44 METHODS IN TEACHING 



about. Many questions are asked to bring out the thoughts 

 conveyed by the lesson. One question often asked in some 

 form or other is, " What has made this chapter so interest- 

 ing ?" or, " Why has this chapter not been as interesting as 

 the preceding ?" Spirited and varied are the answers of the 

 youthful critics. 



During the reading in class, while the more careful study 

 is under way, pictures of scenes in the story are presented. 

 For this purpose books are brought from 

 the public library, magazine articles are util- 

 ized, and home libraries become more familiar to the chil- 

 dren. As abridged editions of " The Talisman " and " Ivan- 

 hoe " are used in class, the teacher often reads some of the 

 vivid descriptions in complete form and recommends them 

 to the pupils, many of whom read the longer edition. 



The written work based on the literature averages about 

 twenty minutes a day for ten months. Notebooks are kept, 



and every pupil is responsible for every sub- 

 Written . 

 Work ject treated, for every map, and for every 



drawing. The notebooks are in every day 

 use and are taken care of by the pupils themselves. Ordi- 

 narily a paper is written and submitted to the teacher for 

 criticism, then it is copied if necessary and put into the note- 

 book. Many of the portfolios thus made consist entirely of 

 first papers, that is, of uncopied papers which have required 

 little or no correction. Before writing begins a clear state- 

 ment is made of what is desired. If the paper is to be a 

 character sketch, a short narrative, or a description, a short 

 outline is placed before the pupil as a guide. If it is to be 

 an outline of a chapter or of a poem, the class work it out 

 either as a composite production or they do it individually. 



