THE 



NATURE-STUDY REVIEW 



DEVOTED PRIMARILY TO ALL SCIENTIFIC STUDIES OF NATURE IN 



ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS 



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 requirements. Subscriptions and advertisements should be sent to The Comstock Publishing 

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 to the Editor. 



Vol. 12 April, 1916 No. 4 



Taking Nature-Study to the Teacher 



Chas. W. Finley 



Probably more than half the teachers in our graded schools have 

 never had a course in nature-study as part preparation for their 

 work. That there is a demand by teachers for such a course has 

 been demonstrated in the extension work of the State Normal 

 School at Macomb, Illinois. At the end of the school year 1913-14 

 the school received a request from the teachers at Galesburg for 

 the organization of a course in nature-study there as part work in 

 the regular extension course .for the following year. The request 

 was granted and a class of thirty-three teachers was organized. 

 Twenty-seven of these teachers completed the course and received 

 credit at the normal school for their work. 



The work as outlined consists of ten class meetings and six half- 

 day field trips. In addition to these, each student is required to 

 write four papers and make a usable collection of some nature- 

 study materials. 



A pamphlet outlining the course was prepared, a copy of which 

 was given each student. Following are two of the outlined lessons 

 as they appear in the pamphlet : 



Lesson I. The Scope and Function of Nature-Study 



1. Definition of nature-study. 



2. Materials suitable for nature-study work; plants, animals, 

 weather, earth materials, physical and chemical phenomena. 



3. Relation of book study to nature-study. 



4. Relation of nature-study to other school subjects. 



5. A consideration of the educational, ethical, esthetic, and 

 religious values of nature-studv. 



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