The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-07-06
SCHOOLS Teaching By
SIGHT SEEING METHOD

- 3
washington. D. C.. July 3.--An.
nonncement Of a new department OF
ina vork 81 the National Geographic
snetety. whereby It's immense reser.
voir Of geographic photographs Will
I hacome available 20 public schools. Is
made in bulletin issued from It's
washington headquarters.
TT ninety United States senators
were keenly concerned about exact de-
tails OF the peace treaty; some 4oe.ooo
school teachers who teach geography
are just as anxious 70 see tne new
mans that must come in the wake OF
the signing Of that epochal document.
the bulletin says.
@But why worry about maps?
MAPS are necessary. but before they
can glow with fire and meaning the
things that grow and live and move
inside the boundaries they indicate
must be impressed upon chiio
mind.
"If the schools had to go without
naue for a wear and had pictures IN
stead. perhaps the children would De
the gamers, Anyway. maps or no
\maps the society has arranged 70 take
&C, o0o, 900 American school chiidren-
enough to all four ma gnihcent clties
the size Of our great New fork-oH a
sirht- seeing picture tour of the worid.
"A -
! volcano 1. like. and avoids such anus
ing. and yet pathetic. answers to ex-
aminattons "a svesuvius is mountain
which continually emits saliva or
roulevards are churches IN PARIS
thronged with gayly dressed people
or IAN isthmus is bottle with mar
row neck
tremendous strides In this respect.
ADMITS will remember the definitions
thew had 10 learn, and some OF us were
kept in, sunny afternoons because We
could not make them stick IN our
minds For example. AN islana IN
body Of land completely surrounded ny
water or ponds and lakes are BODIES
- r,ater that occupy depressions In
the land Whatever depressions IN the
land might be II was beyond us 70
fathom. but woe he to us X we eouio
not tell that lakes occupied. them
"As we read over and over the pages
Of our books. few of us ever got .he
picture of the Rocky mountains Win
the,r lofty ranges. the wonders OF the
v.,,ovstope the spectacle of Niagara
F.us pouring out It's rainbow spray
az students of one of our best known
untveysities would write. aa they dia
in a test recently. that Japan ~ a
country of $50 square mics ana
Alaska In southwest of the NORTH foie.
and knew not the country OF Eus'pH
AIRES the largest city OF the southern
Ha-n,sphere: VIVA, hope is there OF
reaching grade pupils anything OF
their new world neiGhhors. the Greens
ths Poles or the Jugo- SlavsF
awhat indeed. but pictures OF she
ceon,e the trees, the plants ana the
animals of those places 1ne inter
ests of boys and girls center IN II.
worla about them. They are fuH OF
I
low and green bananas, at the corner
~rocerv The huckster seems Tar
rrv from the map Of Central America
ana study of the surface, climate.
nonu1ation, products and capital ci'les
listed In the Biographies; YET pictufes
make the magic connection WIN tnein
the chs1sren GO on a journey TO costa
Etca visit the banana plantations. see
how the fruit grows, ana meet .ne
htark haya and men who gather the
luscious food
.wasntnEton. n. G.. Is not a hazy 40
xtyartton where something cstleo 'hs
government exercises thFee-io,"
function. Legislative. executive, Juoi-
tial.' but n city OF beauHiui pa'ks'
-. erect. and--here's the touch
s.,re agatha White House, Capitol.
4 washington monument. which are
hauY3 to elicit the question. what arc
they for
because the National Geographic
society Ia not commercial nrH', aha
nus, nav no profit 10 any corpof a.ton
~ iudiytdus.. il has been able TO place
me entire resources of its organiza-
tton. with ito 100000 members. Mt the
service OF the public schools IN sup
Y1vin.s geographic pictures al nominal
rc.t The wealth OF its pictures. gain
srad fron, every nook and corner OF
the world. thus are being made avail
able, with the co-operatfoh OF se" w
nff,cials. to public schools all over IN"
Country There literally Is a picture
for every phase OF geography teach
tnr fer every topic. for every geo
graphic word
am preparation for this new Phase
- ,.rrxiny out it's purpose. the IN
crease and diffusion of geographic
knowledge.' 1t has established new
department. known as the schooi ser
vice. of which Miss Jessie l.. BUR
rail- Is chief"