El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-10-18
EEI0 w lHGUA Pity"
Alabama Has school Attention This winter

- r all people in the world, feel
most sympathy for school teach
- ers.
Their position is so important; their
influence so vast; their intentions so
philanthropic; their usefulness so hand
icapped by the parents and by the
school boards.
Not long ago read the cry sent forth
from a man teachers heart about the
difficulties he encountered in trying to
instruct his children in manual train
lessons. The pupils were so badly
brought up at nome, SO Wilful, so IN
gracious, so inattentives that he had to
give a large portion Of his time to
training them in the SMALL matters
which should have been learned at
home, and the manual methods had to
wait in consequence
such a teacher is situated like a chef
who is asked to prepare good dinner
in short time, and who receiFes from
the market, not the expected chickens
and vegetables all ready for the grill
or kettle, but uuplucked fowls and veg
etables right from the soil, unwashed
and untrimmed.
If his dinner is late by an hour, who
is In fault?
Surely not the chef
Mentally UnWashed.
Most children are sent to school raw
mentally and morally "unwashed,' un-
trained in the common cOurtesleS OF
daily life, Oftimes impertinent and i'm
polite, and lacking all ideas OF obedi-
ence.
To train these children into attentive
and interested students requires much
more patience and time and effort than
to take them through two school years
after they are trained
There are too many young children
sent into the schOolrOOmS Of America
A physician in Boston has stated that
more than 1000 children under 10 years
Of age wear eye glasses IN that city.
He thinks ii due to being taught too
young to study books The eyes OF chill
dren were not intended for such work
at that age Now comes new Idea in
schools. and it is to be hoped that IL
viii grow into a generally accepted
method Of teaching.
An Alabama Example.
In the village Of FairhOpe, Ala, across
the bay from Mobile, is a little school
that is often called reform school
not to reform the children, but to re-
form the methods Of teaching.
There is a kindergarten for children
under seven years Of age doing the usu-
al kindergarten work, but no dictationi
nor close work. nor finished" work
for exhibition is permitted.
Children from seven to 13 years Of
age constitute the life class, where they
simply live as happy and wholesome
life as possible
In the first division Of the life class
the children under 10 use no books, eX-
cept as they themselves desire to learn
to read Instead Of the formal work
Of reading and writing and number, the
children have muslc-that is singing
pretty songs, adapted to their year, for
the pleasure Of singing, not to be able
to read music OF write music. They
often act out or dramatize some song
or poem Many poems are committed
by the children, not as a task, but by
hearing the teacher recite the same
poem a number of times. They have
exercises In fundamental conceptions
Of number daily.
story Telling.
Story telling occupies an important
place on the program in which the chill
dreu become acquainted Withe all the
best fairy tales, legends, folk lore and
myths and great stories Of history in
the most natural, delightful way with
out danger Of impairiug the eyesight
by bending over a book.
Spoken language is cultivated in the
story hour. German is also taught by
the conversational method One of the
most delightful items of the daily pro-
gram is the walk.
No definite order Is followed, but the
direction of the work is determined by
the interest of the day.
Sometimes neighDOring pond is Wis
tied to watch the development Of the
tadpoles into frogs. Sometimes the
woods are secured TO discover the elu-
sive pistl of the pines. The Identified
ton Of trees in winter occupies many
walks. In the spring the appearance