The Spirit of Nature-Study 



Cora A. Smith 

 Erie, Pa. 



These are days when every teacher is thinking: "What is the 

 relation of my work to this great onward leap of the nations? Is 

 mv work vital in the lives of the men and women of to-morrow?" 

 And the nature-study teacher, most of all, perhaps, is compelled to 

 think of the eternal verities, with the part they play in human 

 affairs, in order to satisfy herself that she is essential to the welfare 

 of the community. 



Teachers have been recently called by Dr. Finley the "Army of 

 Future Defense," and we are assured that education is the greatest 

 work of the nation even now, paradox as it may seem. If this be 

 true, what is the part of nature-study in the greatest work of the 

 nation ? 



By "The Spirit of Nature-Study" we mean the deep, under- 

 lying motive in the soul of one who loves to direct children to 

 first-hand acquaintance with the common things of nature. This 

 motive finds a counterpart in the mind of the child, who longs to 

 know all things. And the child goes on its way rejoicing in knowl- 

 edge of the hows and whys. The spirit is the same in teacher and 

 pupil. In fact, it is the spirit of nature herself. "The wind blow- 

 eth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst 

 not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: So is every one 

 that is born of the spirit." We like to think that the spirit of a 

 child naturalist is one and the same with that of the world-famous 

 scientist who gathers facts and draws conclusions. The child 

 follows the clues of the birds and wild-flowers and draws his own 

 conclusions. 



But is it true that to be able to bring children into contact with 

 the truths of nature, is to help mould this great Army of Future 

 Defense? Will contact with nature's truths fit future citizens for 

 the new and glorious epoch, so valiantly won by American man- 

 hood, at so great a sacrifice? The Army of Future Defense is 

 going to continue fighting for the brotherhood of man. Its 

 soldiers are going to be filled more and more with the spirit of Him 

 who said "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow." And 

 just as in the present crisis, among the first to respond to the call 



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