Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-02-08
TEACHERS INSTITUTE.
The Fourth Day at Rockville The
COlOred Branch.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
ROCKVILLE, Md, February 7, 1901.
Mr. John A. Luhn, principal of the Boyd's
school, presided at the opening exercises of
the fourth day of the annual institute off
the Montgomery county public school teach
ers this morning Rev. Thomas J. Packard.
rector of Christ Episcopal Church. Rock
Vile, offered prayer. Miss Ella Kicker of
the Maryland State Normal School read an
instructive paper on How to Interest
Children in History" Miss Kicker defined
history as being series of stories of hui
man beings. and stated that the proper time
to begin to teach a child history is on Its
first day at school, and that the proper
method is to teach 1t in the form Of story.
She suggested that, in the case of small
children. dolls be provided to represent the
historical characters. and that they be
dressed in the costumes of the times in
which the characters lived.
Miss Leila E Partridge of Philadelphia
followed In a talk ON School Government
and Child Study" She stated that a thor
ough knowledge Of the child's disposition
and character is necessary in order that
the teacher may govern and properly teach
HIM. She also maintained that in many
cases the secret of good school government
Is in keeping the children busy.
The first speaker Of the afternoon was
State Normal School. Her subject was
Heading in Our Elementary Schools"
Sne held that child ought not to be given
reading that is too hard for him. as 1t gets
him into the habit of stumbling; that read
ing is thought getting, and consequently a
child should be made to understand thor
oughly what he reads, and that he should
be impressed with the impor ;ance of cor
rect pronunciation and distinct articula ion
and that the teacher should be the child
model
The session closed with a talk on "solu-
tons in Arithmetic" by +. w. Wa kins
principal of the Lay Hill School.
During the day the teachers, acting as
the Montgomery County Teachers Asso-
ciauon. elected the following officers for
the ensuing year: President. James F.
Byrnes: vice president, R. Thomas West,
principal Of the Rockville High School;
secretary, Miss Lille NJ. Green, principal
Of the school at Germantown. Messrs.
Julian F. Walters and Edmund L. Amiss
were selected to represent this county at
the next annual State Teachers Associa-
ton.
Shortly after adjournment for the day
about 90 of the teachers and a number of the
young folks of Rockville went aboard an
electric car. chartered for the occasion. and
rode to Washington, where they visited
the Congressional Library, and later at
tended the theater.
The annual institute of the colored public
| school teachers of the county began this
| morning, with about thirty-f1ve of the
forty teachers or the county in attendance.
| 1t is under the charge Of Prof. Keller Mil
| Ter of Howard University, and will continue
| through tomorrow.
The exercises of the day consisted of an
! address Of welcome by Horace Sedgwick of
| Rockville, and response by Louis H. Hill
| of Olney district; talk on "Denominate
Numbers by Prof. Miller; paper
Should Spelling Be Taught by Oral OF
Written Method" by Miss Sarah l.. G.
Dickson; an address by Prof. W. Bates
| Stevens, state superintendent of education
and a paper on FAIRY Tales and Fables
| as Educational Aids by Miss Georgiana
Scott.
| This evening Prof. Miller lectured to a
| large audience in the Rockville Colored
| NJ. e. Church. His subject was Primary
| Needs of the Colored Race"