Plant some seeds, 
 such as peas, corn, or beans, between the blotting- 
 paper and the glass. 
 
 Another way is to put a piece of wet blotting-paper in 
 a plate. On this put some seeds, then cover with another
 
 130 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 piece of moist blotting-paper and invert another plate over 
 this. When it is desired to watch the progress of the seeds, 
 the plate and the blotting-paper may be lifted. 
 
 Another interesting device which enables one to watch 
 the early stages of growth is a pocket garden which the 
 children can make. Secure two pieces of glass the same size 
 (old negatives are very satisfactory) and a piece of blot- 
 ting-paper the same size as the glass. Moisten the paper 
 and lay it on one of the pieces of glass. On this put a few 
 small seeds, such as radish or lettuce. Cut some narrow 
 strips of blotting-paper and place them around the edge of 
 the large piece two deep, so as to form an enclosure. Put 
 the other piece of glass over this and slip on a couple of 
 rubber bands to hold all together. When the paper be- 
 comes dry, stand the glass on edge in some water for a 
 few minutes. Plants may be grown for two weeks in this 
 little pocket garden. 
 
 Have the children make a series of drawings, showing the 
 changes in the seeds and seedlings. First soak some beans 
 overnight. Let the children open them and draw the parts 
 of the seed. Have another drawing made when the root 
 first comes out of the seed. One drawing should show the 
 seedling just as it first comes through the soil. Other 
 drawings should be made whenever any noticeable change 
 occurs in the seedling. These drawings should be placed 
 side by side on a large sheet of paper or else arranged in 
 a little booklet. The date should be placed under each 
 drawing. These drawings may be made either with or- 
 dinary pencil, colored crayons, or water-colors. Children 
 are more interested to work with colors. 
 
 4- Eggshell garden. The young children will be much 
 interested in an eggshell garden. Each child is asked to 
 bring an eggshell to school. On the outside of each shell is 
 written the name of the child. A hole is punched in the
 
 GARDENING 131 
 
 bottom of the shell for drainage and the shell filled with 
 soil. Each child plants some small seeds in his shell. Differ- 
 ent children may plant different seeds. Among the best to 
 plant are pepper-grass, lettuce, radish, cabbage, wheat, and 
 buckwheat. The eggshells may be kept in a pan filled with 
 soil or sawdust. 
 
 B. Germination experiments. Another set of studies may 
 be carried on to learn some facts regarding germination. 
 
 1. To show the conditions needed for germination. 
 
 a. To show the conditions of moisture, put some 
 blotting-paper in the bottom of three tumblers. 
 Moisten one slightly, a second moderately, and the 
 third so that a little water stands on the paper. 
 Put seeds in each tumbler and cover by putting 
 another tumbler over each. Allow to stand for a 
 week or longer and note the differences in the three 
 tumblers. 
 
 b. To show that air is necessary, fill one tumbler half 
 full of water and in another put a moist piece of 
 blotting-paper. Put seeds in both tumblers. Keep 
 the paper in the second tumbler moist and allow to 
 stand. 
 
 2. To learn the best depth at which to plant seeds. 
 
 Fill a shallow box about seven or eight inches deep 
 with soil. In one corner plant three seeds of lettuce, 
 three of radish, and three of peas one inch deep. In a 
 second corner, plant three of each, two inches deep; 
 in a third corner plant three of each, four inches deep; 
 in the fourth corner plant three of each six inches deep. 
 Mark on each corner the depth planted. Keep the 
 soil moist. Record the time when the first plants of 
 each kind appear in each corner. Record in the form 
 of a table on the board. At which depth do the plants 
 first come up? At which depth do most come up? Is
 
 132 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 there any depth at which none come up? The experi- 
 ment may also be performed in a quart canning-jar. 
 The jar is filled with sand and the seeds planted at 
 varying depths next to the glass. This allows their 
 growth to be watched. 
 
 3. To test the vitality of seeds to see what per cent will 
 germinate. 
 
 Lay a piece of moist blotting-paper or cloth on a 
 plate. Mark it off into squares. In each square put 
 the various seeds to be tested, taking a larger number 
 for the smaller seeds. Count them. Cover with another 
 piece of moist blotting-paper or cloth. Invert another 
 plate over this. Allow to stand for a couple of weeks, 
 keeping the paper moist. Figure out the percentage 
 of each kind of seed that germinates. 
 
 4. To learn how the squash seedlings get out of the seed coat. 
 
 Take the same kind of apparatus as that described 
 in the last experiment. Plant some squash seeds in it. 
 Examine every day. Have the children make drawings 
 of the different stages till the seedling is free from the 
 seed coat. 
 
 5. To learn what becomes of the cotyledons when the seed 
 germinates. 
 
 Plant some seeds of peas and beans in a box or 
 tumbler filled with soil or saw dust. When the plants 
 are an inch or two high, carefully pull up the whole 
 plant and find the cotyledons. The children may 
 make a drawing showing the difference. 
 
 C. Work of roots. 
 
 1. Root hairs. The work of absorbing moisture is done 
 by the root hairs. To show these, put two thicknesses 
 of moist blotting-paper in the bottom of a tumbler. 
 On this place a few radish seeds. Cover with another 
 tumbler. Keep the paper moist. Notice the location
 
 GARDENING 133 
 
 and variation in the length of the root hairs. Have the 
 children draw the root hairs. 
 
 2. Direction of growth. In order to show the direction in 
 which the root of a seedling grows, plant some radish 
 seeds in the pocket garden described on page 130. 
 Stand the garden on edge. When the roots are about a 
 half -inch long, turn the garden one fourth way round. 
 Notice the effect on the tip of the root and how long 
 it takes before the effect is shown. Turn through 
 another ninety degrees and allow to stand for a day. 
 Turn several times more. Have the children make 
 drawings showing the various positions of the root. 
 
 3. Food storage in roots carrot basket. Some roots serve 
 the purpose of storing food. This may be nicely illus- 
 trated by making a carrot basket. Cut a carrot in 
 two crosswise about in the middle. Take the top half 
 and hollow out the center from the cut end, leaving a 
 shell of the root around the outside. Fill this with 
 water. Suspend this by means of strings or wires in 
 the window. Keep the carrot filled with water and 
 in a short time the leaves will begin to grow out and 
 will curve up around the carrot making a very attrac- 
 tive object. 
 
 D. Work of the stem. 
 
 1. Passage of sap up the stem. The two chief duties of the 
 stem are to conduct liquids and to hold up the leaves 
 to the sunlight. To show the work in conducting 
 liquids, take a piece of a twig of a tree about the size 
 of a lead pencil and put one end in red ink. Allow to 
 stand for a few hours. Then with a jack-knife make 
 sections across the part of the stem that was above the 
 ink. The red ring shows where the sap goes up the stem. 
 
 2. -Direction of growth. Plant some sunflower seed in a 
 flower pot filled with soil. When the young plants are
 
 134 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 about three inches high, place the flower pot on its 
 side and allow to remain a few days. Notice the direc- 
 tion of growth of the stem. 
 
 E. Work of the leaf. The two chief duties of the leaf are 
 transpiration and starch-making. To show the passage of 
 water through the leaf, put the end of a spray of leaves 
 into some red ink. Notice through what parts of the leaf 
 the red ink passes. 
 
 1. Transpiration. To show transpiration, fill a tumbler 
 with water; over it put a piece of paper. Make a hole 
 in the center of the paper and put the stem of a large 
 leaf through it. Invert a clean tumbler over the leaf 
 and put in a sunny position. Notice what forms on 
 the sides of the tumbler. How long does it take before 
 it begins to form? Put in a shady place and see how 
 long it takes. 
 
 2. Light and starch-making. Experiments to illustrate the 
 process of starch-making are too difficult to perform 
 in the ordinary schoolroom, but one simple experiment 
 may be performed out of doors to show the need of 
 sunlight in the process of starch-making. Put a piece 
 of board on the grass. At the end of a week lift the 
 board and look at the grass. What change has taken 
 place? Remove the board and notice the grass at the 
 end of another week. What does this experiment 
 show? 
 
 3. Leaf exposure to sunlight. Notice the tips of both 
 horizontal and vertical branches on the elm and 
 maple. Note the position of the leaf surface with 
 reference to the light, and note how the petioles help 
 the surfaces to attain this position. Some of these 
 branches may be cut off and brought into the school- 
 room to study. Notice also the position of leaves of a 
 vine growing on a building.
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 LESSONS WITH WEEDS 
 
 Motivation. Weeds touch the child's life in three ways: 
 they are one of the most common forms of plant life that 
 he sees on every hand; they are an enemy of his garden; 
 and some weeds are poisonous either to touch or to taste. 
 These three points of contact suggest the lines along which 
 the work with weeds may proceed: the identification and 
 control of common weeds. The application is found in the 
 ability of the child to go out and name the common weeds, 
 and in his applying proper methods to control the weeds 
 in his garden. 
 
 Collections. Weeds are so common that there is no 
 trouble in securing an abundance of materials. An interest- 
 ing line of work is to have two types of collections made, 
 one of the plants and one of the seeds. In starting a collec- 
 tion some definite problem should be suggested, such as to 
 make a collection of the weeds found in the garden, or those 
 found by the roadside, or in vacant lots, or in the cornfield. 
 The plants may be pressed the same as leaves, as explained 
 on page 90. 
 
 To mount the weeds secure pieces of heavy paper or light 
 cardboard of some uniform size. Place the weed on this and 
 fasten it by means of narrow strips of gummed paper, 
 which should be put over the parts of the plants in several 
 places and stuck to the cardboard. Beneath each specimen 
 write the name of the plant, the place where collected, and 
 other points of interest. 
 
 If" one wishes a more permanent mount, a piece of glass 
 may be placed over the specimen and the glass and card-
 
 136 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 board fastened together around the edge with passe- 
 partout binding paper. 
 
 In a few years a collection of most of the common weeds 
 may be obtained. In case any specimens of either plants or 
 seeds cannot be identified by means of the books at hand, 
 they may be sent to the State Agricultural College. 
 
 Seed collections. Collections may also be made of weed 
 seeds. These may be placed in small vials, which can be 
 mounted on cardboard. Another very satisfactory method 
 of keeping the seeds is to mount them between two pieces 
 of glass. For this purpose secure two pieces of glass of the 
 same size (old negatives serve the purpose nicely), and a 
 piece of cardboard of the same size, but of extra thickness. 
 Plaster-board sold at the lumber dealers, or tarboard obtain- 
 able at the printing offices, may be used. In this bore a 
 series of holes in regular order about one-half inch in diam- 
 eter. In order to get the holes clean-cut, after boring part- 
 way through on one side of the cardboard, remove the 
 bit and finish the hole by boring from the other side. The 
 holes may also be made by a gun punch used in cutting 
 wads for shells. Glue a piece of white paper to one side of 
 the cardboard. 
 
 When as many kinds of seeds have been collected as 
 there are holes in the cardboard, place a piece of glass on 
 the table, and on the glass put the cardboard. Place the 
 weed seeds in the holes and write the name below each 
 hole. Then put the other piece of glass on top and bind 
 the two pieces together at the edges with passe-partout 
 binding paper or adhesive tape. This gives a very conven- 
 ient mount. It is compact and the seeds can easily be seen 
 and examined with a magnifying glass. The Specialty 
 Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minnesota, sells for 
 fifteen cents a complete outfit of this kind for mounting 
 twenty-four kinds of seeds.
 
 LESSONS WITH WEEDS 137 
 
 Cases of weed seeds mounted in this way have been put 
 up for sale by the Weed Seed Laboratory, State Agricul- 
 tural College, St. Paul, Minnesota. Each case contains 
 twenty-four kinds of seeds. So far four cases have been 
 mounted. The price is fifty cents per case. These are very 
 helpful in identifying the seeds that the children bring. 
 Perhaps the children might be interested to raise the 
 money in some way to buy the cases, or they might be 
 bought by the school board. 
 
 Correlation. There are many opportunities for correla- 
 tion in connection with art in having the children make 
 drawings of the various parts of the plant. It adds interest 
 to have the children make booklets, in which may be kept 
 a series of drawings of different weeds. Small pieces of the 
 weed plant may be pressed and mounted in these booklets 
 together with the drawings. If desired, the language work 
 may be correlated here and brief compositions on weeds 
 may be kept in the same booklet. 
 
 Arithmetic. A number of problems relative to the repro- 
 ductive power of weeds may be given. 
 
 1. It has been estimated that a single plant of pigweed may pro- 
 duce 300,000 seeds. If each seed grows to form a plant bearing 
 the same number of seeds and this continued year after year, 
 how many seeds would there be at the end of the fifth season? 
 
 2. A single plant of Indian mallow was found to produce 2480 
 seeds, and to cover 315 square inches of space. If each seed 
 should form a plant of the average size bearing the above 
 number of seeds, how much space would these plants cover 
 the next season? How much space the season following this? 
 
 3. Take some common weed and estimate the number of seeds 
 it produces and the area covered by one plant, and then com- 
 pute the area covered by its descendants at the end of the 
 third season. 
 
 Most of the work with weeds is best carried on in the 
 grammar grades, although a little might be done in the
 
 138 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 upper intermediate grades. The autumn is the best time on 
 account of the great abundance of material at that time. 
 In the spring, when the gardens are started, attention may 
 be called to the best methods of keeping weeds out of the 
 garden. 
 
 Following is a brief outline of the main points to be 
 brought out in the study of a particular weed: 
 
 1. Identification. 
 
 A. By size and general form. 
 
 B. By leaves. 
 
 C. By flowers. 
 
 D. By fruit. 
 
 E. By habits of growth. 
 
 2. Harm done. 
 
 3. Kind (annual, biennial, or perennial). 
 
 4. Troublesome characters of seeds. 
 
 A. Number on a plant. 
 
 B. Adaptation for dispersal. 
 
 C. Number of years retain vitality. 
 
 5. Means of control. 
 
 Lessons on weeds 
 TOPIC: POISON IVY 
 
 Materials: Leaves and fruit (if in season) of woodbine and poison 
 ivy. The leaf of the ivy may be collected with gloves on and put 
 into a glass jar and the cover put on. It will be better if a field 
 trip can be taken. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How may we tell poison ivy from woodbine, so that we may 
 avoid being poisoned by it? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Places where they grow. 
 
 2. Leaves. 
 
 A. Number of leaflets. 
 
 B. Margin of leaflets. 
 
 C. Size and shape of leaflets. 
 
 D. Petioles.
 
 LESSONS WITH WEEDS 139 
 
 3. Color of fruit. 
 
 4. Height to which plant grows. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to be on the watch for ivy, and if they see any 
 to report to the class where. Have a map made of the vicinity 
 of the school and on this mark the places where the ivy grows. 
 Have a collection of poisonous plants made. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have the children make drawing of the two leaves side by side. 
 
 This should be followed by another lesson on what to do in case 
 of poisoning by ivy. 
 
 TOPICS: PIGWEED AND LAMB'S QUARTERS (AUTUMN) 
 
 Materials: Specimen of a whole plant of each; several specimens 
 of leaves and fruit. 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How may the rough pigweed and lamb's quarters be told apart? 
 
 Outline of development. 
 
 1. Differences in leaves. 
 
 2. In fruit. 
 
 3. In seeds. 
 
 4. In form of plant. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask the children to bring a leaf of eacH kind of plant. Have a 
 collection made of weeds of the garden (both plants and 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Art. 
 
 Have drawings made of leaves of both plants; also of seeds 
 enlarged as seen under a magnifying glass. 
 
 TOPIC: NUMBER OF SEEDS ON A PLANT (AUTUMN) 
 
 Child's problem. 
 
 How many seeds does a single plant of burdock (or other plant) 
 produce?
 
 140 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Materials and method: Have an entire plant of several kinds of 
 weeds brought into the schoolroom. Divide the children into as 
 many groups as there are kinds of weeds to be studied, and dis- 
 tribute among them portions of the plant. Or if the plant is a 
 large one, the whole school may work on the same plant. Show 
 them how to count a small portion carefully, and then estimate 
 the proportions of the whole that this part is. Put the results 
 on the board and add all together, so as to get the total number 
 of seeds on the plant. 
 
 Correlated work. 
 Arithmetic. 
 
 Ask them to determine for each plant the number of seeds 
 that might be produced in three years if all the seeds grew 
 and bore the same number of plants as this one. 
 
 Application. 
 
 Ask each child to find a plant outdoors like the one he has been 
 studying and estimate the area of ground it covers. Take the 
 average of the reports given by the children. Then ask them 
 to figure out what area would be occupied by the plants grow- 
 ing from the seeds on a single plant? What area the next sea- 
 son following? 
 
 To show the part that birds play in eating weed seeds, have the 
 children gather the same kind of weeds in the spring and estimate 
 the number of seeds found then. When the weeds are gathered, 
 look closely on the ground beneath to see if many seeds are found. 
 
 Seeds in soil. To show the abundance of weed seeds in 
 almost all kinds of soils, have small quantities of soils 
 brought in from a variety of situations: from the garden; 
 from the edge of a pond; from different levels in a cellar 
 that is being dug; from the roadside; from a vacant lot, etc. 
 Place in separate flower pots. Keep in a warm place, water 
 the soil, and notice how many plants come up.
 
 PART IV 
 HYGIENE
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 
 
 Importance. The importance of health in everything that 
 one undertakes in life, and hence the supreme importance 
 of teaching boys and girls how to care for their health, is 
 self-evident. Hygiene is the most important subject in the 
 school curriculum. All that the child may learn about 
 history and geography fades into insignificance compared 
 with the tremendous value of health. And yet, in spite of 
 its overshadowing importance, it is one of the most neglected 
 subjects in the curriculum. It is a sad reflection upon the 
 efficiency of our school system that the most vital subject 
 should receive so little attention. 
 
 Results in the past. It seems to be the general consensus 
 of opinion of careful observers that the teaching of physi- 
 ology and hygiene in the schools has largely been a failure, 
 when judged by the results obtained in the lives of the 
 children. If the teaching of hygiene is to be effective, it 
 must show its effect upon the habits of living practiced by 
 boys and girls. Judged on this basis, physiology teaching 
 has not proved successful. 
 
 As a definite illustration of this fact the following figures 
 will be of interest. Dr. Hoag was employed by the Minne- 
 sota State Board of Health to travel through the State and 
 visit the schools to ascertain the general health conditions 
 and to recommend remedies. In the towns that he visited, 
 he secured information regarding the health habits of the 
 children. When the results obtained from several thousand 
 children in a number of cities and towns were tabulated, 
 the following figures were found:
 
 144 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Thirty-seven per cent had no ventilation of bedroom. 
 Only nineteen per cent used a toothbrush daily. 
 Nine per cent used a common toothbrush. 
 Fifty per cent had never been to a dentist. 
 Seventy-one per cent used coffee daily. 
 Eighty-two had no fruit for breakfast. 
 
 The conditions found in each of the towns were approxi- 
 mately the same. When one considers the appalling lack of 
 proper habits regarding the great essentials of air, food, and 
 cleanliness displayed by these results, the crying need of 
 teaching children the proper habits of living is very evident. 
 
 Another indication that the American people are not fol- 
 lowing hygienic habits of living is found in the fact that the 
 death-rate for people over forty years of age is increasing 
 in the United States, although it is decreasing in Europe. 
 
 Causes for failure. It is not difficult to find some of the 
 reasons for the failure of physiology teaching. In the first 
 place, it has been anatomy and physiology that have been 
 taught, and not hygiene, and so the whole point has been 
 missed. Teachers are frequently not prepared to teach the 
 subject and dislike it, and this feeling is caught by the 
 children. The excuse has sometimes been given that time 
 enough could not be found to teach it. This, of course, 
 simply shows lack of understanding of the importance of 
 the subject. The most important things must be taught, 
 and minor things must give way. 
 
 Many of the textbooks used have been poorly adapted 
 to the child in every way, in the topics treated and in the 
 method of treatment. In some cases an excessive amount 
 of time devoted to temperance physiology has given the 
 children a dislike for the subject, and has given a wrong 
 perspective of the whole subject of hygiene. 
 
 Essentials for good teaching: (1) Formation of proper 
 habits. We will now pass from negative to positive considera-
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 145 
 
 tions, and discuss some of the things essential for the success- 
 ful teaching of hygiene. First and foremost, and always to be 
 kept in mind by the teacher, is the fact that the purpose of 
 teaching hygiene is to help the child to form proper habits 
 of living. The only and sole purpose of the subject is to 
 teach the child how to look after his health and that of the 
 community. Any teaching of hygiene that does not have 
 this purpose must necessarily be a failure; and any teaching 
 that does not procure this result is a failure. Habit forma- 
 tion, then, is the keynote. The mere giving of information 
 is valuable only so far as it helps in the forming of habits; 
 but simply to give the child information about hygiene 
 which he does not apply falls wide of the mark. The child 
 should be taught how to do, rather than why. 
 
 This is especially true of the lower grades, as very little 
 work in the formal teaching of hygiene by set lessons can 
 be done. But much can be done to help the children to 
 form correct habits. The actual results obtained depend 
 partly upon the home influences. If the parents cooperate 
 with the teacher, much good can be done; if the parents are 
 indifferent, less can be accomplished, but still something 
 can be done. 
 
 Home habits. The following are the more essential habits 
 of hygiene that the teacher should try to have the children 
 acquire: (1) washing hands before eating; (2) thorough 
 mastication of food; (3) abstaining from tea and coffee; 
 (4) cleaning teeth daily; (5) retiring early; (6) ventilation 
 of sleeping-room; (7) playing out of doors regularly; (8) care 
 of the eyes in reading. 
 
 Simply to give a lesson on each of these habits is not 
 enough; it is but the initial step. The child's habits must 
 be followed from week to week. Frequently the teacher 
 should have the children report on the extent to which 
 they are doing the things suggested, and in many ways the
 
 146 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 teacher should seek to call the matter to their attention. 
 The secret of success in forming habits is constant repeti- 
 tion. 
 
 School habits. There are some habits which the teacher 
 can directly supervise in the schoolroom, such as the fol- 
 lowing: (1) correct posture; (2) use of eyes; (3) cleanliness 
 of hands, face, and clothing; (4) use of individual towels. 
 These come under the constant supervision of the teacher, 
 and these matters should often be brought to the attention 
 of the children till the correct habits are formed. 
 
 Habits to discourage. There are often some bad habits 
 which children acquire that the teacher should discourage 
 and try to break up; such as: (1) putting things in the ear, 
 and using objects like hairpins to clean the ear; (2) expecto- 
 rating on the floor; (3) coughing in other people's faces; 
 (4) reading in dim light; (5) putting objects in the mouth. 
 In order to break up a habit, the teacher must frequently 
 call the attention of the children to it and get them to 
 thinking about it, instead of doing it automatically. 
 
 The teacher must realize at the start the fundamental 
 importance of the subject, and must let nothing swerve her 
 from the main purpose. It is a difficult matter to form health 
 habits and requires constant and continued effort on the 
 part of both the teacher and child till the habit is formed. 
 Mere knowledge of a fact does not mean that the child will 
 apply it. Further suggestions by the teacher are needed tc 
 help the child act. 
 
 (2) Teacher's habits. The teacher herself must have the 
 proper habits of living, both for her own sake that she may 
 make the most of life, and for the sake of the children that 
 her example may be a model for the children to follow. 
 
 (3) Hygiene, not anatomy and physiology. The thing to 
 emphasize is hygiene, and not anatomy and physiology. 
 The human body is too complicated a mechanism for the
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 147 
 
 pupil to understand, in the first place; and furthermore, 
 knowledge of anatomy and physiology has practically no 
 influence on the formation of health habits. The time to 
 form these habits is when the child is very young, in the 
 primary grade, and when he cannot understand even the 
 reasons for them; but the thing to do is to get the habit 
 formed. In carrying on actions by habits the child does not 
 have time to think; if he did, the action would cease to be a 
 habit. Anatomy has no place whatever in the elementary 
 schools, and physiology only a very minor place, such that 
 the child may understand in a very general way the purpose 
 of the heart, stomach, and other organs of the body. How 
 absurd to-day seem the old methods of attempting to teach 
 the care of the body by having the children learn the names 
 of the bones, and having them trace on a chart the circu- 
 lation of the blood. 
 
 (4} Emphasis on positive side. The positive side of good 
 health should be emphasized, rather than the negative side 
 of disease. The child should have held up before him the 
 ideals of good health and the value of health in everything 
 that he wishes to do. He should be led into good habits by 
 the desire to attain good results, not by the fear of ill results. 
 This statement is based on a well-known truth in psychol- 
 ogy, that a stronger appeal can be made to a child through 
 desire than through fear. Too much emphasis on the dis- 
 ease side and the ill effects of improper habits of living may 
 produce a morbid feeling that is distinctly injurious. 
 
 (5) Both personal and public hygiene to be taught. But the 
 entire emphasis should not be laid on personal hygiene. In 
 the earlier years special attention may be given to forming 
 correct personal habits. In the later years special consider- 
 ation should be given to the health of the community. 
 Attention should be called to those matters in which all 
 are equally concerned and for which all must cooperate,
 
 148 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 such as the public water supply, the milk supply, the food 
 supply, and the control of contagious diseases. The child 
 is to work not merely for himself, but for others as well. 
 And, of course, this emphasis on public hygiene eventually 
 gets back to a renewed emphasis on personal hygiene; but it 
 is from a new standpoint, that of the relation of these habits 
 to the welfare of other people; so that the child has a double 
 incentive for correct living, for himself and for others. 
 
 (6) Constant supervision. Hygiene should be taught, not as 
 an isolated subject that comes at a certain period of the day 
 and then is forgotten, but as a constant part of all the daily 
 school life of the child. At any and every part of the day 
 that any point of hygiene is involved, then should the 
 teacher see that the proper thing is done. The habits of the 
 child should be under constant supervision by the teacher 
 at all times. 
 
 Motivation. One of the first essentials in teaching is to 
 arouse the children's interest. How may this be done in 
 hygiene? At the outset we meet a discouraging fact, but 
 one which we must face, namely, that children have little 
 or no interest in health as an aim in itself. This being the 
 case, we must find some interests which can be used indi- 
 rectly to promote health habits. All possible interests, both 
 direct and indirect, must be found in the present activities 
 of the child. The child is not interested in the dim and dis- 
 tant future. To seek to interest a child in what may happen 
 in his life ten or even five years ahead means nothing to him. 
 It makes no appeal to him. Our appeal must be made to 
 the present. 
 
 There are a number of ways in which the interests of the 
 child may be appealed to and used indirectly in teaching 
 hygiene. Among these are the following: play instincts, 
 desire for teacher's approval, competition, imitation, drama- 
 tization, and grading pupils on habits rather than knowledge,
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 149 
 
 CO Play and exercise. It is a very easy matter to get the 
 child to acquire habits of exercise through play. This in- 
 stinct is very strong and forms a large part of the child's 
 life. It simply needs to be encouraged and guided into those 
 kinds of plays that require exercise and take the child out 
 of doors. No attempt will be made here to suggest any 
 specific games, as there are a number of books that go into 
 this matter quite fully. 
 
 (2} Teacher' 's approval. If there exists the right feeling of 
 friendliness and cooperation between the teacher and child, 
 he will be glad to do things to please the teacher. And if he 
 has confidence in her, he may be led to do certain things 
 which the teacher tells him are best for him to do, even if he 
 does not understand the reasons for doing them. The teacher 
 may use this spirit to help the child in forming desirable 
 habits. 
 
