Rural School Leaflet 1427 



proceeds from this garden, after repaying the four dollars, will go to pur- 

 chase something for the schoolroom, possibly a nice picture. 



Each member of th(^ board plans to keep a record book and in this a 

 strict account of all business pertaining to his or her office. The books 

 are of uniform size, made by the pupil, and decorated with different 

 designs. In this way I am planning to correlate manual training, drawing, 

 arithmetic, English, spelling, banking, bookkeeping, and honesty. We 

 are sure that our garden will be a success, and later will be glad to send you 

 some pictures and accounts of real results obtained. 



Nature study, thoroughly understood and happily applied, keeps the 

 school machinery' running smoothly, and, when night comes on, causes 

 pupil and teacher to think that that day was not lived in vain. 



Editors' note. — The following communication from the teacher was 

 published in the East Aurora Advertiser of May 27, 1915, under the heading 

 " Home Economics in District No. 7, Hamburg ": 



We began our work in home economics in the autumn soon after school opened. 

 Interest among the children was awakened by a bread contest conducted under the 

 direction of the district superintendent with the cooperation of the Home Economics 

 Department of the Erie County Farm Bureau. It was decided to hold the contest 

 as a part of our program for Corn Day. The exercises were well attended by patrons 

 of the school and at the close of the program a few words explained to the parents 

 the nature of the work which we wished the children to take up. 



In the basement of the schoolhouse the trustee has built a stationary cupboard and 

 put in a two-burner hot plate. This is so arranged that the cupboard can be closed and 

 locked, thus placing the gas out of reach of the children when playing. Above the 

 shelf on which the hot plate is kept are two large shelves for the cooking dishes. We 

 have an old bookcase with glass doors and a drawer in which we keep the china and 

 to.wels. - 



Our class was organized immediately after Corn Day and consisted of twenty-four 

 enthusiastic girls and boys ranging in ages from eight to sixteen years. Each family 

 represented in the class was asked to give twenty-five cents (if this was impossible 

 they might give less) to purchase the necessary dishes. Each child was required to have 

 a notebook, a spoon, a cup, a plate, an apron, and a hand towel and soap. We met 

 every Wednesday afternoon, directly at the close of school. 



With the money furnished by the children and a part of our prize money from our 

 school exhibit at the Erie County Fair, we bought the remainder of our equipment: 

 towels, two dish pans, one granite kettle (eight quarts), one granite saucepan (six 

 quarts), one basin, one dipper, one measuring cup, two toasters, one strainer, or sieve, 

 two large spoons, one paring knife. We bought large granite dishes so we might use 

 them for preparing a warm food for lunch at noon as explained later. Soap, matches, 

 holders, and the like, were donated by some of the mothers. We also bought a small 

 washboard which could be used in the dish pan to wash out the towels after using, 

 and each week some child took them home to be washed there. 



Our term consisted of twelve lessons, and since we had no oven, the recipes used 

 were those which could be prepared without it. Our aim in choosing the recipes was 

 twofold: (i) to teach economy; (2) to use left-overs in a palatable and practical way. 

 Each Wednesday afternoon the class met in the schoolroom at the close of school, and 

 copied the recipe from the blackboard into notebooks. After the explanation of the 

 recipe we went to the basement where discarded desks were placed so that the class, 

 when seated, could see the hot plate. Then the recipe was demonstrated by one of the 

 teachers, and as there are two of us, each taught the recipe on alternate weeks. Each 

 child was asked to try the recipe at home before the next lesson and if good results were 

 obtained he was given one credit. A credit was allowed for class attendance, another 

 for neat notebook work, making a total of three credits on each recipe possible for each 

 child. 



The interest and enthusiasm of the children was keen throughout the term's work 

 and all wish to continue the course next year. At the close of the course, just before 



