46 HOW NATURE STUDY SHOULD BE TAUGHT 



fused with the sciences on which it is based. To- 

 day nature study and science, while they may 

 deal with the same objects, view them from op- 

 posite standpoints. Nature study is not syn- 

 thetic ; it takes for its central thought the child, 

 and for its field work the child's natural environ- 

 ment." 



But some one may still insist, if nature is so 

 interesting and lovable, it is sufficient to allow her 

 interests and attractions to speak for themselves. 

 Yes, but they never will. They need an inter- 

 preter. When the young man goes a-wooing, 

 does he constantly talk only of his own excel- 

 lences and possessions? or when a man is seeking 

 his wife's happiness, does he depend on his inten- 

 tion to furnish her with a good home and plenty 

 of money ? Does not something come in ahead 

 of temporal considerations. The expression of 

 love, is it not ? 



Yet mere oral expression is not enough. A 

 child can detect a hypocrite quicker than you can 

 detect a misspelled word or a grammatical error. 

 He can do it unerringly, and he will. If your 

 pupil brands you as a fraud, your fate is sealed. 

 You can never teach him anything good. Do 

 not talk to him about the lovableness of nature 