 (3) Competition. Competition is always more or less of 
 an element all through the child's life. While this may be 
 carried to an extreme, it has its place and may be used by 
 the teacher in teaching hygiene. After the teacher has made 
 clear to the children what the desirable habits of hygiene 
 are, she may stimulate a little emulation in the children, as 
 is often profitably done in other subjects. She might have 
 a roll of honor list on the board, and those who have done 
 certain things for a week would have their names placed 
 there. Or all the names might be placed on the board and 
 stars put after each name, whenever certain things at home 
 or school had been done, such as cleaning the teeth or going 
 without coffee. The children's hands may be examined each 
 morning to see which have the cleanest hands. Competition 
 may be started between the different rows to see which row 
 can keep their teeth the cleanest. Similarly, other desirable 
 habits may be taken, and other similar devices will suggest 
 themselves.
 
 150 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 CO Imitation. Imitation is one of the commonest methods 
 by which the child acquires habits. This is usually uncon- 
 scious on the part of both the child and the one who is being 
 imitated. Here is one of the strongest reasons, from the 
 school standpoint, why the teacher herself should have 
 correct habits of living. The children will unconsciously 
 imitate her, and, if her habits do not correspond with the 
 teaching, little good can be done. But if they do harmonize, 
 this will make another link in the chain which is helping 
 the children form correct habits. The teacher may find some 
 person whom the child particularly admires, and he may 
 thus be stimulated to imitate desirable habits that this per- 
 son may possess. 
 
 (5) Dramatization. Dramatization is a very powerful 
 means of interesting children and teaching various lessons, 
 as this involves the play instinct. In case of those activities 
 which occur at home, the children may play the various parts 
 as they should be done. To show how to use the eyes in read- 
 ing, a table may be arranged to represent a home circle and 
 various children may take the part of father, mother, and 
 children. The parents may then show the children how they 
 should sit with reference to the light. The part may be 
 played again by other children. 
 
 To teach some of the rules of eating, a table may be sup- 
 posed to be set with various foods, which may be indicated 
 by pieces of paper with names of food written on them. 
 Two children may represent the parents and may take the 
 responsibility to see that others who act as their children 
 take the right kinds of food. Mistakes should be corrected. 
 In a similar way other habits may be acted out, such 
 as opening a window before going to bed. The child may 
 take a toothbrush and tumbler and go through the motions 
 of cleaning his teeth. The girls may show how to care for 
 food, and how to keep the house clean. Certain children
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 151 
 
 who take the part of parents may give lessons in their own 
 language to other pupils playing the part of their children. 
 They may be allowed to write a drama of their own and 
 present it. 
 
 Treatment for emergencies may be acted out by suppos- 
 ing that some child in the room has met with an accident, 
 and having the other children treat him. 
 
 Fifteen playlets for children on health subjects have 
 been prepared by the National Association for the Study 
 of Tuberculosis, whose address is given on page 152. 
 
 (6) Credit for habits. The child should be judged and 
 graded, if grading must be done, not by what he knows about 
 the subject, but by what he does. The child's habits at school 
 should be watched, and the extent to which he is carrying 
 out proper habits at home should be learned by observation 
 and by questioning, and the child graded accordingly. This 
 will be one stimulus to help him acquire proper habits. This 
 is an extension in one particular field of a principle which is 
 receiving recognition in many schools, namely, giving school 
 credit for home work. And so here we may give credit for 
 home habits. Perhaps, to begin with, the grades might be 
 based half on the child's knowledge, in case a textbook is 
 used, and half on his application of this knowledge. 
 
 On page 152 is given a health record that the author has 
 used successfully in the intermediate grades. The time for 
 retiring will vary according to the grade. 
 
 Each child fills out his blank with the assistance of the 
 parents, who sign the record at the end of each week. 
 These blanks are then brought to school. 
 
 In order to arouse interest and stimulate competition a 
 Health League was formed by the different rooms using 
 this record. The average grade of all the children in each 
 room was taken weekly. An appropriate chart was posted 
 in a conspicuous place and on this were written the names
 
 152 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 RECORD OF HEALTH HABITS 
 
 
 Daily 
 
 Mon- 
 
 Tues- 
 
 Wednei- 
 
 Thun- 
 
 Fri- 
 
 Satur- 
 
 Sun- 
 
 
 credit 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 day 
 
 Wash hands before each meal . 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Do not use tea or coffee 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Clean teeth daily 
 Exercise one hour outdoors . . . 
 
 16 
 16 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Sleep with window open 
 Retire before 9:00 
 jjatne once a WCCK 
 
 16 
 16 
 4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 100 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 I believe this report to be a truthful statement of my child's habits for the week. (To 
 be signed by parent.) 
 
 of the rooms and their averages, the highest first. A hygiene 
 banner was provided and the class having the highest aver- 
 age kept the banner hi its room for a week. New averages 
 were made up at the beginning of each week and the banner 
 awarded accordingly. 
 
 The reports of the parents and teachers indicated that 
 the plan was eminently successful. 
 
 An organization known as the "Modern Health Cru- 
 saders " has recently been formed, as a means of inducing 
 children to form hygienic habits of living. There has been 
 published a list of health chores, somewhat similar to those 
 given in the above health record. Children who perform 
 eighty per cent of these chores for certain periods of time 
 receive various titles according to the length of the period 
 that the chores are done. At the beginning of 1918 this or- 
 ganization had a membership of several hundred thousand. 
 
 Full particulars may be obtained by writing "The Na- 
 tional Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuber- 
 culosis," 105 East 22d Street, New York City. 
 
 Science method. Another way to arouse interest is to use 
 the science approach and method in teaching the lessons on 
 hygiene. As far as possible provide concrete material which 
 the child can study, and with which experiments may be
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 153 
 
 performed. In studying the hygiene of breathing and ven- 
 tilation, perform some simple experiments showing the com- 
 position and pressure of air, and then pass to the hygienf 
 of air. The study of water may be introduced by experi- 
 ments showing some properties of water, and the changes 
 in state through which water passes. Foods may be brought 
 into the schoolroom and tested for their constituents, fats, 
 proteins, and carbo-hydrates. In each of these cases, having 
 aroused the interest of the children in the general topic by 
 means of concrete experiments, the hygienic applications 
 of the topic may then be presented to the children. In 
 chapter XV more definite suggestions are given along this 
 line. 
 
 Work in primary grades. As we have already seen, the 
 chief thing in the primary grades is to encourage the forma- 
 tion of health habits. One of the best ways to encourage 
 these is a frequent inspection of each pupil. This may be 
 given several times a week, or perhaps every day. The 
 children may be taken in rows and examined a row at a 
 time for the following features: (1) cleanliness of hands and 
 nails; (2) cleanliness of face and ears; (3) cleanliness of 
 teeth; (4) cleanliness of clothing; (5) care of hair. Those 
 who are very unclean may be sent to the washroom to get 
 cleaned up. As a stimulus for keeping clean, perhaps those 
 who are generally unclean may be put in a division by 
 themselves and called the "unclean" or "careless" squad, 
 till they deserve promotion by being more careful. The 
 exact things to be done must depend on the homes from 
 which the children come. The teacher must use tact, as the 
 condition of the child usually reflects the ideals of the 
 home. 
 
 Hygiene charts. One very effective way of arousing the 
 child's interest and leading his attention to certain desirable 
 habits is the construction of hygiene charts by the children.
 
 154 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Following are suggested some possible topics for each of 
 which a chart may be worked out : 
 
 How to Keep Clean. 
 
 A Good Breakfast, or Dinner, or Supper. 
 
 Good Drinks for Children. 
 
 How to Get Fresh Air. 
 
 How to Get Exercise. 
 
 How to Clean the Teeth. 
 
 Where my Mittens Came From. 
 
 In some schools toothbrush drills are given, in which the 
 children are shown how to brush their teeth. 
 
 Work in intermediate grades. In the lower intermediate 
 grades the work may proceed along lines similar to those 
 followed in the primary grades, but the work should be 
 extended to meet the growing capacity of the child, and 
 oral lessons on hygiene given in the fourth and fifth 
 grades. Some of the simple experiments given in chapter 
 XV may be performed in the intermediate grades. In the 
 sixth grade a simple textbook on personal hygiene may be 
 used. 
 
 Textbooks. Great care should be used in selecting a text- 
 book. Not many years ago there were no satisfactory texts 
 really suited to grade use, but in recent years a number of 
 really good books have appeared. A satisfactory text for 
 the sixth grade should be written almost entirely from the 
 standpoint of hygiene. It should contain very little if any 
 reference to anatomy or physiology. It should be organized 
 from the child's standpoint, and written in such simple 
 language that the child can understand it. It should con- 
 tain a large number of appropriate illustrations. 
 
 It seems desirable to use two textbooks throughout the 
 grades, one in the sixth grade emphasizing personal 
 hygiene, and another in the seventh or eighth grade empha- 
 sizing public hygiene.
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 155 
 
 For books on personal hygiene, suitable for the sixth 
 grade, the following are recommended : 
 
 Hutchinson, The Child's Day. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 
 O'Shea and Kellogg, Health Habits. The Macmillan Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 Jewett, Good Health. Ginn & Company, Boston. 
 
 For texts on public hygiene suitable for the grammar 
 grades the following are recommended : 
 
 Hutchinson, Community Hygiene. Houghton Mifflin Company, 
 Boston. 
 
 Coleman, The People's Health. The Macmillan Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 O'Shea and Kellogg, Health and Cleanliness. The Macmillan 
 Company, New York City. 
 
 Work in grammar grades. In the grammar grades the 
 emphasis should be placed on public hygiene, with special 
 reference to the local conditions. Some good text should be 
 used, and the principles and suggestions there found should 
 be applied to the immediate community. A study should 
 be made of the health conditions in the town to see what 
 can be done to better them, and what the children can do 
 to help make and keep the town clean and healthful. 
 
 A bulletin board may be provided on which may be posted 
 clippings on various topics which have been brought in by 
 the children. 
 
 Most of the experiments suggested in chapter XV may 
 be performed in these grades. 
 
 Special attention may be given to keeping the schoolroom 
 and grounds in the best possible condition. Committees 
 may be appointed to supervise certain things, such as a 
 ventilation committee to watch the ventilation and tem- 
 perature of the room, a lighting committee to watch the 
 shades, a playground committee to care for the playground.
 
 156 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 This might be assigned as a part of the work in hygiene, and 
 the pupils graded accordingly. Some of the older pupils 
 might be appointed as building inspectors to watch the 
 thermometers in the primary rooms, in cases where this is 
 not already being done by the janitor or by somebody 
 else. 
 
 Outline of hygiene. A detailed outline of hygiene, ar- 
 ranged by grades and seasons, is given in the general outline 
 of science in chapter XIX. Most of this is put in the winter 
 term, because it is desired to use the autumn and spring for 
 out-of-door studies of nature. 
 
 Temperance physiology. During the past twenty-five 
 years considerable attention has been given in textbooks 
 to so-called "temperance physiology," which term has been 
 used to mean a study of the effects of alcoholic drinks on 
 the human system. In some cases the teaching of this has 
 been made compulsory by State laws. It seems to be the 
 nearly universal opinion of educators that this teaching has 
 not been based on sound pedagogy. Some of the mistakes 
 that have been made in the past, and hence to be avoided 
 in the future, are, first, too much emphasis on the extremes, 
 such as the case of the drunkard, and too much emphasis 
 on the effect on the various organs of the body, by means of 
 charts showing pictures of the drunkard's stomach, liver, 
 etc. Too often the teaching has been done in such a way as 
 to leave the impression that these extreme results are the 
 common thing, and that they always follow from the use 
 of alcohol. 
 
 In order to make the teaching of the effects of alcohol 
 effective, appeals must be made to the children's experiences 
 and to their present life. To seek for a motive in what might 
 happen in ten or fifteen years is worthless. The child is 
 interested only in the present or immediate future. The 
 remote possibility that the child might become a drunkard,
 
 THE TEACHING OF HYGIENE 157 
 
 if he started to drink alcoholic liquors, makes no appeal to 
 him. 
 
 The whole question of the physiological effect of alcohol 
 is very complicated, but the child can be taught that even 
 in small quantities it is injurious to the growing tissues of 
 boys and girls. 
 
 The effect of the use of alcoholic liquors on the child's 
 life may be shown in two ways. One way applies to all chil- 
 dren. Alcohol, through causing paupers, criminals, and 
 insane people, creates an increase in the taxes that the 
 child's father must pay, and hence that leaves less money 
 to be used for the needs of the child. In case a child's father 
 uses alcohol, the effect on the family through the squander- 
 ing of money, and perhaps the physical abuse of the chil- 
 dren, may be noted as another way in which alcohol may 
 affect the child's life. Of course, this can be discussed only 
 in a general way before a schoolroom of children. 
 
 The disagreeable and dangerous acts of men under the 
 influence of liquor may be cited as a thing that makes the 
 town a less desirable place for the child to live in. 
 
 When the boy becomes of an age when he is looking for a 
 position, then it may be pointed out to him that there are 
 certain positions where no one will be employed who uses 
 alcohol, and that in most other positions a person who does 
 not drink stands a better chance than one who does. This 
 makes a direct appeal to the boy. 
 
 Teaching hygiene by jingles and stories. Lessons in 
 hygiene may be brought home to the child forcibly by means 
 of jingles. The following example is taken from Dr. Allen's 
 Alice in Wonderland : 
 
 " Mary had a little cold, 
 
 It started in her head: 
 And everywhere that Mary went 
 That cold was sure to spread.
 
 158 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 "She took it into school one day, 
 
 There was n't any rule : 
 It made the children cough and sneeze, 
 To have that cold in school. 
 
 '. "The teacher tried to drive it out, 
 
 She tried hard, but ker-choo; 
 It did n't do a bit of good, 
 'Cause teacher caught it too." 
 
 Health lessons may also be taught by means of stories. 
 The following pamphlets relating to the care of the teeth 
 are adapted for use with the primary and intermediate 
 grades, and may be obtained free from the Colgate Company, 
 New York City: The Jungle School; Magic Pearls; Dental 
 Lectures; Instructions for the Home Care of the Teeth. A 
 story, entitled The Owchies and the Denties, may be obtained 
 free from the Webster Chemical Company, St. Paul, Min- 
 nesota.
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 TEACHING HYGIENE THROUGH EXPERIMENTS 
 
 THE science approach will make the subject of hygiene 
 more interesting and so lead to more effective results. If 
 concrete materials are used in connection with lessons in 
 hygiene, these may be employed as an introduction to the 
 application of the laws of hygiene that it is desired the child 
 shall make. In this chapter are described a number of sim- 
 ple experiments that may be taken up in connection with 
 hygiene. These are intended to be merely suggestive. Many 
 other lessons should be worked out in connection with them, 
 and emphasis placed on the appropriate applications. They 
 are adapted to the grammar and upper intermediate grades. 
 These experiments are arranged under the topics of hygiene 
 which they most closely illustrate. 
 
 L BREATHING AND VENTILATION 
 A. Breathing 
 
 1. Composition of the air. 
 
 Apparatus: Candle, cork, plate, tumbler, lime water. 
 
 a. Get a cork stopper a little larger than the diameter of a candle. 
 Cut off a piece about a half-inch thick from the large end. In the 
 center cut a hole big enough to receive a short candle about an inch 
 long. Float this in a plate filled with water. Light the candle, and 
 after it is burning well, invert the glass tumbler over it. Allow to 
 stand for a few minutes. Why does the candle go out? What hap- 
 pens to the water? The water rises to take the place of the oxygen 
 used by the candle. The gas left in the tumbler is nitrogen. 
 
 b. To show the presence of carbon dioxide, pour some lime 
 water in a dish and allow to stand for several hours. The white 
 coating that forms on the surface shows the presence of carbon 
 dioxide.
 
 160 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 c. To show the presence of water in the air, bring into the school- 
 room a metal cup containing ice water. The water that condenses 
 on the outside of the cup comes from the air. 
 
 2. Effect on air of breathing. 
 
 How does the air we breathe out differ from the air we breathe 
 in? 
 
 a. Breathe on the bulb of a thermometer and compare the tem- 
 perature with that of the room. 
 
 b. Pour some lime water into a bottle and blow through it by 
 means of a straw or tube. Pour some lime water into another bottle 
 and force air through it with a bicycle pump. Which gets the 
 milkier? What does this show? 
 
 c. Breathe on a window pane. What do the results show? 
 
 d. What three changes have taken place in the air we breathe 
 out? 
 
 3. Rate of breathing. 
 
 While the teacher times them by a watch, have each child count 
 the number of times he breathes in a minute. Repeat several 
 times to find the average. Find the average for the whole class. 
 
 Try it again after the children have been taking some vigorous 
 exercise like running. 
 
 4. Amount of air breathed. 
 
 Apparatus: A two-quart canning-jar, large pan, glass tube bent 
 at one end, or a piece of rubber tubing with a bent piece of glass 
 tubing inserted at one end. 
 
 a. Fill the jar with water, cover with a piece of cardboard and 
 invert it in the pan of water without allowing the water to escape 
 from the jar. Insert the bent end of the tube under the mouth of 
 the jar. Have some child breathe through the tube till the water 
 is all forced out of the jar. See how many breaths are required to 
 fill the jar with air. Let several children try it. After each child 
 has used the tube, cleanse the end in some disinfectant, such as 
 hydrogen peroxide, and wash in water. From this experiment and 
 from a previous one showing how many times one breathes in a 
 minute, compute the amount of air that all of the children in the 
 room breathe in during a minute. 
 
 b. For another experiment the children may test their lung 
 capacity. Fill and invert the jar as above. After a child has taken
 
 EXPERIMENTS IN HYGIENE 161 
 
 a deep breath, let him force out all the water he can in one breath. 
 Record the amount on the board. Have a number of children try 
 
 this. 
 
 B. Ventilation 
 
 1. Ventilation of the schoolroom, 
 
 Apparatus: Two thermometers, a piece of soft muslin, touch 
 paper or joss sticks, tufts of down. 
 
 a. Amount of air entering. Throw a tuft of down in front of the 
 air inlet and estimate how far it travels in a second. Do this several 
 times and take the average for the velocity with which the air en- 
 ters. Measure the length and breadth of the air inlet. Find the 
 area and then multiply by the velocity to find the amount of air 
 entering in a second. Find how much enters in a minute. Compare 
 this with the amount of air that the children breathe each minute 
 as found in a previous experiment. 
 
 6. Direction of air currents. Light a joss stick or piece of cloth 
 and hold in different parts of the room and thus determine the 
 direction of the air currents by means of the smoke. Make a dia- 
 gram of the room on the board and indicate the air currents by 
 means of arrows. 
 
 c. Temperature. Place a thermometer in different parts of the 
 room and find the temperature. 
 
 d. Humidity. Fasten a piece of soft muslin cloth around the 
 bulb of one thermometer, and allow the other end of the cloth to 
 hang in a bottle filled with water. Hang another thermometer be- 
 side this. Fan the bulbs vigorously for a short time, then look at 
 the reading of the wet bulb. Continue to fan till the mercury in 
 the wet bulb ceases to go any lower. Then take the readings of 
 both thermometers. A slight difference means a moist air; a large 
 difference means a dry air. The percentage of humidity may be 
 found approximately from the following table: 
 
 Difference in readings Temperature (dry bulb) 
 
 40 50 60 70 80 
 
 4 68% 74% 78% 81% 83% 
 
 8 37 49 58 64 68 
 
 12 8 26 39 48 54 
 
 16 5 21 33 41 
 
 20 5 19 29
 
 162 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 To show the way of using the table, suppose the difference be- 
 tween the two thermometers is 16 and the reading of the dry bulb 
 is 70, the figure opposite 16 and under 70, in this case 33, gives the 
 per cent of humidity. 
 
 2. Conditions needed for ventilation. 
 
 Apparatus: Candle, lamp, chimney with even top, two matches, 
 cardboard. 
 
 Light the candle. Place the chimney over it. Why does the 
 candle go out? 
 
 Light the candle again. On each side place a match. On the 
 matches place the chimney and cover the top with the cardboard. 
 Why does the candle go out? 
 
 Repeat the previous experiment, except that the cardboard is 
 not placed over the chimney. Why does the candle continue to 
 burn? What do these experiments show? 
 
 Application. As a result of these experiments on breathing and 
 ventilation, the children should be led to see the need of ventila- 
 tion and the method by which it can be secured under all conditions. 
 Special emphasis should be placed on the ventilation of the school- 
 room and of the sleeping-room at night by the children. 
 
 II. HEATING THE HOME AND THE SCHOOLROOM 
 A. Sources of heat 
 
 Apparatus: Stick of wood, board with groove, file, nail, penny, 
 hammer, stone, sulphuric acid, unslaked lime, lime water, a burn- 
 ing-glass. 
 
 1. Friction. Rub a stick back and forth in a groove of wood; 
 feel of the wood. Rub a com over the table; feel of the coin. File a 
 nail vigorously, and then feel of the nail. 
 
 2. Percussion. Place a penny or a piece of metal on a stone and 
 strike it several times with a hammer; feel the metal. 
 
 3. Chemical action. Pour a few drops of sulphuric acid into a 
 small dish of water; notice the change in temperature by feeling 
 of the outside of the dish. Or add some water to unslaked lime 
 and note the results. 
 
 4. Electricity. Turn on the electric light and hold the hand over 
 the bulb. What do you notice? 
 
 5. Combustion. Light a splint of wood and insert it in a wide- 
 mouthed bottle. When it goes out, light it and insert in the
 
 EXPERIMENTS IN HYGIENE 163 
 
 bottle again. Pour some lime water into the bottle, cover with a 
 piece of cardboard, and shake. What change takes place in the 
 lime water? This white precipitate shows the presence of carbon 
 dioxide formed by the burning of wood. 
 
 6. The Sun. Hold a burning-glass at right angles to the sun's 
 rays and focus on a piece of paper. 
 
 B. Method of starting fires 
 
 Notice the parts of an ordinary match. Light it and note the 
 order in which the different parts burn. Compare a safety match 
 with an ordinary match and note the differences. Try to light each 
 one on an ordinary board surface. What difference do you find? 
 What advantage has the safety match? 
 
 C. Effect of heat 
 
 1. On gases. 
 
 Apparatus: Flask, rubber stopper with a single hole, glass tub- 
 ing, alcohol lamp, tumbler, chimney, joss stick or cloth, candle. 
 
 Push the tubing through the stopper and insert the stopper in 
 the flask. Fill the tumbler with water and place the end of the 
 tube in it, and heat the flask gently with the alcohol lamp. Notice 
 what happens at the end of the tube. What is the explanation? 
 Remove the lamp, but allow the end of the tube to remain in the 
 water. What happens? What does this show? 
 
 Light a candle. On each side place a match. On the matches 
 place a chimney. Light a joss stick or piece of cloth and hold at 
 the lower end of the chimney near the matches. What do you 
 notice inside of the chimney? What does this show? 
 
 How are the principles shown in these two experiments applied 
 in the hot-air furnace? 
 
 2. On liquids. 
 
 Apparatus: Flask, stopper, and tube as in previous experiment, 
 test tube, sawdust. 
 
 Fill the flask with water and insert the stopper so that the water 
 stands in the tube about an inch above the stopper. Tie a colored 
 string around the tube at the surface of the water. Heat the flask 
 with the alcohol lamp and watch the liquid in the tube. Remove the 
 lamp and allow the water to cool. \Vhat happens to the water in 
 the tube in each case? What does this show? Put some sawdust in 
 a test tube filled with water, and heat. Note the motion of the saw- 
 dust.
 
 164 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 How are the principles illustrated by these two experiments ap- 
 plied in hot-water heating? 
 
 D. Measuring the temperature 
 
 1. How to use a thermometer. 
 
 Apparatus: Ordinary thermometer, card thermometer, ict. 
 warm water. 
 
 The children in the third grade may each make a cardboard 
 thermometer. Get a piece of cardboard about an inch and a half 
 wide and a little longer than an ordinary thermometer. Draw a 
 line through the center of the cardboard and copy on it the readings 
 of the thermometer scale, ranging from 20 below zero to 100 above. 
 Punch a hole through the cardboard at each of these ends of the 
 scale. Pass through one hole a white string and through the other 
 hole a red or blue string. Tie them together at the back of the card- 
 board. Pull them tight and tie them in front. In place of a string a 
 narrow ribbon may be used. 
 
 The colored string represents the liquid in a thermometer, and 
 the knot represents the top of the liquid. Set this knot at various 
 positions and ask the children to read them. Ask the children to 
 set their thermometers at various temperatures. 
 
 After the children can read these, use the ordinary thermometer 
 and have them read it at various temperatures. Breathe on the 
 bulb, place the bulb in ice water, then add warm water, and have 
 a reading made each time. 
 
 Have the children make readings of the thermometer for a week 
 both indoors and out of doors at different times of the day, and 
 keep records on the board. 
 
 IH. FOODS 
 A. To test foods for nutrients 
 
 Apparatus : Various kinds of food, iodine, nitric acid, ammonia, 
 alcohol lamp. 
 
 1. To test for starch. 
 
 Heat a little starch in water, allow it to cool, and then add 
 a few drops of a diluted solution of iodine in alcohol. A blue color 
 shows the presence of starch. Test in a similar way a number of 
 common foods.
 
 EXPERIMENTS IN HYGIENE 
 
 165 
 
 2. To test for 'proteins. 
 
 Heat the white of an egg slowly. This hardening is a test for 
 proteins. 
 
 For another test add some nitric acid to a piece of meat, and boil. 
 Pour out the acid, rinse the meat in water, and then add am- 
 monia. The yellow color is a test for proteins. Test a number of 
 foods for protein. 
 
 3. To test for fats. 
 
 Place a piece of butter on a bit of paper and warm gently. 
 What change takes place in the paper? This is a test for fat. 
 
 For another test heat the substance gently in a test tube without 
 burning the food. Then add warm water and see if any fat collects 
 on the surface. 
 
 Test a number of foods for fats. 
 
 Put records in the form of the following tables: 
 
 Kind of food 
 
 Starch 
 
 Protein 
 
 Fat 
 
 
 
 
 
 Put the names of the foods in the first column, and put a check 
 opposite each food in the proper column to correspond with the 
 tests. 
 
 B. To study the action of baking powders 
 
 Put a little baking powder into water and note what happens. 
 Put some powder into vinegar and note the results. 
 
 Dissolve soda and cream of tartar separately in cold water. Then 
 pour one into the other. Try hot water and note any difference. 
 
 C. To study the action of yeast 
 
 Make a paste of flour and water. Mix with this a small piece of 
 yeast cake. Allow to stand a while in a warm place and notice 
 what happens. 
 
 . Put in each of two test tubes or small bottles a teaspoonful 
 of molasses and ten teaspoonfuls of water. Mix a small piece of 
 yeast cake with water and add half to each bottle. Allow to stand
 
 166 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 for a day, one in a cool place, such as an ice chest, and the other in a 
 warm place. Notice any difference in the two at the end of that 
 time. 
 
 IV. THE EYE 
 
 Materials: Snellen's vision chart, piece of white cardboard 
 about six inches square, reading-lens, convex and concave lenses, 
 candle. 
 
 1. To test the eye. 
 
 The teacher should secure a Snellen's vision chart, and follow- 
 ing the directions there given should test the eyes of each child. 
 Cases of defective vision should be reported to the principal. 
 
