PRINCIPLES DETERMINING METHOD. 183 



How can we impress on the child the idea of unity 

 in his physical environment ; that is, in the world of 

 nature about him? 



At first, perhaps, everything is unity to the babe. 

 He has little power of analyzing. He soon, however, 

 begins to separate his environment from himself, the 

 u not I " from the " I." In time he distinguishes different 

 parts of his environment, mother, nurse, father, food. 

 At first he doubtless sees a pussy as a whole, with little 

 or no conscious analysis. Later he distinguishes head 

 and body and tail and legs, and gradually minor di- 

 visions. This process of analysis, of separating into 

 and distinguishing parts, is continued as he develops. 



The problem at first is, not to give the child the idea 

 of unity, but to keep that idea in his mind as and while 

 he analyzes. 



The development of the analyzing power in the 

 race has been similar. The progress of knowledge 

 has gradually compelled man to separate what was 

 once called natural history, into many distinct sciences^ 

 botany, zoology, chemistry, physics, each with a host 

 of subdivisions. These distinct sciences, as such, have 

 little place in work with young children. They must 

 study nature much as their ancestors studied nature 

 before these sciences existed, and as the children study 

 nature before they enter school. This does not mean 

 that they are merely to flit about and sip here and 

 there, but that each thing studied may, and often 

 should, become a centre for the study of much about it. 



When we thus study the dandelion in its relations, 



