Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1889-05-29
EDUCATIONAL.
C. D. BELDEN, EDITOR.

Supt. Belden visited some of the
schools in Dexter and Grand Meadow
last week.
We report with great pleasure the in
creasing interest taken to establish school
libraries in this county. On Tuesday
evening May 81, an interesting musical
and literary entertainment was given at
the school house in District 62, Pleasant
Valley and SIC. was raised for a library.
The Board will add SIS. to this sum
which will buy a thirty dollar library.
Credit is due largely to the enterprise of
the teacher Miss Alice E. Leonard for
this effort. Dist. SO, Joint. Pleasant
Valley, has also just raised SIS. for a
library. Dist. "a Racine has a fund
raised and will send for a library at once.
An Entertainment vas held last Saturday
evening at the residence of Charles East
man in Window, to rise funds for a library
in Dist. SO. Miss Eastman is teacher in
this district. Let the good work 60 on.
A few dollars invested in a library will be
of inestimable benefit to any school.
Remember the state will give as much
money as the district will raise. An
encyclopedia and other useful reference
books together with a good library for
general reading should be in every
school roomi in the county.
Preparation.
To be a successful teacher one must be
able to get and hold the attention of
children; this is one of the first requisi
tions. | haYe seen teachers after asking
question. securing the book, thus show.
ing the pupils that they themselves did
not know the answers, Pupils have no
confidence in such a teacher. They will
loose respect and love for such a person.
The teacher must know what he is talk.
Ing about. He must prepare the lessons,
even the simplest need some preparation
he must be able to pour on a little salt
here, a little pepper there, so as to make
them attractive, spicy, and wholesome.
This he cannot do without careful prep
a%ration.
Teachers complain that their classes
are dull, l~istless, and i~nattentive. Nc
wonder they have nothing but stale bread
served out to them, for which they have
no relish. Let such teachers study theil
pupils, study their lessons, study to know
thoroughly what they are talking about
and they will have less cause to make
such complaints.
By LUCY A. YENDERs.
System in school work is a wonderful
help both to pupil and teacher. Othe
things being equal. the school that has
time and a place for everything, will &C
complish more and in a more satisfactor,
tanner, than one that has not. A writ
ten program, placed in a conspicuou
position, is one of the first and best mean
to this end. Every item ofthe routine worl
of the day should be appropriated,
noticed thereon, not even ommitting th
50 minuets for answering necessary ques
tons" This obviates the apparent neccs
sity for whispering that is sometime
offered as an excuse by offending pupils
and also relieves the teacher from calm,
the classes. Each child knows when it
class is signalled and is thus made re
sponsible for appearing in it withou
special oversight by the teacher. How
different in a room where nobody, no
even the teacher, is sure Just when a elias
will be called, how long it will take
where the lesson will be, on what tn
subject matter! The picture is not over
drawn, for this state Of things can b
found in many of the district schools to
day. A teacher's duty is only we'll begun
when the text book lessons are expounded
for there must be daily lessons in morals
manners, and every day life, and hoy
can q teacher give practical lessons il
order-for instance-and at the sam
time be q living example of mere neg
ligence? An ounce of example will 6
further with Young America then twent
pounds of mere precept.
And the influence is not without edec