196 THE NATURE STUDY COURSE. 



Do rabbits ever run ? 



Why do horses turn their ears ? 



With which end does a wasp sting? a mosquito 1 ? 



Do little pigs show any signs of affection ? 



The subjects and topics listed in the Courses of Study have 

 nearly all been reviewed in these pages. Limitations of space 

 and lack of knowledge on the writer's part are not the only 

 reasons why the treatment of the topics has been suggestive 

 rather than exhaustive. Two of the photogravures in the 

 book have been introduced to emphasize the important fact 

 that the best part of the teacher's preparation to conduct any 

 particular Nature Study lesson is his own first-hand investiga- 

 tion of the object or phenomenon, and not the browsing he 

 may do in a library. But that the library may furnish, if not 

 the most important, at least a very useful supplementary aid 

 is recognized in the references to nature literature with which 

 the paragraphs abound. The books named under the respective 

 topics are the most helpful, inexpensive ones known to the writer. 



Nature Study is more method than subject-matter. It 

 should be judged by quality, not by quantity. The highest 

 criterion of success in teaching it is increase of power rather 

 than of knowledge, — of power to observe, judge, act, sympathize 

 and enjoy. You should not be expected to hurry your class 

 over the whole course ; a life as long as Methuselah's would 

 be too brief to study it thoroughly by the discovery method. 

 Determine how much time should be given each day to this 

 kind of work, and select from what is available that which 

 seems to promise the best results. Aim to train the children 

 for useful and happy lives by exercises that seem to them to 

 be " worth while " now, and that bring them happiness in the 

 doing. Study the tastes, interests, and environments of the 

 pupils to guide you in choosing the work. This book is put 

 forth in the hope that if the exercise or object you select is 

 named in its index you will there be referred to pages that 

 may render you assistance in realizing the right ideal. 



