Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-11-17

ing OF life and listen to the song OF
the birds. how much better for her.
I'm a sense the teacher of TODAY
leads an oysterish life, with the shell
closed, and IL you try to open It for
her she snaps down 30 suddenly that
it repels you. Had she allowed Won to
keep on until she could have looked
out she would have found that she IA
not, nor never has been, In deep sen
soundinE3, but growing on right IN
close against the bank and Embedded
In much of the debris from the shore.
"The teacher has long vacations but
when she comes back she has failed to
conquer the technique Of rest. She
has not had time to read the new book
or discuss some absorbing problem in
the public mind. Some of them do not
read the daily papers They did not
know tuesday last why we We're so
worked up. They wondered what the
placards on the street cars mean"
Evide~tly fearing that she had al.
ready OIL ended some of her hearers the
speaker 'hedged" at this juncturo and
said:
"Of course, there are exceptions to
my statement. know several teach.
ers whose zest for life has not palled
nor interest tagged. They are inter.
esting women and would be so any.
where. One loves to welcome them to
their home, but when they come they
bring that hurried air They are always
IN harness and don't know how to un.
buckle, but, thank heaven, they don't
talk about 1t or examination papers,
and you don't look across the table
and think OF them as among the proba.
BILE martyrs of heaven"
1t must be admitted that the criti.
cism Is just one in some particulars
and that some Improvement is needed
along this line. But, the Sioux City
critic did not get down to the bottom
OF the difficulty. If. she will take the
trouble to investigate she will find that
the Iault exists not SO much with the
teachers in colleges and higher schools
as IN the grammar grades, where the
children are young. 1t Is true that
TO teach scholars in the third, fourth,
fifth, sixth or seventh grades very lit.
tie knowledge Of current events is
necessary but 1t is also true that the
children at that very age are receiv-
ing impressions which will have their
effect upon later life. If their sur
roundings are pleasant, the rooms
hung with pictures and with a few
floral flowers in the windows, they
will remember such things all their
lives. They will grow to like school
and studying more than If they are
cooped up for four or five hours each
day in dreary, undecorated room be-
fore teacher who pays no attention to
such little things.
Then little more investigation, No
doubt, will show that the teacher who
does attend to these matters Of pic
lures, flowers, ETC., is we'll informed
along the lines of general news and
matters Of public interest.
Let the children begin to learn
about public affairs early. Inject a
few minutes study of current events
into the daily period ordinarily given
to calisthenics or some other diversion
the main object Of which is to vary
the monotony Of sitting still. Do this
and the scholars will be brighter,
reader to attend school, more atten-
tive to their lessons and more prac-
tical in every way. Many teachers do
this already and the success they have
should serve as a hint to others to fol
low the example.