The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1855-02-08
From the Massachusetts Teacher.
EASY METHODS OF INSTRUCTION.
A Prize Essay.
BY MISS BETsEy L. ADAMS, OF BRooKvrLLE.

A Prize Essay.
BY MISS BETsEy L. ADAMS, OF BRooKvrLLE.
Perhaps may be allowed to avail my
self of the opportunity given by The As
sociation, to present. some methods OF
teaching the branches usually pursued in
our common schools. These plans may
not be new, but it is believed they will be
found practical, as they are such as have
commended themselves to the writer dur
ing somewhat extended course of teach
ing, and with pupils whose ages have
varied from three to twenty-one. No
method will be proposed that does not
aim at thoroughness; and as "there is no
royal road to learning" every useful
method, like every thing else that is val
liable, will require certain amount of
labor. But it is believed, that to teach
a thing thoroughly at first, will, in the
end, prove the easiest way.
To commence with Reading. Some
have endeavored to shorten the process of
teaching children to read, by beginning
with words instead Of letters. This is
thought to be almost as absured as to at
tempt to teach Arithmetic by presenting
combinations of numbers at first, instead
of single figures. Not that every letter
must be learned before words are formed.
The little one, unless remarkably tracta-
bic, wearies of the A B G before the
twenty-six are learned Therefore as
soon as two letters have become familiar,
they mag be formed into a word, and
this process continued till the whole al
phabet is m mastered.
Others would teach the elementary
sounds Of the letters, before, or in connec-
ton with, the names. All these sounds
must become familiar, if We would make
good readers, and there is scarcely any
danger that they will be practised too
frequently. But the child must be taught
one thing at a time. If he attempts to
learn the name and the sound at once, be
viii be in danger of confounding them;
and it is believed nothing is lost by leav-
ing the elementary sounds of the letters,
till his powers of discrimination have be-
come more fully developed. This meth
cd might BE more fully discussed, but it
would be tedious, and perhaps unprofta-
bic.
In this connection l would insist that
words should not be pronounced for
scholars, Exceptions there may be, but
this should be the rule The sch holar
should be led on by gradual steps, and re-
quired to spell out every word he cannot
readily pronounce. This will teach him
to depend upon himself, and will apply to
other branches. Even scholar who is
somewhat advanced, should be taught to
consider it no disgrace, to pause, as be
meets an unfamiliar word, and apply all
his knowledge of the laws of pronuncia-
ton to the stranger. This is the way to
become ready readers.
In regard to expression, much must be
left unsaid. The natural utterance of
Joy, grief, &c. in the child is believed to
be a safe example. Unnatural tones can
not be correct, natural ones must be so.-
The necessity of cultivating the magma
ton in connection with reading, is now
supposed to be so generally understood
and realized by all good teachers, that it
is not necessary to dwell upon it.
Spelling should be practiscd in connec-
ton with reading. Do you ask whether
it should be performed orally or BY writ
ingI-I answer, In both ways, thoug h we
think oral spelling should take the pre-
cedence with children. We know it is
said awe have no use f6rit in after life,
therefore it should not be practised." 1t
should be used as a means, not as an end.
My principal reason for preferring that
oral spelling should preponderate in child
hood, is, that it is much the most rapid
way. Many more words can be learned
in the same time, than by stopping to
print them all. But writing the words
should hg no means be omitted, and With
advanced scholars, this method may be
pursued to the exclus ion of the other.
Many methods of correcting written
spelling lesson have been proposed. The
following has been tried with success. A
certain class of words is selected for les
son, or series of lessons, for instance, the
names of familiar objects, articles of dress,
or furniture, names of persons, places,
&C., the class occasionally debating les
son, being previously prepared, and each
giving out word As the words are Civ
en- out, each one writes them upon the
blackboard or a slate They are then
spelled aloud, each word being pronoun-
ced correct or incorrect by the one who
gave it. Each member of the class is
provided with slip of paper and pencil,
and whenever a word in his list is pro-
nounced to be incorrect, he copies it upon
his paper Atthe close of week, these
papers are passed to the teacher, and the
words upon them are given out as les
son. If any word is still misspelled, it is
copied again, and will enter into the re-
view Of the next week. In this way eve
ry word must be learned.
Little children should not be confined
to the columns of the spelling book
though far be it from us to call them
"nonsense columns" A single word may
be given them each day, aside from the
regular lesson, to be spelled on the sue,
I