198 NATURE STUDY AND AGRICULTURE 



slide on ice. On the surface you may find, also, the shiny 

 black whirligig beetles. These whirl round and round, 

 sometimes a large number of them together. You wonder 

 how they keep from bumping into one another every 

 minute as they circle around. Have the children keep 

 very quiet as they look down into the water for animals. 

 They may find a few fish or frogs. Among the insects 

 they may see the interesting water boatmen, and the more 

 interesting back swimmers that glide around in the water 

 always with their backs downward. They may catch a 

 glimpse of the giant water bugs and the large black water 

 beetles. They will, without doubt, see the dragon and 

 damsel flies hovering over the water and settling down now 

 and then upon a reed or grass stem. 



Have the children watch to see what all these little 

 creatures are doing. Call for occasional reports on what 

 they have seen going on in and about the water. 



If water is not near enough to admit of the outdoor 

 observations, then arrange an aquarium or several aquaria 

 in the schoolroom, where the habits and activities of the 

 water animals may be studied. Indeed, an aquarium is a 

 great aid to detailed study even when the out-of-door ob- 

 servation may be made. At the same time nothing affords 

 the children more genuine pleasure. 



An aquarium may be made with little expense. Hodge, 

 in Nature Study and Life, gives directions for making 

 a cheap, substantial aquarium, somewhat as follows: 

 Decide on the size aquarium you want. It is not best to 

 make a very large one. Better have two small ones than 

 one large one. One ten inches long, eight inches high, 

 and five wide is a fair size for the ordinary schoolroom. 



