THE DANGERS OF NATURE STUDY 



43 



pression of the teacher's thought as to the possibility of the 

 subject in that particular school. It is an evidence of in- 

 dependence, which means that the outline will be modified 

 for the better as experience increases. 



An outline obtained from a successful teacher is also a 

 good thing. It will be a good outline, not to follow, but 

 to study. One may catch from it the principles involved, 

 the spirit, the methods, and the sort of material that has 

 proved successful. It will probably enable another teacher 

 to make his own outline better, but there is always 

 the temptation to "crib bodily" and be done with the 

 trouble. 



No outline is altogether good except one that is made 

 with special reference to the particular teacher and to the 

 neighborhood of the particular school. That nature study 

 is peculiarly a local study cannot be emphasized too fre- 

 quently. It is for this reason that any outline must be 

 constructed by the individual teacher and not for teachers 

 in general. But when this home-constructed outline has 

 been completed, even it becomes a danger if it is followed 

 too rigidly. It is a general guide, but it cannot be a day- 

 by-day guide. It is impossible to foresee all the shifts that 

 good teaching will demand. There will come the especially 

 appropriate moments for different material or for arousing 

 new interests of the pupils or for new methods of presenta- 

 tion, any one of which may for the moment cast the outline 

 to the winds. Just as to certain speakers there come 

 moments of inspiration through the act of speaking, so to 

 teachers there come sudden inspirations in the act of teach- 

 ing. These should be seized upon at once, used without 

 reference to a programme, and recorded for future use. 



