51 



crowded condition of the elcnicntary school curricuhiin. In the Inst i)aragrai)h 

 of this article he says : 



" In conclusion, althouirh some large topics should he (uiitted, reform in the 

 main is not to he effectetl l>y lopping off here and tiiere. hut hy changing the 

 present aggregation of ideas in each study to an organized hody of thought. It 

 is not the task of grade teachers nor of scientists, hut of the most advanced and 

 ahlest students of education, who are as well posted in suhject-matter as in the 

 ;>rinciples ( f education itself. Even these have more than a life proldem in 

 >-nch a task." 



It is along lines such as these tliat the curriculum of the rural schools may he 

 so far impro\ed that there will he ample space for the teaching of agriculture in 

 an effective way. Just as the courses in the city schools have been im])roved 

 and enriched hy the introduction of manual traiidng, so the teaching of agricul- 

 ture in the rural schools, when once parents and teachers are convinced of its 

 imi)ortance and [tenclits. will he found to lie ixitli practicable and advantageous. 



In a rural school having a curriculum extending over ahout eight years the 

 course.-; in nature study might follow in a general way the brief outlines given 

 below. In these outlines it is assumed that the nature-study courses will extend 

 over about six years, and be followed by a course in agriculture extending over 

 two years. 



NATURE STUDY. 



During the first two or three years in school the children should spend a 

 short time each week in fornung an acquaintance with the Itirds. insects, tiowers, 

 trees, and other animal and plant life of the school yard, the roadside, and the 

 wayside pastures and wood lots. This very pleasant and [)rofitable way of 

 gaining knowledge has been their principal occupation during the two or three 

 years that they haxe been running about out of doors at home, and they should 

 l)€ encouraged and aided to extend their knowledge of tlie things in natiu-e with 

 which tliey are likely to come in daily contact throughout their lives. The 

 teacher should go with tha children on short walks around the school yard and 

 along the roads during occasional noon intennissions, or on longer trips in the 

 lields and woods on Saturdays, It would be well if only a few children were 

 taken at a time: ten or iifteen are all that one teacher can manage on such 

 occasions. Each trip should be taken with some leading object in view, such, 

 for exami)le. its a search for cocoons, or for grasshoi)iiers. or for weed seeds; 

 but this leading object should not shut the eyes of the children to other things. 

 Let them see and hear and feel and smell ; let them grow in strength as well 

 as in knowledge. Tell them very little ; they should do the telling. Better wait 

 days and weeks for an answer from the children than tell them now and rob 

 them of the i)leasure of discovi'ry. provided the subject is within their com- 

 prehension. 



Nature study at first should consist mainly of observations. The perceptive 

 faculties should be stinudated and developed. For this reason the exercises 

 sir uld never l)e continued so long as to become wearisome t(» the children. At 

 "first there will seem to be but little conuectiun between the different observa- 

 tions made by the children, but the teacher slujuld never lose sight of the fact 

 that very real and detinite relationships exist between the different plants and 

 animals of a given locality and Itetween these things and their inorganic 

 environment. Gradually, therefore, these relatitmships should be brought out. 

 The children should describe and draw the objects seen. This will lead to com- 

 parison and judgment. Suppose, for example, that the children e.xanune two 

 trees of the same species, one growing in open ground \\'ith an abundance of 

 plant food and plenty of room for development; the other growing in a dense 

 forest with little room for either root or branch; one with short, stocky trunk 

 and dense, symmetrical top; the other with tall, slender trunk and small, 

 irregular top. I>y comi)aring certain well-known features of bark and leaves 

 the children will readily recognize the two trees as belonging to the same 

 species. Imt it will require c.msiderable exercise of the reasoning faculties and 

 pretty good judgment for them to get at the causes which have brought about 

 the marked differences between them. Such opportunities to reason and judge 

 are frequently offered in nature study, and the teacher should imi)rove every 

 i;pportunity to place them l)efore her pupils. 



After the first year or two, th<' time de] tending on the progress the children 

 have made, more attention should be given to studying life histories of plants 



