XVI INTRODUCTION 



use of pictures in the book will suggest to the teacher 

 the importance of having an abundance of illustrative 

 material for the exercises, letting the pupils see the 

 things themselves, as far as practicable, no matter how 

 common or familiar they may be ; and it is an advan- 

 tage to have the pupils collect the specimens. The 

 pupil's living contact with common things will strengthen 

 the bond between the school and the home. 



These Lessons are an extension of the ideas em- 

 bodied in the nature -study leaflets issued for the use of 

 teachers by the College of Agriculture of the Cornell 

 University ; and these leaflets are, in turn, the direct 

 outgrowth of "observation lessons" which were a part 

 of the instruction given in itinerant schools of horticul- 

 ture in New York state. Observations xiv. and Ixi. 

 are adapted from two of these leaflets. The leaflets 

 have met with great demand from teachers in all grades 

 of school work, not only in New York, but elsewhere. 

 These publications have aimed to awaken an interest 

 and curiosity on the part of the pupil by suggesting 

 interesting topics to the teacher, and by indicating 

 means of presenting the subjects. 



The author is under the greatest obligations to 

 Professor W. S. Holdsworth, of the Michigan Agricul- 

 tural College, whose skilful hand and faithful eye have 

 wrought most of the illustrations, and without whose 

 cooperation the book would probably not have been 



