232 NATURE STUDY. 



be done with it. Each thing completed, be it one fact 

 or a broad generalization based on many facts, is but a 

 means of apperceiving new ideas, a link in another se- 

 quence, a help in higher generalizations, a preparation 

 for greater unity. 



The applications of nature study in other school- 

 work, and the methods of relating nature studies to 

 other studies in the elementary schools, are considered 

 in Chapters XI, XII, and XIII. 



The question naturally arises, Is it always wise to 

 follow from beginning to end this order of study, to 

 consider each of these steps in studying any object? 

 No, most decidedly. While this indicates the line of 

 thought, the point at which we begin or end and the 

 relative emphasis placed on different steps must be de- 

 termined by the age of the children, the character and 

 amount of preparatory work, the material available, and 

 other conditions. 



With young children we will place all emphasis on 

 relation to environment, life, habits, and function, with 

 very little comparison and application. Children are 

 not ready for much work in the later steps. As the 

 children become older, they are prepared for a more 

 thorough study of structure, more work in classification, 

 and can make a wider application of what they have 

 learned. The older the children the more important in 

 general are the later steps, which involve wider knowl- 

 edge and require power of generalizing. 



Where children have had nature work in the lower 



