New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-03-17
PICTURES N THE SAND.
Bible History Taught Children Through
Manual Training

There is big, ohIonE box Of sand. such as they
have IN hndergartens and primary departments
The man who is giving tHe demonstration 20 the
twenty or thirty sunday school teachers gathered
about SIS leaning over the sand rapidly etching
with both hands fl the gray. soft plastic medium
and talking as he etchez
Vow. here We have map OF the Old World he
SAYS drawing the index Of his right hand through
tho sand in Ions sv-o0I.uE swirl and then
pushing the sand away from it TO one side Of the
box. That is the coast line OF the extreme east
ern end % the Mediterranean drew then. over
here are the Tigris and Euphrates'' and two
zszagy lines are DlOurhed through the sand
here's where Abraham came from. and here's the
Site Of Baby lonia Now down here is Egypt. and
THIS Is the Delta of the Mile" Here broad trench
Is dug with the thumb
This is the coast line Of Palestine I've drawn
Palestine a hit too hE-it ought 70 be more like
this-and couple Of hstfuls sand showed
away and the outline rectIned to smaller contour
This straig-ush line is the Jordan. and this is
the Dead Sea down here. and that's the Lake OF
Talllee up there. eEcavatInE a little saltccIar AT
the words I'm that Httle cupshaped depression
lay Galilee; hero was the country OF Saul For
centuries there between Egypt and the
Kingdoms Of Babylonia. but they always had
do their lighting either in this low level plain
right here, or else in that plain stretching along
the shore OF Palestine where the big coast cities
were. Why did they come TO little Palestine to
fight, when they were not fighting the Jews?"
The speaker paused and looked around from one
10 another or his audience of Sunday school teach
- L2I an answer. As they seemed inclined to let
hm 90 all the talking. he continued. We'll you
- - az =, 1917 mere ana ne INDICATED. win a
tween Babylonia and the Jordan. The BabyIOnian
Instead. they followed the regular caravan routes
up LgIlh SO then around ana down; so, into little
There most Of the great battles Of he Old Tesfa
ment were fought There the Crusaders fought
Thither Napoleon brought his armies and fought.
Now ! want 10 ask you this: why was It the
Jews never Elaiuel great people pOutlCalIyG
This map shows YOU. over here"-pIcking out a
section 81 the HOLY Land and petting It up into a
We hsLliaed m Just as the swiss are by their
mountains to-day The natural boundaries OF their
mountains or desert or sea on every hand.
And then you don't realize. probably, how small
herr-abour $50 mIles~and the Kingdom Of judah
only half that distance in length and thirty miles
n-Hf" They couldn't expand north south. or
made eiredom of the spirit and gave the race
Tho speaker was the Rev. Milton 8. IAttleaeld,
work and PIE system Of teaching history with map
MODELLING which he has originated and introduced
terrain church. -ichty-sixth-st and L,exington-ave
and b. lr w. l2,-5 75 Il,s , Eo' :, 81 ,bo ,,rsi
In the country 90 apply his ideas How very inter
gathered 5, bearing AIR TittIefeid give a typical
lesson in what he calls historical geography with
Why. I never had any idea Palestine was such
tnE strip before" .-id IniggIe ased telci 1T
scientific method Of teaching the Bible" remarked
q Sunday school superintendent from up the state
I've learned more Of Bible geography since Ar.
1ttleleld began sc00Viug and uiuNhlug that sand
This picture work the sand table iS used
either 70 reproduce scenes and events or oils. 10
nlustr~te them went on Mr. LtIeheld. moving
20 another sand table. Vow, ! VIII Illustrate
o. Mount Sinai he knows how stcrplv and
abruptly o. out Of The plain. iIhe pupils do
this sand modelling themselves. under the guidance
o. the teachers. Not moro than three or four
classes work 81 the sand tables uu one sun
day hut the chance 20 DO is eagerly anticipated.
The sand and pulp modelling establishes = point
Of contact between teacher and pupil. and after
that the teacher on 90 teach moral or spirit
ual truthsb The children know then how % shape
Mount Sluai'-and he piled Up the sand INTO
the Burning Bush We know there was au oasis
near the f00--here g. is. Here tho water springs
W and the little stream flows away through green
hanks. il only I'm such spots that the Israel
ties could water themselves their focks. All
down the banks 81 the stream would be trees. How
II the frees2 take picture wire. dip lf IN
plaster % paris and paint 81 green. and u makes
caUital little Noah's Ark trees. Here ar" tho
putian growth up and down tho oas's-"and. ~
course they pitched their tcutH under The trees.
and here are the tents'-0roducinE score ~ tiny
cardboard tents. and proceeding 20 pitch them uu-
der the miniature trees
The exhibit included also very complete system
OF scrapbooks, original drawings. d complete srs-
tenn % graded studies and manual work. for The
Youngest child up TO adult classes and some cut
work models. Illustrative OF an oriental house. a
rheepf0Ia and Ike. these latter adapted to chill
f~en' ~ from seven 10 ten-'the story age Mr..
IIttlefeld called Il
Morse Hodge Of Columbia University and the