 2. To show how the image is formed. 
 
 Hold the reading-glass and the white cardboard hi line with the 
 window till images appear distinct on the cardboard. How does 
 the image differ from the object? How does the distance affect the 
 relative size of the image? 
 
 3. To illustrate binocular vision. 
 
 a. Hold two pencils vertically before the eye, one about a foot 
 away and the other about two feet. Look at the nearer pencil with 
 both eyes. How does the other pencil appear? Look at the farther 
 pencil with both eyes. How does the nearer pencil appear? 
 
 b. Shut one eye. Hold a pencil in each hand about a foot from 
 the eye and try to bring the points together. Try it with both eyes 
 open. 
 
 4. To show tlie existence of the blind spot in the eye. 
 
 On a piece of paper make a cross and circle about as far apart 
 as the two eyes. 
 
 o 
 
 Hold the circle in front of the right eye. Close the left eye. Look 
 steadily at the cross and move the paper back and forth till the 
 circle disappears.
 
 PART V 
 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 
 
 THE practical applications of physics and chemistry play 
 such an important part in the child's life that some study of 
 these should be made in the science course. The method of 
 teaching biological science is largely through observation; 
 the method of teaching physical science is largely through 
 experimentation. In preparing this chapter the author has 
 considered the applications of physics and chemistry in the 
 child's life. In order to illustrate the uses of these applica- 
 tions and the principles involved, he has sought to suggest 
 a series of simple experiments that can be performed in the 
 schoolroom with such apparatus as can easily be secured 
 by the teacher and children. 
 
 When the science work in the grades has become better 
 organized and its value better understood, apparatus will 
 be supplied by the school authorities, as is now done for 
 geography and other subjects. Very likely this matter will 
 be solved through the extension of the junior high school, 
 which permits of departmental teaching and will be furnished 
 apparatus similar to that now supplied high schools. At the 
 present time, however, little apparatus is furnished for the 
 science work in the grades, and hence the need of suggesting 
 experiments that may be performed with the simplest out- 
 fit. 
 
 The work outlined in this chapter is adapted to the 
 grammar and upper intermediate grades.
 
 170 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 I. LIGHTING OUR HOMES 
 A. Parts of candle flame 
 
 Apparatus: Candle, piece of glass or cardboard. 
 
 1. Light the candle. After it is burning well, light a match, blow 
 out the candle, and then hold the lighted match about a half-inch 
 above the candle. Why does it light? Try several times to see how 
 far above the candle you can hold the match and have it light. 
 
 2. How many parts do you see in the candle flame? What is 
 happening to the paraffin near the wick? Blow out the candle flame. 
 Look quickly at the wick and feel of it. What does it contain? 
 
 3. Press a piece of glass or cardboard down on the flame and 
 hold for a second or two. What is formed on the glass? How is it 
 arranged? 
 
 Hold the phosphorus of a match in the central cone of the candle. 
 Does it burn quickly? 
 
 Hold a match or toothpick right across the middle of the flame 
 till it begins to burn. Then take it away and blow out the flame 
 on the wood quickly. Where did it begin to burn first? 
 
 What do the experiments so far performed show about the 
 structure of the candle flame? 
 
 B. Conditions needed for candle to burn 
 
 Apparatus: Lamp chimney with level top, lime water, glass 
 tumbler. 
 
 1. Light the candle. Invert a glass tumbler over it. Why does 
 it go out? Light the candle again. Invert over it a canning-jar. 
 Does the candle burn any longer? Why? 
 
 2. Light the candle. On each side place a match and on these 
 put the lamp chimney. Does the flame act any differently? 
 
 3. Place a piece of cardboard on the top of the chimney. Why 
 does the flame go out? 
 
 4. Light the candle and place it on a piece of blotting-paper. 
 Put the chimney over the candle and hold it down firmly on the 
 paper. Why does the flame go out now? 
 
 What do these experiments show that a candle needs in order 
 to burn? 
 
 5. In order to show what is given off when a candle burns, place 
 a candle about an inch long in a glass tumbler. Light it, and cover 
 with a piece of cardboard. After the flame goes out, quickly re-
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 171 
 
 move the candle and pour in some lime water. Cover the tumbler 
 and shake. The white substance formed shows the presence of 
 carbon dioxide. 
 
 C. Gas and electric meters 
 
 Have the children read both a gas meter and an electric meter v 
 either in the school building or at home. Have them note which 
 way the hands on the dials turn. Have a drawing made of the dials 
 and the hands showing the reading. At the end of the week have 
 another reading and drawing made. From this have them com- 
 pute how much the cost for a week was of both the gas and elec- 
 tricity. 
 
 Have them notice how the gas and electricity can be turned off 
 from the meter. 
 
 II. WATER 
 
 A. Some properties of water 
 Materials: Small vial and stopper, penny, tumbler. 
 
 1. To make a carpenter's level. 
 
 Fill a vial nearly full of water and cork it. Place it on its side. 
 Add enough water so that an air bubble about a half-inch long 
 is left. Try this on various surfaces, such as desks and tables, and 
 see if they are level. Test by comparison with a regular carpen- 
 ter's level. What property of water does this experiment show? 
 
 2. Gases in water. 
 
 Draw some fresh water from a faucet in a bottle and allow to 
 stand for several hours or a day. What collects on the side? Does 
 this have any relation to the fact that fishes can live in water? 
 
 3. Effect of water in bending light. 
 
 Put a penny in the bottom of a tumbler. Stand in such a position 
 that the edge of the penny is just in line with the rim of the tumbler. 
 Pour water into the tumbler and note the change in the apparent 
 position of the penny. 
 
 B. Changes of water from one state to another 
 
 Materials: Tumblers, thermometer, flask, alcohol lamp, tin 
 cup, bottle, salt, can with small opening.
 
 172 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 1. Evaporation. 
 
 a. Fill a tumbler half full of water. Pour the same amount of 
 water into a plate. Allow both to stand side by side for several 
 days. From which does the water evaporate more quickly? Why? 
 
 b. Fill two tumblers half full of water. Place one in the warmest 
 part of the room. Put the other in a cool place out of doors if the 
 weather is not freezing. Which evaporates faster? Why? 
 
 c. Fill two tumblers half full of water. Put them in a place where 
 the wind blows across them. Cover one with a dish. Allow to 
 stand. Which evaporates faster? W'hy? 
 
 d. Fasten a piece of cloth around the bulb of a thermometer. 
 Note the reading. Wet the cloth and fan for a minute or two. Read 
 the thermometer again. What change has taken place? What does 
 this show? W T hat applications of this principle have you observed? 
 
 e. Making water boil with ice. Fill a flask about one fourth full of 
 water and heat till it boils. Remove the flask and cork tightly at 
 once. Invert the flask and pour over it water containing ice or snow. 
 Why does the water begin to boil again? 
 
 2. Condensation. 
 
 Heat some water till it boils. Hold a cold surface above the flask. 
 What collects on it? WTiy? 
 
 Fill a bright tin cup about half full of water. Add snow or ice 
 mixed with salt to the water. \Vatch the outside of the dish. What 
 collects there? Why? 
 
 . C. Freezing and melting 
 
 1. Temperature. 
 
 Put some ice in a tumbler of water. Place a thermometer in this, 
 stirring the water. What is the lowest temperature to which it falls? 
 
 2. Expansion in freezing. 
 
 Fill a glass bottle with water and insert a cork tightly. Secure 
 a varnish can, or a molasses or syrup can with a small opening. Fill 
 it completely with water. Put the bottle and can out of doors where 
 the water will freeze. Examine the next day and see what has 
 happened. Examine the crystals of ice. 
 
 Put a rectangular piece of ice in water. Why does it float? Meas- 
 ure the part that is above water and the part that is below. What 
 fraction of the whole is above water? 
 
 W r hat two changes take place in freezing as shown by these ex- 
 periments?
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 173 
 
 3. Making ice cream. 
 
 Put a mixture of salt and crushed ice in a tumbler, put in a ther- 
 mometer and record the temperature. Try different proportions of 
 ice and salt and find which gives the lowest temperature. 
 
 Put a test tube containing water into the mixture of ice and 
 salt. 
 
 Fill a tin cup with snow or ice. Place the cup on a board covered 
 with water. Stir some salt into the snow or ice. What happens 
 to the water on the board and the bottom of the cup? Why? 
 
 D. Pumping water 
 
 When water is pumped, it is forced up through the pipe by the 
 weight of the air pressing on the surface of the water. This pres- 
 sure of the air may be shown by a number of simple experiments. 
 
 Materials: Rubber tubing, or glass tube bent at an acute angle, 
 medicine dropper, test tube, glass tubing about eight inches long, 
 tumbler, pint milk bottle, hard-boiled egg with shell removed. 
 
 1. Secure a piece of rubber tubing about a foot and a half long. 
 Submerge this in a dish of water till the tube is full of water. 
 Pinch one end of the tube and bring it out over the edge of the dish 
 and place it over an empty dish set a little lower than the first 
 dish. What makes the water flow? Raise the second dish higher 
 than the first and notice what happens. A piece of bent glass 
 tubing may be used in place of the rubber tube. This is called a 
 siphon. 
 
 2. Squeeze the bulb on a medicine dropper and put the end in 
 water. Remove the pressure from the bulb. Why does the water 
 enter the dropper? 
 
 3. Fill a test tube with water. Place your thumb over the end 
 and invert it in a dish of water removing the thumb after the end 
 of the tube is under water. Why does the water stay in the tube? 
 
 4. Put a piece of glass tubing in water. Place the finger over the 
 upper end and remove from the water. Why does the water stay 
 in the tube? Remove the finger. Why does the water fall? Why 
 is it possible to drink soda through a straw? 
 
 5. Fill a tumbler full of water. Over the top place a piece of 
 paper and press it down firmly on the rim. Hold the paper on with 
 one hand and invert the tumbler with the other. Remove the hand 
 from the paper. What keeps the paper up? 
 
 6. Light a piece of paper and drop it into a pint milk bottle.
 
 174 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 After the flame goes out, put a hard-boiled egg with the shell re- 
 moved, in the mouth of the bottle. What forces the egg into the 
 bottle? 
 
 F. Reading the water meter 
 
 Have the children read the water meter, either in the school 
 building or at home. Have a drawing made showing dial and 
 position of hands. Have it read again at the end of the week. 
 Compute how much water was used, and how much it cost for a 
 day or week. 
 
 HI. MEANS OF TRAVEL 
 A, The locomotive 
 
 Usually some boy in the class has a toy steam engine. Ask him 
 to bring it to school. Set the engine going and notice what happens 
 in the various parts. Help the children to understand the prin- 
 ciples involved. 
 
 B. Thetrottey 
 
 The trolley is propelled by the motor, and the electro-magnet 
 is an important part of a motor, so that in order to understand how 
 the motor works we will first study the action of the magnet. 
 
 1. The Magnet. 
 
 Apparatus: Two bar magnets, horseshoe magnet, pieces of 
 metals, such as iron, steel, tin, zinc, a dime, a copper, a nickel, 
 sheets of iron, tin, and zinc, piece of glass, cardboard, thin piece 
 of board, such as cover of chalk box, iron filings, darning needle. 
 
 a. Magnetic substances. Take a magnet and try a great many sub- 
 stances to see which it will attract. Find the greatest distance that 
 a piece of iron is attracted. Put the end of the magnet in a box of 
 tacks. Try various portions of the magnet and see which is the 
 strongest part. Put the magnet in iron filings. 
 
 Test needles, phis, pens, etc., to see if they are made of iron or 
 steel. 
 
 b. Action of magnetism through various substances. Place sheets 
 of various kinds of substances such as glass, paper, wood, iron, tin, 
 zinc, etc., over a pile of tacks, and hold the magnet over the sheet 
 and see if the tacks are attracted. Determine through which sub- 
 stances the magnetism does not act.
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 175 
 
 c. Action of magnets toward each other. (In case a bar magnet 
 cannot be obtained, one may be made from a knitting-needle, if 
 a horseshoe magnet is on hand, as explained later under e.) Make a 
 stirrup of a piece of wire and suspend a bar magnet or a magnetized 
 knitting-needle in this by means of a string. Bring the north pole 
 of the other magnet near the north pole of the suspended magnet. 
 Bring it near the south pole. What difference do you note? Try 
 various combinations till you can tell the law that the magnets 
 follow. 
 
 d. The magnetic field. 
 
 (1) Place a bar magnet on the table and put over it a sheet of 
 paper. Sprinkle iron filings over this paper. Make a drawing 
 showing the way the filings arrange themselves. Put two like poles 
 of two bar magnets about an inch apart and sprinkle the iron 
 filings. Draw. Do the same with two unlike poles. Draw. What 
 is the difference in the arrangement of the filings? Place a horse- 
 shoe magnet under the paper and sprinkle the filings. 
 
 (2) To make blue prints of the magnetic field. Repeat the pre- 
 vious experiments, only, instead of the ordinary paper, use a piece 
 of blue-print paper over the magnets. Place in a shaded part of 
 the room and sprinkle filings on the paper. Carefully place a piece 
 of glass on the filings and put the magnet and all in the sunlight 
 and allow to stand till the paper becomes bronze. This will take 
 from five to twenty minutes, according to the light. Then shake 
 off the filings and wash the paper in several changes of water and 
 then dry. 
 
 e. How to make magnets. Rub one end of a needle on one end of 
 a magnet, rubbing several times in the same direction. Then rub 
 the other end of the needle on the other end of the magnet. See if 
 the needle will pick up tacks. The blade of a jack-knife may be 
 magnetized by rubbing over a magnet. Try bringing another 
 needle near a pole of a magnet, but not quite touching it. See if 
 the needle becomes magnetized. 
 
 Break a magnetized needle in two. Test each end of both pieces 
 to see if they are magnetic, and if each piece has both a north and 
 a south pole. 
 
 2. The electro-magnet. 
 
 Apparatus: Large nail or bolt about six inches long, about 
 twenty feet of insulated wire, dry cell, tacks, magnet. 
 
 a. An electro-magnet is an important part of a motor. It can
 
 176 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 
 
 be made as follows: Wind about ten feet of insulated wire around 
 a large nail or bolt, as thread is wound on a spool. Place the end 
 of the nail in a pile of tacks. Is it a magnet? Connect the wire with 
 a dry cell. Is it a magnet now? Withdraw the nail and see whether 
 the coil will pick up fewer or more tacks. Disconnect the cells. 
 What happens? Connect the cells again. See if a needle can be 
 magnetized by rubbing against the nail. 
 
 b. Test the electro-magnet by bringing it near the end of a sus- 
 pended magnet or compass to see if it has a north and south pole. 
 Change the connection of the cell so that the current passes through 
 the wire in the opposite direction. Test again for the north and 
 south pole. What difference do you find? 
 
 c. Wind five feet of wire around the nail and see how the number 
 of tacks it lifts compares with the number when ten feet of wire 
 were used. Try twenty feet and note the difference. Try two cells 
 and compare the number of tacks lifted when one cell is used 
 with the same length of wire. In what ways do these experiments 
 show that the strength of an electro-magnet may be increased? 
 
 3. Toy motor. 
 
 Usually some boy in the class has a toy motor that he will be 
 glad to bring to school. Notice the structure of the motor. Connect 
 with a cell and notice how the motor works. Help the children 
 to an explanation of the principles involved. 
 
 C. The boat 
 1. How a boat floats. 
 
 Apparatus: Spring balance, stone, block of wood, small plate, 
 shot, egg, salt, funnel. 
 
 a. To show the buoyant effect of water on a sinking body, weigh 
 a stone on a spring balance. Then weigh it while suspended in 
 water. How much has it lost? To what is this loss due? 
 
 b. To show the buoyant effect on a floating body, fill a small pail 
 as full of water as possible. Set it in a plate. Weigh a block of 
 wood. Place it on the surface of water in the pail, catching the over- 
 flow in the plate. Find how much the water in the plate weighs. 
 How does the weight of the block of wood compare with the weight 
 of the water it displaced? Try several pieces of wood. 
 
 Put some shot in a test tube and float the tube in a dish of water. 
 Glass and shot are both heavier than water. Why, then, does the 
 tube float? Ships are made of steel which is heavier than water.
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 177 
 
 Why do steel boats float? Add more shot to the tube. What hap- 
 pens? Remove some shot. What happens? Why? W T hat fact does 
 this illustrate about the loading and unloading of a boat? 
 
 c. To show the difference between the buoyancy of fresh and salt 
 water, put an egg into a dish filled with fresh water. What happens? 
 Put an egg into a strong solution of salt and water. What happens? 
 What makes the difference? 
 
 S. How the boat is propelled. 
 
 Apparatus: flask, rubber stopper with one hole, glass tube, toy 
 windmill. 
 
 a. Steamboats are run by the steam engine. The following simple 
 experiment illustrates the principle of a kind of steam engine, called 
 the steam turbine, that is now being commonly used on steamships. 
 
 b. To make a toy windmill, take a square piece of paper and cut 
 from each corner inward nearly to the center. Fold over every 
 other point. Pass a pin through the four points and through the 
 center of the paper and then into a wooden handle. 
 
 c. Insert in the flask a rubber stopper with a hole through 
 which has been passed a short piece of small glass tubing drawn 
 nearly to a point so as to leave only a small opening. Heat the 
 flask until the water boils vigorously. Then hold the windmill over 
 the glass tubing where the steam is escaping. What makes the 
 wheel revolve? 
 
 3. How the boat is guided. 
 
 Apparatus: Compass, magnet, two darning-needles, cork, knit- 
 ting-needle, cell, toy gyroscope. 
 
 a. The compass. Note in what direction the needle of the com- 
 pass points. Bring the north end of a magnet near the north pole 
 of the compass. Then bring it near the south pole. What is the 
 difference in the action? 
 
 Connect the two posts of a cell with a wire. Hold this wire in a 
 north-and-south direction over the compass and note result. Turn 
 the wire around and hold it over the needle. W T hat difference do 
 you notice? 
 
 Magnetize a knitting-needle as explained in a previous experi- 
 ment (page 175). Fold a piece of paper about an inch square 
 diagonally. Place the needle in the crease of paper and suspend the 
 paper by means of a thread. In what position does the needle come 
 to rest? Move it and try several times. Does it always come to the 
 same position?
 
 178 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Magnetize a large darning-needle by rubbing the point on the 
 north end of a magnet, and the eye on the south pole. Magnetize 
 another needle by rubbing the point on the south pole of the magnet 
 and the eye on the north pole. Cut two thin pieces of cork from a 
 stopper and float the needles on these pieces. In what position do 
 they come to rest? Do the points of both needles point in the 
 same direction? Can you explain? 
 
 b. The gyroscope. Follow the instructions that come with the 
 gyroscope. What is the peculiarity of this toy? A gyroscope is often 
 used instead of a compass to guide ships. Can you see how it could 
 be used for this purpose? 
 
 4. How the submarine sinks and rises. 
 
 Put the stopper in a bottle and place the bottle in water. Why 
 does it float? Fill the bottle with water. Put in the stopper and 
 place the bottle in water. Why does it sink? Remove the bottle 
 and pour out the water. Insert the stopper and push the bottle 
 down to the bottom of the dish and then let go of the bottle. W T hat 
 happens? Why? How could this same principle be used in making 
 a submarine sink and rise? 
 
 IV. TAKING PICTURES 
 A. Pin-hole camera 
 
 To make a pin-hole camera, secure a small pasteboard box about 
 two inches deep. Cut a hole about an inch square in the cover and 
 fasten over this a piece of white tissue paper. In the middle of 
 the side opposite make a pin-hole. Point this hole toward a lighted 
 candle and cover the head and box with a cloth or jacket. What 
 do you see on the tissue paper? What is the position of the image? 
 How does the size of the image change as the camera is brought 
 nearer the object or taken farther away? 
 
 Hold a reading-lens about three feet from the candle and place 
 a white piece of paper behind* the lens till a clear image of the 
 candle is formed. W T hat improvement has the lens made in the 
 image over the one formed by the pin-hole camera? 
 
 B. The ordinary camera 
 
 1. A focusing kodak can usually be obtained from some member 
 of the class and brought to school. One lesson may be given on the 
 structure of the kodak and the method of making exposures.
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 179 
 
 2. If a developing tank can be obtained from some member of 
 the class for a second lesson, the method of developing films in this 
 tank may be shown by actually developing a film. 
 
 3. For a third lesson methods of printing may be shown. Two 
 types of paper may be illustrated, the developing, like velox, 
 and the printing, like blue print. Prints from blue print can be 
 made in the schoolroom during the daytime, and they are very 
 easily treated because it is only necessary to put them in cold water 
 and then dry them. The blue print may also be used to make out- 
 lines of objects, such as leaves, ferns, laces, and other thin articles. 
 
 V. METHODS OF TELLING TIME 
 A. The hour-glass 
 
 Procure two small bottles of the same size, each provided with 
 stoppers. Make a hole in the center of each stopper, and push 
 through it a piece of glass tubing twice as long as the thickness of 
 the stopper, so that both stoppers shall be on the same tubing, one 
 at each end. Fill one bottle with fine sand. Insert the stopper. 
 Place the other bottle on the other stopper. Invert the bottles. 
 How long does it take for all the sand to fall through? Change the 
 amount until it passes through in a definite time, such as two or 
 five minutes. 
 
 B. The pendulum clock 
 
 1. Suspend a small pail by means of a string. Set in motion and 
 count the number of vibrations it makes in a minute. Put about 
 an inch of sand or any small heavy objects in the pail, and see if 
 the weight makes any difference in the number of vibrations. 
 
 2. Suspend a stone from a string about a yard long. Start it to vi- 
 brating through a small arc and count the number of swings it 
 makes in a minute. Set it to vibrating through a long arc and 
 see whether the number of vibrations in a minute changes. 
 
 3. Make the string about half as long and see how the number 
 of vibrations is affected. Make it longer than the first and note the 
 change in the number of vibrations. If a pendulum clock gains 
 time, what should be done to the pendulum? What if it loses? 
 
 4. Change the length of the string until it beats just once in a 
 second. How long is it? What else besides a pendulum is needed 
 to make a clock? What purpose does a pendulum serve in a clock?
 
 180 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 5. What effect does each of the following factors have on the 
 time of vibration of a pendulum: weight, length, and distance 
 through which the pendulum swings? 
 
 VI. SOME SIMPLE MACHINES THAT MAKE MAN'S WORK EASIEB 
 A. The lever 
 
 Apparatus: Yardstick, triangular block of wood, jack-knife, 
 hammer, scissors, nut-cracker, can-opener. 
 
 1. Place the center of the yardstick over the edge of the prism, 
 which is called the fulcrum. On each end place books of equal 
 weights at equal distances What happens? On one end place two 
 books and move the prism till the stick balances. W 7 here is the 
 prism situated? If the power be placed at the end of the long arm 
 and the weight to be lifted at the end of the short arm, what ad- 
 vantage does the lever have? If the power and weight are reversed, 
 what advantage does the lever then have? 
 
 2. Put the prism at the middle of the stick. Place weights on 
 the stick at different distances till the stick balances. Try a num- 
 ber of combinations and find the relation that exists between the 
 two weights and the length of the arms measured from the fulcrum 
 to the center of the weights. When using a teeter, how do children 
 apply the principles brought out by these experiments? 
 
 3. Use a hammer to draw a nail, open the blade of a jack-knife, 
 cut some paper with a pair of scissors, crack a nut with a nut- 
 cracker, open a can with a can-opener. In each case explain how it is 
 an application of the lever by pointing out the fulcrum, the power, 
 and the weight. Find as many other applications of the lever as 
 you can. 
 
 B. Inclined plane 
 
 Apparatus: Smooth board about two feet long, spring balance, 
 a small toy cart. 
 
 1. Place one end of the board on a pile of books. Weigh the 
 cart. Pull it up the board by means of the spring balance. How 
 does the force required compare with the weight of the cart? 
 
 2. Put weights in the cart and perform the experiment again. 
 
 3. Vary the height of the board and see how the power necessary 
 to pull up the cart varies with the height. 
 
 4. What advantage do these experiments show that the inclined 
 plane has? What applications of the inclined plane can you find?
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 181 
 
 C. The screw 
 
 Apparatus: Screw, screwdriver, carpenter's brace, and screw- 
 driver bit, vise. 
 
 1. Measure the length of a screw, and divide this by the number 
 of threads in order to get the distance between two threads. How 
 far must the hand turn in using a screwdriver to turn in the screv 
 one thread? In using the carpenter's brace how far must the hand 
 move? 
 
 2. Measure the distance between two threads of a vise. How 
 far does the hand move in advancing the vise one thread? This 
 distance divided by the distance between two threads gives the 
 number of times the force applied at the handle is multiplied. 
 
 3. What ad vantage has the screw? Find as many applications of 
 the screw as you can. 
 
 4. Look carefully at the following machines, and write down all 
 the simple machines you find in each: a sewing machine, a washing 
 machine, a bicycle, a typewriter, and a clothes wringer. 
 
 VII. EVENING ENTERTAINMENTS 
 A. The violin and piano 
 
 Apparatus: Box about two feet long, banjo or violin strings of 
 different materials and different sizes, three bricks. 
 
 1. Secure a box about two feet long with the cover removed. 
 In the board at one end drive three nails, about an inch apart. 
 To two of these nails fasten strings made of the same material, 
 but of different size. To the third fasten a string made of different 
 material, but of the same size as one of the others. 
 
 2. At the other end of the box cut three notches opposite the 
 three nails. Pass the strings across these notches and fasten a 
 brick to the end of each. Strike a large string and then a small 
 string, both of the same material, with the finger. What is the 
 difference in pitch? Strike a string of gut and then one of metal of 
 the same size and note the difference in pitch. 
 
 3. To one string fasten two bricks and strike it with the finger. 
 How does its pitch compare with that when only one brick was 
 attached? 
 
 4. Halfway down the length of the box place a stick across the 
 box under the strings. Hold one string securely against this stick
 
 182 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 and strike the string with the finger. How does the pitch now com- 
 pare with that when the string was twice as long? 
 
 5. These experiments show that pitch depends on what four 
 factors? Which of these factors are used hi determining the pitch 
 of the notes on each of the following instruments: the piano, banjo, 
 mandolin, and guitar? If you do not recall how all of these are 
 made, look them up and report to the class. 
 
 B. The movies 
 
 Apparatus: Toy magic lantern, cardboard about six inches 
 square, string. 
 
 1. The moving-picture machine. 
 
 The moving-picture machine is a stereopticon so arranged that 
 the pictures are shown rapidly, about sixteen per second. If pos- 
 sible, obtain from some child a toy magic lantern. Have the chil- 
 dren notice the structure of the various parts. Darken the room by 
 pulling down the curtains and show how the machine works. 
 
 2. To learn why we seem to see a continuous set of pictures at the 
 movies. 
 
 Cut out a round piece of cardboard about six inches in diameter. 
 A half-inch on each side of the center punch a hole with the point 
 of a pencil. Through these holes pass a string about four feet long. 
 Tie the ends, thus making a loop about a foot long on each side. 
 Hold a string at the center with a pin, and with a radius of two inches 
 draw four separate arcs of a circle, about half an inch long and 
 equally spaced. These lines represent the pictures thrown on the 
 screen, and the blank spaces between represent the intervening 
 time when the screen is darkened. 
 
