The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1917-05-17

SAUK CENTRE HERALD
grade certificate which makes them
eligible to teach in country schools
| for two years. The certificate may be
indorsed if the holder shows reason
able growth in his work. Many stu
dents prefer to take the course as post
graduate work and by so doing they
are given credit for it at the State
Normals if they desire to study there
afterwards. 1t is quite probable that
OF 'St"T3,
In the Normal Course three distinct
lines of work are followed: first, the
academic, which is review Of the
common branches; second, profession
al, which includes pedagogy, rural
school management, and practice
teaching; third, industrial subjects,
such as agriculture, domestic science,
manual training and other forms of
hand work. All of the work is made
as practical as possible. A careful
study is made of the rural school, its
organization and arrangement and the
students teach in country schools for
two weeks during the year in additio
to the daily teaching in the grades of
the local schools. Rural problems are
studied and the young people prepar-
ing for country teaching gain a close
rural life relationship.
The rural teacher of the future must
not only be as we'll trained as the city
teacher, but better. The city school
system has it's superintendent, super
visors and principals, not to mention
janitor. The country teacher must be
all Of these officials and workmen
combined.
Generally speaking, graduates from
the Normal Course in high schools are
meeting wirth success as is shown by
the demand for them made by Coun-
ty Superintendent and School boards.
Marion Lyman-Post-graduate.
The Rural School and Its Equipment.
The situation of the school in any
rural district should be as nearly in
the center of the district as possible.
This affords equal advantages to all
children residing therein. The site
should be we'll chosen, neither too
high nor too low and should be near
a main road. Most school grounds con-
tain one acre of ground but two acres
is none too much to provide ample
room for play. 1t is best to put the
building to one side rather than in the
center of the lot so as to leave plenty
of room for a baseball diamond, school
garden, swings and other playground
apparatus. If there are not natural
trees in the yard, shade trees should
be planted and a flower garden and
some hardy shrubs add greatly to it's
attractiveness. The progressive teach
er will take advantage of Arbor Day
for cleaning and improving the school
yard. Children love and respect their
school in proportion to the effort they
put forth in making it happy and
cheerful place at which to spend so
much of their time. .
Nearly all the old school buildings
are both inconvenient and decidedly
ugly in appearance, but fortunately
the newer ones are of a better type.
An ordinary and convenient sized
school is one havingmain room about
25x30 and in addition a cloak room,
work room for manual training and
domestic science, and library room.
Care should be takern that the light
in each room comes from one side only.
The question of heat and ventilation is
most important one. Children can
not do good work in poorly heated
and ill-ventilated room. The furnace
is, of course, the best method of heat
ing the building, but if the furnace is
not possibility jacketed stove is
the next best thing. 1t should be plac--
ed in one corner of the room. Cold
air is admitted through pipe in the
side of the wall near the bottom of
the stove. 1t circulates around the
stove and is heated before passing into
the room. The foul air passes out
through an opening at the bottom of
the chimney or through a pipe that
goes through the ceiling. A pan of
water should be kept on the top of the
stove to provide sufficient moisture.
By this method of heating the air in
the room is changed constantly and all
parts are heated equally. If windows
are opened for ventilation, the lower
sash should be raised IL or 10 inches
and frame covered with muslin in
serted between the sash and sill so
there will be no draft.
Since the school room is the place
where the children spend so much of
their time, it is important that it he