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A Norway Spruce 



Photo by Cyrus Crosby 



Topics for December Nature-Study 



Anna Botsford Comstock 



In the minds of most, fortunate children, December is chiefly 

 interesting because one of its days is Christmas ; and since Nature 

 Study should always be the child's companion study, we naturally 

 select those topics as far as practicable that have to do with 

 this interesting season. It is well for the child to understand 

 that Christmas is a festive occasion only for human beings, because 

 of the great gift to us of the One whose first Commandment was 

 that we love one another. For the animals, the birds, the insects, 

 the trees and plants, Christmas is merely the beginning of winter, 

 a harsh and inclement season, which they by one device or another 

 have been able to meet successfully. 



SECOND GRADE 



How the Birds Spend the Christmas Holidays. — This should be 

 a lesson on the food of birds since this element is a determining 

 factor in the birds' chosen place for spending the winter. This 



404 



