The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1902-12-12

Certificates of award have been IS
sued to Mata Schrader and Mark and
Emma Schuster; Miss Mamie Ward,
teacher: also. to Richard Watson,
Ray, Ernest, Ira and Bessie Brown;
Miss Alice Doyle. teacher.
a number continue. to ~interrogate,
what caused the shortage OF
teachers" There is but one logical
reply, "Good Times"
a tirm.in Missouri, have written
to practically every teacher in the
county and requested.a list of their
pupils names. AS fast as the lists
are-sent in, they send a nice.ther-
mometer.. back to the teacher FOR
school use. Evidently the schools
will all know where they are at, eli
matically, for..the remainder Of this
year.
This is the first time that the
State Teachers Association has been
held in Mitchell for eleven years.
The old-crop--of teachers who were
working in the county at that time,
have all disappeared. The new ones
should not fail to appreciate their
opportunity. If you will be allowed
only one weeks vacation, take New
Years week, so as to attend. Christ
mas is a legal school holiday. You
will then only have to teach four
days for a weeks work instead Of
five by taking the latter week of.
Teachers, when the mothers of the
county sent her children to school,
they trust you quite largely to take
a mothers place during their child
rens' absence. This you can do no
better than to see that they are prop
erly wrapped up before they start
home. We are having severe
weather. Many children are coming
a long way to school. Take the best
care of them that you can. Remen-
Der you have a higher nilsson as a
teacher than the mere routine of
studies.
Ambitious, aggressive teachers,
like other people, off times stir up
enmity, while the easy-going ones
makes friends with everybody; but
when a school year has closed and
the aggressive one leaves a neighbor-
hood, the personality impaired is
visible everywhere, but when the
sleepy, go-easy one leaves, she is at
once forgotten, and the. only trace
Of her ever having been present i
that particular neighborhood, is her
name in the school register. What
we want In every district in Dawson
county, is real, live, capable, ag-
gressive, go-ahead teachers, teach
ers who live in the present, not to-
morrow, but to-day.
One Of the teachers from Union
townshiap, writes: my pupils
seem to take quite an active interest
in the Palmer Method Of writing.
Receiving the book you sent, 1 have
practiced nearly an hour, each even
ing, myself. Right! 1t is a SELF
evident truth that no teacher can
teach that which they 90 not know
themselves. Here is the difficulty
teachers are poor writers themselves.
Their pupils soon begin to say, 30
we'll, I a write as good as the
teacher can" ian altogether too
common truth) and the teacher soon
realizes it herself and drops it for
something else, even though the law
says it must be taught, and each
teacher is obliged to certify once
each month to the following ques.
ton: ''Did you, each day, give
special attention to writing?'
The interest taken in teachers
meeting at the court house, last Sat.
urday, k;ndled into a real live in.
spiration. It was one of the best
ever held under the present supervi.
sion. Several from Hanson county,
and Miss Minnie Grace of the city
schools, were in attendance. The
regular lesson was taken up, but
not completed for want Of time. The
lesson in the Art of Teaching, vii,
be added to the January lesson. Miss
Margaret Duncan read a mastery
paper on, "How I Teach History
Miss Duncan carries out the superin.
tendent's idea to a letter with regard
to history work, both as to time OIL
day and metho3 of presentation. She
believes in teaching the text, not the
text book. Miss Duncan's paper will
| appear in full in the next issue Of
| the South Dakota Educator, anl
will thus 60 through all Of the educa.
| tional channels of the state. Mis-.
Grace Smith Of this city, who pos
sesses the brightest mind for a CIR
of her age with which the superin'
tendent has ever come in contact anl
who is not IS yet quite old enough
to teach, was assigned a heavy sub