150 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [1«:4— April, 1920 



The teacher may ask "How can I be sure that all these things 

 may be observed in the kindergarten and first grade ; " The answer 

 is simple. At one time or another, have a hen or a pair of bantams, 

 a duckling or gosling ,a pigeon and a canary in the school room for a 

 few days. An ordinary crate may be made into a house for the 

 hen or duck or pigeon by putting slats an inch or so apart across 

 the open side. If you are in the city you can get these birds alive 

 in the market ; if you are in the country you can borrow them from 

 some farmer. A canary may also be borrowed in its cage for a 

 few days. One of these feathered visitors present in the school 

 room will be the center of attraction. Talk to the children about 

 the birds, not as if you were teaching, but simply as if teacher and 

 pupils were equally interested. The birds should be fed and given 

 water and taken care of in a proper manner in the presence of the 

 pupils. There should be a perch available for the hen and the 

 pigeon. Instead of a crate, a cage with wire netting is more 

 desirable since it allows more constant observation of the bird. 



SECOND GRADE 



This is the time to stimulate interest in the children for birds in 

 general. I know of no better way of accomplishing this than by 

 reading to them from the Burgess Bird Book for Children. Thorn- 

 ton Burgess knows how to interest children in any subject and 

 there are many grown people who read his bedtime stories for their 

 own amusement; while they are fanciful and fable like yet the 

 author is careful to represent truthfully the habits and activities of 

 birds and animals. His bird book is beautifully illustrated with 

 Louis Fuertes' paintings which fact is a great help to the teacher. 

 As each story is read the pupils should have before them pictures 

 of the birds. The teacher may color the outlines herself or she 

 may use colored pictures. In any case the pupils should after- 

 wards have outlines of one or more of the birds which they should 

 color as best they can with crayons. If this exercise is successful 

 there will be a call on the part of the children for the same story 

 over and over. There are interesting bird stories by other authors 

 that may be read also. At the end of the year the pupils should 

 have a definite idea of the places where many of our common birds 

 may be found and a knowledge of their ways and their nesting 

 habits. 



