INQUIRIES 133 



the cycle of the year is the fundamental 

 continuity. 



How shall I make a start ? 



Persons hesitate, fearing that they will make a 

 mistake. A teacher asked me the other day where 

 he should begin with nature work. He had been 

 considering the matter for two or three years, he 

 said, but did not know how to undertake it. I 

 replied, Begin ! Head end, tail end, in the middle 



but Begin! There are two essential epochs in 

 any enterprise to begin, and to get done. 



For the first lesson, choose the natural object 

 that you know most about. Every teacher has 

 sufficient knowledge of one subject to afford one 

 good nature-study lesson. The second lesson will 

 take care of itself. 



If you are thinking of starting off a movement 

 in all the schools in a city or a commissioner's 

 district or in a county, first choose your teachers. 

 Choose those that have enthusiasm and "good 

 spirit" and that are not tied hand and foot to 

 customary methods. Choose the fearless teachers 



the ones that are anxious to arouse the pupils 

 even though they do not do it by the book. Then 

 give these teachers one good lesson yourself. Or, 

 if you cannot give the lesson, put in their hands 

 one good nature-study leaflet. Choose the leaflet 

 as you would a teacher for cheery outlook, 

 energy, and directness of expression. Choose a 

 leaflet that sends the teacher directly to nature; 

 you do not want stories. Choose the leaflet that 

 has snap and spirit, not mere information. It 