 Hold the loop on each side by the thumbs and have some one 
 turn the cardboard till the string is twisted. Then pull gently on 
 the strings with the thumbs, thus making the cardboard revolve. 
 Watch the side with the arcs on it and note what one sees. How do 
 you explain the fact that these four lines seem to make a continuous 
 circle? Erase two opposite lines and then rotate the card. Then 
 erase one of the remaining two and try again. Try a line nea/ the 
 center and one out near the circumference of the cardboard, and 
 see if it makes any difference. Try rotating the disc fast and then 
 slow, and note the difference. What determines whether the dashes 
 seem to make a continuous circle or not?
 
 PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY 183 
 
 In the movies about sixteen pictures per second are thrown on 
 the screen, each remaining about one thirty-second of a second, and 
 between the pictures the screen is darkened for about the same 
 length of time, so that the screen is darkened and has no pictures 
 on, it for about one half of the time. How does this experiment 
 help illustrate what we see at the movies? 
 
 VIII. CHEMISTRY OF THE KITCHEN 
 A. Acids, bases, and salts 
 
 Materials: Red and blue litmus paper, vinegar, ammonia, lime 
 water, lemon. 
 
 1. Pour a little vinegar into a dish. Place in it a small strip of 
 blue litmus paper. This is the test for an acid. 
 
 2. Pour a little ammonia into a dish. Place in it a small strip of 
 red litmus paper. This is the test for a base. 
 
 3. Dissolve some salt or sugar in water. Put in this a piece of 
 red litmus and also one of blue litmus. Does any change take place? 
 This is said to be a neutral solution. 
 
 4. Get as many common substances as you can from the kitchen, 
 such as lemon, orange, lime water, sugar, sour milk, sweet milk, 
 buttermilk, baking soda, cream of tartar, baking powder, tomatoes, 
 apple, any fresh fruit, tea, coffee, washing soda, wood ashes. Test 
 each one of these with both red and blue litmus paper. Test the 
 juices of the fruits. Dissolve the powders in water. Pour water on 
 the ashes and then filter. Steep the tea and coffee in water. Place 
 the name of each substance in the proper place under the following 
 headings: 
 
 Acid 
 
 Base 
 
 Neutral 
 
 
 
 
 B. Hard and soft water 
 
 Materials: soap, test tube, alcohol lamp. 
 
 1. Make a soap solution by heating a little soap in soft water in 
 a test tube. Take a little hard water and add to it a measured quan-
 
 184 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 tity of soap solution. Note the results. Take the same quantity of 
 soft water and add the same quantity of soap solution as in the pre- 
 vious experiment. What difference do you notice? 
 
 2. Add more soap solution to the first test tube and see if it if 
 possible to get a good lather by adding enough soap. 
 
 3. Boil some hard water for several minutes. Then add th( 
 same amount of soap solution to the same amount of water as in 
 the first experiment and see if any better suds are formed. If boil- 
 ing removes the hardness, it is called temporary.
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 WEATHER AND SKY STUDIES 
 I. Weather studies 
 
 Weather observations. Many instructive studies can be 
 carried on in connection with the weather. One of the first 
 things to do is to have the children make observations on 
 the weather and have records kept in the schoolroom. These 
 may well be carried on for a month in the autumn, a month 
 in the winter, and a month in the spring. 
 
 For the primary grades a pictorial record may be kept 
 on the blackboard or on a large piece of cardboard. On 
 this should be copied, much enlarged, the calendar for 
 the month, showing the days of the week and the number 
 of the days in the month. Squares or circles of gummed 
 colored paper may be taken to represent the kinds of 
 weather, a certain color for each kind of weather. The fol- 
 lowing colors are suggested for the kinds of days: yellow 
 for sunny, black for cloudy, white for snowy, green for 
 rainy, and red for windy. 
 
 For the intermediate grades more definite records may 
 be kept, as suggested in the following table: 
 
 Date 
 
 Temperature 
 
 Sky 
 
 Wind 
 
 Precipitation 
 
 Kind 
 
 Amount 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 186 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Under temperature may be recorded whether hot, warm, 
 cold, or very cold; under sky, whether clear or cloudy; under 
 wind, the velocity, whether calm, light, or heavy; under 
 kind of precipitation, whether rain or snow; under amount, 
 whether light or heavy. 
 
 In the grammar grades more accurate records may 
 be made by the use of instruments the thermometer, 
 weather vane, and barometer. 
 
 Weather charts for primary grades. A great variety of 
 charts may "be made by primary children. Following are 
 suggested some topics for these charts: 
 
 Autumn Work and Play. 
 
 Getting Ready for Winter. 
 
 Signs of Spring. 
 
 Signs of Winter. 
 
 Work which Snow Makes. 
 
 Work which Snow Helps. 
 
 Fun .which the Snow Brings. 
 
 Pictures illustrating these topics may be cut out by the 
 children and pasted on a piece of cardboard. 
 
 Study of weather maps. In the grammar grades a study 
 of weather maps may be made. These may be obtained free 
 by writing to the nearest weather station in the State 
 where maps are published, and explaining the purpose for 
 which they are intended. 
 
 The children should first study the various features of 
 the map so that they may understand what they mean, the 
 isotherms, isobars, arrows, etc. The weather conditions 
 accompanying the low and high areas should be noted. 
 By studying maps for several successive days the direction 
 in which the areas move and their velocity may be deter- 
 mined. Finally, some of the principles involved in weather 
 forecasting may be brought out, and the children may try 
 to forecast the weather for the next day from the maps.
 
 WEATHER AND SKY STUDIES 137 
 
 To find the dew point. The following experiment may be 
 performed in the grammar grades. Secure a tin cup with 
 brightly polished surface on the outside. In this put some 
 snow or crushed ice mixed with salt, and stir with a ther- 
 mometer. Watch the outside of the dish and when the 
 first dew appears, take the reading of the thermometer. Pour 
 warm water in the dish, stir, and when the dew disappears, 
 read the thermometer. The average of these two readings is 
 the dew point for the room. If all the air in the room were 
 to be lowered to this temperature, what would happen? 
 
 77. Sky studies 
 
 The heavenly bodies are the most common and important 
 factors in the child's life. In the study of science we may 
 lead the children to make observations on their changes 
 and may teach them some of the more interesting facts 
 about them. 
 
 To measure the length of the sun's shadow. To find the 
 length of the sun's shadow at noon, a shadow stick may be 
 made by driving a nail into one end of a board. The length 
 of the nail and board should be so adjusted that the shadow 
 of the nail falls on the board. Straight back from the nail 
 mark off distances in inches, halves, quarters, and eighths, 
 so that the length of the shadow may be read at a glance. 
 Place the board so that the long axis points north and south. 
 At noon measure the length of the shadow, or else make a 
 mark on the board and write the date opposite. These 
 readings should be made about once a week, and on a cer- 
 tain day. Once a month have the position of the end of the 
 shadow marked every hour from 9 A.M. till 4 P.M. Connect 
 these dots with a line. How do these curves compare from 
 month to month? Instead of marking on the board, a piece 
 of paper may be laid on the board and the marks and curves 
 made on this.
 
 188 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Have the readings of the length of shadow put in the form 
 of a table on the blackboard or on a piece of cardboard. 
 At the end of the series of observations have the significance 
 of the changes discussed. 
 
 Observations on the moon. Let the primary children 
 make a moon chart, similar to that for the weather suggested 
 on page 185. Make a calendar for a month on a piece of 
 cardboard. Beginning with the new moon have the children 
 report every few days on the shape of the moon. Let them 
 cut out a piece of yellow paper to represent the shape of 
 the moon as they see it, and paste this on the calendar in 
 the proper place. Have this kept for a month. 
 
 For the children in the intermediate and grammar grades, 
 more careful and complete records may be kept in the form 
 of the following table, which may be kept on the board or 
 on a piece of paper: 
 
 Phase 
 (shape) 
 
 Time of 
 setting or rising 
 
 Place of 
 setting or rising 
 
 
 
 
 The record of the place of rising and setting may be made 
 in terms of the points of the compass. Have the observations 
 begin at the time of the new moon and continue for a month. 
 Reports should be made twice a week. At each report have 
 a drawing made showing the shape of the moon. Have these 
 drawings made side by side on the same piece of paper, so 
 that by the end of the month the child will have drawings 
 of about eight phases. 
 
 Have the children note the position of the moon in the 
 sky with reference to some group of stars, and see if it keeps 
 the same position. How much does it change in a week?
 
 WEATHER AND SKY STUDIES 189 
 
 In order to make clear the phases of the moon, color one 
 half of a ball yellow with crayon to represent the lighted 
 portion of the moon, and the other half black to represent 
 the part in shadow. Hold the ball in different positions so 
 as to represent the different phases of the moon. 
 
 The stars: constellations. In connection with the study 
 of stars the children may be taught to recognize the more 
 conspicuous constellations. The best way, if it is possible, 
 is to go out with the children some evening. But in place 
 of this the observations of the children may be directed by 
 the teacher in the schoolroom. 
 
 The first step is to have the children find the Great Dipper 
 and the North Star. Then take up the circumpolar constel- 
 lations that never set in this latitude; the Little Dipper, 
 Cassiopeia's Chair, the Dragon, and Cepheus. The remain- 
 ing stars may be taken up hi three groups; the early autumn 
 stars, the winter stars, and the late spring stars, each at the 
 appropriate time. 
 
 In preparation for the study of a certain constellation, 
 the teacher should place on the board a diagram showing 
 the position of the stars in the constellation, and should 
 explain how to find them with reference to other stars that 
 the children already know. After opportunity has been 
 given for the children to make observations, the reports 
 should be made and discussed in class. Detailed suggestions 
 on how to take up the study of the different constellations 
 are given in Comstock's Handbook of Nature-Study. 
 
 Interesting facts about the heavenly bodies. In connec- 
 tion with these observations on the heavenly bodies, the 
 teacher should explain to the children some of the more 
 interesting facts about them. An attempt may first be made 
 to give the children some conception of the solar system 
 as a whole. In order to do this, diagrams should be drawn 
 on the board. Circles may be drawn, of the correct proper-
 
 190 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 tionate size, to show the relative sizes of sun, moon, earth, 
 and other planets. Starting with a dot to represent the sun, 
 other dots may be placed on the board to represent approxi- 
 mately the relative distances of the various planets from 
 the sun. 
 
 The relative sizes could be illustrated by making balls 
 out of clay or putty, or by blowing up toy balloons to vari- 
 ous sizes. The diameter of the sun is approximately one hun- 
 dred times as great as that of the earth. If a balloon is blown 
 up to a size of one foot to represent the sun, then a ball of 
 putty one eighth of an inch in diameter would represent 
 the earth, and another ball one thirty-second of an inch 
 (about one half as large as the head of a pin) would repre- 
 sent the moon. The sizes of the other planets could be shown 
 by balls of clay or putty. 
 
 In the winter-time snowballs could be made out of doors 
 to represent the sizes of the various heavenly bodies. If a 
 snowball a half-inch through represents the earth, a ball 
 four feet through would represent the sun, and one an eighth 
 of an inch through, the moon.
 
 PART VI 
 OUTLINE OF SCIENCE INSTRUCTION
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 BASIS FOR ORGANIZATION OF OUTLINE OF SCIENCE 
 
 General principles. There are certain principles which 
 must underlie all teaching, and these principles must apply 
 to science teaching. Still further, there are certain princi- 
 ples which must underlie all science teaching, whether in 
 Maine or in California. The particular topics taught must 
 vary according to the locality, but the underlying princi- 
 ples must be the same. 
 
 In times past, there have been those who advised that 
 there should be no organized course in science, but that there 
 should be a miscellaneous study of whatever materials hap- 
 pened to be found by the teacher or children. The need of 
 a well-organized course assigning definite topics to certain 
 grades is now so well recognized that it will not be necessary 
 to discuss it further. 
 
 Basis for organization. The basis for the organization of 
 this outline has been sought hi the child's life rather than in 
 the subject-matter; and in the interests and needs of the 
 child's present life and immediate future, rather than in the 
 interests and needs of the distant and indefinite future. In 
 thus stressing the present, the future is not overlooked, for 
 the fulfillment of the child's present needs is the best pos- 
 sible preparation for the fulfillment of his future needs when 
 these may arise. 
 
 The purpose has been to make the outline psychologically 
 and pedagogically logical from the child's standpoint, rather 
 than technically and systematically logical from the scien- 
 tist's standpoint. 
 
 The general principle, governing in the selection of topics
 
 194 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 for this outline may be briefly stated as follows: any topic 
 is worthy of a place in direct proportion to the number and 
 value of the elements which it possesses in common with the 
 child's life. 
 
 Four points of view. The selection and arrangement of 
 topics in the outline may be considered from four stand- 
 points: (1) the general aims of nature-study; (2) the phases 
 of nature-study included; (3) the seasons of the year; (4) 
 the age of the child. 
 
 The arrangement of topics from the standpoint of aims 
 and phases has been discussed in previous chapters, and is 
 shown diagrammatically in figures 1 and 2. 
 
 The seasons. The natural activities of the seasons have 
 been followed, the various plants and animals being studied 
 when they are most in evidence. This puts the agricultural 
 and biological phases in the autumn and spring, leaving the 
 physical, astronomical, and hygienic phases to be taken up 
 during the winter. In the autumn special attention is given 
 to late flowers, trees, and insects; and in the spring to spring 
 flowers, birds, and gardening. 
 
 In the study of trees, the same species is studied through 
 one grade in the autumn, winter, and spring, thus showing 
 the different aspects of tree activities. 
 
 In the autumn certain groups of cultivated flowers and 
 vegetables are studied. In the following spring the seeds of 
 these same flowers and vegetables are suggested for planting. 
 In the autumn some bulbs are studied and planted both in- 
 doors and out of doors. In the winter and spring the flowers 
 which develop from these bulbs are studied. 
 
 Such a large proportion of the school year comes during the 
 cold months that special plans should be made to improve 
 the opportunity offered during the first half of the fall term 
 and the last half of the spring term to study plants and ani- 
 mals in their outdoor activities. In order that the greatest
 
 BASIS FOR SCIENCE OUTLINE 195 
 
 advantage may be taken of these seasons, a brief seasonal 
 outline of topics is given for the fall and spring terms, im- 
 mediately following the main outline, suggesting the order 
 in which the various topics may most effectively be studied. 
 This seasonal outline is arranged to meet the requirements 
 of the seasons in southern Minnesota. Some modifications 
 will need to be made for States farther south. 
 
 Age of child. The child is the fundamental consideration 
 that determines the main features of the outline. For the 
 primary grades those plants and animals have been chosen 
 which the children could most naturally and easily be led 
 to observe, on account of their bright colors, large size, ac- 
 tivities, or common occurrence. The chief emphasis is placed 
 on identification. 
 
 In the intermediate grades the plants and animals have 
 been classified into groups based on their habitat and habits. 
 Identification still remains a prominent factor, as in the pri- 
 mary grades, but to this are added the idea of adaptation of 
 plants and animals to their surroundings, and their classi- 
 fication into groups as mentioned above. Children's plays 
 and sports have been made the center around which some 
 simple studies in physics have been grouped. 
 
 In the grammar grades the general thought is the relation 
 of these various phases of science to human welfare. Two 
 centers have been chosen around which to group these topics, 
 the home in the seventh grade, and community life in the 
 eighth grade. 
 
 In connection with the various topics in the outline there 
 have been given corresponding children's problems which 
 may serve as the central thought of the lesson, suggesting 
 the points to be considered. 
 
 Principles followed in constructing the science outline. The 
 principles used in the organization of the outline given in the 
 following chapter may be briefly summarized as follows:
 
 196 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 1. The course should cover all phases of elementary 
 science adapted to the grades. (Biology, hygiene, elemen- 
 tary agriculture, elementary physics and chemistry, as- 
 tronomy.) 
 
 2. This material should be organized from the child';, 
 standpoint, and not the adult's. 
 
 3. The basis for organization should be found in the 
 child's needs and interests, instead of in the subject- 
 matter. 
 
 4. This basis should be found in the needs and interests 
 of the child's present life or of his immediate future, instead 
 of in those of the distant future. 
 
 5. The arrangement of topics should depend on the 
 seasons. 
 
 6. The course should be adapted to local conditions. 
 
 7. In the lower grades the dominant purpose should be 
 the aesthetic; in the upper grades the dominant purposes 
 should be the economic and social. 
 
 8. The topics for the primary grades should deal largely 
 with the study of plants and animals; the work for upper 
 grades should cover all phases of elementary science. 
 
 9. The topics for study in the primary grades should in- 
 clude the most conspicuous plants and animals in the child's 
 environment, selected from the standpoint of color, activi- 
 ties, size, and occurrence. 
 
 Brief synopsis of outline. In order that the general plan 
 and organization of the outline may be seen at a glance, a 
 brief synopsis of the detailed outline found in the pages fol- 
 lowing is given here. 
 
 FIRST GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 Flowers: nasturtium, wild sunflower; colored leaves: maple 
 and box elder.
 
 BASIS FOR SCIENCE OUTLINE 197 
 
 II. Preparation for Winter. 
 
 Food; garden; seeds; animal preparation. 
 III. Seasonal Changes. 
 
 Approach of autumn and winter; weather records. 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 Christmas dinner; trees; flowers. 
 II. Home Studies. 
 Pets; the cat. 
 
 III. Health Studies. 
 
 Foods; air; bathing; clothing. 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 Weather records; uses of ice and snow. 
 
 Spring 
 
 Central thought: the returning spring 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 
 Maple, box elder, pussy willow, and poplar. 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 
 Dandelion, Jack-in-the-pulpit. 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 Lima bean, dwarf nasturtium. 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 IV. The Returning Birds. 
 
 Robin, bluebird. 
 V. New Life among Animals. 
 VI. The Changing Season. 
 
 Wind; rain; changes in brook; weather records. 
 
 SECOND GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 Flowers: goldenrods, thistle; colored leaves: elm, linden. 
 II. Animal Activities. - 
 
 Spider, grasshopper, cricket. 
 
 III. Preparation for Winter. 
 
 Food; gardens; seeds; animal preparation. 
 
 IV. Seasonal Changes. 
 
 Approach of autumn and winter; weather records.
 
 198 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 Christmas dinner; trees; flowers. 
 II. Home Studies. 
 Pets; the dog. 
 
 III. Health Studies. 
 
 Air; bathing; clothing. 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 Weather records; forms of ice and snow. 
 
 Spring 
 
 Central thought: the returning spring 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 
 Elm, linden. 
 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 Hepatica, spring beauty. 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 Pea, radish, climbing nasturtium. 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 IV. The Returning Birds. 
 
 Red-,winged blackbird, Baltimore oriole, chimney swift. 
 V. New Life among Animals. 
 
 Toad's eggs. 
 VI. The Changing Season. 
 
 Signs of spring; changes in brook; weather records. 
 
 THIRD GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 Flowers: the asters; colored leaves: oaks, fruit trees. 
 II. Animal Activities. 
 Mosquitoes. 
 
 III. Preparation for Winter. 
 
 Food; gardens; seeds; animal preparation. 
 
 IV. Seasonal Changes. 
 
 Approach of autumn and winter; weather records. 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 Christmas dinner; trees; flowers; Christinas dinner for the 
 birds.
 
 BASIS FOR SCIENCE OUTLINE 199 
 
 II. Home Studies. 
 
 Child's home; homes of animals. 
 
 III. Health Studies. 
 
 Food; air; bathing; clothing. 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 Weather records; freezing; evaporation; condensation. 
 
 Spring 
 
 Central thought: the returning spring 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 Oaks and fruit trees. 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 Violets. 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 Corn, zinnia. 
 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 IV. The Awakening Animals. 
 
 Moth for cocoon; turtles. 
 V. The Returning Birds. 
 
 Scarlet tanager, rose-breasted grosbeak, house wren; nest- 
 ing-house for wren; Audubon Bird Club. 
 VI. New Life among Animals. 
 
 Ways of hatching hen's eggs. 
 VII. The Changing Season. 
 
 Signs of spring; changes in brook; weather records. 
 
 FOURTH GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Garden Studies. 
 
 Cultivated flowers hardy annuals; bulbs; root vege- 
 tables. 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 Flowers of shady places; mushrooms; nut trees. 
 
 III. Some Animal Friends and Foes. 
 
 Earthworms; insects social insects; insect activities. 
 
 IV. Aquarium Studies. 
 
 Fishes. 
 V. Fall Sports. 
 
 The swing and slide.
 
 200 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 I. Plants in Winter. 
 
 Shapes of trees; winter decorations. 
 II. Health Studies. 
 
 Food; air; sleep; the eyes; lighting the home. 
 
 III. Christmas Toys. 
 
 Motor, magnet, steam engine, flying machines. 
 
 IV. Winter Sports. 
 
 Coasting. 
 V. Sky Studies. 
 The sun. 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. The Awakening Life of Spring. 
 
 Nut trees, brightly colored wild flowers; cultivated flowers 
 from bulbs. 
 II. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 
 Birds of the dooryard and shade trees; fountains; nesting- 
 houses for wren; Audubon Bird Club. 
 III. Gardening. 
 
 Hardy annual flowers and root vegetables. 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 FIFTH GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Garden Studies. 
 
 Tender annual flowers; bulbs; house plants; vegetables 
 whose fruits or seeds are eaten. 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 Flowers that grow hi sunny places; ferns; shade trees; 
 plants that move. 
 
 III. Some Animal Friends and Foes. 
 
 Water insects; flies; spiders; crayfish. 
 
 IV. Some Plant Foes. 
 
 Poisonous plants. 
 V. Aquarium Studies. 
 
 Scavengers of the aquarium snail and tadpole. 
 VI. Fall Sports. 
 
 Giant stride and teeter.
 
 BASIS FOR SCIENCE OUTLINE 201 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Plants and Animals in Winter. 
 
 Bark of trees; winter decorations; winter birds. 
 II. Health Studies. 
 
 Drinks; food; breathing; clothing; skin. 
 
 III. Winter Pleasures. 
 
 Outdoor sports; evening entertainments. 
 
 IV. Sky Studies. 
 
 The moon. 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. The Awakening Life of Spring. 
 
 Shade trees; white spring flowers; cultivated perennial 
 flowers. 
 II. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 
 Birds of the air*, nesting-houses for wren and bluebird; 
 nesting-habits; Audubon Bird Club. 
 HI. The New Life of Spring. 
 
 Frog's eggs. 
 IV. Gardening. 
 
 Tender annual flowers and vegetables whose leaves are 
 eaten. 
 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 SIXTH GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Garden Studies. 
 
 Vines; vine crops; flowers from spring-planted bulbs; plant- 
 ing fall bulbs; fruit trees; weeds of the garden. 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 Vines; shrubs; mosses and lichens; tree fruits; fruits for 
 winter birds. 
 
 III. Some Friends and Foes of the Garden. 
 
 Insects; birds; toads. 
 
 IV. Aquarium Studies. 
 
 Water plants. 
 V. Fall Sports. 
 Bicycling.
 
 202 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Plants and Animals in Winter. 
 
 Buds of trees; winter decoration; birds. 
 IT. Health Studies. 
 
 Foods; heating and ventilation; clothing; avoiding disease; 
 the blood system; accidents. 
 HI. Christmas Studies. 
 
 Evergreens. 
 IV. Winter Sports. 
 
 Roller skating. 
 V. Sky Studies. 
 
 The Stars and planets. 
 VI. Some Simple Machines that make Man's Work easier. 
 
 Pulley, screw, wedge. 
 VH. How Glass Helps People. 
 
 Spectacles, opera glasses, camera. 
 Vm. Helps hi Being Prompt. 
 
 Watches and clocks; school electric bell; old methods of 
 telling time. 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. Awakening Life of Spring. 
 
 Fruit trees; cultivated shrubs. 
 H. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 
 Birds of the meadows and fields and of marshes; bird ene- 
 mies; work of Audubon Society; migration; open nesting- 
 houses; Audubon Bird Club. 
 
 III. Gardening. 
 
 Vines and vine crops. 
 
 Schoolroom gardening; home gardens. 
 
 IV. Spring Sports. 
 
 Outdoor toys: kite, windmill, water wheeL 
 
 SEVENTH GRADE 
 Central thought for the grade: the hygiene and science of the home 
 
 Autumn 
 
 I. Making the Home Yard Attractive. 
 Shrubs; vines; flowers.
 
 BASIS FOR SCIENCE OUTLINE 203 
 
 n. Making the Yard Useful. 
 
 The vegetable and fruit gardens. 
 
 III. Insect Pests of the Household. 
 
 IV. Heating the Home. 
 V. Ventilating the Home. 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Lighting the Home. 
 II. The Home Water Supply. 
 III. The Food Supply. 
 
 IV. Entertainment in the Home 
 
 Musical instruments. 
 
 Spring 
 I. Making the Yard Attractive. 
 
 Shrubs; vines; flower garden. 
 II. Making the Yard Useful. 
 
 Vegetable and fruit gardens; bee-keeping; poultry-keeping. 
 
 III. Enemies of the Garden. 
 
 Injurious insects. 
 
 IV. Friends of the Garden. 
 
 Beneficial insects; toads; birds; attracting birds around the 
 home; bird songs and plumage. 
 
 V. Soils of the Garden. 
 
 EIGHTH GRADE 
 
 Central thought for the grade: the sanitation and science of 
 community life 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Insects that Threaten Health. 
 
 Fly and mosquito. 
 
 IL Insects in Relation to Growing Crops. 
 Insect foes; insect friends. 
 
 III. Plant Enemies of Crops. 
 
 Weeds; fungous diseases. 
 
 IV. Forest Trees. 
 
 V. Means of Travel. 
 
 On land; on water; in the air. 
 VI. Means of Communication. 
 Telephone and telegraph.
 
 204 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Public Health and Sanitation. 
 
 Board of health; milk supply; food supply; water supply; 
 contagious diseases; sewage disposal; parks and playgrounds; 
 fire protection; care of streets; lighting. 
 IE. School Hygiene. 
 
 Ventilation and heating; lighting; drinking-fountains; play- 
 grounds; medical inspection. 
 
 Spring 
 I. Forestry. 
 
 Uses of forests; decrease; enemies; forest control; reserva- 
 tions; conservation; Bureau of Forestry; uses and structure 
 of woods; work of the parts of a tree. 
 H. Bird Friends of the Forests. 
 
 Special study of birds of the woods; economic value of birds; 
 adaptations in the structure of birds; enemies; work of Na- 
 tional Government to protect birds.
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE OF SCIENCE BY TOPICS AND 
 PROBLEMS 
 
 (Arranged according to Grades and Seasons) 
 FIRST GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 1. Gathering wild flowers; excursion to gather bou- 
 quet for schoolroom; group according to color; 
 flower games; make flower chart. Special study 
 of wild sunflower. 
 
 2. Flowers from home and school gardens; compare 
 with colors of wild flowers; make a booklet 
 "Mother's Garden." 
 
 3. Special study of dwarf nasturtium, the garden 
 flower suggested for spring planting. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How many different colors can we find among the 
 
 flowers that grow around here? 
 Have the garden flowers the same colors as the 
 
 wild flowers? 
 How can we tell the nasturtium the next time we 
 
 see it? (See page 119.) 
 How can we have more nasturtiums for next year? 
 
