The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1886-05-13
.WR1TING MAKES AN EXACT NAN
READING, A READY MAN."

And the diligent practice of both will
produce the full -Hedged scholar. 1t is
we'll known fact that one of the greatest
improvements in the system ofmodern pri-
mary educationist the prominencegiyen to
writing in our schools. Ten or fifteen
years ago daily exercise of writing in
copy book, with an occasional compo.
sition thrown in, constituted about the
training of the average scholar in this
most important department of education.
The former of these exercises required
no mental labor whatever, and the pupil
might scratch along through b the copy
and plan at the same time the neodus
operandi of certain games to be played
during recess. The latter exercise was
scarcely more profitable, either from the
nature of the subject given, or because
the child was not mentally able to ex-
press itself in half dozen sentences on
any subject. 1t was like attempting to
teach child to run before it knew how
to walk.
Now, writing is reduced to complete
system. We have the A. B. C's. and
the gradually rising steps in the depart
ment of English written compositions.
The scholar has his written grammar
exercise as regularly every day as he has
his spelling lesson. No pupil is allowed
to treat any subject in all of his or her
verdant originality until the way has
been thoroughly paved up to that point,
and we have no more such ebullitions of
despairing effort as the little fellow
poured forth, when, on striving for long
time to write composition on Thought"
he jotted down, Thought is the hardest
thing to think about that ever / thunk
or" The result of all the new methods
has been to make child Of ten years a
better writer and better thinker than
boy or girl of fourteen used to be.
Writing, however, is not what l wish
chiefly to discuss. Every teacher is we'll
acquainted with the above facts, and
fully realizes the many advantages of the
new system.
Now for the secondly" of my text:
ssReading makes the ready man." In
this department I think there is large
room for improvement, especially in our
country schools. Teachers, as general
thing, in their effort to train their pupils
to read correctly and fluently, seem to
lose sight of the far more important
object, namely, to make the child inter
ested in the subject matter of its lesson,
and to stimulate within it the desire to
read from sources than that of the text
book. Now, in town, very few children
need such stimulus. From the libra
ries, picture books, gaudy advertise
ments, etc., they become fascinated
enough with the delightful accomplish.
ment. There the trouble lies in educat.
ing them up to taste for wholesome
literature. In the country, however,
matters are different. Here, the scarcity
of books and papers, bad lights at night
and separation from the current news
of the day, all serves as damper to any
latent desire to read. With the same
school advantages, in proportion to their
ages, believe that an average town boy
or girl of twelve years can read better
and more understandingly than the aver
age country boy Of sixteen; and all for
the want of interest and practice in the
latter case. Apart from the advantages
to be derived from reading, in itself, it
has been my experience, and no doubt
the experience of every teacher, that
those pupils who have the greatest fond
ness for reading-reading at home-are
the most proficient In their other studies.
The reason OF this is quite obvious. The
mental powers are kept in constant ex-
ercise, vocabulary is acquired, and the
nature of words and the structure of
sentences are better understood, all of
which lead to more ready comprehen-
sion OF grammar and mathematics.
In one of my grammar classes there
was boy, about sixteen years old, who,
after he had recited few lessons, aston
ished me very much by the ease with
which he mastered the duties assigned.
The text book used was "Reed and Kel-
logg's Higher Grammar" aud though
this boy was going through the work for
the first time, yet, in the analyses Of
sentences, be never failed to detect the
most delicate shades of meaning in
volvcd, and exceedingly seldom was it
that he required any aid in his diagrams.