Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-10-17
A TEACHERS TALK.
INDIFFERENCE AT HOME is WRONG
FOR THE CHILDREN.

Parents Neglect or Lack of Interest-Too
Much Is Expected of Teachers-Some
Suggestions of Talue-Parents as Visitors
in the Schools
The one thing IN teachers life that would
be amusing if it were not too often source
of despair, is the remarkable statements per-
petrated by scholars. For instance, one
young person talks in all seriousness of IAN
illustrated sore throat" and thinks an inter
mittent fever is 'semething catching"
Another classes the 'larynx" among the ami
mails of Maine, and declares the 'hypothe-
nusen to be huge animal peculiar to Africa
Another is firm in the belief that the
weather bureau is an article of furniture,
and cites as an example of vegetable dyes
her countenance illIunined with the inspira-
ton that has just come to her-'Diamond
Dyes" Srill another jumps at the transla-
ton Of the French word 'corne" e'horn9,
and announces in a certain festival ''the cor
ners of the COW were gilded.n Fancy the
establishment Of a worthy friend on learning
that 1.-THE sect of Quakers was founded by
IdNhto- btl"ttl d 1Oi-
lege and university has been illustrated as
follows; Young men goto Harvard college,
and young women go to Wellesley college,
but both go to Boston university"
These mistakes were all made by high
school scholars, varying in age from IA to II
years, and in ability from the brightest TO the
tlulleSt. The stories are all very amusing,
and can be metched and distanced by teach
| ers and by parents WHO remember stories
brought home from school by their children.
But do the parents who laugh over their
anecdotes and over English as She Is
| Taught" ever think that the fault of such
| bluIders is not due entirely TO the child, nor
entirely to the teacherl Do they ever think
that many bull like the above might be
| prevented by little care taking at homei
| A hard working, faithful scholar of good
ability asks ''if it wasn't Alfred the Great
who invented the cotton GIN She would
never have asked that question if her father
and mother had taken the trouble to make
their general conversation in the house Of
some interest and instruction. Would the
weather bureau ever have been mistaken fol-
a chest of drawers if curiosity about ''Olt
Prob" and his coworkers had been stimulated
and then satisfied The CRY is an old one
lack of interest at home, but it is none til,
less cry that demands attention Too many
parents select schools for their children, se
that they are properly clothed to go to them
and consider their duty thereby done. Tn
teacher must do the rest
Now, in the first place, this is much to-
hard on the teacher. The time she can de
vote to each scholar is limited, and she is bu
human in capacity. Your son may be DO,
of but average ability; he needs to have til
preparation of his lessons superintendent a
well as their recitation Or he may be cleve
but careless, and that fault must be attacke
in every act of his life and at every hour c
the day. The five hours a day in schoc
won't cure him, and until the circus como
again he will call lynx larnyx and hiE
popotamus a hypothenuse. Or, he may b
quick to learn, but lazy and unwilling to ST
himself about his tasks. He cannot be cure
of that fault by his teacher working unaidet
Parents ought not to ask teachers TO do VIII;
they cannot accomplish themselves, or expet
the few opportunities of the school room
surpass those of the home
Then, again, this indifference at home
/ wrong for the children. They do not tai
the stand in their classes that they should
their powers Of thought are not developet
they cannot apply themselves to their woi
and concentrate their attention; they a
not stimulated to read out of school TAX
for instance, the habit of thinking. II
. teacher lays before her scholars certain fac
with which they are all familiar, and Whit
Illustrate some point She asks them
make a similar general statement draw
: from their knowledge of those particul
: facts. You may be very sure that the Il
swers will come chiefly, if not entirely, fro
= those who have parents who talk to them
the questions OF the day, and the great gu,
tons OF all time, and who thus encoura
thought in their children
. Again. take the matter of reading.
= teacher may recommend book, rnay gi
an account OF its author, and By describi
= its connection with and interest for the wo
i, in hand, try to induce the pupil to read
= But size cannot go to the library and get t
. book and put il into the pupils hands The
n is where the work of the parent should 81
" plenent that of the teacher Let him
: that the book is brought into the house a
>, let him excite interest i'll the reading
= having it read aloud or by reading it W
his son.
Visitors are not always desirable in
y school; they are sometimes hindrance
the conducting Of recitation. But there
- certainly no excuse for a parents not vi
~ ing the school where his children are tau,
- at least once during the year, and there is
- teacher who would not feel pleased rat
., than annoyed at such a manifestation of
Il