62 The Ottawa Natiralist. [^l*^> 



were : (i) Interest of the pupils in their surroundings ; [2) Trair- 

 ingf in self dependence ; (3) Knowledge. 



(1) It was felt that, without interest, the very lite and soul of 

 the work would be lost ; so. all first efforts were directed towards 

 this end If the pupils were interested, observation would natur- 

 ally follow. Few people realize how blind the majority ot us are. 



(2) Trainingf in self dependence was believed to be one of the 

 Sfreatest values of Nature Study. In other subjects, books may 

 be used, the teacher may help ; but the very essence of Nature 

 Study is that it is the pupil's own eyes and brain that do the 

 work ; it is all first hand, so that this v.ilue has been considered 

 almost more than any other. 



(3) While fully realizing the value of the knowledg^e to be 

 gained, it was deemed advisable not to accentuate this too much. 

 The teachers were already inclined to lose siijht of the other 

 values and consider only this, which was so much more in line 

 wi'h the usual school work. 



Keeping these purposes in view, each monthly programme 

 was made as varied as possible. The more varied the subjects, the 

 more chance of appealing to the individual pupils and of interest- 

 ing the teachers. And, further, the design was to arouse the 

 pupils' interest in their whole environment. 



The following outline gives a few of the topics on the pro- 

 grammes, with the reason for their appearance and the suggested 

 methods of taking them up. 



[a) Flowers and Seeds. This was meant to give the pupils 

 a speaking acquaintance with a few of our common fall flowers. 

 Seeds whioh had special means of dispersion were collected, and 

 during the winter were discussed with the classes, attention being 

 directed to the clever ways in which mother plants distribute their 

 seeds. Common fruits were also studied. This proved a delight- 

 ful topic with the children, who doubtless will watch the plants 

 during the coming summer with great interest. 



{b) Animals. The stxidy of animals was taken up by all 

 grades up to the sixth, but from very different standpoints. In 

 the iunior grades, the object was to interest the pupils more fully 

 in the habits and care of domestic animals ; in the senior grades, 

 in the relation of the animal to its environment : and the chief ob- 

 ject was the preparation of the pupils for the fuller study of adap- 

 tation in spring. This work proved exceedingly interesting, and, 

 among the older pupils, much individual observation work was 

 done and many hvpotheses advanced to answer questions sug- 

 gested by themselves. 



