Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-01-25

|
low. Well, that pail Of water you had
to carry from afar and pour down the
pipe is the symbol to me Of the rudi-
ments of an education which the school,
teacher Is compelled to pour into the
brain of the children. Without these
rudiments the child will never be in
touch with the intellectual world.
| To Make the student Think.
But. having put the scholar in touch
with the intellectual world, the next
great duty of the schoolteacher Is to
make the student think for himself and
do for himself. The cells of the brain
are lust the same as the muscles and
cells Of the rest Of the body. In order
to become developed and strong and
yirile, in order to grasp the great prob
lens Of life and solve them Alright, that
brain must have exercise. 1t must
learn to be independent. 1t cannot be
carried around as a valctudlnarlan by a
scholastic nurse. Thus the second
great duty of the schooteacher is to in
spire in the minds of his students the
realization that they can do something.
"No truth is really our own" said
Ralph Waldo Emerson, until we dis
cover It for ourselves"
was never more impressed with this
fact than when talking some time ago
with one of the members of my church
who is the principal at the Detention
home of Los Angeles. He said to me:
1.-THE greatest work of the teacher is to
inspire in his pupils confidence in them
selves. Now, in our Detention home
have had this theory we'll tested There
we have what is called the garbage pile
of the youths of this city. If Il boy will
not study and seems to he an incorrigi-
\, BILE he is sent to me. l inevitably find
him n doubter of his own abilities.
When I can dissipate that doubt can
always make something good out Of the
boy. When boy comes into our home
say to him, What can you do, my
SOM Nothing he generally answers.
What. / say Nothing. oh, yes: you
must know something Nope he an.
swers, nothing Well what do you
know about 'arithmetic| Nothing. ]
told you he again answers. Nothing
Then say, We'll. what do you do for a
living?' Sell papers We'll, how dc
you buy your papers?' \ gets them al
the Office for half cent and sells them
for n penny Indeed I say. Then
how do you make change when you sell
those papers unless you know how tc
count?' With that the boys eyes will
begin to open, and he will begin to see
that making change is arithmetic and
buying papers is counting figures. And
thus lead him on until he realizes that
he himself can count md do some
thing"
Not Sponge.
The human brain should be some.
thing more than n sponge. The brain
should be able to give out as we'll as
take in. The brain should be like n
mountain side, gushing forth with
brooks and springs, rather than a great
cavity or reservoir capable Of holding
a lot Of water, which in time becomes
! nothing more or less than a stagnant
pool. 1t is Just at this point that
Friedrich Froebel, the great German
, educator has been able within the last
: few years TO absolutely reyolutonize
, the educational system of the world
The gist OF his teachings Is this: ''To
, have found one-fourth Of an answer to
a question by his own effort is OF more
, value and importance to child than
! 1t Is to half hear and half understand
: that answer in the words OF another
/ Thus we find the average schoolroou
for our children far different place
from that we used to attend. We there
find the children playing games and
, building blocks and working at car
/ penter benches and bending over kitch
Ell stoves and drawing pictures END
singing songs. They work with rheil
heads; they work with their hands and
, fingers. The schooroom Is n place
where our children are taught not only
theories, but probabilities. That i:
true education.
And here let me state something di
rectly to the parents in reference t
; this law. Every father and mother
, ought to be the public school teacher.
assistants. They ought to supplement
the work of the scchoolroom in thu
| home. How are they to do that? BY
: inspiring their children in every way
possible to do something for them
; selves. Buy them all the games they
, are able to play. Checkers and domi
I nos and parcheesi and authors ant
, chess and croquet and golf and tcnni.
are not time MASTERS, hut Drain devel
, Opcrs. The striving for the mastery il
, games develops the power 10 succeed
in life. When the Duke Of Wellington
was prime minister Of England he pait
, visit to his old school Of Elton. Will,
he was watching the boys play football
upon the field he said to the principal
( 1.-The battle Of Waterloo was wol
here" II Arthur Wellesley had neve
| contended for mastery upon the play
, ground he would never have been abb,
, to conquer England's greatest, foe.
Furthermore, not only should parent
3 stimulate the activities Of their chill
: dren by games, but also get their chill
, dren tool boxes, and scroll saws, ant
, printing presses, and magic lanterl
:, slides, and kodaks, il they will US
g them. All these things will be til
t means Of helping to decide your chill
t dren's future lives. Aye, more thai
Z this-if possible let them raise chick
3 ems and doves and rabbits and G
| Acv, Tnk