302 BIRD FRIENDS 



basis, not only for the selection of the subject matter, 

 but for its organization as well. 



Application. The use of knowledge is the chief 

 end of education. One of the vital things in plan- 

 ning a nature-study lesson is to consider how the 

 children may be encouraged to make use of what 

 they have learned. If the problem does not seem 

 to allow of any application, it may well be ques- 

 tioned whether it has been wisely chosen. The appli- 

 cation should be the doing of something which in- 

 terests the child and which can be done naturally 

 in his ordinary life. It should be so clearly stated 

 that the child has a very definite idea of what is to 

 be done. It is usually well to suggest only a few 

 things at a time, perhaps only one. 



Following are suggested some ways in which ap- 

 plication may be made in bird-study: (1) actually 

 doing the things taught in the lesson, as in build- 

 ing nesting-houses, feeding winter birds, and provid- 

 ing fountains; (2) making outdoor observations on 

 the birds studied in the schoolroom; (3) watching 

 others do the things studied, such as planting of 

 shrubs in the parks and the erection of martin- 

 houses; (4) making a collection of birds' nests (in the 

 fall) and of nesting-houses; (5) talking over with 

 parents at home the topics studied ; (6) cutting out 

 clippings from newspapers and magazines relating 

 to the topic under consideration, and bringing them 

 to school. 



