The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1917-10-06
An Hour Longer School Day Than
Heretofore.
(By P. Caspar Harvey.) }

One day last week a certain higl
school boy sat at his desk in the new
high school building and unused OF
things as they used to be. His poe
ket knife was in evidence. 1t was mo-
long until one of the brand new
smooth, spotless desks contained hi:
initials All future generations OF
pupils would know him.
The next few succeeding event:
| are too painful to record.
Anyway, there is another desk in
place of the one carved by his boyisI
prank and the parents of the boy:
handed over to the school board two
and a half perfectly good American
dollars for the outrage their son haC
thoughtlessly perpetrated.
In justice to 10S of the pupils
there were about 107 of them who
condemned the deed so vociferously
that 1T was, perhaps, to protect the
boy that the two dollars and a half
was extracted from his parents. II
is assumed that among 109 enrolled
at the high school at least one of the
girls likes the boy better than the
other girls.
The Hays citizen who can't be
proud of every brick of the high
school building won't be born until
1922. By the time that a fellow gets
ready for high school there will have
to be another new high school struc-
| ture. The present one is 70x90 feet
and two stories above the basement.
1t is absolutely freproof throughout.
1t IS made of tile, concrete and brick,
with steel beams supporting. The
| floor of the corridors are of beautiful
tile and those of the clasSrooms are
| OF hard maple. The Stairways are
| of steel and concrete with tile steps.
The interior finish is in oak and the
cases, cabinets and tables are of oak.
The roof is of steel lath, concrete,
and a composition and it too is fire
proof.
In the basement IS the gymnasium
of 40x60 feet with three galleries
which Will seat three hundred people
On the west of the gymnasium are
toilets, showers and dressing rooms
for the girls. On the east are the
toilets, showers and dressing rooms
for the boys. There are three man
uaI training rooms in the basement,
one for the shop, the finishing room,
and the supply room. In the south.
east corner is a janitor's living room
and the building will be under his
constant care day and night
The first floor contains the audi
torium and library. It will seat four
hundred people. The seats are opera
chairs with an adjustable tablet arm.
This will enable the seat occupants
If necessary TO write or take notes.
The principals Office and his class
room are on this floor. There is also
the mathematics classroom.
The second floor has three large
recitation rooms on the south. The
northwest corner has the two con-
Meeting rooms for commercial work
There is room for science and one
for. agriculture. The two connecting
rooms for home economics will ac-
commodate twelve girls at time. AL
ready this section of the high school
is taxed to the indicated capacity.
The rest rooms for the teachers are
on this floor. There are four cloak
rooms, two on each floor.
The regular classroom desks are of
the new sanitary style mostly steel.
They are built for comfort and for
the correct sitting posture. Through
out the building new furniture is
provided. Even the teachers desks
are new.
This building has permitted the
work and courses of the high school
to make a much needed expansion.
There are now twenty-seven classes
running every day in the building for
the 100 enrolled pupils. There are
only nineteen nonresident students.
Eight teachers are giving instructions
IN these twenty-seven classes. Mr..
Lee, the principal, has four classes
IN commercial branches and one in
science. Miss Hopkins three in Eng
llsh and two in Latin, Miss McMindes
has five IN mathematics. Miss Unruh
teaches two classes In history, one in
English, one In physiology, and one
IN German. Miss Morgan has four
classes in home economics and one in |
mathematics. Alfred Havemann has
one class IN high school manual |
training In addition to his grade |
work In that line. Mr.. Harris has |
one class IN agriculture. Mr.. Chris /
topher has two all school classes in |
music and chorus work.
There are thirty-eight Freshmen, /
.wenty-siX SophOmores, twenty-one |
Juniors, and twenty-four Seniors. |
With two hundred eighty four in the |
grades this makes 393 in the schools /
now.
The biggest instructional innova-
ton has been the introduction of the i
laboratory plan in all subjects This |
mas heightened the periods to seventy /
and eighty minutes. The session is
an nour longer Ehan heretofore. School /
begins at eight and does not dismiss
for the day until five minutes of feur. I
There Is only an hour and ten min
1tes for lunch. The morning is di-
Vided into three periods or seventy I
minutes and the afternoon two Of /
eighty minutes each.
In the morning there Is an half
hour assembly period at the end of |
the second recitation. All students
are required to stay throughout the
session. Each one is supposed to car
y four subjects
This long period and laboratory
method IS simply this: The time the
student is In the classroom is seventy
or eighty minutes. Half Of this time /
IS rule IS spent IN preparation of
The next days lesson or the one for
hat day-either at the option of the /
The study Is therefore su-
oervlsed under the direct charge of /
The teacher Of that subject. An the
material Is available Mr. ShiveIv
says that the efficiency of the student
studyIng under such conditions has
been about doubled As there are
i've periods N the days and 3 puriI /
has only four subjects this gives him /
mother fPee sff7rfyS F,nyie1 qsJ.r~s- 1