182 



NATURE STUDY AND AGRICULTURE 



It will, of course, be impossible for the children to find 

 out for themselves all of the characteristics that help plants 

 to withstand drought; but they will be able to discover 

 some of the things. Dig down to find what kind of roots 

 the plants have that look the freshest, such as clover and 

 dandelion. Compare these with the roots of some that 

 are the most withered. Examine the leaves. Do you 

 find any with hairy or woolly structures that might protect 

 them from the heat? 



Very early in the term begin keeping a record of daily 

 observations of weather conditions. If there is not enough 

 blackboard to reserve a permanent space for the record, 

 procure a sheet of brown manila paper or bristol board 

 and make a chart by ruling off a table like that indicated 

 below. At the beginning of each week, appoint two of 

 the seventh-grade pupils to see that the record is put in 

 each day. If the work is not conducted as a general ex- 

 ercise for the entire school, then the seventh-grade pupils 

 may keep their own records in' notebooks. 



WEATHER RECORD 



These observations may be taken without instruments. 

 However, if the school has a thermometer, then the tem- 

 perature should be recorded in degrees. For tempera- 



