The Teacher's Corner 



A Graded Course in Tree Stud}' 



t Kindergarten First and Second Grades.~Thc objects to be achieved in the 

 kindegarten and the first grade are to make the pupils acquainted with the 

 leaves of our more common trees and to make them interested in one or two 

 individual trees and what happens to these trees each season of the year. 



To accomplish these objects we use 

 various devices and methods and the 

 following suggestions will be found 

 useful. 



Let the children bring to school leaves 

 of all sorts, which have autumn tints. 

 They will be especially interested in 

 picking up the bright colored leaves 

 that fall from the roadside trees. 



Let them classify the leaves accord- 

 ing to color so as to train the eye to 

 discriminate the tints and color values. 

 Let them classify leaves according 

 to form, selecting those which resem- 

 ble each other. 



Have them tell in what respects 



they resemble each other, in this way 



incidentally calling attention to the 



margins, the veins and the petiole. 



Teach the names of the leaves of the most common trees by mentioning 



quite incidentally that certain noticeable leaves are maple or oak or elm, etc. 



The children will quickly pick up these names by themselves if thus taught, and 



the knowledge will help them later on. 



Let each child select a leaf of his own choosing and draw it. This may be 

 done by placing the leaf flat on paper and tracing its outline with a pencil, later 

 drawing in the veins; or the drawing may be made with colored crayon free- 

 hand. The pupils should be allowed to please themselves in this matter, as it 

 is not a drawing lesson but a lesson to help remember form and color. 



Let the pupils select paper of a color similar to the leaf and cut out the leaf 

 from it diiring busy work. 



Let each pupil select four leaves of maple or oak as nearly similar as possible 

 and press them in his book, and later arrange and paste them on a card in some 

 symmetrical design. This may be done while the leaves are fresh, and the card 

 thus decorated may be pressed and thus preserved. 



Third Grade. — The work for the third grade should be an October calendar 

 with a leaf mounted and labeled for each school day of the month. The leaf 

 may be pressed and mounted upon a card, or it may be traced in outline and 

 colored in crayon or water color, or merely traced with the veins drawn in. 

 If there are not thirty species of trees available about the schoolhouse, two 

 leaves of the same species may be used. These two leaves may show a variety 

 in coloring or they may offer a contrast in size and in form since no two leaves 



813 



Leaves of mossy cup oak 

 mounted on card 



