The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1888-12-08
A TEACHERS TALK.
INDIFFERENCE AT HOME is WRONG
FOR THE CHILDREN.

INDIFFERENCE AT HOME is WRONG
FOR THE CHILDREN.
Parents Neglect or Lack of Interest-Too
Much Is Expected OF Tcachers-So;no
Suggestions of valuc--Parcnts as Visitors
in tho Schools.
Tla one thing in 4 teachers life that would
be amusing if it were not too often Il source
OF despair, is the remarkable statements per-
pctratcd by scholars. For instance, ono
young person talks i'll all seriousness OF IAN
illustrated sore throat" and thinks ln inter-
mlttent fever is something catching"
Another classes the Carrying among the ami
mails of Maine, and declares the "hypothc-
muse TO be Il huge animal peculiar to Africa.
Another is firm III the belief that tho
weather bureau is an article of furniture,
and cites as an example of vegetable dyes
her coultcnancc illumineGl with tho inspiru.
uon that has just como to her-"Diamond
Dyes" Still another jumps at tho trallsa-
tion of tho French word "corne" r.horn),
and announces i'll q certain festival "the cor
ners of the COW We're gildcd." Fancy tho
astoniShment of n worthy friend on learning
that 'thc sect of QuakcrS was founded bv
Guy Fawkcs" Tho difference between il col
lego and Il university has been illustrated as
follows: "Houng men so to Harvard college,
and young women so to Wellesley college,
but both SO to Boston university"
These mistakes wcro all mado by high
school scholars, varying in age from II to IL
Years, and in ability from the brightest o the
'tullcst. The stories aro all very amusing,
and can Ic matched and ,iiStanced by tcacli-
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 Sho Is
Taught ever think that the fault of such
blun'crs is not due entirely to the child, nor
entirelyt to tho teachcr' Do they ever think
that many bull like the above might bo
prevented bva little caro- taking ut home,
a hard working, faithful scholar of good
ability asks 'if it wasn't Alfred tho Great
Who invented tho cotton gin" She would
never have asked that question if her father
and mother had taken tho trouble to mako
their general conversation in tho house of
sono interest and Instruction. Would the
weather bureau ever have been mistaken for
II chest of drawers if curiosity about "Oll
Prob and his cuworkcrS had been stimulated
and then satisfied! The cry is an Old one,
lack of interest at llonc, but it is none tho
less cry that demands attention Too many
/ parents select schools for tlor children, sco
tl;tt they are properly clothed to go to them,
and consider tle.r duty thereby DONE Tho
teacher must do the rest
Now, i'll tho first place, this is much too
hard on the teacher Tho timo sl,o cun de
vote to each scholar is limited, and she is but
human i'll capacity. Your son may be II boy
"f but average ability; lie needs to have tho
preparation of his lessons superntenticu as
well as their recitation. Or he may be clever
but careless, and that fault must be attacked
III every act of his life and at every hour of
tho day. Tho five hours Il day in school
won't cure him, and until tho circus comes
again he will call IL lynx IL larnyx and Il hin.
pop"tamus n hypothcnllsc Or, lle may lJe
quick To learn, but lazy and unwilling to set
himself about his tasks. He cannot be cured
Of that fault by his teacher working unalcd
Parents ought not to ask teachers to do what
they cannot accomplish themselves, OF expect
tho fow opportunities of tho school room TO
Surpass those of the home
Then, again, this indifference at homo is
wrong for the children. They 10 aat take
the stand in their classes that they should /;
thelr powers of thought arc not developed;
they cannothp!ply themselves to their worl;
anu concentrate their attention; they arc
not stimulated to read out of school Take,
for instance, tho habit Of thinking. The
teacher lays before her scholars certain facts
with which they arc all familiar, and which
Illustrate some point s,ho asks them to
mako Il similar general statement drawn
from their knowledge of those particular
fn..f Al.
hwcrs will come chiefly, if not entirely, from
those who have parents who talk to them on
the questions of the day, and tho great qucs-
thought in their children
Again, take the matter OF reading. y
teacher may recommend book, may give
un account of its author and by describing
its connection with and interest for tho work
in hand, try to induce tho pupil to read it.
But sho cannot go to the library and get the
book and put it into tho pupils hands There
is whcro the work of the parent should sup
llenlcnb tia. Of tho teacher Let him see
that the book is brought into the house and
let hiin excite interest in tho reading by
having it read aloud Or by reading it with
his son.
Visitors arc not always desirable i'm 8
school; they arc sometimes hindrance to
the conducting Of {; recitation. But there IS
certainly no excuse for Il parents not visit
ing the school where his children arc taught
at least once during tho year, and there is no
teacher who would not feel pleased rather
than annoyed ut such n manifestation of ill.,
tcrest. y high school teacher carrying on
twenty-five rccltitIOnS u week states that
during the last school year not IL single call
was made upon her room by Il parent. This
is not an unusual statement, and it merely
illustrates the lack of interest OF the average
parents whose average children fill our aver
ago schools Mabel s. Clarke in Boston
Globe.