942 Rural School Leaflet. 



the strings separating the plats, that they pulled up the stakes, and 

 were generally destructive. I looked over the piece of ground, and 

 was not surprised that this had taken place. The stakes were made of 

 any available piece of wood that could be picked up, and the plats 

 outlined by strings differing in kind and color, so that the appearance 

 of the place was not such as to demand respect. As soon as the ground 

 was properly laid out, the children had an appreciation of its neat, 

 orderly appearance, and there was no further destruction. 



3. Landscape design. — It is not sufficient that a plat of ground 

 should be neat and planned for utility. It should be developed along 

 the lines of good landscape design. Any teacher who has this proposi- 

 tion before her should, if possible, consult a landscape gardener in 

 regard to her plans. It is much better to have the garden properly 

 laid out in the beginning than to try to make changes after its develop- 

 ment has begun. The plan of the grounds, the situation of tool house, 

 pond, and the like, and the planting in the garden, should be decided 

 before the ground is touched. The older children will receive valuable 

 lessons in drawing up the plans and locating the different features that 

 will make the grounds more useful and attractive. They should make 

 maps of their own plats, marking the kinds of plants to be grown, dis- 

 tances between rows, and the like. 



4. Architectural features. — Every school-garden should have a tool 

 house. There should be a shelter. There should be some sort of entrance 

 to the grounds marked by a signpost or archway. These architectural 

 features should not be put up in a hit or miss fashion. Any architect in 

 the community will be willing to suggest plain structures that have good 

 architectural lines. Such features will be educative, since the children 

 must see them every day. 



5. Planting. — From the very first the children should be consulted 

 regarding the planting of the school-garden. They should feel that with 

 patience and perseverance this piece of ground can within a few years 

 be made a thing of beauty and civic pride. The school-garden should 

 be a place in which children will become familiar with plants that they 

 will later grow in their own home gardens. 



6. Life. — The school-garden affords the best opportunity for general 

 nature-study. Here the children come into contact with plant and animal 

 hfe, both beneficial and injurious in connection with the garden. They 

 should be given some knowledge of insect life, that they may be ready 

 to make observations as the season advances. 



7. Inquiry, accuracy, patience, perseverance, and courage in times 

 of adversity may all be developed in a school-garden. The most 