 4. Autumn coloring of leaves. 
 
 A. Gather a variety of colored leaves; group 
 according to color. 
 
 B. Special study of maple and box-elder.
 
 206 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 How many different colors can we find among the 
 
 autumn leaves? (See page 95.) 
 How can we tell a maple tree from a box-elder tree? 
 
 II. Preparation for Winter. 
 
 1. Food for the winter. 
 
 A. Study of vegetables grown around the lo- 
 cality. 
 
 B. Trip to grocery store: names of fruits and 
 vegetables seen; note farmers' wagons. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What things have been done so that we might have 
 
 these tomatoes? (See page 119.) 
 What vegetables that we eat were grown in our 
 
 own locality? 
 
 How do they grow in the garden? 
 Which vegetables grow on top of the ground and 
 
 which in the ground? 
 How do the vegetables get from the farmer to the 
 
 grocer? 
 
 2. Provision for winter and spring gardens. 
 
 A. Indoor planting of Chinese lily bulb in 
 water. (See page 126.) 
 
 B. Outdoor planting of daffodil. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we have flowers of the Chinese lily in our 
 
 schoolroom before Christmas? 
 How can we have early spring flowers outdoors? 
 
 3. The seeds for next year. 
 
 A. Treasure boxes fruits and vegetables. 
 
 B. Nature's seed sowing-seeds that fly. 
 Problems 
 
 What kind of seeds can we find in the fruits and 
 vegetables that we eat?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIRST GRADE 207 
 
 How are some seeds made so they can fly? (See 
 
 page 105.) 
 4. Animal preparation for winter. 
 
 A. The squirrel gathering his winter store. 
 
 B. Caterpillars spinning cocoons; rear cater- 
 pillars in schoolroom. 
 
 C. The fish in winter quarters aquarium 
 
 studies. 
 Problems 
 
 How does the squirrel get ready for winter? 
 
 We will watch the caterpillar and see how it grows 
 
 up. 
 What care will the fish in our aquarium need this 
 
 winter? 
 How does the fish live in water? 
 
 III. Seasonal Changes. 
 
 1. The approach of autumn first week of term. 
 Chart "autumn work and play." 
 
 2. The approach of winter last week of term. 
 Booklet "getting ready for winter." 
 
 8. Weather records kept for one month (October). 
 Pictorial records on large cards showing sunny 
 days, cloudy days, rainy days, windy days. 
 (See page 185.) 
 Problems 
 
 What signs do you see that autumn is coming? 
 What signs do you see that winter is coming? 
 
 TOPICS ARRANGED IN SEASONAL ORDER 
 
 September 
 Approach of autumn 
 Wild flowers 
 Plant lily bulb 
 Cultivated flowers 
 
 October 
 Rear caterpillars 
 Plant daffodil 
 Seeds that fly 
 Trees 
 Treasure boxes 
 
 November 
 Weather records 
 Vegetables 
 Squirrel 
 Fish 
 Approach of winter
 
 208 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 1. Christmas dinner. 
 
 A. Local products. 
 
 B. Special study of turkey and pumpkin. 
 
 2. Christmas trees the pine. 
 
 3. Flowers for the Christmas table; Chinese lily from 
 bulb planted in the fall. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What can we get for our Christmas dinner from 
 
 the farms near here? 
 How do people raise turkeys? 
 How can we make a Jack-o'-lantern? 
 How can we tell a pine from other Christmas trees? 
 What has happened to this bulb since we planted 
 
 it last fall? 
 
 II. Home Studies. 
 
 1. Care of pets the cat. 
 Problems 
 
 To what extent can cats take care of themselves? 
 
 (See page 85.) 
 How can we take the best care of our pet cats? 
 
 III. Health studies. 
 
 1. Foods that help make children strong. The cow 
 as the source of milk, butter, and cheese. Make 
 butter in schoolroom. (See page 86.) Make a 
 "Good Breakfast" chart. 
 
 2. Fresh air; games played outdoors; how to get 
 fresh air in schoolroom. 
 
 3. Bathing. Children make individual "Keep 
 Clean " charts. 
 
 4. Clothing special study of cotton and woolen 
 goods.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIRST GRADE 209 
 
 Problems 
 How does the cow help us to get foods? (See 
 
 page 86.) 
 
 How should people take care of their cows? 
 How do we get fresh air in the schoolroom? 
 Why should we keep our face and hands clean? 
 Where did your apron come from? 
 Where did your winter dress come from? 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 1. Weather records, kept for one month (January). 
 (See fall outline.) 
 
 2. Uses and forms of ice and snow. 
 Problems 
 
 How does Jack Frost make us happy? 
 What kind of pictures does Jack frost paint? 
 Let us make a chart showing Jack Frost's work. 
 
 Spring 
 
 Central thought: the returning spring 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 
 1. Study of twigs of box-elder and maple kept in 
 water indoors. 
 
 2. Study of development of buds outdoors; flowers 
 of soft maple. 
 
 3. Special study of pussy willow and pussy poplar. 
 
 4. Maple sugar. 
 Problems 
 
 What can we find on the twigs of the box-elder and 
 
 maple? 
 When the buds open what can you see coming out 
 
 of the buds? 
 
 Why do you like the pussy willow? 
 Where does maple sugar come from?
 
 210 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 
 1. Daffodils from bulb planted in fall. 
 
 2. Calendar of wild flowers. 
 
 3. An excursion for flowers for the May basket? 
 
 4. Special study of dandelion and Jack-in-the- 
 
 pulpit. 
 Problems 
 
 Why do you like the daffodil? 
 
 What colors did you find for your May basket? 
 
 How can you tell the dandelion from other 
 
 flowers? 
 
 Why do you think Jack-in-the-pulpit is an inter- 
 esting flower? 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Plant seeds of dwarf nasturtium and Lima 
 bean. 
 
 B. Experiments with seeds and seedlings. 
 
 a. What do seeds need to grow? (See 
 page 131.) 
 
 b. Will seeds grow better in dirt or water? 
 In dry or moist dirt? 
 
 c. What effect does soaking have on 
 seeds? 
 
 2. Home gardens. 
 
 A. Order envelopes of penny packets of seed? 
 distributed. 
 
 B. Lessons on planting a few common seeds 
 Home gardens visited by teacher. 
 
 Problems 
 
 We will start a little garden indoors and plant the 
 nasturtium and bean seeds, so we can see how 
 they grow.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIRST GRADE 211 
 
 We will learn how to plant radish seeds, so that 
 you can plant them at home. 
 
 IV. The Returning Birds. 
 
 1. Bird calendar. (See page 52.) 
 
 2. Bird walks. 
 
 3. Special study of robin and bluebird. 
 
 4. Meetings of Audubon Bird Club. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell the bluebird when we see it? 
 
 (See page 64.) 
 Why do you like the robin? 
 
 V. New Life among Animals. 
 
 1. Study of hen and chickens. 
 Problems 
 How does a hen care for her chickens? 
 
 VI. The Changing Season. 
 
 1. The wind. Make a windy scene in a box. 
 
 2. Spring rains. 
 
 3. Weather records for a month (April). (See page 
 185.) Decorate margin of pictorial record with 
 pictures of signs of spring. 
 
 4. Changes in the brook. Make a "growing " picture 
 of the brook, adding drawings of new life that 
 appears. 
 
 5. Lessons at beginning and end of term on changes 
 in seasons. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Of what use is the wind? 
 
 Why do you like a rainy day? 
 
 How is the brook different now than it was a few 
 
 weeks ago? 
 What signs do you see of the coming of spring?
 
 212 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 SEASONAL, ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 Distribute seed enve- 
 
 Weather record 
 
 Jack-in-the-pulpit 
 
 lopes 
 
 Spring rains 
 
 Bank swallow 
 
 The wind 
 
 Flower of soft maple 
 
 Hen and chickens 
 
 Change of seasons 
 
 Changes in brook 
 
 Bird walks 
 
 Twigs of trees 
 
 Robin 
 
 Daffodil 
 
 Plant seeds indoors 
 
 Pussy willow 
 
 Excursions for flowers 
 
 Experiments with seeds 
 
 Lessons on home 
 
 Change of seasons 
 
 Bird calendar started 
 
 gardens 
 
 
 Maple sugar 
 
 Flower calendar 
 
 
 
 Dandelion 
 
 
 
 Bluebird 
 
 
 SECOND GRADE 
 
 Autumn > 
 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 1. Gathering wild flowers. Looking for new flowers. 
 A flower card for each new flower hung in room. 
 
 2. Special study of goldenrod and thistle. 
 
 3. Flowers from home and school gardens; use in 
 schoolroom. 
 
 4. Study of climbing nasturtium, the garden flower 
 suggested for spring planting. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell the goldenrod from other flowers? 
 (See page 102.) Why do you like the nasturtium? 
 
 5. Autumn coloring of leaves. 
 
 A. Study of coloring of leaves of trees on school 
 grounds. 
 
 B. Special study of elm and linden. 
 Problems 
 
 How many different colors can we find on the 
 
 leaves of trees growing on the school grounds? 
 How can we tell the elm and linden trees apart?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SECOND GRADE 213 
 
 II. Animal Activities. 
 
 1. Grasshopper and cricket; keep indoors in cage. 
 
 2. Spiders; special study of webs. 
 Problems 
 
 We will watch the grasshopper in the cage to see 
 
 how many different ways of moving it has. (See 
 
 page 74.) 
 We will watch the cricket to see how it makes its 
 
 song. 
 What kind of webs do spiders make? (See page 
 
 80.) 
 
 III. Preparation for Winter. 
 
 1. Food for the winter. 
 
 A. Study of home-grown fruits; make charts. 
 Have children each bring some kind of fruit 
 to see how many colors they can find. 
 
 B. Trip to grocery store. Canned fruits and 
 vegetables. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What fruits that we eat are raised in our own State? 
 What canned goods are put up in our own State? 
 
 2. Provision for winter and spring gardens. 
 
 A. Indoor planting in soil and water of bulb of 
 paper- white narcissus. (See page 126.) 
 
 B. Outdoor planting of crocus. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we have some flowers in our room next 
 winter? 
 
 How can we get some early spring flowers out- 
 doors? 
 
 3. Seed for next year. 
 
 A. Seeds from home and school gardens stored. 
 
 B. Nature's seed sowing seeds that steal a 
 ride?
 
 214 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 What seeds from our garden can we save to plant 
 
 next spring? 
 How are some seeds made so that they can steal a 
 
 ride? (See page 106.) 
 4. Animal preparations for winter. 
 
 A. The rabbit in the fall; his winter quarters. 
 
 B. Fish in winter quarters; aquarium studies; 
 need of plant life. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What may we learn about the habits of the rabbit 
 from a study of the one kept in our schoolroom? 
 Why do we keep plants in the aquarium? 
 
 IV. Study of Seasonal Changes. 
 
 1. Approach of autumn first week of term. Au- 
 tumn pictures painted. A park in autumn; com- 
 pare with spring. 
 
 2. Approach of winter last week of term. Winter 
 landscape painted. 
 
 3. Weather records for one month (September). 
 Records in writing on blackboard or chart showing 
 temperature, winds, clouds, interesting weather 
 happenings. (See page 185.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 How does our park now differ from the way it 
 
 looked last spring? 
 What signs do you see that winter is coming? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September October November 
 
 Weather records Spider Fruits 
 
 Approach of autumn Grasshopper Plant narcissus bulb 
 
 Wild flowers Cricket Rabbit 
 
 Cultivated flowers Plant crocus Fish 
 
 Seeds that steal a ride Approach of winter 
 
 Storing seeds 
 
 Trees
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SECOND GRADE 215 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 1. Christmas dinner. 
 
 A. State products. 
 
 B. Special study of nuts and fruits of our State. 
 
 2. Christmas trees spruce and red cedar. 
 
 3. Flowers for the Christmas table; paper- white nar- 
 cissus from bulb planted in the fall. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What kinds of nuts grow in our State? 
 
 How do people raise fruits in this State? 
 
 Why does the spruce make a good Christmas tree? 
 
 How can we tell a red cedar from other Christmas 
 
 trees? 
 W T hy is it nice to have this narcissus flower in the 
 
 room? 
 
 II. Home Studies. 
 
 1. Home of Eskimo children. 
 
 2. Care of pets the dog and the canary. 
 Problems 
 
 How do the homes of the Eskimo children differ 
 
 from your homes? 
 
 To what extent can the dog take care of himself? 
 What care should I give my dog? (See page 85.) 
 How many kinds of dogs are there? (See page 
 
 83.) 
 
 Of what use are dogs? (See page 84.) 
 What are some of the wild animal cousins of the 
 
 dog? 
 What makes the canary an interesting pet? 
 
 III. Health Studies: How to keep well and strong in winter. 
 
 1. Fresh air; how to get fresh air indoors at home. 
 
 2. Bathing; need of keeping hands clean.
 
 216 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 3. Clothing study of silk and leather. 
 
 4. Good drinks for children; milk and water. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we get fresh air in our homes? 
 
 Why should we wash our hands before eating? 
 
 Where did your new silk tie come from? 
 
 How are our shoes made? 
 
 Why is milk a better drink than coffee for children? 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 1. Weather records for one month (December). 
 Written records on chart or blackboard. (See 
 fall outline.) 
 
 2. Uses and forms of snow and ice. Charts: Work 
 Which Snow Makes; Work Which Snow Helps; 
 Fun Which the Snow Brings. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How does snow help people? 
 What fun does the snow bring us? 
 
 - Spring " 
 
 Central thought: the returning spring 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 
 1. Study of twigs of elm and linden kept in water in- 
 doors. 
 
 2. Study development of buds of these trees out- 
 doors. 
 
 3. Flower of elm and linden. 
 Problems 
 
 How do the twigs of the elm and linden differ? 
 Which comes out first on these trees, leaves or 
 
 flowers? 
 How are the flowers of the elm different from the 
 
 other spring flowers?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SECOND GRADE 217 
 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 
 1. Crocus from bulb planted in the fall. 
 
 2. Calendar of spring wild flowers. 
 
 3. Excursion for flowers for May basket. 
 
 4. Special study of hepatica and spring beauty. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell the crocus from other spring 
 
 flowers? 
 
 Why do you like the hepatica? 
 How can you tell the hepatica and spring beauty 
 
 apart? 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Plant indoors seeds of pea, radish, and 
 climbing nasturtium. 
 
 B. Eggshell garden plant seeds in eggshells. 
 (See page 130.) 
 
 C. What do plants need to grow?. (Answer by 
 experiments.) 
 
 a. Do plants need water? 
 
 6. Do plants need light? (See page 134.) 
 
 2. The home garden. 
 
 A. Distribute seed envelopes for penny packets. 
 
 B. Encourage children to plant seeds men- 
 tioned above '(III, 1, A). 
 
 C. Lesson on how to get the garden ready and 
 how to plant these seeds. 
 
 D. Write for garden catalogues. 
 Problems 
 
 We will plant some radish seeds to see if we can 
 raise some radishes indoors before school closes. 
 
 How shall we get our garden ready at home for 
 planting seeds?
 
 218 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 IV. The Returning Birds. 
 
 1. Bird calendar. (Seepage 52.) 
 
 2. Bird walks. 
 
 3. Special study of red-winged blackbird, Baltimore 
 oriole, and chimney swift. 
 
 4. Building nesting- houses for the wren. 
 
 5. Organization of Audubon Bird Club, and meet- 
 ings through term. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell each of these birds when we see 
 
 them outdoors? 
 How does the swift differ from the oriole in its 
 
 habits? 
 
 Which do you think is the most interesting bird? 
 What kind of a house shall we build for the wren? 
 
 (See page 65.) 
 
 Why would it be nice for us to form a Bird Club? 
 Why would you like to have a pair of orioles nest 
 
 in your yard? 
 
 V. New Life among Animals. 
 
 1. Development of toad's eggs. 
 Problem 
 
 What happens to the toad's eggs as they grow? 
 
 VI. The Changing Season. 
 
 1. Signs of spring. Booklet Pictures of all the 
 new happenings outside. 
 
 2. Weather records for a month (March). Written 
 records on blackboard or chart. (See fall outline.) 
 
 3. Study of changes in brook. Animal life in the 
 brook. Picture of the brook in March and May. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Who has seen the greatest number of signs of 
 
 spring? 
 What animals live in our brook?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE THIRD GRADE 219 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 Give out seed envelopes 
 
 Bird calendar 
 
 Toad's eggs 
 
 Weather records 
 
 Flowers of elm 
 
 Swift 
 
 Signs of spring 
 
 Bird-houses 
 
 Oriole 
 
 Twigs of trees 
 
 Bird club 
 
 Excursion for flowers 
 
 Plant seeds 
 
 Flower calendar 
 
 Bird walks 
 
 Experiments with 
 
 Hepatica 
 
 
 plants 
 
 Home garden 
 
 
 Changes in brook 
 
 Spring beauty 
 
 
 
 Crocus 
 
 
 THIRD GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Nature's Autumn Colors. 
 
 1. Gathering wild flowers excursions. Recall old 
 flowers; add new ones. 
 
 2. Special study of the different kinds of wild asters: 
 flower cousins, wild and cultivated asters. 
 
 3. Comparison of fall and spring flowers. 
 
 4. Gathering flowers from home and school garden; 
 method of raising them. 
 
 5. Special study of zinnia, the garden flower sug- 
 gested for spring planting. 
 
 6. Insects seen around flowers butterflies, bees. 
 Problems 
 
 What new flowers can you find this fall? 
 
 How many different kinds of asters can we find 
 
 growing around here this fall? 
 How are the wild and cultivated asters alike? 
 How do the flowers we see now differ from those 
 
 we saw last spring? 
 Why is the zinnia a good flower to grow in our 
 
 gardens? 
 What do we have to do in order to get these flowers?
 
 220 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 What colors do you find on butterflies? 
 Why do bees come to the flowers? 
 
 7. Leaf coloring. 
 
 A. Study of coloring of leaves of trees growing 
 along the streets and in the children's 
 yards. 
 
 B. Special study of fruit trees and oaks. 
 Problems 
 
 How does the coloring on the different kinds of 
 trees growing in your yard differ? 
 
 How can we tell the different kind of oaks 
 apart? 
 
 Of what use is the oak? 
 
 How can you tell the apple tree by its leaves? 
 
 Let us see how many different kinds of apples we 
 can collect? 
 
 8. Plants without flowers. 
 Ferns and mushrooms. 
 
 Problem 
 
 How do ferns and mushrooms differ from our fall 
 flowers such as the goldenrod? 
 
 II. Animal Activities. 
 
 1. Mosquitoes; keep wigglers in tumbler. 
 Problem 
 
 How do these wigglers live in the water? (See 
 page 77.) 
 
 III. Preparation for Winter. 
 1. Food for the winter. 
 
 A. Study of fruits grown outside of our State. 
 Problems 
 
 What fruits that we eat are grown outside of our 
 
 State? 
 How do these fruits get to us?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE THIRD GRADE 221 
 
 2. Provision for winter and spring gardens. 
 
 A. Raising plants from cuttings. (See page 128). 
 
 B. Planting bulb of Dutch hyacinth indoors. 
 (See page 126.) 
 
 C. Planting bulb of Dutch hyacinth out of 
 doors. 
 
 Problems 
 
 We will learn a new way of getting flowers, that is 
 
 by using cuttings. 
 
 How can we have flowers in our room next winter? 
 How can we have flowers out of doors in the spring? 
 
 3. Seed for next year. 
 
 A. Nature's seed sowing seeds that shoot, 
 
 and those scattered by birds. 
 Problems 
 
 How are some plants fitted so as to shoot their 
 
 seeds? 
 How do birds help scatter seeds? 
 
 4. Animal preparation for winter. 
 
 A. The tadpole in winter quarters aquarium 
 studies. 
 
 B. Departure of birds; comparison with bird 
 life in the spring; Bird Clubs meet to report 
 on experiences with bird-houses the previous 
 summer. 
 
 C. The long winter sleep of animals. 
 
 a. Hibernation of toad, frog, snakes, 
 
 turtles. 
 Problems 
 
 What does the tadpole do in the aquarium? 
 What birds of the springtime are still here? 
 How do animals like the toads and frogs spend the 
 winter? 
 
 5 . Plant preparation for winter ; trees, grasses, flowers.
 
 222 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problem 
 
 How do plants like trees, flowers, and grasses get 
 ready for winter? 
 
 IV. Seasonal Changes. 
 
 1. The approach of autumn first week; written 
 records. 
 
 2. The approach of winter last week; written 
 records. 
 
 3. Weather records for one month (November). In- 
 dividual records in writing. 
 
 Problem 
 
 Let us see who can write the longest list of things 
 that show autumn is coming, or that winter is 
 coming. 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September 
 Wild flowers 
 Approach of autumn 
 Cultivated flowers 
 Mosquitoes 
 Cuttings 
 
 October 
 Flowerless plants 
 Seeds 
 Trees 
 
 November 
 Weather records 
 Fruits 
 Tadpole 
 Approach of winter 
 
 Winter 
 I. Holiday Studies. 
 
 1. Christmas dinner; products from abroad. 
 Problems 
 
 What are some of the things for Christmas dinner 
 that come from other parts of the world than 
 our own State? 
 
 How do they get to us? 
 
 What nuts do we get that are raised outside of 
 our State? 
 
 2. Christmas dinner for the birds. (Use old Christ- 
 mas tree.)
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE THIRD GRADE 223 
 
 Problems 
 
 What kind of Christmas gifts do birds like? 
 What kind of birds will come to the feast? 
 
 3. Christmas greens. 
 
 A. Christmas trees evergreens of our locality. 
 
 B. Holly and mistletoe. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell the evergreens of our locality 
 apart? (See page 95.) 
 Why are holly and mistletoe used for decorations? 
 
 4. Flowers for the Christmas table. Dutch hyacinth 
 planted in fall. 
 
 Problems 
 What has happened to this bulb since we planted 
 
 it? 
 Why has it been worth while to raise this flower? 
 
 II. Home Studies. 
 
 1. Child's home. 
 
 A. Warming the home the thermometer. 
 
 B. Lighting the home (compare with primitive 
 methods). 
 
 Problems 
 
 In how many different ways are our homes warmed ? 
 How can we tell from the thermometer when the 
 
 room is warm enough? 
 How do our ways of lighting our homes differ 
 
 from the ways that were used many, many years 
 
 ago? 
 
 2. Homes of animals. 
 
 A. Deserted homes birds' nests. 
 
 B. Insect homes galls, cocoons, nests of 
 paper and mud wasps. 
 
 C. Domesticated animals, the cow and horse.
 
 224 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 Of what materials do birds make their nests? 
 
 What kind of homes do wasps make? 
 
 What kind of homes do the gall-dwellers live in? 
 
 (See page 75.) 
 
 Of what kind of materials are insect homes made? 
 How are insect homes made? 
 In how many ways is the cow useful to us? (See 
 
 page 86.) 
 
 Of what use is the horse? 
 How many different kinds of horses are there? 
 How should horses be cared for? 
 
 III. Health Studies. 
 
 1. Foods that help keep one well and strong. Em- 
 phasize the sources; the industrial relations. 
 
 2. Fresh air; need of, how get in sleeping-room. 
 
 3. Bathing; cold and warm water baths. 
 
 4. Clothing study of fur and linen. 
 
 A. Classify clothing materials into plant and 
 
 animal products. 
 Problems 
 
 What are some of the foods that are good for us 
 
 to eat? 
 
 How does an orange get to us? 
 Why do we need fresh air? 
 How can we get fresh air in our sleeping-rooms? 
 Which is better, the warm water or cold water bath? 
 How did your father get his fur coat? 
 Where did your handkerchief come from? 
 
 IV. Weather Studies. 
 
 1. Weather records for one month (February). Writ- 
 ten individual records. (See page 185.) 
 
 2. Condensation, evaporation, freezing. (See page 172.)
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE THIRD GRADE 225 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we show that there is water in the air of 
 
 this room? (See page 172.) 
 What happens when water boils? 
 What harm is done by freezing water? (See page 
 
 172.) 
 What good is done by freezing water? 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. The Awakening Trees. 
 
 1 . Study of twigs of oaks and fruit trees kept in water. 
 
 2. Development of buds outdoors. 
 
 3. Study of flowers of fruit trees. 
 
 4. Calendar of blossoming trees. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell these twigs apart before the leaves 
 come out? 
 
 Which appear first, the leaves or blossoms on the 
 oaks and fruit trees? 
 
 What are the names of the parts of an apple blos- 
 som? 
 
 Why do you like the apple blossom? 
 
 II. The Awakening Flowers. 
 
 1. Dutch hyacinth from bulb planted in fall. 
 
 2. Calendar of wild flowers. 
 
 3. Excursion for wild flowers for May basket. 
 
 4. Special study of dog-toothed violet and the blue, 
 white, and yellow violets. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What do you like about this hyacinth flower? 
 How may the different violets be told apart? 
 What are the names of the parts of a violet flower? 
 Of what use is each part of the violet flower?
 
 226 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 III. The Awakening Seeds. 
 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Plant indoors seeds of corn and zinnia. 
 
 B. Experiment to show use of cotyledon of pet 
 to seedling. 
 
 2. Home gardens. 
 
 A. Distribute order envelopes for penny packets 
 of seeds. 
 
 B. Lesson on home gardens; planting seeds, 
 use, care; gardens visited by teacher. 
 
 C. Charts showing pictures of flowers easily 
 grown and of vegetables easily grown. Re- 
 ports on father's garden. 
 
 Problems 
 We will plant seeds of corn and zinnia so as to watch 
 
 the plants and see how fast they grow. 
 Why would you like to have a garden? 
 What must you do if you wish to have a garden this 
 
 spring? 
 How should seeds be planted? (See page 125.) 
 
 IV. The Awakening Animals. 
 
 1. Turtles, frogs, snakes. 
 
 2. Development of moth from cocoons collected in 
 fall and winter or from the caterpillars reared in 
 fall. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How do turtles differ from other animals that you 
 know? 
 
 How is this moth (or butterfly) different from 
 other insects that you know, such as the grass- 
 hopper? 
 
 V. The Returning Birds. 
 
 1. Bird calendar. (See page 52.)
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE THIRD GRADE 227 
 
 2. Bird walks. 
 
 3. Special study of house wren, scarlet tanager, and 
 rose-breasted grosbeak. 
 
 4. Building nesting-houses for the wren. 
 
 5. Audubon Bird Club organized and meetings held 
 through term. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Which do you think is the prettier bird, the tanager 
 
 or grosbeak? 
 
 How can we tell these from other birds? 
 Why would you like to have a wren nest around 
 
 your home this summer? 
 What kind of a house shall we make for a wren to 
 
 nest in? (See page 65.) 
 What can our Bird Club do to help the birds? 
 
 VI. New Life among Animals. 
 
 1. Methods of hatching hen's eggs. 
 Problem 
 
 Which is the better way of hatching eggs, to use 
 an incubator or let the hen do it? 
 
 VII. The Changing Season. 
 
 1. Signs of spring. Collection of pictures, making 
 booklet to show spring's return. 
 
 2. Weather record for one month (May). Individual 
 record kept in writing. 
 
 3. Changes in brook. Visit brook. Note changes in- 
 cluded in signs of spring. Pictures of brook in 
 March and May. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Let us make a collection of pictures to show signs 
 
 of spring. 
 How does the brook in May look different than it 
 
 did in March?
 
