The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-12-28
DID IT ALL ALONE.
Wonderful Work of Topeka
School Children.
Harrison School Filled With
Their HandiWOrk.
SHOW THE TEACHERS.
Will Be Open to Topeka People
on Tuesday.
Advanced Manual TrainingWOr
Shown at High School.


state meet in Topeka this week for
their forty-sixth annual meeting they
will be a Bile to witness the finest school
display ever made in the United States.
This is no pipe dream, nor is it a bit of
exaggerated information; but it is
true.
Superintendent L. d. Whittemore of
the city schools has arranged to have
the work of the schools of the city
on exhibition while the teachers of the
state are attending the convention and
the amount and quality of work that
has. been gathered together by the eff
ficient superintendent and his corps Of
teachers is undoubtedly the finest ever
collected. The exhibition at the World s
fair in st. Louis was supposed to be
the record breaker, but the Topeka
exhibit has the st. Louis one fairly
beaten.
There are to be two exhibits-one
in the Harrison school on Harrison
the other at the Academic High school
building in room A. The. one at the
Harrison school building is the work
accomplished by the pupils of the city
The High school exhibit will. be the
work of the High school students.
The demonstration at the Harri-
son school is conducted in every
school will be turned over for the in
spection of the teachers and visitors.
Probably the most Interesting eXhi-
bition Is at this Harrison school. 1t
is a part of the regular work of the
younger children and shows the prog
ress they have made since their first
years in school. The samples of
work are divided into the eight grade
rooms in the building. The first grades
over the city have all of their work
in the first room in the building and
the second grade in the second room,
and so to the eighth grade. This gives
a variety and continuation of exhi-
billions that will make the show so in
teresting and profitable to the visiting
teachers.
The work of the school children in
Topeka is DIVIDED into five classes-reg-
ular school routine work, music, draw
ing. nature study and manual training
Examples from this work are at the
Harrison building and the rooms have
been fitted up- for the occasion. The
blackboardS have been covered with
huge pasteboard mats and on these are
pasted the accomplishments of the chill
dren. Just at the entrance of the rooms
are typewriter information from Sup
erintendent Whlttemore4 explaining the
work and the courses in each grade. 1t
is expected that many pof the teachers
will demand copies of this explanation;
as has been natural the teachers over
the state look toward the work of the
own-and they will not be disappointed
this wear.
In the First grade the children start
out by the regular methods Of writing
There are some marvellous exhibitions
of penmanship in this room accomplish
ed by little children 4 and years of
age. Weaving is another art they learn
in this grade. They are provided with
little looms and there are many mats
on the blackboards constructed by these
we'll trained children. They are taught
the different kinds of food, raw, cooked
and manufactured and they have made
drawing of each. They are taught OF
the different materials of constructing
houses and buildings. All of these things
are Illustrated in such a sense that they
make an impression upon the minds of
the youngsters and an impression that
lasts all through their work and me-
as is shown in the higher grades. The
drawing in the First grade is very good
for such inexperienced hands and un-
steady control of them. However there
are many very legible drawings on eX-
hibition in the room. In one corner is a
little rocking chair and cupboard made
by one of the little year old boys OF
the room. Then there are samples. OF
the cotton and corn the children them
selves have raised in this city. The col
lection of autumn seeds and leaves is
very popular with the First graders and
their walls are covered with such dec
orations The First grade rooms is one
showing the first handiwork of the
young mind.
The second grade room shows a little
more control of the hands in their work.
The writing is easier and smoother ana
they are given a much larger variety
of work Their color drawing is prob
ably the most interesting. The crayon
work is used to an advantage but the
children still have hanker1ng for the
bright water colors and they are used
There
of furnished subjects and a small
of original work. And the draw
ing is not confined to landscapes. In TINS
grade the arithmetic and composition
work is Illustrated. There are books of
drawings around the rooms laid out for
inspection on tables laid across the
desks The months of the year are IL
Illustrated by the original drawings of
the children and IN some cases lhey are
In the third grade the drawing of
maps is commenced. The children
are first made to realize their situa-
ton in the country and they are
taught that Topeka is a city and not
an ocean-as it appears during the
floods There is one drawing of a bon
fire in this room that would make AL
bert T Reid flush with envy Pencil
work is first taught in the third grade
and of course is very crude on account
of the interpretation of the uses of
the shades.
The Basket Makers.
The fourth grade is noted for the
first real work in manual training
Here the basket making Is the
nucleus of the work and some of the
baskets on exhibition are tempting
enough to steal and would be real
prey to kleptomaniac. The
geography is emphasized in this grade
also. Maps of Topeka and Shawnee
county are drawn but they do not
show any of the unnamed streets in
the southwest part of the city. City
Engineer Rogers would be greatly
surprised at the plat of the city and
county if he could see the work Of
these fourth graders In one corner
of the room IS a collection of bird
nests taken by the children in one OF
the schools of the city. A nest repre-