172 NATURE STUDY. 



to learn just how Mother Nature provides for the scat- 

 tering of the dandelion seeds," they are not so apt to 

 wander. 



It must be remembered, however, that the thought- 

 ful digressions by the pupils often indicate the line of 

 thought which the children are following, which may 

 be better for them than the line of thought the teacher 

 has mapped out. Remembering that we are often most 

 successful in leading children when we are apparently 

 being led by them, it is frequently wise to follow out 

 these digressions, when they are sincere and thoughtful, 

 and see where they will take us. 



In studying about the elm-tree, for instance ; if the 

 children persist in talking about the oriole's nest they 

 found in the elm-tree near the school, the wise teacher 

 may let them tell about the nest, how and where it is 

 fastened, how deep it is, and may help the pupils to 

 see that the birds understand, even better than the chil- 

 dren, how flexible and tough the branches of the elm are, 

 and how well fitted to support just such nests. The 

 interest in the nest will help to fix these distinctive 

 characteristics of the elm twigs. 



Closely related to the avoidance of thoughtless di- 

 gressions is the importance of " guarding the switches." 

 There are certain points where pupils are most apt to 

 get confused or wander off. These must be guarded 

 with special care. Two " switches " which require spe- 

 cial "guards" result from the tendency to depend on old 

 ideas established in the mind, rather than on what the 

 senses tell, and from the tendency to make too broad gen- 