 228 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 Give out seed envelopes 
 
 Bird calendar 
 
 Weather record 
 
 Twigs of trees 
 
 Start bird club 
 
 House wren 
 
 Plant seeds indoors 
 
 Lessons on home 
 
 Moth 
 
 Signs of spring 
 
 garden 
 
 Grosbeak 
 
 Use of food in pea 
 
 Calendar of tree flowers 
 
 Hyacinth 
 
 Changes in brook 
 
 Turtles 
 
 Flowers of fruit trees 
 
 
 Flower calendar 
 
 Tanager 
 
 
 Violets 
 
 Excursions for flowers 
 
 
 House for wren 
 
 Bird walks 
 
 
 Hatching eggs 
 
 Changes in brook 
 
 FOURTH GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Garden Studies. 
 
 1. Report on summer experiences in the garden. 
 
 2. Cultivated flowers hardy annuals, such as 
 bachelor's button, candytuft, nasturtium, phlox, 
 California poppy, sweet alyssum, petunia, zinnia. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Which would you prefer to have in your garden, the 
 nasturtium or bachelor's button? (Or compari- 
 son of any two flowers.) 
 
 What are the best ways of telling these flowers 
 apart? (Taking one or two at a time.) 
 
 Why do you like the nasturtium? 
 
 3. Planting bulbs. 
 
 A. For outdoor planting tulips (single, 
 double, Darwin, parrot); daffodils (single, 
 double); jonquils (single, double). (Plant 
 in school garden and encourage the children 
 to plant at home.) 
 
 B. For indoor blooming during the winter 
 double jonquil or daffodil. (See page 126.)
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FOURTH GRADE 229 
 
 Problems 
 
 How may we get flowers in the early spring? 
 How may we have flowers in the schoolroom nex' 
 
 winter? 
 
 4. Vegetables whose roots are eaten; such as beet, 
 carrot, oyster plant, parsnip, turnip, kohlrabi, 
 celeriac. (Make carrot basket.) (See page 133.) 
 Problems 
 
 How are root vegetables grown? 
 
 Which of these makes the best kind of food? 
 
 In what ways are these vegetables cooked? 
 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 1. Flowers that grow in shady places, such as wood 
 aster, tall bell flower, boneset, cone flower, elm 
 leafed goldenrod, white lettuce, white snakeroot, 
 woodland sunflower, touch-me-not, lobelia. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What is the best way of telling each of these flowers 
 
 from other flowers? 
 Which do you like the better of any two of these 
 
 flowers? 
 
 2. Plants without flowers. 
 
 A. Mushrooms. 
 Problems 
 
 What are the parts of a gill-bearing mushroom? 
 How do the various mushrooms differ from each 
 other? (See page 107.) 
 
 3. Nut trees; such as butternut, walnut, hickories, 
 oaks. Keep calendar of coloring and fall of leaves. 
 (See page 92.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we tell the oaks apart by their leaves? 
 How do the acorns of the oaks differ?
 
 230 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 What use is made of the wood of oak trees? 
 How can we tell a butternut from a walnut tree? 
 
 III. Some Animal Friends and Foes. 
 
 1. Social insects such as ants, bees, wasps. 
 
 2. Insect activities; how they eat, breathe and 
 move. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What can we learn about the habits of ants from a 
 
 study of ants kept in a nest in the schoolroom? 
 In what ways is the life of social insects like the 
 
 social life of human beings? 
 How do insects eat? (See page 75.) 
 In how many ways do insects move? (See page 
 
 75.) 
 How does the insect's way of breathing differ from 
 
 our way? (See page 75.) 
 
 3. Earthworms. 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways are earthworms helpful to man? 
 
 4. Squirrels. 
 Problems 
 
 What makes squirrels interesting animals to have 
 
 around? 
 How many kinds of squirrels are there? 
 
 IV. Aquarium Studies fishes, fishes used as food, native 
 fishes. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How does the fish use its fins in swimming? 
 How does its method of breathing differ from that 
 
 of the frog? 
 To what extent do we use fishes for food in our 
 
 town? 
 What fishes are found around our locality?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FOURTH GRADE 231 
 
 V. Fall Sports. 
 
 1. The swing; other applications of the pendulum, 
 such as the clock. Simple experiments showing 
 relation of length, weight, and arc to time of 
 vibration. (See page 179.) 
 
 2. The slide; other applications of the inclined plane; 
 such as coal slide, plank for loading wagon, sliding 
 down hill. (See page 180.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 What principles of the pendulum are illustrated 
 
 in the swing? 
 What other applications of the pendulum can you 
 
 find? 
 What other applications of the inclined plane can 
 
 you find beside the swing? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September 
 Wild flowers 
 Soft mushrooms 
 Cultivated flowers 
 
 October November 
 Cultivated flowers Squirrels 
 Insects Bulbs indoors 
 Bulbs out of doors Fish 
 Earthworm Vegetables 
 Trees Woody mushrooms 
 Swing and slide 
 
 Winter 
 I. Plants in Winter. 
 
 1. Winter decorations flower of jonquil or daffo- 
 dil planted in fall. 
 
 2. Shapes of trees. 
 Problems 
 
 What makes this an attractive plant to have in 
 
 the schoolroom? 
 How do trees differ in their shape?
 
 232 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 II. Health Studies; how to keep the body well and strong. 
 
 1. Foods. 
 
 A. Foods that are good for children. Empha- 
 size the use of plain, simple foods such a& 
 fruits, vegetables, meats, cereals. 
 
 B. Foods that are not good for children. Em- 
 phasize the need of extreme caution in using 
 such foods as rich cakes, pastries, fatty 
 meats, rich puddings. 
 
 C. For each food discuss its sources, means by 
 which it reaches the table, final preparation 
 for table, value as food. 
 
 D. Need of thorough chewing, care of teeth, 
 different sets of teeth. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What are the most wholesome foods for us to 
 
 eat? 
 What are some of the foods that it is better to leave 
 
 alone or eat only small portions of? 
 Why should we take good care of our teeth? 
 How can we take good care of our teeth? 
 
 2. Air. 
 
 A. Uses in motion; to sail boats, turn wind- 
 mills, dry clothes, keep one comfortable in 
 summer. 
 
 B. Uses when quiet; to make fires, lamps, and 
 gas jets burn; use to animals, plants, and 
 people in breathing. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Of what use is air when in motion? 
 Of what use is air when quiet? 
 
 3. Care of eyes and ears. 
 
 A. How to read, testing the eyes, use of glasses, 
 testing the ears.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FOURTH GRADE 233 
 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways should we be careful in using our 
 
 eyes? 
 How do spectacles help the eyes? 
 
 4. Methods of lighting the home. (See page 170.) 
 
 A. Candle, lamp, gas, electricity. 
 Problems 
 
 Which is the best way of lighting the home? 
 How does the method of using gas differ from that 
 of electricity? 
 
 5. Sleep; providing rest for the body. 
 
 A. Need of sleep, amount required, how to get 
 
 fresh air in sleeping-rooms. 
 Problem 
 
 On what does the amount of sleep that one needs 
 depend? 
 
 III. Christmas toys; such as magnets, electro-magnet, 
 motor, steam engine, air ships, gyroscope, compass. 
 Problems 
 
 What power does the magnet possess that makes 
 
 it useful? (See page 174.) 
 
 How does the steam engine work? (See page 174.) 
 How does an aeroplane differ from a dirigible 
 
 balloon? 
 How does the compass work? (See page 177.) 
 
 IV. Winter Sports. 
 1. Coasting. 
 
 A. Formation of snow, action of gravity on 
 sled, increase in speed, other illustrations of 
 action of gravity. 
 Problems 
 
 How many different kinds of sleds are there? 
 Under what conditions does snow fall?
 
 234 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 What other illustrations of the action of gravity 
 can you think of? 
 
 V. Sky Studies. 
 
 1. The sun. (See page 187.) 
 
 A. Its size, distance, motions, relation to earth. 
 
 B. Observations on its change in position at 
 sunrise, noon, and sunset; and on the change 
 of time of sunrise and sunset. 
 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways is the sun different from the earth? 
 What things that we do are influenced by the sun? 
 
 Spring 
 I. The Awakening Life of Spring. 
 
 1. Trees. 
 
 A. Study of twigs of nut trees. 
 
 B. Watch development of twigs kept in water 
 indoors. 
 
 C. Watch development of buds out of doors; 
 keep record of dates when buds open. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we identify each of these trees before the 
 
 buds open? 
 What is there in the buds that develops into leaves 
 
 and flowers? 
 
 2. Wild flowers. 
 
 A. Brightly colored flowers, such as pasque 
 flower, hepatica, wild ginger, bellwort, wild 
 phlox, Jack-in-the-pulpit. 
 Problems 
 
 Which do you like better the hepatica or wild 
 
 ginger? 
 
 What makes the Jack-in-the-pulpit an interesting 
 flower?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FOURTH GRADE 235 
 
 How can we tell the bellwort from other flowers? 
 Of what use are the different parts of the phlox 
 
 flower? 
 3. Cultivated flowers. 
 
 A. Calendar of garden flowers. 
 
 B. Study of flowers growing from bulbs. 
 Problems 
 
 Which do you like the best of the flowers that grow 
 
 from bulbs? 
 What has been done to raise these flowers? 
 
 II. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 1. Birds. 
 
 A. Calendar. (See page 52.) 
 
 B. Changes in bird activities as the season 
 advances. 
 
 C. Special study of the birds of dooryards and 
 shade trees; such as blue jay, English spar- 
 row, robin, bluebird, chipping sparrow, 
 house wren, Baltimore oriole, yellow war- 
 bler. 
 
 D. Building nesting-houses for the wrens. 
 
 E. Fountains for drinking and bathing. 
 
 F. Formation of Audubon Bird Club; meetings 
 during term. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What changes do you notice in bird activities as 
 the season advances? 
 
 Is the English sparrow a nuisance or of value to us? 
 
 Of what use is the robin to us? 
 
 How is the oriole fitted for its life in the air and 
 among the trees? 
 
 How can you tell the yellow warbler from the gold- 
 finch?
 
 236 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 What kind of a house shall we make so as to get a 
 pair of wrens to nest in it? (See page 65.) 
 
 How can we provide water for the birds during the 
 summer? 
 
 Why would you like to form a bird club? 
 
 III. Gardening. Main topic: hardy annual flowers, and veg- 
 etables whose roots are eaten. 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Early in the season plant indoors a few 
 flower seeds and vegetable seeds from the 
 lists given below so that later the seedlings 
 may be transplanted in the home or school 
 gardens. 
 
 a. Seeds of some of the hardy annual 
 flowers, such as sweet alyssum, bache- 
 lor's button, calliopsis, candytuft, nas- 
 turtium, California poppy, petunia, 
 sunflower, zinnia. 
 
 6. Seeds of some of the vegetables whose 
 roots are eaten, such as beet, carrot, 
 celeriac, kohlrabi, oyster plant, pars- 
 nip, turnip. 
 Problem 
 
 How can we have early flowers and vegetables in 
 OUT gardens? 
 
 B. Germination experiments. (See page 131.) 
 
 a. Conditions for germination. 
 
 b. Depth of planting. 
 
 c. Testing vitality. 
 
 d. How squash seedling gets out of seed 
 coat. 
 
 e. What happens to cotyledons. 
 
 /. How seedlings break through the soil. 
 g. Use of cotyledons to seedlings.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 
 
 237 
 
 h. To show the expansive power of ger- 
 minating seeds. 
 2. Home Gardens. 
 
 A. Distribute order envelopes for penny pack- 
 ets of seeds. 
 
 B. Encourage the children to plant some of the 
 seeds mentioned above. 
 
 a. Lessons on the preparation of soil, the 
 planting of these seeds, and the subse- 
 quent care which these groups of 
 plants require. 
 Problems 
 
 Why would you like to have a garden at home? 
 How can root vegetables be raised? 
 How can the hardy annual flowers be raised? 
 How should the soil of the garden be prepared 
 before planting seeds? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 Give out seed envelopes 
 
 Robin 
 
 Calendar of garden flow- 
 
 Twigs of trees 
 
 Bluebird 
 
 ers 
 
 Plant seeds in room or 
 
 How plants use water 
 
 Wren 
 
 cold frame 
 
 Lessons on home 
 
 Later spring flowers 
 
 Start bird calendar 
 
 garden 
 
 Oriole 
 
 Blue jay 
 
 First spring flowers 
 
 Bird fountains 
 
 English sparrow 
 
 Chipping sparrow 
 
 Flowers from bulbs 
 
 Form bird club 
 
 House for wren 
 
 Yellow warbler 
 
 
 FIFTH GRADE 
 
 
 
 Autumn 
 
 
 I. Garden Studies. 
 
 1. Report on summer experiences in the garden. 
 
 2. Cultivated flowers tender annuals ; such as aster, 
 balsam, calendula, cosmos, four-o'clock, marigold, 
 portulaca, velvet flower. Effect of frost on flowers.
 
 238 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 Which would you prefer to have in your garden 
 
 marigold or cosmos? (See page 120.) 
 How may each of these flowers be identified? 
 Why is the velvet flower a desirable flower to have 
 
 in our gardens? 
 What garden flowers were not killed by the first 
 
 heavy frost? 
 S. Planting bulbs. 
 
 A. For outdoor blooming; lilies and early 
 spring flowers, such as crocus, glory of the 
 snow, snowdrop, blue bells. Plant in school 
 garden and encourage children to plant at 
 home. 
 
 B. For indoor blooming during the winter 
 lily-of-the-valley or crocus. (See page 126.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 How can we have early flowers next spring? 
 How can we have flowers in the schoolroom next 
 winter? 
 
 4. House plants. 
 Problems 
 
 What plants will do well indoors? 
 What care do these plants require? 
 
 5. Vegetables whose fruit or seeds are eaten; such as 
 tomato, egg plant, corn, peas, beans. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How are these vegetables raised? 
 How can these be kept for winter use? 
 Which of these make the best food? 
 Which can be raised most easily in a small gar- 
 den? 
 
 WTiat are the parts of a corn plant that help grow 
 the ear of corn? (See page 120.)
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 239 
 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 1. Flowers that grow in open, sunny places; such as 
 asters, clovers, daisies, goldenrods, wild sunflow- 
 ers, toadflax, thistles. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How many different kinds of goldenrods can you 
 find? 
 
 In what ways is the wild aster like the cultivated 
 aster? 
 
 How is the toadflax made so as to bring about in- 
 sect pollination? 
 
 How can we tell the kinds of clovers apart? 
 
 2. Plants without flowers. 
 
 A. Ferns both wild and cultivated. 
 Problems 
 
 How do the various ferns differ from each other? 
 
 (See page 108.) 
 What care do ferns as house plants require? 
 
 3. Shade trees of the locality; such as maples, elms, 
 lindens, catalpa, box-elder, hackberry, honey lo- 
 cust, white poplar. 
 
 A. Work of the parts of a tree; root, stem, leaf. 
 
 (See page 132.) 
 Problems 
 
 Which is the best shade tree in our locality? 
 
 Arrange the shade trees in the order of their oc- 
 currence on the streets that you are familiar 
 with. 
 
 What care do shade trees require? 
 
 How can we tell the different maples apart? 
 
 What is the chief character by which each tree 
 may be named? 
 
 What work is done by the root of a maple tree? By 
 the stem? By the leaf?
 
 240 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 4. Calendar of leaf coloring of trees, shrubs, and 
 vines. (See page 92.) 
 
 5. Plants that move. 
 
 A. Sensitive plant, white clover, mallow, sun- 
 flower, geranium. 
 Problems 
 What kind of movements do the leaves and flowers 
 
 of some plants have? 
 What causes these movements? 
 
 III. Some Animal Friends and Foes. 
 
 1. Spiders; orb weaver, grass spider, cobweb spider; 
 value, web spinning habits. 
 
 2. Water insects, such as whirligig beetle, water 
 strider, water boatman, backswimmer, water 
 beetles, nymph of dragon fly; caddis worm; 
 methods of moving and breathing. 
 
 3. Housefly, relation to disease. 
 
 4. Crayfish, habits, value. 
 
 5. Compare bird life now with that in spring. 
 
 6. Feeding winter birds. 
 Problems 
 
 How is the web of an orb weaver made? (See 
 
 page 80.) 
 
 How do spiders' webs differ from each other? 
 Are spiders harmful or helpful? 
 How is the caddis worm adapted for living in the 
 
 water? 
 How do some insects live on the surface of water? 
 
 (See page 77.) 
 How are certain insects fitted for living in the 
 
 water? 
 
 What harm is done by the house fly? 
 What can be done to get rid of the fly?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 241 
 
 What habits of the crayfish may be observed from 
 a study of a crayfish kept in the schoolroom? 
 
 How do the activities of birds now differ from their 
 activities last spring? 
 
 How may we help the winter birds? (See page 65.) 
 
 IV. Some Plant Foes. 
 
 1. Poisonous plants, such as poison ivy, Jimson weed, 
 pokeweed, poisonous mushrooms; identification, 
 nature of injury, remedies. 
 Problems 
 How may we know the poison ivy when we see it? 
 
 (See page 138.) 
 
 What harm does each plant do? 
 What is to be done in case of poisoning with any of 
 these plants? 
 
 V. Aquarium Studies. 
 
 1. Scavengers tadpole and snail. 
 Problems 
 
 Of what use are tadpoles and snails in the aqua- 
 rium? 
 
 How does the snail's way of living in the water dif- 
 fer from the fish's way? 
 
 VI. Fall Sports. 
 
 1 . Giant stride ; other illustrations of centrifugal force 
 such as cream separator, clothes-drier, fly-wheel, 
 sling. 
 
 2. Teeter; other applications of the lever such as 
 crowbar, hammer, pump handle, pantograph, 
 scales for weighing. (See page 180.) 
 
 3. Value of exercise to the body; muscles of the body. 
 Problems 
 
 What principles that are illustrated in the giant 
 stride are applied elsewhere?
 
 242 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 How do the various applications of the lever differ 
 from that found in the teeter? 
 
 In what way is the exercise on these pieces of ap- 
 paratus good for the muscles of the body? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September 
 Wild flowers 
 Tender annuals 
 Start calendar of leaf 
 coloring 
 House plants 
 House fly 
 
 October 
 Ferns 
 Spiders 
 Bulbs out of doors 
 Compare bird life 
 with spring 
 Trees 
 
 November 
 Water insects 
 Crayfish 
 Vegetables 
 Feeding birds 
 Bulbs indoors 
 Tadpole and snail 
 Stride and teeter 
 
 Winter 
 I. Plants and Animals in Winter. 
 
 1. Winter decorations flower of lily-of -the- valley 
 or crocus. 
 
 Problem 
 
 Which do you think adds more to the appearance 
 of the room, a flower like the lily-of-the-valley 
 or a foliage plant like the fern? 
 
 2. Tree studies. 
 
 A. Bark of trees. 
 
 B. Uses of trees and forests while standing. 
 
 C. Uses of the wood after the tree is cut down. 
 Problems 
 
 How do the barks of trees differ? 
 
 Of what use are trees while standing? 
 
 What uses are made of the wood after the tree is 
 
 cut down. (See 'page 96.) 
 How may we tell the trees apart in winter? 
 
 3. Winter birds; such as blue jay, English sparrow, 
 nuthatch, chickadee, woodpecker; identification, 
 feeding.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 243 
 
 Problems 
 
 What is the best way of telling the winter birds 
 
 apart? 
 
 How can we help them in winter? (See page 65.) 
 4. How animals spend the winter. 
 Problem 
 
 In what different ways do wild animals spend the 
 winter? 
 
 II. Health Studies. 
 
 1. Drinks. 
 
 A. Drinks that are harmful to children; tea, 
 coffee, alcoholic drinks, patent medicines. 
 
 B. Drinks that are good for children. 
 
 a. Milk; its sources, uses, methods of 
 keeping sweet and clean, products 
 made from milk. 
 
 6. Water; use to the body, how it becomes 
 unfit to drink, how made pure, public 
 drinking cup and sanitary fountain; 
 method by which rain forms. 
 Problems 
 Why are patent medicines not good for sick people 
 
 to use? 
 Why should not children use tea, coffee, or alcoholic 
 
 drinks? 
 
 What makes milk such a good drink for chil- 
 dren? 
 
 What care needs to be taken to be sure that our 
 drinking water is clean? 
 
 2. Foods. 
 
 A. What children eat in other lands. 
 
 B. Comparison of food of animals with food of 
 man.
 
 244 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 How does the food that children in other coun- 
 tries eat differ from the food you eat? 
 
 How does the food of animals differ from that of 
 man? 
 
 3. Breathing. (See page 159.) 
 
 A. How done, need of, frequency, lungs, lung 
 capacity, breathing through mouth and nos- 
 trils, artificial breathing in case of apparent 
 drowning and gas suffocation. 
 
 B. Composition of air, effect on air of breathing, 
 amount of air breathed. 
 
 C. Effect on breathing of tight clothing, and of 
 exercise. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What takes place in our lungs while we are breath- 
 ing? 
 
 What are some of the things that interfere with 
 proper breathing? 
 
 4. Clothing. 
 
 A. Purposes, dependence on season, how chil- 
 dren in other lands are clothed. 
 
 B. Animal coverings; hair, wool, fur, feathers, 
 scales, skin, shell, silk. 
 
 C. Ability of clothing material to conduct heat. 
 Problems 
 
 How does the clothing of children in other lands 
 
 differ from your clothing? 
 What health factors should determine the kind of 
 
 clothing we wear? 
 
 What different kinds of coverings do animals 
 ' have? 
 
 5. Care of skin. 
 
 A. Bathing, kinds of baths, swimming.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 245 
 
 Problems 
 
 Of what value are the different kinds of baths? 
 What are the strokes commonly used in swim- 
 ming? 
 
 III. Winter Pleasures. 
 
 1. Outdoor sports; skating, formation of ice; floating 
 of ice; value to body of outdoor exercise. 
 
 2. Evening entertainments. (See page 181.) 
 
 A. Stereopticon, moving pictures, phonograph, 
 
 talking movies. 
 Problems 
 
 How many kinds of skates are there? 
 
 How does ice form? 
 
 How does a moving-picture machine differ from a 
 
 stereopticon? 
 
 How does the phonograph reproduce sounds? 
 What advantages have the talking movies over 
 the phonograph or moving pictures alone? 
 
 IV. Sky Studies. 
 
 1. The moon; its size, distance, motions, relation to 
 earth. 
 
 A. Observations on its phases, changes in posi- 
 tion in sky; and changes in time of rising 
 and setting. (See page 188.) 
 Problems 
 
 What effect does the moon have on man's life? 
 In what ways is the moon different from the 
 sun? 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. The Awakening Life of Spring. 
 1. Trees. 
 
 A. Leaf calendar. (See page 92.)
 
 246 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 B. Special study of shade trees of vicinity. 
 Watch development of twigs kept in water 
 indoors. 
 
 C. Flowers of maple and elm. 
 Problems 
 
 What is the order in which the buds of our shade 
 
 trees open? 
 How can we identify our shade trees before the 
 
 buds open? 
 What is there in the bud that develops into leaf 
 
 and flower? 
 How do the flowers of the elm and maple differ 
 
 from other flowers that you know, such as the 
 
 hepatica. 
 
 2. Wild flowers. 
 
 A. Calendar. (See page 100.) 
 
 B. Special study of white spring flowers, such 
 as blood root, dwarf trillium, Dutchman's 
 breeches, wild strawberry, tooth wort. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How does the flower of the bloodroot differ from 
 
 the flower of Dutchman's breeches? 
 What is the best way of identifying each of these 
 
 flowers? 
 
 How are these adapted to insect pollination? 
 Which do you like the better of any two of these 
 
 flowers? 
 
 3. Cultivated flowers. 
 
 A. Study of spring flowering perennials such as 
 columbine, iris, lily-of-the-valley, peony, 
 bleeding-heart. 
 Problems 
 
 Why are these desirable flowers to have in our 
 garden?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE FIFTH GRADE 247 
 
 What is it necessary to do in order to have these 
 flowers? 
 
 II. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 
 1. The birds. 
 
 A. Special study of birds of the air; such as 
 rough-winged swallow, bank swallow, mar- 
 tin, chimney swift, barn swallow, night 
 hawk, humming bird. 
 
 B. Building nesting-houses for bluebird and 
 wren. 
 
 C. Study of nesting habits. 
 
 a. Nest, location, materials, construction; 
 eggs; number, size, color, incubation, 
 young birds; care given by parents, 
 time in nest; putting out nesting ma- 
 terial. 
 
 D. Formation of Audubon Bird Clubs, meet- 
 ings during term. 
 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways are swallows fitted for living on the 
 wing? 
 
 How can we tell the different swallows apart? 
 
 Of what use are the swallows to us? 
 
 What makes bird houses a better protection to the 
 birds than their natural nesting sites? 
 
 How can we get some bird like the wren or blue- 
 bird to help us destroy the insects in our garden? 
 
 What materials do birds' nests contain that we can 
 put out for the birds to use? 
 
 Where do birds build their nests? 
 
 What care do the parent birds give their young? 
 
 III. The New Life of Spring. 
 
 1. Development of frog's eggs.
 
 248 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problem 
 
 What changes take place during the development 
 of the frog's eggs? 
 
 IV. Gardening. Main topic: tender annual flowers; and 
 vegetables whose leaves are eaten. 
 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Early in the season plant indoors or in a cold 
 frame a few seeds from each of the lists given 
 below so that the seedlings may later be 
 transplanted into the home or school gardens. 
 
 a. Plant seeds of some of the tender an- 
 nuals; such as aster, balsam, cosmos, 
 four-o'clock, marigold, portulaca, 
 velvet flower. 
 
 6. Plant seeds of some of the vegetables 
 whose leaves are eaten, such as cab- 
 bage, celery, Swiss chard, cress, endive, 
 lettuce, parsley. 
 Problems ^ 
 
 How may we have early flowers and vegetables in 
 
 our gardens? 
 How should seedlings be transplanted? 
 
 B. Work of roots (To be answered by experi- 
 ments. (See page 132.) 
 
 a. Absorption of water. 
 6. Root hairs. 
 
 c. Direction of growth. 
 
 d. Food storage carrot basket. 
 
 2. Home gardens. 
 
 A. Distribute order envelopes for penny packets 
 of seeds. 
 
 B. Encourage children to plant some of the 
 seeds mentioned above under A. Lessons
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 
 
 249 
 
 on the culture of tender annual flowers and of 
 salad plants. Value of fresh vegetables for 
 food. 
 
 C. Insects of the gardens. 
 Problems 
 
 How can tender annual flowers be raised? 
 How can salad plants be raised? 
 Why do vegetables that we raise in our own gar- 
 dens make good food? 
 What do insects do in the garden? ' 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 Give out seed envelopes 
 Twigs of trees 
 Plant seeds indoors 
 House for bluebird 
 Nests 
 How plants grow 
 Work of plants 
 
 April 
 Organize Audubon 
 Bird Club 
 Lessons on home garden 
 Start flower calendar 
 Early flowers 
 Martin 
 House for wren 
 Frog's eggs 
 Start leaf calendar 
 Bank swallow 
 Flowers of maple and elm 
 
 May 
 Chimney swift 
 Barn swallow 
 Later spring flowers 
 Night hawk 
 Humming bird 
 Cultivated flowers 
 Nesting habits 
 Insects of garden 
 
 SIXTH GRADE 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Garden studies. 
 
