The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-03-16
STORIES IN
THE SCHOOLS
How the Various
Grades Are
Interested.
Teachers Association
Discusses the
Subject.
Pedasosuss Find Each National
ity Prefers Stories OF
It's Race.

The stories which please school chill
dren and the methods of presenting
them to the pupils in the most interest
ing manner, formed the subject of dis
cussion at the monthly meeting of the
Honolulu Teachers Association at the
High School last evening. The stories
most generally used from the lowest to
the highest grades were spoken of by
teachers from various schools, and the
result of the discussion is that COM
mittee will compile the stories by
grades, as a useful mentor for the peda-
gogues.
A curious thing in connection with
the stories is that each nationality in
a school preferred the stories of their
own nations. Teachers related in
stances where the Chinese pupils took
more interest in Chinese stories, the
japanese were more eager to hear
the Hawaiians liked the legends and
myths of the islands and so on. This
evidence of nationalism was not con-
fined to any one grade but seemed to
There was consensus of opinion IS
to the type of stories liked best, and
that was that animal stories held the
greatest interest. Stories in which ami
mails are personified attracted the pu-
pills.
Miss Horner of the fourth grade at
the Normal School gave a very inter
esting talk upon the stories which she
has presented to the children assign
ed to her care. She had been asked
which story the children liked best.
This was hardly answerable, owing to
the various nationalities in her room,
each nationality preferring stories re-
lating to its own race. She had ascer-
tanned that the Japanese enjoyed
stories of Japan. the Chinese of the
Flowery Kingdom and so on, with ami
NAL life attracting all regardless of the
nationality of her listeners. These
stories were best understood when illus
trated. This was especially so in the
tie animal life in these islands. The
animals in a Chinese story were illus
trated by her in novel manner. She
conducted her class to a Chinese store,
where animals, mostly dragons, were
found depicted on vases, screens and
carved boxes.
Mrs. Frazier, of the Kaiulani School,
spoke of story telling in the third grade.
She had found that animal stories We're
greatly preferred especially Where the
animals are personifed. Miss Lycett
spoke of interesting story work in the
first grade of the Royal School and Miss
McLain for the third grade of the same
school.
Miss Hart, of Punahou, gave an ac-
count of the advanced story work in
her department. This came into the
realm of literature with Shakespeare,
Tennyson, Scott and other standard
authors holding the interest. Dickens
fell fiat in her grade. She found that
considerable interest was aroused by
the pupils giving their ideas as to what
might be the conclusion of a story part
ly told.
Rev. Alexander Macintosh, principal
of the Royal School, suggested that aft
er listening to the accounts of the in
terest manifested in stories and upon
learning of a multitude of titles which
were entirely new to him, that a COM
mittee should be selected to gather
from the various schools, by grades.
the tales that are being told to the
children. that all these might be COM
piled for general use throughout the
schools.
It was his opinion that increased in
terest in story telling would be gain
ed for the pupils by requiring them to
furnish what they believed should be
the end of each.