The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-02-13

Teachers Association was held in the as
sembly room of the new high school build
ing at Moorestown on Saturday.
| Upon the arrival of the members of thu
Association and visitors, they were me
4 by the reception committee who were EN-
inently successful in making all feel very
much at home and the first hour of thu
morning session was spent in social inter
course and examining the excellen
specimens of work displayed in the diff
ferent rooms of the school buildings.
j At ten o'clock the Association was called
to order by County Superintendent Fl. A
Stees. The audience was then favored
with music by Misses Alice M. Holbrooi
and Lucy Doert, after which Rev. DR.
Robert Mckay, of Moorestown. made the
opening prayer. George e. Megargee
Supervising Principal of Chester town
! ship schools, delivered the address of wei
come as follows:
Teachers of Burlington county and
! friends of education: To one and all ex
tend most cordial greeting, not in for
NAL sense but with the heartfelt gladness
of brother among brethren. 1t does me
good to become acquainted with those
who have interests and aspirations like
our own. In our feeble efforts, perhaps
alone in some small field of action, We
may become discouraged and sick at heart
at times, feeling that the work we have
undertaken is so vast and that try as we
may the effect produced is slight, yet
when we come together as we have to-day
we realize that thousands of Others are
with US laboring for one great end. Il
gives us inspiration, it adds Importance tc
our work and we return to our labors
strengthened. We learn more fully that
others have blue Mondays with all their
attending ills-the unprepared. lessons,
the insubordinate pupil, the unreasonable
parent, the hundred other annoyances.
This fact makes our troubles seem fewer
and easier to bear, for misery loves COM
pany' On the other hand it helps one to
see the brighter side with stronger light.
"Our boys and girls become more in
teresting. There seems to be more of the
better nature in our pupils because we
are better able to respond to the good in
them. When the day is ended there has
been so much to comfort US that the wor-
ries have been lived down and we go
homeward bound thinking and acknowl-
edging that we have accomplished some
thing.
1--WE are here this morning from all
sorts and conditions of schools-all
good schools of course, but some
are graded, others ungraded; some
with few pupils, others with many;
some have every facility for teaching,
others have little or none; but no matter
what the condition of the school the mark
of the teacher is left upon it. The stamp
of the teacher is upon these future men
and women.
'In every school room there is an at
mosphere nurtured by the teacher which
is peculiar to that room. 1t may often be
described by one word, such as peace sun
shine, order, enthusiasm; or it may be
lethargy, negligence, Indifference; or
again it may be confusion, disorder, re-
bellion, dishonesty, or even viciousness--
whatever may be the spirit surrounding
the school the teacher is largely RESPONSE
BILE for its existence.
ssOftentimes the influence of the school
supercedes that of the home. That it
should not be so we all admit, but here is
the teachers opportunity as well as her
responsibility. Where the existence of. a
large family is dependent upon the daily
toll of the parents the training of children
is matter of minor consideration; so the
teacher is often drawn more closely to the
soul of the child than are his parents, and
consequently exerts more powerful ia
| fiuence over him.
''These are weighty thoughts and we dc
not always like to face them, especially
when we are made cognizant that the
child initiates our weaknesses. Have we
not all listened to our pupils play schools
| What an interesting character the teacher
was to us. Did we not recognize our
traits of character in this would-be teach
er? In every emergency this little teach
er would act just as we would have done
u nder similar conditions in the school
room Even the language was reflection
of our own. Can we doubt our influence
on the future man or woman?
(Which of us cannot remember the
| strong impressions made by an early
teacher? If this is true how necessary
| then for us to use every means to develop
the best there is in us.
| Through these meetings we become
better acquainted with each other, and il
we close our eyes to trivial imperfections
and try to grasp the best motives of oul
| friends we step upward in the scale OF
ideals and gain an outlook with broader
| horizon and rise to a higher degree of
usefulness and influence. Then from my
heart say to you, one and all, welcome. .
Miss Mary E. Herman taught second
year in reading by the Ward method, thus
exemplifying the daily work accomplished
in the Moorestown public schools. The
drill in phonics and phonograms and the
development of the thought expressed in
the subject matter reflected much credit
upon Miss Herman as a teacher and the
meCnOQ IN use. 1He reSulIS WHICH, udu
been obtained with this class in much less
than two years. as compared with results
secured by means of methods in common
use few years ago, illustrate quite forci
bly, some of the desirable changes in meth
dds of instruction which have been made
In the progressive schools of our state.
Great care should be taken, however, in
using this method not to attempt too diff
cult words for the class lest the results in
meditation fall below the desired stand
ard.
Francis B. Lee, Esq, of Trenton, de-
livered an interesting address, which will
be found in another column.
Misses Ella B. Megargee and Anna P
Wheeler favored the association with mu
sic during the morning session, which was
greatly appreciated.
At 1890 lunch was served in the as
sembly room of the high school, The
committee had been authorized to expenC
q small sum of the funds of the associa
ton for light lunch, but the citizens O.
Moorestown insisted upon making contri
buttons to the fund, which enabled then
to make liberal provisions to the arden
satisfaction of all present
The first lecture in the afternoon wa
on School Sanitation, by Alexander II
Small, NJ D., of Riverside.
DR. Small emphasized the importance
of giving strict attention to the condition
of the atmosphere in the school room. H
stated that while the school room in for
{ mer times was often one of the coldes
places on earth, no serious trouble result
ed from the spread of contagious diseases