 1. Report on summer experiences in the garden. 
 
 2. Cultivated flowers vines. 
 
 A. Annual vines such as balloon vine, canary 
 bird flower, hyacinth bean, cypress vine, 
 gourd, Japanese hop, moon flower, morning- 
 glory, sweet pea. 
 
 B. Perennial vines such as bittersweet, clema- 
 tis, Engelmann's ivy, Boston ivy, trumpet
 
 250 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 honeysuckle, everlasting pea, wistaria, wood- 
 bine. 
 Problems 
 
 Which are better vines to grow in our yards, an- 
 nuals or perennials? 
 What support is needed for each kind of vine? 
 
 (See page 104.) 
 
 What uses are made of vines? 
 Which of these vines is the prettiest in the fall 
 
 when the leaves are coloring? 
 Which is the more desirable vine to grow, the 
 morning glory or canary bird flower? 
 C. Flowers from spring bulbs; tuberose, gladio- 
 lus, dahlia. 
 Problem 
 
 Which flower is better for decorating a yard, 
 gladiolus or dahlia? 
 
 3. Planting bulbs. 
 
 A. For outdoor blooming. Plant in school gar- 
 den and encourage children to plant at home. 
 
 a. Hyacinths (single, double, grape, 
 feathered, wood, Spanish). 
 
 B. For indoor blooming. (See page 126.) 
 
 a. Roman hyacinth. 
 Problems 
 
 What is the best way to plant fall bulbs? 
 
 How may we have flowers in our room next winter? 
 
 4. Vine crops; such as cucumber, melons, summer 
 and winter squash, pumpkin, pollination of their 
 blossoms; grapevine. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How do the flowers of the pumpkin differ from each 
 
 other? 
 Which of these fruits makes the best food?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 251 
 
 How may some of these be stored for winter use? 
 In what respects are these fruits alike in structure? 
 
 5. Some common weeds of the garden; such as mal- 
 low, pigweed, lamb's quarters, purslane, quack- 
 grass. Their identification and control. (See 
 page 135.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 What are the most common weeds that grow in the 
 
 garden? 
 
 How may they be identified? 
 How may each of these weeds be controlled? 
 
 6. Fruit trees and their fruits. 
 
 A. Apple, plum (both wild and cultivated), 
 cherry (both wild and cultivated), pear, 
 peach. 
 Problems 
 
 How many different kinds of apples are there that 
 
 grow around here? 
 How do the cultivated plum and cherry differ from 
 
 the wild? 
 What harm is done to apple trees and apples by 
 
 insects? 
 
 How may these insects be controlled? 
 How do varieties of apples differ from each other? 
 
 II. Plants in Nature's Garden. 
 
 1. Vines; such as bittersweet, climbing buckwheat, 
 clematis, wild cucumber, wild morning glory, wild 
 grape, poison ivy, wild peanut, moonseed, smilax, 
 woodbine. 
 
 A. Calendar of coloring and fall of leaves of 
 vines, both wild and cultivated. (See page 
 92.) 
 
 Problems 
 How may the wild vines be told apart?
 
 252 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Which of these vines have features which make 
 them suitable for planting in the home grounds? 
 How do vines climb? (See page 104.) 
 
 2. Flowerless plants. 
 
 A. Mosses, lichens, and horsetail. 
 Problems 
 
 How do mosses differ from lichens? 
 
 3. Tree fruits still hanging on trees; such as ash, ca- 
 talpa, cones of evergreens, red cedar, coffee tree, 
 hornbean, ironwood, box-elder, linden, locust, 
 sugar maple. Dispersal of tree fruits. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What trees may be identified by means of the. fruit 
 
 hanging on them? 
 How are these tree fruits adapted for dispersal? 
 
 4. Fruits that serve as food for the fall and winter 
 birds; such as mountain ash, barberry, bitter- 
 sweet, burning bush, hackberry, dogwood, smilax, 
 snowberry, sumac, viburnum; identification of 
 these shrubs from fruit and leaf. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What kind of fruits do shrubs bear that birds like 
 
 to eat? 
 How may these shrubs be identified? 
 
 III. Some Friends and Foes of the Garden. 
 
 1. Insect friends and foes; such as potato beetle, 
 white grub, cutworm, cabbage worm, corn ear 
 worm, bees, lady beetles; harm or good done; 
 remedies for injurious kinds. 
 Problems 
 
 What harm have insects done to the garden during 
 
 the past summer? 
 In what ways have insects been helpful?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 253 
 
 2. Bird friends; fall migration of birds; nest census 
 (after fall of leaves). 
 
 Problems 
 
 How do the activities of birds now differ from their 
 
 activities last spring? 
 Which are among the first birds to leave, and 
 
 which stay the longest? 
 How many birds' nests can we find in the trees 
 
 growing within two blocks of the schoolhouse? 
 
 3. Toad. 
 Problem 
 
 What does the toad do for us? 
 
 IV. Aquarium Studies. 
 1. Water plants. 
 Problem 
 
 How do plants that live in the water differ from 
 those that live on land? 
 
 V. Fall Sports. 
 
 1. Bicycling, bicycle pump, compressed air. 
 Problems 
 
 Which is the better bicycle, the kind with or with- 
 out chains? 
 
 What is the difference in the different makes of 
 bicycles? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September October November 
 
 Flowers of spring bulbs Weeds Fruit trees 
 
 Flowers of vine crops Vine crops Plant bulb indoors 
 
 Annual cultivated vines Garden insects Tree fruits 
 
 Perennial cultivated vines Mosses and lichens Nest census 
 
 Wild vines Plant bulbs out of doors Fruits for birds 
 
 Start vine calendar Fall migration of birds Bicycling 
 
 Toad Water plants
 
 254 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Plants and Animals in Winter. 
 
 1. Winter decorations flower of Roman hyacinth 
 from bulb planted in fall. 
 
 2. Tree studies. 
 
 A. Buds of trees. 
 
 B. Enemies of trees and forests. 
 Problems 
 
 What makes the hyacinth a desirable flower to 
 
 have in the room? 
 What trees can we name through the difference in 
 
 their buds? 
 What are the chief enemies of trees? 
 
 3. How plants spend the winter. 
 
 4. Winter birds. 
 
 A. Value of birds. 
 
 B. Helping our bird friends by feeding them. 
 Problems 
 
 What do birds do for us? 
 
 How can we help the winter birds? (See page 65.) 
 
 II. Health Studies; keeping the body well and strong. 
 1. Foods. 
 
 A. Cooking, needs, ways. 
 
 B. Preservation of foods; in ice chest, cellar, by 
 canning, drying, salting. 
 
 C. Difference in food according to seasons. 
 
 D. Compare food of plants with food of ani- 
 mals. 
 
 E. Digestion of foods, solubility, use by body. 
 Problems 
 
 How does cooking make foods better? 
 
 In what ways may foods be kept from spoiling? 
 
 How does our food change from season to season?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 255 
 
 How does the way in which plants get their food 
 differ from the way in which animals get their 
 food? 
 
 What happens to our food after it is swallowed? 
 
 2. Heating and ventilation; how to get a supply of 
 warm, fresh air. (See pages 159 and 162). 
 
 A. Ways of heating: fireplace, stove, hot-air 
 furnace, hot water, steam. 
 
 B. Use of thermometer. 
 
 C. Composition of air. 
 
 D. Things that spoil pure air: tobacco smoke, 
 lamps, gas jets and ranges, people, dust, 
 bad odors from unclean objects, such as 
 clothing, bodies, teeth, decaying food. 
 
 E. Effect of impure air on people. 
 
 F. How to get pure air in the sleeping-room, 
 the home, and the schoolroom. 
 
 G. How the air in the room moves; drafts. 
 H. Amount of air needed. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Which is the best method of heating our homes? 
 
 Which system of heating gives the best ventila- 
 tion? 
 
 What are some of the things that spoil pure 
 air? 
 
 How is our schoolroom ventilated? 
 
 How is your home ventilated? 
 
 How may we get fresh air in our sleeping-room? 
 
 How does the thermometer enable us to tell the 
 temperature of our rooms? 
 
 3. Clothing; protecting the body. 
 
 A. Different kinds of materials used, sources, 
 method of making clothing from each; shoes 
 and rubbers.
 
 256 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 What kind of material makes the best clothing? 
 
 Through what changes does each kind pass from 
 its source till it is made into clothing? 
 
 What points that effect health should be consid- 
 ered when buying shoes? 
 
 4. Avoiding infectious diseases. 
 
 A. Causes, relation of bacteria to disease, ac- 
 tivities of bacteria. 
 
 B. Routes of transfer to well persons; food, 
 water, flies, milk, contact (for nose and 
 mouth discharge as in tuberculosis, through 
 sputum, mouth-spray and hands). 
 
 C. Prevention: clean hands, care in depositing 
 sputum, avoid throwing mouth-spray into 
 people's faces, care of patients. 
 
 D. Special study of a few diseases, such as 
 tuberculosis, typhoid fever, diphtheria, 
 smallpox. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What part do bacteria play in infectious diseases? 
 How may these bacteria be carried from sick to 
 
 well persons? 
 What can we do to prevent our catching these 
 
 diseases? 
 What can we do to prevent other people from 
 
 catching diseases from us when we are sick? 
 
 5. The blood system; the errand boy of the body. 
 
 A. Uses of blood, heart, and blood vessels? 
 Problems 
 
 What does the blood system do for the body? 
 What to do in case of accidents. 
 
 A. Cuts, burns, drowning, suffocation, poison- 
 ing.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 257 
 
 Problems 
 
 What may be done in case of poisoning? 
 
 In case of apparent drowning how may respiration 
 be restored? 
 
 In case of cuts what may be done to stop bleed- 
 ing? 
 
 What may be done to care for burns? 
 
 III. Christmas Studies. 
 
 1. Christmas trees and other evergreens. 
 Problems 
 
 How can we identify the evergreens that grow 
 
 around here? 
 What use is made of the wood of evergreen trees? 
 
 IV. Winter Sports. 
 
 1. Roller skating; going around curves, other illus- 
 trations of centrifugal force. 
 Problems 
 
 How does roller skating differ from ice skating? 
 What other illustrations of centrifugal force can 
 you think of? 
 
 V. Sky Studies. 
 
 1. The stars and planets; distances, size, relation to 
 earth. 
 
 2. Observations on constellations, difference between 
 winter and summer constellations, constellations 
 visible at all seasons, how to find the north star. 
 (See page 189). 
 
 Problems 
 
 How are stars different from planets? 
 
 Which has the greatest effect on man, the moon, 
 
 sun, planets, or stars? 
 Which the least effect?
 
 258 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 VI. Some Simple Machines that make Man's Work 
 Easier. (See page 180.) 
 
 1. Pulley, screw, wedge: common applications of 
 
 each; compare lever and pulley; inclined plane 
 
 and wedge. 
 Problems 
 
 How does each of these machines work so as to 
 enable man to lift heavy loads? 
 
 How many applications of each can you think of? 
 
 VII. How Glass helps People. 
 
 1. In reading spectacles. 
 
 2. In seeing afar off opera and field-glasses. 
 
 3. In taking pictures camera; blue prints; de- 
 veloping, printing. (See page 178.) 
 
 Problems 
 
 How do glasses help one to see better? 
 
 How do opera glasses seem to bring objects 
 
 nearer? 
 
 In what ways is the camera like the human eye? 
 How can we make blue prints of leaves, or from 
 
 some negative? 
 
 How many different kinds of cameras are there? 
 How are negatives developed? 
 What are the different ways of printing? 
 
 VIH. Helps in being Prompt. 
 
 1. Watches and clocks. 
 
 2. School electric bells. 
 
 3. Old methods of telling time; sundial, hour-glass. 
 Problems 
 
 We will take an old alarm clock apart to see if 
 we can understand how it keeps time. 
 
 How are our electric bells arranged so as to give 
 the signals for the periods?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 259 
 
 We will make an hour-glass and see if we can keep 
 account of time by it. (See page 179.) 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. The Awakening Life of Spring. 
 1. Trees and shrubs. 
 
 A. Flower calendar of trees. Special study of 
 tree flowers of common shade trees and 
 fruit trees. 
 
 B. Special study of fruit trees and small fruits, 
 such as apple, plum, cherry, peach, pear, 
 strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, currant; 
 pollination of fruit blossoms; wind pollina- 
 tions; grapes. 
 
 C. Watch development of twigs of fruit trees 
 kept indoors in water. 
 
 D. Insect enemies of fruits the codling moth. 
 
 E. Methods of propagating fruits. 
 Problems 
 
 How do the flowers of our shade trees differ from 
 
 the flowers of fruit trees? 
 In what ways is the apple blossom adapted to 
 
 bring about insect pollination? (See page 103.) 
 In what ways are the flowers of the plum and 
 
 cherry alike? 
 How may we raise strawberries in our home 
 
 gardens? 
 In how many ways do we use strawberries as 
 
 food? 
 
 What are the methods of getting new apple trees? 
 What of getting new plants of grapes, currants, 
 
 and other fruits? 
 In what ways do wind-pollinated flowers differ 
 
 from insect-pollinated flowers?
 
 260 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 2. Cultivated shrubs. 
 
 A. Study of flowers of spring blooming shrubs, 
 such as lilac, Juneberry, golden bell, flow- 
 ering almond, snowball, weigela, bridal 
 wreath. 
 Problems 
 
 What makes each of these an attractive shrub to 
 
 grow in our yards? 
 How can we tell them apart? 
 
 II. The Returning Life of Spring. 
 1. Birds. 
 
 A. Special study of birds of the marsh, such as 
 red-winged blackbird, kingfisher, bobolink, 
 marsh wren; and of birds of meadows and 
 fields, such as bobwhite, horned lark, gold- 
 finch, meadowlark, song sparrow, vesper 
 sparrow, field sparrow, flicker, cowbird, in- 
 digo bunting. 
 
 B. Building open nesting-boxes for the robin 
 and phcebe. 
 
 C. Migration; times; groups of birds (perma- 
 nent, summer, and winter residents, tran- 
 sient visitants); routes, distances, causes; 
 calendar of spring migration. 
 
 D. Bird enemies; bird protection. Special em- 
 phasis on the work of the Audubon Societies. 
 
 E. Formation of Audubon Bird Club; meetings 
 during term. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What birds prefer to live near wet places? 
 
 Of what use are the birds of the meadows and 
 
 fields to us? 
 Which is the most valuable of these birds?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SIXTH GRADE 261 
 
 What habits of these birds are specially interest- 
 ing to us? 
 
 What kind of a nesting-box can we make so as 
 to get a pair of robins or phoebes to nest in 
 it? 
 
 How are birds grouped according to the time that 
 they stay with us? 
 
 Let us try to follow on a map the travels of a bob- 
 olink for a year. 
 
 What are the chief enemies of birds? 
 
 What is the Audubon Society doing to protect 
 birds? (See page 66.) 
 
 What can we in our Audubon Club do to protect 
 birds? 
 
 What are our State and National Governments 
 doing to protect birds? (See page 67.) 
 
 III. Gardening. Main topic; vines and vine crops. 
 1. Schoolroom gardening. 
 
 A. Early in the spring plant indoors or in a 
 hotbed a few seeds from the lists given below 
 so that the seedlings may later be trans- 
 planted to the home or school gardens. 
 
 a. Plant seeds of some of the annual vines 
 such as balloon vine, hyacinth bean, 
 canary bird flower, cypress vine, 
 gourds, Japanese hop, moon flower 
 climbing nasturtium, morning glory 
 sweet peas. 
 
 b. Plant some seeds of the vine crops such 
 as melons, pumpkin, cucumber, win- 
 ter and summer squash. 
 
 c. Plant summer flowering bulbs such as 
 tuberose, gladiolus, dahlia.
 
 262 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 B. Work of leaf. (See page 134.) 
 
 a. Transpiration. 
 
 b. Light and starch-making. 
 
 c. Leaf exposure to sunlight. 
 
 d. Sleep movement of leaves. 
 
 e. Effect of light on growth of stem and 
 leaves. 
 
 Problems 
 
 How may we have early flowers and vegetables in 
 
 our gardens? 
 What is the difference between a cold frame and 
 
 hotbed? 
 What effect do light, water, and gravity have on 
 
 the direction in which the parts of a plant grow? 
 
 2. Home gardens. 
 
 A. Distribute order envelopes for penny pack- 
 ets of seeds. 
 
 B. Encourage the children to plant some seeds 
 from the lists given above under A, and also 
 bulbs. 
 
 C. Lessons on the culture of vines and vine 
 crops. Value to body of the outdoor exer- 
 cise in gardening. Thinning plants. 
 
 Problems 
 
 What are some of the best vines to plant? 
 
 How can these vines be raised? 
 
 In what ways is the care that the different vines 
 
 crops require the same? 
 
 How may we raise some extra early cucumbers? 
 We will each make a plan on paper of our garden 
 
 just as we would like to plant it. 
 
 3. Garden calendar; reports arranged in three col- 
 umns as follows: garden activity observed, date, 
 name of child first reporting.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 263 
 
 IV. Spring Sports. 
 
 1. Outdoor toys, such as kite, windmill, water- 
 wheel types, undershot, overshot, turbine; 
 natural and artificial waterfalls. 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways is an aeroplane like a kite? 
 
 Which are more useful, windmills or water-wheels? 
 
 How does a windmill differ from a water-wheel in 
 
 the way it is made? 
 
 What is the best way to make toy water-wheels 
 and windmills? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March 
 Distribute seed enve- 
 lopes 
 Twigs of trees 
 Plant seeds indoors 
 Plant activities 
 Goldfinch 
 Bobwhite 
 Spring sports 
 Bird enemies 
 Bird protection 
 Form Audubon Bird Club 
 Nesting-boxes for robin 
 
 April May 
 Start tree flower cal- Indigo bunting 
 endar Flowers of fruit trees 
 Red-winged blackbird Propagation of fruits 
 Flowers of shade trees Bobolink 
 Lessons on home garden Marsh wren 
 Start garden calendar Codling moth 
 Song, vesper, field Cultivated shrubs 
 sparrows 
 Raising strawberries 
 Kingfisher, cowbird, 
 flicker 
 Bird migration 
 
 SEVENTH GRADE 
 
 Central thought for the grade: the hygiene and science of the home 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Making the Home Yard attractive. 
 
 1. Shrubs; cultivated, and wild shrubs adapted for 
 planting in the yard. 
 
 2. Vines; cultivated, and wild vines adapted for 
 planting in the yard. 
 
 3. Flower garden. 
 
 A. Perennials; identification of common kinds.
 
 264 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 B. Annuals; identification of new kinds not 
 already known. 
 
 C. Plant bulbs. 
 
 (In the fall, study shrubs, vines, and flowers for 
 identification and to learn their decorative 
 value.) 
 Problems 
 
 How may our shrubs, vines, and flowers be iden- 
 tified? 
 
 What decorative value has each of these for grow- 
 ing in the home yard? 
 
 Which make better garden flowers, annuals or 
 perennials? 
 
 What wild vines and shrubs are adapted for plant- 
 ing in the home yard? 
 
 Which are the best fall garden flowers? 
 
 What bulbs are best adapted to this climate? 
 
 How should they be planted? 
 
 II. Making the Yard useful. 
 
 1. The vegetable garden. 
 
 A. Canning and storing vegetables. 
 
 B. Garden insects. 
 
 C. Garden weeds. 
 
 2. The fruit garden. 
 
 A. Canning fruits. 
 Problems 
 
 What are the best methods of storing vegetables 
 
 for the winter? (See page 122.) 
 How does the method used in canning vegetables 
 
 differ from that used for fruits? 
 How may fruits be canned? (See page 122.) 
 What harm are insects doing to the garden? 
 What are the most troublesome weeds found in 
 
 the garden?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 265 
 i 
 
 III. Growing Plants Indoors. 
 
 1. House plants; kinds, care, raising from cuttings. 
 
 (See page 126.) 
 Problems 
 
 What plants are best adapted for growing in the 
 
 house? 
 What care do these plants require? 
 
 IV. Insect Pests of the Household. 
 
 1. Ants, cockroaches, carpet beetle, clothes moth. 
 Problems 
 
 What harm does each of these pests do? 
 
 How may each be controlled? 
 
 V. Heating the Home. (See pages 162-164.) 
 
 1. Fireplace. 
 
 2. Stove. 
 
 3. Hot-air furnace. 
 
 4. Steam. 
 
 5. Hot water. 
 
 6. Fuels used; chemistry of burning. 
 
 7. Causes and effects of heat. 
 
 VI. Ventilating the Home. (See pages 159-162.) 
 
 1. Means for each of the above methods of heat- 
 ing. 
 Problems 
 
 What are the essential differences between the hot 
 
 air, hot water, and steam systems of heating? 
 From the standpoint of heating alone which is the 
 
 best system? 
 From the standpoint of ventilation which is the 
 
 best system? 
 
 How can the advantages of the various systems 
 from the standpoints of both heating and ven- 
 tilation be combined in one system?
 
 266 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 If the home is heated by stoves, how may ventila- 
 tion be secured? In what ways is the burning of 
 fuel in the furnace similar to the burning of food 
 in our bodies? 
 
 What effects of heat are illustrated in these various 
 methods of heating? (See page 163.) 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 September October November 
 
 Flowers Canning fruits and Heating the home 
 
 Shrubs vegetables Ventilating the home 
 
 Vines Storing vegetables 
 
 Insects 
 House plants 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Lighting the Home. (See pages 170-171.) 
 
 1. Kerosene; capillarity in wick. 
 
 2. Gas; relation of heat and light. 
 
 3. Electricity. 
 
 4. Protection from fire; fire extinguisher. 
 Problems 
 
 What principles are involved in the working of 
 
 the kerosene lamp? 
 
 What advantages has gas over kerosene? 
 What advantages has electricity over both gas 
 
 and kerosene? 
 How do fire extinguishers work? 
 
 II. The Home Water Supply. 
 
 1. Springs; health considerations. 
 
 2. Wells; types dug, driven, bored, drilled. 
 
 3. Cisterns; soft and hard water. (See page 183.) 
 
 4. Pumps; air pressure, the siphon. (See page 173.) 
 
 5. Hot- water tanks.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 267 
 
 6. Pneumatic water system; tank, pump, engine, 
 
 windmill. 
 
 7. City water supply; source; pressure. 
 
 8. Ice ; source, purity, methods of using; the ice chest; 
 
 freezing ice cream. (See page 173.) 
 Problems 
 
 What care should be taken to keep the water of 
 wells and springs clean? 
 
 What are the differences between hard and soft 
 water? 
 
 How is the lift pump constructed? 
 
 How may the country home have a supply of run- 
 ning water? 
 
 How is our city supplied with water? 
 
 What considerations of health should be taken into 
 account in the use of ice? 
 
 III. The Food Supply. 
 
 1. Need of food. 
 
 2. Combinations of foods needed. 
 
 3. Economy of food selection. 
 
 4. Preservation and protection of foods. 
 
 5. Cooking foods. 
 
 A. Reasons for cooking. 
 
 B. Means of cooking; stove, gas, electricity, 
 fireless cooker. 
 
 C. Chemistry of cooking. (See page 164.) 
 
 a. Experiments to show effects of heat on 
 proteins, fats, and starches; tests for 
 proteins, fats, starches, and miner- 
 als; study of chief elements found in 
 foods, N.O.C.P.S.H.; tests for acids 
 and bases; action of yeast and baking 
 powder.
 
 268 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 Why does the body need foods? 
 
 How may one know what combinations of foods to 
 select? 
 
 To what extent may economy be taken into ac- 
 count without injury to health? 
 
 What care should be taken to keep foods sweet and 
 clean? 
 
 Which is the best means of cooking, by the stove, 
 the gas range or electricity? 
 
 How is the fireless cooker constructed? 
 
 IV. Entertainment in the home: musical instruments. 
 
 1. Phonograph. 
 
 2. Piano. 
 
 3. Violin, guitar, and other stringed instruments. 
 
 4. Causes of sound; physical cause of musical 
 
 sounds. 
 Problems 
 
 How is the phonograph constructed? 
 
 What are the principles involved in the making 
 and using of records? 
 
 In the piano, violin, and other stringed instru- 
 ments how is the pitch controlled? (See page 181 .) 
 
 What makes the difference in the quality of the 
 tones of these stringed instruments? 
 
 V. The Electric Doorbell; constructions, batteries. 
 Problem 
 
 How does the electric bell work? 
 
 Spring 
 
 I. Making the Yard attractive. 
 
 1. Shrubs and vines; selection of kinds; kinds to at- 
 tract birds; arrangement; method of planting.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 269 
 
 2. Flower garden; location; planning; selection of 
 flowers for harmony of colors; physical explana- 
 tion of color, the spectrum and rainbow; prepara- 
 tion of soil; planting seeds; subsequent care. 
 
 A. Annuals; plant seeds. 
 
 B. Perennials. Plant seeds or set out roots. 
 
 C. Bulbs study flowers. 
 
 (While in the fall the chief thought was 
 the study of the plants themselves, in the 
 spring the chief thought is the planting 
 of seeds and plants.) 
 
 3. Wild-flower garden. 
 Problems 
 
 What shrubs and vines are best adapted to this 
 climate? 
 
 How should shrubs be arranged to secure the most 
 artistic effects? 
 
 What points should be taken into account in plan- 
 ning a flower garden? 
 
 What is the physical explanation of the difference 
 in color of flowers? 
 
 How do annuals and perennials differ in the care 
 needed to raise them? 
 
 What decorative value have the flowers of the 
 bulbous plants? 
 
 What makes the tulip a desirable garden flower? 
 
 II. Making the Yard useful. 
 
 1. The vegetable garden. Financial returns; plan, 
 selection of varieties, preparation of soils, tools, 
 hotbed and cold frame, planting; care. 
 Problems 
 
 What financial returns may be expected from a 
 small vegetable garden?
 
 270 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 What considerations that apply to the planting 
 
 and care of the flower garden apply also to the 
 
 vegetable garden? 
 To what extent is the consideration of varieties 
 
 important? 
 
 What advantages has the wheel-hoe? 
 How may early vegetables be raised? 
 What is the difference between the hotbed and 
 
 cold frame? 
 
 2. The fruit garden. Classification of fruits, propa- 
 gation, comparison with vegetable garden; 
 dwarf fruits. 
 
 A. Strawberries; varieties, fall bearing, methods 
 of planting, care the first, second, and third 
 seasons; financial returns. 
 
 B. Grapes; raspberries and other bush fruits. 
 
 C. W T ork of the stem of fruit plants. 
 
 a. Passage of liquid up stem. (See page 
 
 133.) 
 
 6. Passage of liquid down stem. 
 c. Direction of growth. 
 Problems 
 
 Which is the best method of setting out straw- 
 berries? 
 How may strawberries be obtained in the fall of 
 
 the same year the plants are set? 
 How does the care of the strawberry for the firs*, 
 season differ from the care the second and third 
 seasons? 
 How does the method of raising raspberries differ 
 
 from the method of raising strawberries? 
 How do fruit growers get new plants of straw- 
 berries, raspberries, and currants? 
 How do dwarf fruits differ from the ordinary kinds ?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 271 
 
 3. Poultry-keeping. 
 
 A. Financial returns; varieties, housing, feed- 
 ing, hatching eggs, rearing chicks. 
 Problems 
 
 What are the interesting things about poultry- 
 keeping? 
 
