Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-12-15
Common Sense Talk to Teachers

The best plan to interest children
in school, and to cause them to love
it, is to give them something to do
which keeps them usefully occupied.
Children are naturally active, they
will be busy, and when not engaged
in useful work they will be in mischief.
How shall little children, before they
can study their lessons, be engaged in
SCHOOL, Shall they be forced to sit
for three hours without having any
thing to do, with feet dangling under
the seats, and their body swinging to
and fro, A little child is only in its
element when it is active. To force it
to sit quiet from fear of the rod, to
say the least, is unnatural, If not in
furious to health, and positively cruel.
The baby in the cradle is full of life
and activity. It's arms, feet, eyes and,
in fact, all the muscles of the body
are constantly in motion. How shall
children, little children, be kept
busily employed in school, so as to
prevent them from becoming restless
while they are yet too young to be
kept at their books. An important
question and one which has no doubt
puzzled many teachers.
Give pupils something to do by
means of which they can make them.
selves useful. Teach them useful
knowledge. Children delight in be-
ing able to render assistance. The
boy who can do some easy work for
his parents on the farm, or about the
barn or house, feels elated at the idea
that he is making himself useful, and
works for hours with the greatest
cheerfulness. A work of love is not
task. Jacob served Laban fourteen
years for his two daughters, and yet
these years sped away rapidly since
it was work of love. When teach
ers win the love and confidence of the
pupils they have no trouble to get an
almost unlimited amount of work out
of them. This work is to be per-
formed, not as a task, not for punish
ment, and even without leaving the
impression that it is work. The idea
of being usefully occupied should be
made the incentive.
A pupil, some bright-eyed fellow,
who can study with but little trouble,
is observed to be restless and ready to
engage in mischief, after his lesson is
studied. Step up to him and hand
him extracts from some book or paper
with the polite request, Johnny, won't
you please copy this for me in my
sorap-book, would like to preserve
it?' Johnny will be delighted with
the idea and will copy it with pleasure,
conscious that he is rendering useful
service to his teacher. While he is
doing this he is kept from mischief, he
learns to write. and best of all to
make himself generally useful. In
this way even the smallest pupil can
be put to some useful employment,
thereby improving his time and learn
ing to love the school duties.
Children should be taught to weigh
and measure. and learn to understand
their tables, which are often repeated
in merely mechanical or parrot-like
style. Have pair of scales and a
yard-stick or tape measure in school,
Let children weigh out OUNCE, quarter,
halfpound and pound packages.
Teach them to judge the weight Of
articles by handling them. Let them
draw lines On their states or on the
blackboard and judge their length,
afterwards verify them by actual
measurement.-National Educator.