The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1896-11-26

terial in the children's hands, and with
the contents of sensible little manual of
form study in the teachers head, solid
foundation can be laid in the primary
classes. Children have, of course, seen
spherical and cubical and cylindrical
things before ever they came to school at
all, but they have never done any clear
thinking about the reSemblances and dit
fercnceS between forms or about the rea-
son why one form is more SerYlceable and
beautiful in a particular instance than
any other would be. The right sort of
teaching from type models gets children
to seeing everything more intelllgently.
1t helps them straighten out their memo
ries of all the similar forms they have
seen outside of school. 1t gives them
sort of key to all the complicated combi-
nations of simple forms which they have
to meet in daily experience, and which
they will need to master and use in prac-
teal affairs. This is we'll worth a little
earnest study on the teachers part, is it
not? This is what | mean by saying that
drawing, taught on the right basis, of
form study, wakes children's senses up
and makes them more alive to what they
see.
Second: Drawing ought to make chill
dren do more good, clear thinking in all
their school studies.
To accomplish this it must be taught,
as | have said already, as means of express
sion, a language. The very process of
trying to express an idea makes that idea
clearer and palmer in your own mind; or
if it does not do that it shows you how
muddled your idea is and drives you to
try to better it. Anybody whoever took
11l,N hat In, nnt
anybody who ever took care of one in
quisitive boy for half day and conscien-
tiously tried to answer his miscellaneous
questions knows that. The same prin-
ciple holds in regard to the language of
the pencil as in regard to the language of
the tongue. Trying to draw thing is
one of the best possible means of getting
definite ideas about it, See how it is in
Arithmetic. The girl who cannot think
out in her confused head the essential
difference between an area Of two square
feet and an area two feet square gets her
ideas cleared and Strengthened in the
course of drawing diagrams of the two
cases. The boy who hlunders over cal
oulating the exact amount of oneinch
boards required to construct box whose
inside dimensions are given, gets sound,
common sense basis for his figuring, if he
draws views Of the box, showing Just
how the thickness Of the boards involves
allowing extra stock to fill out the cor
nelS.
1t is SO in geography, Some map draw
ing chat have seen has been nothing but
an elaborate variety OF busy work aud
means very little thinking of any sort.
But map-draWiHg Of the right, thought
tul sort impresses the characteristic out
lines and features of a bit OF country as
nothing else ever can, except obserVant
travel. The making of drawings OF plants
and animals characteristic of different
countries fixes them in the mind as moth
ING else could fix them for a stay at home
The drawing of ? section of Il coal mine,
once intellgently done, prevents a child
from ever relapsing into hazy uncertainty
about how we get that sort of fuel. In
fact there are hundreds of instances in
which the work in geography can be-so
to speak-clinched, by the practice of
drawing on the children's part.
1t is the same with history. The child's
drawings OF wigwams. tomahawks and log
forts, impress facts of pioneer dangers and
hardships upon his mind much more
wildly than reading alone. The drawing
of a simple outline map showing the rela
tive location of Boston, Charlestowu and
Concord helps make the story of Paul
Revere S ride and the April battle on the
village green more definite and real in the
imagination. A practical teacher, who
once comes to a realizing sense of the
value of drawing III connection with his
tory lessons and reading lessons. will see
for herself multitude of opportunities
where she can make it helpful.
GpfaSipna1lIr tp91bar CARRIES tho
enthusiasm too far and is betrayed by
excess OF zeal into encouraging the MAX
ing of elaborate pictures in connection
with arithmetical problems where they
really cannot help out arithmetical
thinking one particle Teachers have
to use their common sense in the
matter and consider Just where and
how drawing will help child to see
the main point more clearly and remem-
Der it more accurately. Where teacher
has reinforced her good Down East com
mon scrse with little honest study of
the subjec Of drawing, so that she can
tell good drawing from poor one and
so hold the children away from careless
slap dash work and up to conscientious
work, then you may be sure the draw
ing in that school, instead Of being any
eXtravagant use of time is really wise
economy of time and the most solid sort
of help to all the rest OF the school work
Third: Drawing ought to be one of
the most practical studies in the schools,
as means of fitting children for after
school life.
In order to accomplish this, it must be
taught not merely incidentally, (by en-
couraging children to draw in connection
with their other studies) but in solid,
systematic way, as one of the fundamen-
tai subjects in itself. You do more or less
number work in connection with your
geography lesson; you reckon the latitude
and longitude of places, you calculate
distances and compare areas and statistics
of population. But you would never ex-
pect children to get all the knowledge of
arithmetical principles and processes
which they need to have, just out of the
incidental figuring done in the geography
class. You know the thing cannot be
done that way. 1t is just SO with draw
ing. You need to use the children's
growing facility in drawing W herever you
appropriately can in other studies; but,
if the drawing is going to be really mas
tered you must attack it directly. You
must have definite plan and sequence of
work in drawing as a regular subject by
itself
In choosing course of study in draw
ing, there are a few points you need to be
sure of.