 What conditions must a good house meet? 
 How should poultry be fed? 
 
 Which is the better method of hatching eggs, by 
 incubator or hen? 
 
 4. Bee-keeping. 
 
 A. Financial returns; kinds of bees, life of the 
 
 hive, swarming, wintering. 
 Problems 
 
 What advantage does bee-keeping have over poul- 
 try-keeping? 
 
 What disadvantages? 
 
 What care should be given bees during the swarm- 
 ing season? 
 
 How should bees be wintered in this climate? 
 
 Which offers better opportunities for financial re- 
 turns, bee-keeping or poultry-keeping? 
 
 III. Enemies of the Garden. 
 
 1. Insects; such as cutworm, cucumber beetle, potato 
 
 beetle, squash bug, corn-ear worm, white grub. 
 Problems 
 
 What harm is done by each of these insects? 
 
 What is the remedy for each? 
 
 Through what changes does the potato beetle pass 
 in its growth? 
 
 IV. Friends of the Garden. 
 
 1. Birds. 
 
 A. Birds of the garden and orchard, such as 
 chickadee, cuckoo, kingbird, nuthatch,
 
 272 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 phoebe, wood thrush, woodpeckers, gros- 
 beak, robin, wren, bluebird, Baltimore 
 oriole. 
 
 B. Attracting bird friends to the yard and gar- 
 den by providing nesting-boxes, fountains, 
 and planting shrubs to furnish fruit. 
 
 C. Bird songs: how made (syrinx) ; time of day 
 and season given; differences; reproduction 
 on musical scale. 
 
 D. Plumage of birds; moulting; differences in 
 color according to age, sex, and season. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Which is greater, the good or harm that the robin 
 does? 
 
 Why is it desirable to have birds around the yard 
 and garden? 
 
 How may each of these birds be identified? 
 
 Which is the most interesting bird? 
 
 In what ways is the wren (or any other bird) 
 useful? 
 
 What may be done to increase the number of birds 
 around our homes? 
 
 Which birds have the most musical songs? 
 
 How can we identify birds from their songs? 
 
 Through what changes in plumage does a rose- 
 breasted grosbeak pass from the time it is first 
 hatched till it is two years old? 
 
 2. The toad. 
 Problems 
 
 Of what use is the toad in the garden? 
 What may be done to increase the number in our 
 gardens? 
 
 3. Insects; such as lady beetle, ground beetle, aphis 
 lion, dragon fly, ichneumon fly, bees, tiger beetle.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE SEVENTH GRADE 273 
 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways is the lady beetle beneficial? 
 
 Which do you consider the most helpful? 
 
 How are dragon flies and damsel flies beneficial? 
 
 V. Soils of the Garden. 
 
 1. Kinds, composition, origin, water capacity, cap- 
 illarity, fertilizing, cultivation, effect of earth- 
 worms on soil. 
 
 Problems (to be answered by experiments) 
 What is the value of cultivating the garden be- 
 sides killing the weeds? 
 How do roots get water from the soil in a dry 
 
 season? 
 What kind of soil is best for furnishing water to 
 
 plants during a dry season. 
 What kind of soil holds the most water after a 
 
 rain? 
 Which is better for raising early vegetables, a 
 
 sandy or clayey soil? 
 What effect does drainage of a wet soil have on the 
 
 growth of plants? 
 Of what is soil composed? 
 How may the test for acid soil be made? 
 How are earthworms beneficial animals? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER or TOPICS 
 
 March 
 Soils 
 Poultry-keeping 
 Nesting-houses for 
 birds 
 Plumage of birds 
 
 April 
 Shrubs and vines 
 Shrubs for birds 
 Fruit garden 
 Vegetable garden 
 Flower garden 
 
 May 
 Bee-keeping 
 Enemies of garden 
 Friends of garden 
 Bird songs 
 Flowers from bulbs 
 Bird fountains
 
 274 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 EIGHTH GRADE 
 
 Central thought for the grade: the sanitation and science of 
 community life 
 
 Autumn 
 I. Insects that Threaten Health. 
 
 1. Fly and mosquito. (See page 77.) 
 Problems 
 
 What harm is done by each of these insects? 
 What are the remedies to be used in each case? 
 Which is the more dangerous insect in our locality? 
 Through what changes does each pass in its de- 
 velopment? 
 
 What may be done to get rid of the mosquito? 
 (See page 77.) 
 
 II. Insects in Relation to Growing Crops. 
 
 1. Insect foes. 
 
 A. Insect enemies of the vegetable garden. 
 
 B. Insect enemies of the orchard. 
 
 C. Insect enemies of cereal crops. 
 
 D. Insect enemies of shade trees. 
 
 E. Means of control; poisons used. 
 Problems 
 
 What harm is done by each of these groups of in- 
 sects? 
 
 What are the remedies? 
 
 How do the various remedies used differ in then 
 method of operation? 
 
 2. Insects friends. 
 
 A. Those that destroy injurious insects. 
 
 a. Parasitic insects. 
 6. Predacious insects. 
 
 B. Insects that pollinate flowers.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE EIGHTH GRADE 275 
 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways is each group of insects beneficial? 
 How do parasitic insects differ from predacious 
 
 in their method of destroying insects? 
 Which is greater the good or harm that insects 
 
 do? 
 
 In what ways are bees beneficial, besides making 
 honey? 
 
 III. Plant Enemies of Crops. 
 
 1 . Weeds ; of vacant lots, of roadsides, of crops ; harm 
 done, identification, control, State laws. 
 
 2. Fungous diseases. 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways are weeds harmful? 
 
 What are the most common weeds found growing 
 by roadsides and in vacant lots? 
 
 How may each of these weeds be identified? 
 
 How may the rough pigweed and lamb's quarters 
 be told apart? (See pages 139.) 
 
 In what ways is the foxtail harmful? 
 
 What weed seeds are found mixed with grains? 
 
 What characteristics do weeds possess that make 
 them so troublesome? 
 
 What adaptations do weeds have for the dispersal 
 of their seeds? 
 
 How many seeds may a single plant produce? (See 
 page 139.) 
 
 What are the best means to use to control quack- 
 grass? 
 
 In what ways may fungi injure plants? 
 
 IV. Forest Trees. 
 
 1. Study of trees found around our town which may 
 grow elsewhere in forests.
 
 276 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 Problems 
 
 How may the different species of trees in the fol- 
 lowing groups be identified; oaks, ashes, maples 
 elms, evergreens? 
 
 How are the fruits of trees adapted for seed-dis- 
 persal? 
 
 What references are found to trees in literature? 
 
 V. Means of Travel. 
 
 1. On land. (See page 174.) 
 
 A. Steam cars the steam engine. 
 
 B. Street cars the motor. 
 
 C. Automobile the gasoline engine. 
 
 D. The motor cycle. 
 Problems 
 
 How does the steam engine work? 
 
 How does the gasoline engine differ from the steam 
 
 engine? 
 
 How is the motor constructed? 
 Which is the more useful, the steam engine, the 
 
 motor, or the gasoline engine? 
 
 2. On water. (See page 176.) 
 
 A. Steamboats, sail-boats, submarines; Archi- 
 medes principle. 
 
 B. The compass; the gyroscope. 
 Problems 
 
 How is the modern steamboat constructed? 
 
 How does one manage a small sail -boat? 
 
 Why is the gyroscope sometimes used on ships in- 
 stead of the compass? 
 
 We will perform some simple experiments to learn 
 why a canoe or boat floats when it is loaded. 
 
 3. In air. 
 
 A. Airplanes; use of barometer to tell height. 
 
 B. Balloons common and dirigible.
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE EIGHTH GRADE 277 
 
 Problems 
 
 What are the differences between the airplanes 
 
 and the dirigible balloon? 
 
 Which offers the greater possibilities of usefulness ? 
 How can the airman tell how high he is? 
 In what way is a balloon in the air like a boat on 
 
 water? 
 
 VI. Means of Communication. 
 
 1. The telephone. 
 
 2. The telegraph both common and wireless. 
 Problems 
 
 How are the telephone and telegraph constructed ? 
 Which is the more useful? 
 
 How does the wireless differ from the ordinary 
 telegraph? 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OP TOPICS 
 
 September October November 
 
 Fly and mosquito Weeds Means of travel 
 
 Insect foes of crops Forest trees Means of communica- 
 
 Insect friends of crops tion 
 
 Winter 
 
 I. Public Health and Sanitation. 
 
 1. Board of health its duties and ordinances. 
 
 2. Milk supply inspection needed. 
 
 3. Protection of food supply. 
 
 4. City water supply; water pressure. 
 
 5. Control of fly nuisance. 
 
 6. Treatment of contagious diseases; quarantine, 
 vaccination. 
 
 7. Sewage disposal and removal of garbage; oxida- 
 tion.
 
 278 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 8. Playgrounds and parks. 
 
 9. Fire protection; fire engines. 
 
 10. Care of streets. 
 
 11. Lighting the streets the dynamo. 
 Problems 
 
 What are the duties of the Board of Health of our 
 
 city? 
 What ordinances have they had passed to protect 
 
 our health? 
 What can each of us do to help the Board of Health 
 
 in its work to protect the public health? 
 What inspection is given our milk supply? 
 What is done to keep our meats, bread, pastry, 
 
 fruits, and vegetables clean? 
 What is done to guard our water supply? 
 What is done when a case of contagious disease 
 
 is found? 
 
 How are the sewage and garbage disposed of? 
 How does our city compare with other cities in its 
 
 parks and playgrounds? 
 How are we protected from fires? 
 How are fire engines constructed? 
 What care is given our streets? 
 What are the chief things that still need to be done 
 
 in our city to further protect our health? 
 
 II. School hygiene. 
 
 1. Ventilating and heating. 
 
 2. Lighting. 
 
 3. Drinking fountains. 
 
 4. Playgrounds. 
 
 5. Medical inspection. 
 Problems 
 
 How is our building heated and ventilated?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE EIGHTH GRADE 279 
 
 Why should the public drinking cup be abol- 
 ished? 
 
 What is being done in other cities in the medical 
 inspection of schools. 
 
 What is being done in our city? 
 
 What further could be done along this line? 
 
 Spring 
 I. Forestry. 
 
 1. Uses of forests. 
 
 2. Decrease of forests. 
 
 3. Enemies of forests. 
 
 4. Proper methods of handling our forests. 
 
 5. Need and method of saving our forests. 
 
 6. State and national reservations. 
 
 7. The Bureau of Forestry of the Department of 
 Agriculture. 
 
 8. Tree planting on prairies. 
 
 9. Work of the parts of a tree root, stem, leaf. 
 10. Structure and uses of wood. 
 
 Problems 
 
 Of what use are forests while standing? 
 
 What are the chief enemies of forests? 
 
 How may forest fires be controlled? 
 
 What is the proper way to care for forests? 
 
 What national reservations has the Government 
 made? 
 
 What is being done by the National Bureau of 
 Forestry to care for our national forests? (See 
 page 97.) 
 
 To what extent may trees be planted on the prai- 
 ries? 
 
 What work is done by the roots, stem, and leaves 
 of the tree?
 
 280 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE 
 
 How does the appearance of the cuts of different 
 
 woods differ? 
 How does the appearance of different cuts of thr 
 
 same wood differ? 
 
 II. Bird Friends of our Trees and Forests. 
 
 1. Special study of the birds of the woods, such as 
 
 warblers, thrushes, woodpeckers, vireos. 
 
 2. Economic value of birds to the forests in destroy- 
 
 ing injurious insects; value elsewhere in destroy- 
 ing also weed seeds and rodents. Hawks and 
 owls. 
 
 3. Bird enemies; shooting, millinery, cats, English 
 
 sparrow, natural enemies. 
 
 4. Work of National Government to protect birds. 
 
 A. Laws protecting migratory birds. 
 
 B. Tariff restrictions on feathers. 
 
 C. Bird reservations. 
 
 D. Work of Bureau of Biological Survey. 
 
 5. Adaptations shown in bill, feet, tail, and wing. 
 
 6. Game birds; State and national laws. 
 Problems 
 
 In what ways are birds useful to the forest? 
 
 In what other ways are birds useful? 
 
 How may we identify the different species of the 
 following bird families: warblers, vireos, wood- 
 peckers, thrushes? 
 
 WTiat interesting habits of these birds may we 
 study this spring? 
 
 Which have done more harm to the birds, man or 
 the bird's natural enemies? 
 
 What is the National Government doing to protect 
 birds? (See page 68.) 
 
 How can we help in this work of protecting the 
 birds?
 
 DETAILED OUTLINE EIGHTH GRADE 281 
 
 How do water birds differ from land birds in the 
 structure and use of their feet, bill, wings, and 
 tail? 
 
 Should hawks and owls be protected? (See page 
 67.) 
 
 SEASONAL ORDER OF TOPICS 
 
 March April May 
 
 Forestry Forestry Birds 
 
 Birds
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 GENERAL NATURE-STUDY 
 
 Comstock, A. B. Handbook of Nature-Study. Comstock Publishing 
 Company, Ithaca, New York. 
 
 Coulter, J. M. and J. G., and Patterson, A. J. Practical Nature- 
 Study. D. Appleton & Company, New York City. 
 
 Hodge, C. F. Nature-Study and Life. Ginn & Company, Bos- 
 ton. 
 
 Holtz, F. L. Nature-Study. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 
 City. 
 
 Nature-Study Review. A magazine published monthly, excepting 
 June, July, and August. Ithaca, New York. 
 
 BIRDS 
 
 Bailey, F. A. Handbook of Birds of the Western United States. 
 Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 
 
 Baynes, E. H. Wild Bird Guests. E. P. Button & Company, New 
 York City. 
 
 Blanchan, N. How to Attract Birds. Doubleday, Page & Company. 
 New York City. 
 
 Chapman, F. M. Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America. 
 D. Appleton & Company, New York City. 
 
 Forbush, E. H. Useful Birds and Their Protection. Massachusetts 
 State Board of Agriculture, Boston. 
 
 Hoffman, R. A Guide to the Birds of New England and Eastern 
 New York. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 
 
 Reed, C. A. Bird Guide to the Land Birds. Doubleday, Page & Com- 
 pany, New York City. 
 
 Trafton, G. H. Bird Friends. Houghton Mifflin Company, 
 Boston. 
 
 Trafton, G. H. Methods of Attracting Birds, Houghton Mifflin 
 Company, Boston. 
 
 Bird-Lore. A magazine published bimonthly. Harrisburg, Penn- 
 sylvania.
 
 286 BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 INSECTS 
 
 Comstock, A. B. Ways of the Six-Footed. Ginn & Company, Boston. 
 
 Comstock, J. H. How to Know the Butterflies. D. Appleton & Com- 
 pany, New York City. 
 
 Comstock, J. H. Insect Life. D. Appleton & Company, New York 
 City. 
 
 Doane, R. W. Insects and Disease. Henry Holt & Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 McCook, H. C. Nature's Craftsmen. Harper & Bros., New York 
 City. 
 
 Miller, M. R. The Brook Book. Doubleday, Page & Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 O'Kane, W. C. Injurious Insects. The Macmillan Company, New 
 York City. 
 
 Weed, C. M. Farm Friends and Farm Foes. D. C. Heath & Com- 
 pany, Boston. 
 
 PETS 
 
 Comstock, A. B. The Pet Book. Comstock Publishing Company, 
 Ithaca, New York. 
 
 TREES 
 
 Blakeslee, A. F., and Jarvis, C. D. Trees in Winter. The Mac- 
 millan Company, New York City. 
 
 Keeler, H. L. Our Native Trees. Charles Scribner's Sons, New 
 York City. 
 
 Roth, F. First Book of Forestry. Ginn & Company, Boston. 
 
 Schauffler, R. H. Arbor Day. Moffat, Yard & Company, New York 
 City. 
 
 Stone, G. L., and Fickett, M. G. Trees in Prose and Poetry. Ginn 
 & Company, Boston. 
 
 FLOWERS 
 
 Dana, W. S. How to Know the Wild Flowers. Charles Scribner's 
 
 Sons, New York City. 
 Keeler, H. L. Our Garden Flowers. Charles Scribner's Sons, New 
 
 York City. 
 Reed, C. A. Wild Flowers East of the Rockies. Doubleday, Page 
 
 & Company, New York City.
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHY 287 
 
 FLOWEBLESS PLANTS 
 
 Atkinson, G. F. Mushrooms Edible and Poisonous. Henry Holt & 
 
 Company, New York City. 
 Parsons, F. T. How to Know the Ferns. Charles Scribner's Sons, 
 
 New York City. 
 
 GARDENING 
 
 Bailey, L. H. Manual of Gardening. The Macmillan Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 Dorner, H. B. Window Gardening. Bobbs-Merrill Company, 
 Indianapolis, Indiana. 
 
 Maynard, S. T. The Small Country Place. J. P. Lippincott Com- 
 pany. Philadelphia. 
 
 WEEDS 
 
 Georgia, A. E. Manual of Weeds. The Macmillan Company, 
 New York City. 
 
 Weed, C. M. Farm Friends and Farm Foes. D. C. Heath & Com- 
 pany, Boston. 
 
 HYGIENE 
 
 Ayres, Williams, and Wood. Healthful Schools. Houghton Mifflin 
 
 Company, Boston. 
 Coleman, W. M. The People's Health. The Macmillan Company, 
 
 New York City. 
 Dresslar, F. B. School Hygiene, The Macmillan Company, New 
 
 York City. 
 Fisher, I., and Fisk, E. L. How to Live. Funk & Wagnalls, New 
 
 York City. 
 Rapeer, L. W. Educational Hygiene. Charles Scribner's Sons, 
 
 New York City. 
 Terman, L. M. The Hygiene of the School Child. Houghton Mifflin 
 
 Company, Boston. 
 
 PHYSICAL NATURE-STUDY 
 
 Coulter, J. M. and J. G., and Patterson, A. J. Practical Nature- 
 
 . Study. D. Appleton & Company, New York City. 
 Cummings, H. H. Nature Study for Primary Grades. American 
 Book Company, New York City.
 
 288 BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 Cummings, H. H. Nature-Study for Lower Grammar Grades. 
 
 American Book Company, New York City. 
 Cummings, H. H. Nature-Study for Higher Grammar Grades. 
 
 American Book Company, New York City. 
 Rowell, P. E. Science for the Fifth Grade. Marine Journal Press, 
 
 San Rafael, California.
 
 INDEX
 
 INDEX 
 
 Accidents, 256. 
 
 Aims of science teaching, 10. 
 
 Air: 
 
 composition of, 159; 
 
 fresh, 173, 215, 224, 232; 
 
 pressure of, 159. 
 
 Apple blossoms, lesson plan on, 103. 
 Application of lesson, 40. 
 Applications of science, 6. 
 Aquarium studies, 230, 941, 253. 
 Arbor day, 93. 
 
 Arithmetic and bird study, 52. 
 Arithmetic and insect study, 72. 
 Art and science, 23. 
 Attracting birds: 
 
 nesting-boxes, 218, 227, 235, 260; 
 
 feeding, 22, 240; 
 
 fountains, 235; 
 
 shrubs, 272. 
 Audubon Association, 50, 55; 
 
 lesson plan on, 66. 
 
 Bacteria, 256. 
 Baking powders, 165. 
 Bathing, 208, 215, 224, 244. 
 Bee-keeping, 271. 
 Bicycle, 253. 
 Birds: 
 
 of the air, 247; 
 
 of the fields, 260; - 
 
 of the marshes, 260; 
 
 of shade trees, 235; 
 
 migration, 260; 
 
 nesting habits, 247; 
 
 protection, 280; 
 
 songs, 272. 
 Bird study: 
 
 motivation of, 49; 
 
 materials for, 50. 
 Bluebird, lesson plan on, 64. 
 Blue prints, 91. 
 Boat. 176. 
 Breathing, 159, 244. 
 Bulbs, 126, 206, 213, 221, 228. 
 
 Calendars: 
 
 bird, 52, 211, 218, 226; 
 
 flower, 100, 235, 246; 
 
 garden, 126, 262; 
 
 insect, 72. 
 Camera, 178. 
 Candle, 170. 
 
 Canning fruits, lesson plan on, 122. 
 Cat, lesson plan on, 85. 
 Caterpillars, 207. 
 Chemistry of kitchen, 183. 
 Child and curriculum, 26. 
 Christmas tree, lesson plan on, 95. 
 Clock, 179. 
 
 Clothing, 208, 216, 224, 244, 255. 
 Clubs, bird, 55. 
 Coasting, 233. 
 Collections: 
 
 of leaves, 90; 
 
 of insects, 71 ; 
 
 of weeds, 135. 
 Compass, 177. 
 Condensation, 172. 
 Corn, lesson plan on, 120. 
 Correlation, 22, 61, 72, 93, 137. 
 Cosmos, lesson plan on, 120. 
 Cow, lesson plan on, 86. 
 
 Development of lesson plan, 39. 
 
 Diseases, 256. 
 
 Dog, lesson plans on, 83-85. 
 
 Domesticated animals, 223. 
 
 Dramatization, 55. 
 
 Drinks, 216, 243. 
 
 Earthworm, 230. 
 Eggshell garden, 130. 
 Evaporation, 172. 
 Evening entertainments, 245. 
 Experiments with plants, 129. 
 Eye, 166. 
 
 Fats, test for, 165. 
 Ferns, 239.
 
 292 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Field trips, 18, 60. 
 Fish, 207, 230. 
 Flexner, Abraham, 8. 
 Flowers, cultivated, 205, 210, 212, 
 217, 219, 225; 
 
 from bulbs, 235; 
 
 hardy annuals, 228; 
 
 tender annuals, 237; 
 
 perennials, 246, 263; 
 
 vines, 240. 
 
 Flowers, wild, 205, 210, 212, 217, 
 219, 225; 
 
 colored spring, 234; 
 
 white spring, 246; 
 
 of shady places, 229; 
 
 of sunny places, 239. 
 Fly, 79, 240, 274. 
 
 Foods, 164, 208, 224, 232, 243, 254. 
 Forest fires, lesson plan on, 97. 
 Forestry, 279. 
 Freezing, 172. 
 Fruits, 213, 220. 
 
 Galls, lesson plan on, 75. 
 Games: 
 
 bird, 53; 
 
 flower, 100; 
 
 tree, 92. 
 Gardening, 248, 269, 270; 
 
 home gardens, 113, 123, 210, 217, 
 
 226, 237. 
 
 Geography and science, 23. 
 Germination experiments, 181. 
 Goldenrod, lesson plan on, 102. 
 Grasshopper, lesson plan on, 74. 
 Gyroscope, 178. 
 
 Habits of health, 145. 
 
 Hawks and owls, lesson plan on, 67. 
 
 Heat: 
 
 sources of, 162; 
 
 effects of, 163. 
 
 Heating the home, 162, 255, 265. 
 Hour-glass, 179. 
 House plants, 126, 238, 265. 
 Humidity of air, 161. 
 Hygiene: 
 
 essentials for teaching, 144; 
 
 motivation of, 148; 
 
 school, 278; 
 
 textbooks in, 154. 
 
 Insects : 
 
 activities, 75, 230; 
 
 of the garden, 271; 
 
 parasitic, 274; 
 
 pests of household, 265; 
 
 pollinators of flowers, 274; 
 
 social, 230; 
 
 water, 77, 240. 
 Insect study: 
 
 motivation of, 69; 
 
 materials for, 70. 
 Interest and learning, 32. 
 Interests, dormant, 33. 
 Ivy, poison, lesson plan on, 138. 
 
 Lady beetle, lesson plan on, 79. 
 
 Leaf, work of, 134, 262. 
 
 Leaves, lesson plan on, 95. 
 
 Lever, 180. 
 
 Lighting the home, 170, 223, 233, 266. 
 
 Magnet, 174. 
 Maple tree, 41, 96. 
 Marigold, lesson plan on, 120. 
 Materials: 
 
 living, 17; 
 
 preserved, 20; 
 
 for flower study, 99; 
 
 for insect study, 70; 
 
 for tree study, 89. 
 Meters, 171, 174. 
 Moon, 188, 245. 
 Mosquito, 77, 220, 274. 
 Motivation, 26; 
 
 of bird study, 49; 
 
 of gardening, 116; 
 
 of hygiene, 148; 
 
 of insect study, 69; 
 
 of tree study, 88. 
 Movies, 174. 
 Mushrooms, 107, 229. 
 Musical instruments, 268. 
 
 Nasturtium, lesson plan on, 119. 
 National Government, protecting: 
 
 birds, 67; 
 
 forests, 97. 
 Needs, present and future, 28. 
 
 Observation, 44. 
 Organization of outline, 193.
 
 INDEX 
 
 293 
 
 Pendulum, 231. 
 
 Pets, 82, 208, 215. 
 
 Phases of science, 3. 
 
 Physiology, temperance, 156. 
 
 Piano, 181. 
 
 Pictures, 20, 50. 
 
 Plan, lesson, 41-43. 
 
 Plane, inclined, 180. 
 
 Planting seeds, lesson plan on, 125. . 
 
 Poisonous plants, 241. 
 
 Poultry-keeping, 271. 
 
 Problems, 30, 36, 37. 
 
 Propagation of house plants, 128. 
 
 Protein, test for, 165. 
 
 Public health, 277. 
 
 Pumping water, 173. 
 
 Roots, work of, 132. * 
 
 Screw, 181. 
 
 Seasonal changes, 207, 211, 214, 218, 
 
 222. 
 
 Seed dispersal, lesson plans on, 105-07. 
 Seeds, 206, 207, 213. 
 Shrubs, 260, 263. 
 Skating, 245, 257. 
 Sky studies, 187, 257. 
 Slide, 231. 
 Soils, 273. 
 Spiders, 89, 240. 
 Squirrel, 230. 
 Starch, test for, 164. 
 Stars, 257. 
 Stem, work of, 133. 
 Storing vegetables, 122. 
 Submarine, 178. 
 Sun, 187, 234. 
 Swing, 231. 
 
 Teeter, 241. 
 
 Telegraph, 277. 
 
 Telephone, 277. 
 
 Thermometer, 164, 223. 
 
 Toad, 218. 
 
 Tomato, lesson plan on, 119. 
 
 Travel, means of, 276. 
 
 Trees, 205, 209, 212, 216, 220, 225; 
 
 evergreens, 208, 215, 257; 
 
 fruit, 251, 259; 
 
 nut, 229, 234; 
 
 shade, 239, 246; 
 
 motivation of tree study, 88; 
 
 materials for tree study, 89; 
 
 collections for tree study, 89. 
 Trolley, 174. 
 
 Vegetables, 213; 
 
 root, 229; 
 
 salad, 248; 
 
 vine crops, 250. 
 Ventilation, 161, 255, 265. 
 Vines, 104, 251, 263. 
 Violin, 181. 
 
 Water: 
 
 hard and soft, 171; 
 
 home supply, 184, 266. 
 Weather observations, 185. 
 Weather maps, 186. 
 Weather studies, 209, 216, 224. 
 Weeds, 135, 251, 275. 
 Window-boxes, 128. 
 Winter birds, lesson plan on, 65. 
 Wood, lesson plan on, 96. 
 Wren's house, lesson plan on, 65. 
 
 Yeast, 165.
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 This book is DUE on the last date stamped below 
 
 1949 
 JUN 21 1955
 
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 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 AA 000476771 
 
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 ALIFORNIA, 
 
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