METHODS IN NATURE-STUDY 



By L. S. HAWKINS 

 State Normal School, Cortland, N. Y. 



What particular material to use in nature-study work will 

 always be an open question. The great diversity in conditions 

 makes the problem a different one for each teacher. Equipment, 

 time, weather, and locality, all variables, enter into its solution. 

 Most nature-study teachers agree upon the general character of 

 the material. Concerning the treatment of that material there 

 is great diversity of opinion. That is to say, nearly all agree that 

 animals, plants, or rocks serve equally well for material; the 

 question most discussed is whether the children should be asked 

 to classify these materials, either naturally or artificially, or to 

 consider them in relation to their environment, or to dissect them 

 and study the structure, or to treat them in some similar manner. 

 If we think for a moment, we will see that these questions and all 

 similar ones can be discussed intelligently only after the solution 

 of the fundamental question of how our nature-study is to be 

 taught. In other words, the real problem of nature-study is, how 

 can we state our method so that the results will be independent of 

 the material. 



If we carefully examine the accepted aims of nature-study, we 

 will find that most of them contain the idea that the purpose of 

 nature-study is to train the child to ask and answer for himself 

 questions about nature. Asking questions is natural to the child. 

 Answering these spontaneous questions usually necessitates a 

 separation of the main question into several subordinate ques- 

 tions which are more easily answered. Early in life the child 

 learns the relationship of cause and effect. An effect is often 

 present to suggest a question concerning the why. Thus we 

 find the question, "What makes it do so?" This usually is an 

 excellent foundation for suggestion of related questions to which 

 there may be found an answer. Thus if a boy sees a magic egg 

 which persists in standing on end, the question immediately 

 comes into his head, if not to his lips, "What makes it do that?" 

 At that moment he can not answer the question. The teacher 

 has three ways of answering: (i ) explanation by word of mouth ; 

 (2) explanation by a series of experiments illustrating the center 



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