The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-05-07

Children love the hero and the
great and the good. They cannot hear
too many stories in which the ideal in
character, personal sacrifice and bra
very of deed are portrayed.
''The work of the school is of real
value only when the child can see the
lrelation between his work in the school
and the experiences of his life. We
must illuminate the Imagination of
the child with ideals of love and graft
! tude and service.
s'There is in the subjects of the les
sons of the primer, First Days in
Reading a possible development in
which the experiences of the child S
| life are reflected and in which the
| child may realize the relationship be-
| tween his work in the school and the
activities of his life.
1.-The old notion that children must
| first learn to read and then through
the mastery of this art, find the en-
trance to literature is exactly reversed.
First, awaken a desire for things
worth reading and then incorporate
these and similar stories into the regu-
lar reading exercises as far as possible.
1.-The development involved in learn
ing to read means great deal more
than an added layer of eye-minded-
ness. The problem of language is
deeper and directly involves character,
personality, social relationship, power
of Interpretation, beauty and need of
expression.
1.-The mind of the child while plas-
and needs noble guidance, and tre-
mendous is the responsibility of him
who accepts the role of teacher.
"On the traditional method, the
child must say something that he has
merely learned. There is all of the
difference in the world between hav-
ing something to say and having to
say something.
1--WE starve the sheaIthfuI emotions
of children in order that we may over
feed their inteIlects. Is this not doing
them a great wrong? The results are
that children grow up cold, hard, mat
ter of fact, with little of poetry to en-
rich their lives, more Gradgrinds in
Gods world of beauty
Cultivate right tendencies in hu-
mainly and the wrong must die out.
Build up the positive side of your
child's- nature and the negative will
not need to be unhuilt.
1.-THE child takes each story as a
conquest, grasps each as a treasure,
and inserts into his own life, for his
own advancement, what each story
teaches and shows.
when the primary teacher feels
that her work is something broader, |
child to recognize and pronounce
words, letters and sounds, she be- |
comes a true educator and her oppor-
tunities for doing good are unlimited. |
be remembered that the child has a |
right to be happy in the accomplish |
ment of the work of the school.
"It is wrong and entirely unneces-
sary to make the school distasteful to
the pupils by the use of barren and /
mechanical methods"
1t is believed by Miss Van Amburgh |
that no description of method can
compare in vividness to the actual de-
of method; therefore, it is
the actual development of the lessons
of the primer, "First Days in Read |
ing" that is unfolded in the new book,
D limo Il
velopment and lessons that have been
worked out successfully with her class
es of primary children in her own
work.
The book is assured a hearty recep-
ton and appreciation by all thoughtful
and sincere teachers.