60 NA TURE-STUDY REVIEW [11:2— Feb., 1915 



At the Froebel school a great number of the children are just 

 beginning to speak English. The difficulties of teaching nature- 

 study which demands such a varied vocabulary are illustrated 

 by the following story: One morning toward the close of the 

 period, being somewhat distressed by the behavior of one of my 

 classes, I asked them among other things if they wouldn't turnover 

 a new leaf the next day. I was very much gratified to see all the 

 hands go up. Then at least five children sang out, "Where will 

 we get the new leaf, in the woods?" 



Adjoining the school building there are over twenty acres of 

 land partly woods, partly swamp and partly sand. We would 

 sometimes take four or five trips a day to the woods when the birds 

 were migrating. Then we could get so much good material there. 

 I often went to the woods with my class in application and brought 

 back enough material to last several days, such as. oak galls of 

 many different kinds, goldenrod-galls, leaf -miners' tunnels with and 

 without a tenant, willow galls, caterpillars, butterflies, spiders, 

 flowers, frogs, turtles, salamanders and lizards. 



Connected with each nature-study room is a good-sized conserva- 

 tory. Here the children learn how to care for plants, make cut- 

 tings, plant bulbs, in fact do all the things necessary for the health 

 of plants. We always have a number of bulbs. The children 

 plant these and learn all about them. Later on they draw them 

 in bloom and often buy them. 



In the spring-time we started a large garden 35 x 140 feet for 

 the primary department. It was large enough to allow the second 

 grade children to have individual gardens. The children of the 

 first grade had community gardens. We began to work in the 

 garden about May first and until the close of school, June nineteenth, 

 the children worked in the garden whenever the weather permitted. 

 The garden products were sold. Fifty-six dollars was cleared 

 on this garden. 



The children from the third to the eighth grades get their nature- 

 study work by observing the older classes. That is the sixth 

 grade or the eighth grade will be divided, part of them going to 

 one class and part of them going to another class. The children 

 of the third and fourth grades will join the children in the upper 

 grades. They are eager to help the other children with whom 

 they are working in any way they can. This system is carried 

 out through all the departments. Each class in botany, zoology, 



