The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1905-02-23
LOCAL TEACHERS; INSTITUTE.


was attended by about twenty teach.
eJs from the immediate vicinity I
Oakland and also by I1nlDber OF the
residents of town, amoug them being
DR.. E. H. Bartlett, Rev. ]. B. Work
man, Trustees Harmed and Hine
baugh and County Snperinten deuu
Browning.
Theprinted program was carried out
generally and interesting discussions
were INDUCED in by those present.
The paper read hv Prof. j. Frank
McBee we have been unable to OBJ
tain. the same having been sent to a
school journal of, prom nence and will
be published therein. We present
however, the paper read by Miss Hop
kins, deeming it of sufficient interest
to those teachers in other parts of
the county who could not be pres
ent at the meeting to give it space in
these columns. Miss Hopkins paper
follows:
The work in the primary grades is
the most important we have 20 teach,
because it is there that the founda
ton is laid for all future study.
Therefore our teachers should plan
and consider carefully, How may
best present this subject to my class?''
OF course this applies to every teach
er from the lowest to the highest
grades, but at present we shall con
slider only those who have special
charge of the young, unframed
minds.
Learning to read may be consider
ed under two general heads. First,
learning to recognize the symbols in
which the known is preserved. Sec
end, learning how to use these sym
bOls so as to add to ones store OF
knowledge The first requisite in
teaching reading is to secure the in
terest of the child in the subject
about which the reading lesson
treats. How much interest shall be
created is for the teacher to deter
mine. All psychological philosophy
and pedagogical consideration relat-
ing to the subject, point to the fact
that the interest of the child is more
easily and naturally secured if he is
made to feel at home or perfectly
familiar with the subject treated in
the lesson before he reads about it.
Nearly every child has seen bird,
a nest, a tree and an egg. Even so,
perhaps some have not observed these
things as closely as Others and their
general ideas are not clear enough, so
it is necessary for the teacher to pro
duce picture of them. Just as soon
as she begins to question the children
with regard to their experiences with
these things, she has aroused their
interest. Why? Because she has
touched upon something about which
they know and like to talk. Now is
her opportunity TO make a language
lesson of this subject. Ask questions
in such a manner as to draw from the
children where they have seen the
birds, what they were doing, size OF
them, etc, but always careful to have
complete and correct sentences given.
When the interest of the class has
been thoroly aroused, then they are
ready for something new which will
be Il presentation of the word or the
symbol for bird.
r. '
reading claim that the script should
printed form. Write this word care
fully on the board, give the children
an opportunity to see it, then show
them how you made it. To do this
20 may trace it with the chalk or
with the pointer. Do not tell them
what the letters are, simply say,
This word says bird" In a very
short time they will recognize it, no
matter where it is written. Now take
several simple sentences that they
have used with the word bird" in
them, writing them carefully on the
board, and let the children find the
word bird" Tell them what the
sentence says. Never let a single
pupil read a sentence until he is
ready to do so without a break. At
the very first symptom of hesitation,
stop him and tell him he must not
read until he has his sentence ready.
OF course he must have the privilege
of asking for any word that he does
not know. This mode of procedure
seems to the inexperienced teacher a
waste of time; but those whose eX-
perience is ripper, know that the facl-
itY it brings, repays them for any
loss of time.
Our first endeavOr is to fix upon
the child's mind the word as a whole.
and its relation to the rest of the sen.
tence. In order to do this we pre-.
sent the word to him in various ways.
Some of them have given. Now sup
pose he is ready for some busy work
while you hear another class. If you
have but few first grade pupils, it
would do well to write on the black
board a word for every child and
show him how to trace it. Or write
it on little slips of paper and after
showing them how you make it, let
each one trace over your copy. Work
of this kind done in various ways
should receive little time each day.
The transition from the script tC
the printed form comes very easily to
most children. The teacher may, il
she can print well enough, put the
printed form on the board below
the script and have the children be.
come thoroly familiar with it that
way before they take up their books
Or she may tell them that the first
line in the book says the same thing
as line she puts on the board. II
the interest of the child is properly
aroused he will be anxious to read
that about which he has been talk