brennan] NATURE-STUD Y A T VA N VLISSINGEN SCHOOL 15 



Some of our teachers in' recent years, have been much better 

 equipped. The field of nature-study is vast, and we realized 

 that we should be compelled to subdivide the teaching into var- 

 ious departments represented by committees. Each group 

 specialized in the department to which it was assigned, giving 

 knowledge to and receiving it from other committees. Our 

 thirty-four teachers were organized into fourteen groups as 

 follows : 



COMMITTEES OF TEACHERS ON NATURE-STUDY 



1. Horticulture — Destructive insects; Insecticides; Tree surgery. 



2. Plants and Propagation — Forestry. 



3. Agriculture — Vegetable gardens; Destructive insects; Commercial 



fertilizers. 



4. Moulds and Blights — Bacteria; Fungicides. 



5. Floriculture — Flower gardens. 



6. Pollination — Study of Burbank, Darwin, De Vries. Hodge for reference. 



Experiments by pupils. 



7. Window Gardens. 8. Bulbs. 9. Bird Study. 10. Aquaria, ii 



Museum. 12. Camera Club. 13. Library. 14. Physics — 

 Electricity; Magnetism, etc.; Irrigation; Drainage. 



This plan worked out admirably during the last four years 

 in developing the teaching of nature-study. It has awakened 

 enthusiasm on the part of teachers and parents, and the children 

 found it a fascinating study. The old method of teaching nature- 

 study was that of bringing in leaves, flowers, and other things 

 into the schoolroom for dissection, naming of parts, etc. Real 

 nature-study is the study of life and watching the unfolding and 

 developing of nature in home and school gardens, in field, wood 

 or lake. 



To help the teachers and pupils, we have collected a little 

 library on nature-study. There are books and pamphlets on 

 animals, plants, and minerals. The teachers have additional 

 books in their own private collection. The pupils use this 

 library extensively, taking the books or pamphlets home, where 

 they are frequently read by their parents. 



ANIMALS 

 Animals of the World, Brehm. 

 American Natural History, Hornaday. 

 Manual of Vertebrates, Jordan. 

 Zoology, Nicholson. 

 Zoology, Chambers. 



