schively] nature-study COURSE IN NORMAL SCHOOL 337 



US in the past ten years. Have we not gone far enough in accumu- 

 lating materials and can we not profitably bend our energies to 

 fitting together, constructing, building up a consistent, progressive, 

 practical, concrete course of nature-study? 



Nothing is farther from my meaning than a "cut and dried" 

 course in nature-study. No two communities should have the 

 same course. Different sections of the same city must have 

 different courses to fit the needs. Still any group of teachers 

 should be able to take a general grade-plan in nature-study and fit 

 it to the conditions and needs of their pupils and their communities. 



In the back of my book, Nature-Study and Life, is printed a 

 grade plan which attempts to organize the topics as suggested 

 above. While I am responsible for the idea, the practical work was 

 done by a voluntary committee of teachers in the active work of 

 the schools. In this committee were teachers from the grades and 

 a number of principals so that we had expert suggestions as to 

 which garden problems, which trees and wild flowers, insects, 

 birds, domestic animals, health problems, and so on, to put into 

 each grade. My present feeling is that this grade plan should be 

 considerably simplified, the garden problems and those of plant 

 and animal industry, which now so often pass under the name of 

 elementary agriculture, should be strongly emphasized. 



The Nature-Study Course of the School of 

 Observation and Practice 



(By Courtesy of the Teacher) 



Adeline F. Schively 

 Philadelphia Normal School for Girls 



General Statements 

 (a) This course has been planned for the classes, second to 

 eighth years, inclusive. No definite assignments have been made 

 for first year. It seemed best to leave the selection of subjects for 

 this year to the teachers themselves. 



{h) In all grades, as far as possible, certain fundamental 

 thoughts have been borne in mind. 



I. Selection of subjects under group headings — Plant Life; 

 Animal Life; Minerals (4-5-6) ; Experimental (mainly chemistry 

 and physics); Earth Study; Miscellaneous (stars, moon, etc.). 



