Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1892-11-17
AN INTERESTING LETTER
To Teachers of Montgomery
County Library Association.
a school Teacher Gives Some Valuable
Hints With Regard to Managing
the Young Idea.
To the Lcaf-C Chropicle,l


the iden ui nut being pronp when
assigned work in an important and
interesting enterprise, we would
state that una voidable circumstances
prevented our answering the li-call
al our last library meeting. Our ap-
pointed essay on "How to teach
children the art Of composition" was
no prescribed form.
We offer a few of our modes
through the LEAF-CHRONICLE. How
well do VIZ remember the hesrt-gend-
ing command from the "old field"
teachers of years ago, TO writ COM
position for next Friday; hand in
Monday morning for correction |;
transcribe and read before an au.
dience of interested ueighbors and
patrons. What tears OF childish an.
guish we have wept over the efforts
to wiite a dry old composition, and
when we failed in the attempt some
sym pathizing friend would come
along and give us ideas and often
write the whole production for US,
and how surprised we would be to
ha Ve the teacher hand it back with
the curt Information that eve must
write cur own compositions" We
wondered then If teachers were not
fortune tellers, il not, how could they
tell we copied composition?
A child should never be made to
feel that 1t is writing q composition.
The very name composition seems
to discourage them. The Language
Lessons, now used in most of the
we consider the first and
most important steps toward devel-
DpiDg expression of ideas. Social let
ters to each other, inspected and cor
rtcted by the teacher, we think in.
forming to pupils. Some do not ap-
prove Of or even permit this in their
schools. Our experience IL, besides
being improving, it impresses chill
lren with the idea the teacher il not
eXacting or trying t. deprive them
Of heir little pleasures and privi.
Ieges. And the larger ocys and
girls are not near 50 apt to
be handing around their little billet
louX on the sly.
Blackboard exercises, arranged in
heads, on some special subject, we
have touud easy and entertaining
For instance, Thanksgiving is near
at hand, we would write on the
board:
THANKSGIVING DAY.
|. Tell why it is Nationa! holiday.
2. Give date OF its occurrence, and
BY whom proclaimed National hol-
day.
3. Where will you spend it?
4. What pleasures do you antici-
pate?
If long is of heads, we usually
give the entire list to the higher
grades, and restrict the subject to the
capacities Of the lower. A school
tires OF the same old story over and
over, and we find that change is ben
aficial not only beneficial, but really
necessary to advancement; 50 our
last, and seemingly happiest hit, con-
,ists in reading aloud every Friday
plantation stories which
are found in quite number of our
leading newspapers, Courier Journal,
Atlanta Constitution, Inter. Ocean,
etc. If the teacher has art skill, it is
best to draw the illustrations on the
board before proceeding to read,
aud also go through with the follow
ing preliminary remarks: "Now,
boys and girls, Pm going to read you
a funny story, written by fine
comic writer, Joel Chandler Harris.
| want you all to listen well. and
when l have finished readinr, see
how much you can remember, and
write in your own language"
They all brighten up and seem
eager to hear.
The reading is often interrupted by
bursts of laughter, for who could
read, or hear read, Uncle Remus,
and not laugh? The reading con-
how changed the scene!
One little fellow over in the corner
is all frowned up, and says, 81 don't
know what to write" Another
says, "I listened so hard and laughed
so much, I've forgotten what you
read" Quite number say nothing
at all. We encourage them by say.
ing: "Do your best and we will ex-
pect no more"
In thirty or forty minutes they be.
gin to hand in, some one page, two,
and the advanced classes four and
five, and it's wonderful to see how
they have remembered.
We then read aloud, to the school,
what each one has written, aud re-
ceive almost the same attention in
this, as the original story, each being
anxious to hear what the other has
written. With this, our last method,
we conclude by saying, we would