AGRICULTURE IN NEURO SCHOOLS. 745 



fall and spring, are devoted to introducing th»» jjiipils to plant life, 

 soil, and insect life. The object of the work is to arouse an interest 

 in nature and to teach in a simple way some of the fundamental truths 

 of at'-riculture. A l)rief outline of the work is as follows: 



Phint life. — Princii)al i)arts of plant and the use of these parts to 

 man: how these i)arts grow and what they do for the plant; conditions 

 necessary for each part to make its best growth and to do its best 

 work for the plant and for man; how to bring about these conditions. 



SoiU. — Kelation of soils to plants; ssand, clay, humus; how soils are 

 made; work of sun, water, ice, air. plants, and earthworms in making 

 soils; soil conditions which atiect i)lant growth; relation of soil to 

 water, heat, and air; plant food in the soil: liow to ])ring about and 

 maintain soil conditions which favor plant growth. 



I}t><ect life. — (teneral structure, metamorphosis, and habits are 

 studied in grasshoppers, sipiash ))ugs. ])eetles, flies, bees, moths, and 

 butterflies; the habits of other insects common on the farm are studied 

 as they are found during fleld excursions. 



The divisions of the subject are not taught as separate and distinct 

 topics, an attempt being made to impress the student with the close 

 relation existing between them and the interdependence of each on 

 the other. 



The method of instruction is l)y observation and experiment in field 

 and class room, by Avritten exercise, and by discussion. The lecture 

 method is eliminated as far as possible. Each pupil takes part in every 

 ri<'ld excursion and ol»servation lesson and performs or assists in per- 

 forming nearly every class-room experiment. The interest of the 

 pupil is more easily aroused and held by putting him actively in touch 

 with the work. Hampton has a great deal to do for her pupils during 

 the limited time that they are with her; therefore she finds it necessar}' 

 to eliminate an amount of matter that is usually taught in the schools 

 and to select mainly those things that will be of practical value to the 

 student duriiiif the life for which she is fitting him. For this reason 

 the attempt is made to make every lesson in agricultui'e, and particu- 

 larly in the first year, teach some fundamental principle or practical 

 truth. For instance, in studying roots the pupils are taken to the 

 fii'ld to observe the roots of several plants which have been exposed 

 as in the accompanying illustration of sweet potato roots (PI. LX, fig. 1). 

 Arrived in the field the cla.ss is asked the following questions: 



In what part of the soil do you find most of the roots? 



How near the surface of the soil do you find roots ^ 



How far do 3' ou rind them reaching out sideways or lateially from 

 the ])lant? 



How deep do you find them penetrating the soiW 



These (piestions are generally answered. Then follows the (piestion: 



Of what value is it to the farmer or plant grower to know about 



