Si2 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



THE IIAXD-WOEK OF SCHOOL-CHILDEEX.* 



By EEBECCA D. RICKOFF. 



AN exhibition of children's hand-work was held last spring in one 

 of the public schools of Yonkers. The large assembly-room of 

 the school-house was filled with lines of tables, upon which were dis- 

 played the various articles to be exhibited. The room was handsomely 

 decorated, and the tables were daintily covered and adorned with 

 bunches of flowers. For each class-room in the house there was set 

 apart one or more tables upon which was placed, under the direction 

 of the class-teacher, the work of that class, the whole })resenting the 

 appearance of a very successful and pretty fair.f 



"While this exhibition was given in the school-house, and under the 

 direction of the school superintendent and teachers, with the sanction 

 and encouragement of the school board, and though the work was 

 done by pupils of the school only, none of the things were made in 

 the school, excepting the colored paper busy-work of the youngest 

 children and, of course, the drawing. All the other things were made 

 at home, and expressly for this exhibition. Too much credit can not 

 be given to the teachers who undertook and carried forward this en- 

 terprise, it being entirely outside of the regular school-work. There 

 were many difficulties to overcome. Numbers of the children were 

 sure they could not make anything ; but, by conversations with them 

 about what they had done or seen done, and what they would like to 

 do, by constant encouragement to at least attempt something, and 

 advice as to ways and means, and especially by enlisting the pride of 

 the pupils in this, which was to be peculiarly their exhibition, inde- 

 pendent of school instruction, most of the children were induced to 

 undertake something. 



The next difficulty was to prevail upon them to persevere and 

 complete the thing commenced, many of them beginning a half-dozen 

 things before completing one. This failing, so common to all, was 

 well dealt with by this exhibition, in that the necessity to have an 

 article ready by a given day forced the child to exercise his own 

 will-power in deciding upon and completing some one thing, and thus 

 became a good moral lesson. The greatest care was taken by the 

 teachers to impress upon the children the credit of honest work. 

 They were advised to consult with relatives and friends as to what 



* A report upon the Yonkers Industrial Exhibition of Children's "Work, read before 

 the Committee of Industries of the Industrial Educational Association of New York. 



\ The exhibition here described was given in school No. 2, of which Miss Dresser is 

 principal, to whom and to her assistant teachers prcat credit is due. Similar exhibitions 

 were given the previous year, in this school and also in school No. 6, of which Miss 

 Spencer is principal, and equal credit is due to her and her assistants. 



