Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-11-18

Of these books the child gains knowledge
of the fundamental principles Of sciences
OF which every one should know some
thing.
True. Gin many games of marbles" much
may be forgotten. but never all. In regard
to the expeditions to the country, It Is
rather far-fetched to blame the teacher
that any child should not be warmly
clothed. In any case. a note from the pa
rent OF any child is sufficient to excuse it
from the trip; but 1 doubt IL the child
would incur any more danger to health in
trip of this nature than in a wild scram-
BILE after nuts, without the protec ting pres
ence of his teacher. To "Old Fogy'' I
would say that the Constitution is studied.
In the United States Of America the Con-
stltut1on Is and ever will be the first prin-
ciple of educatf ton, and in the eighth grade
Is studied almost sentence by sentence.
nave IN the past. am in the present, and
trust IN the future to be able to take ad-
Vantag" of the public schools They have
served me, and will still serve me, in a
manner which only students can appre-
cate and l think 1t is significant fact
mat no complaints ever come from the
students, but always from the parents
know that the public must have some
thlng to discuss and criticise "TriIby'
and Napoleon" have done their part nobly
10 satisfy this desire: but now that they
are RELOCATED to the past, must the public
school system of Washington, which is
generally conceded as fine a one as EXISTS
IN the United States. be brought forward
" LII up lne vacuum! STUDENT
From Another Mother.
To the Editor of The Evening Star;
When read the contribution to your pa
per few days since of Mater Familias."
said TO myself, She has struck the right
note! Her complaint was that the school
WORK, especially in the lower grades was
not confined to school hours. / am truly
eiao TINS subject has come up, not that l
sympathfze In all Of the abuse which is at
tunes heaped upon our school system but
II agitation Of public opinion will result in
less home work." by all means let us aei
tate!
am satisfied that there are many par
ents who, with sad hearts, see their chill
dren. night after night, bring home work
which must be done during hours which
should be devoted to relaxation and sleen
IL mas Tor many years been a pet theory of
mine that little children should be taupbt
from infancy to open their eyes to all the
wonders of this beautiful world. There
would be less Of dangerous reading among
tne young II they were early taught to
stuuy the world about them, 1t seems to
me that any person of intelligence ofter
reading through the course of normal read
ers In use in our schools must admit tha+
! 1ney are valuable beyond any calculation.
80 V"SS q oSOt VI gratitude to those
Instrumental in placing these CHARMING
DOCKS within reach of the poorest child
When my little daughter was but three
years OF age she was allowed to visit INV
CABINET every day, and take out. one Nv
one. the specimens, making "trains ~
cars. as she called them, around the room.
Young as she was. she learned the names
mica. quartz. agate, amethyst, etc.-as
easily as the words pineapple or banana.
She was taught not to let one specimen
touch another. and so they were not in
1Cred Now she Is In the fourth grade OF
the public school, but on account of so
much home work. being insisted upon
through the different grades, we are oilite
In despair, and have almost concluded that
we may be forced to place her in a private
school, where she can be allowed annie
time to rest from study and for recreation
in the open air. An education Is too dearly
bought when 1t is paid for with a broken
constitution or exhausted nerves tn he
properly equipped for the struggle Of life
health Is the first consideration. and No
child can spend SO many hours in study and
severe use Of the eyes without serious con
sequences.
The public school whose methods took
the premium at the American centenniaI In
1876 began its work at 8 am, closing at
1880, with no recess. 1t reopened at :30
PM. closing at ESQ. giving two hours at
noon. thus doing away with the objection
able features OF recess. In the advanced
grades some work was usually taken home
but ample time was given for the midday
meal at home. II others are interested in
the subject Of less home work. let US hear
from them. ONE OF THE MOTHERS.