SPRING NATURE STUDY. 605 



the gas (oxygen) that we and all animals need to breathe. 

 So the leaves, aided by the sun, purify the air for us in two 

 ways. 



What could we do without leaves ? 



The Leaves as Food. 



Touch on the importance of leaves as food for animals, 

 horses, cows, rabbits, grasshoppers, caterpillars, etc. 



The Leaves as Homes. 



How much more secure the leaves make the birds'-nests 

 hidden among them ! Perhaps some leaf miners can be 

 found in the yellow dock or other leaves, spending most of 

 their life and getting their food between the upper and 

 lower skin, or epidermis, of the leaves. Some of the chil- 

 dren may find the " leaf -rollers," caterpillars or spiders, 

 which have rolled leaves into tubes, in which they make 

 their homes. 



" There's never a leaf nor a blade too mean 

 To be some happy creature's palace." 



What could animals do without leaves ? 



CHILDREN'S PAPERS ON LEAVES. 

 WHAT THE LEAVES Do. 



" There are channels in the leaves of the bean plant. The biggest 

 channel is in the middle of the leaf. There is also a channel in the 

 leaf stalk. The rain water falls on the leaves and passes through the 

 channels down the stem and in the ground. The leaves of the bean 

 spread out and point down. The leaves carry water to the roots. The 

 roots take the water from the ground and send it to the leaves. 



" Miss Schiller had a bottle of colored water and put a bean plant 

 in it. After some time the plant turned red. The water soaked in 

 the roots and passed through the stem then in the leaves. The water 

 must pass through the plant to give it food." 



JENNIE BOYER, THIRD GRADE. 



