Report of the President. 



15 



sible the boys and girls living in the country, to give suggestions 

 for the better handling of farm work, for better reading, and for 

 better forms of amusement in and about the farm home. The in- 

 struction in school gardening found its best expression in the Chau- 

 tauqua Summer School conducted by this department, the work there 

 consisting, first, of general nature study and biology, and, secondly, 

 school gardening and elementary agriculture. This work is carried 

 on by the College of Agriculture in co-operation with the Chautauqua 

 Institution, the latter bearing a portion of the expense, and 80 students 

 were registered in the class during the past summer. 



XVIII. Home Nature Study Course. — The subject-matter in this 

 course has followed the suggestions contained in the syllabus of 

 nature study issued by the State Department of Education, and covers 

 the more important work of the fourth grade and some subjects in 

 the fifth grade. There were issued during the year four leaflets and 

 one supplement, making in all 128 pages, containing 76 nature study 

 lessons and also detailed directions for planting and garden work. 

 Each lesson was accompanied by a statement indicating the object of 

 the lesson, the material needed, and the best way to secure it, and 

 in connection with the series of questions covering the observations 

 v/hich the pupils should make there was a paragraph giving the 

 teacher the facts concerning the topic and suggestions as to the 

 method of teaching it. For the present there is provision for only 

 5,000 copies of each leaflet, and the demand is so great that the en- 

 tire issue is now called for with the exception of 250 copies which 

 have to be reserved for the files. Indeed, it was found necessary in 

 some cases to send only one leaflet for two pupils in many of the 

 training classes. 



XIX. Department of Rural Art. — The aim of this department is to 

 bring to the people, particularly of the rural districts, a better under- 

 standing of the beauty of their home surroundings, and to train the 

 individual in methods of landscape design. The courses offered are 

 meeting with an increased registration of students as the department 

 is becoming better known, but it is also the policy of the department 

 to bring to bear as strong an influence as is possible in the improve- 

 ment of rural' school grounds. To accomplish this the department 

 will publish, through the teachers' leaflets issued by the College of 

 Agriculture, a series of short articles on " Rural Art — Its Meaning 

 and Possibilities," in connection with which it is proposed to give 

 practical demonstrations to selected schools in various counties of 

 the State. 



