Evening star., 1938-03-23
Experience
Is Mother
Virtue
Power Gained bv
Slow Practice
And Success.
By ANGELO PATRI.
WHAT are you crying for7 What's

WHAT are you crying tor' What's
wrong?"
Il can't do these old examples.
can't get them right"
Lets see. Why they're Just
straight multiplication and long
division. You know how to do them.
What's the matter with you?"
They're too hard"
Nonsense. Let me see. Seven
times nine are sixty-three; put down
three and carry six -"
Il can do that But it's all mines
and sevens and eights. and nothing
comes out even. Ill never get them
done right"
It was hard assignment for a
child learning multiplication and
division. The processes are not easy
IN themselves. and they have not be-
come habitual to the child. And be-
side that, the teacher. in virtuous at
titude of mind. had picked out all the
hardest combinations, strung them
along in numbers of seven places. and
called them examples. 1t was too
hard.
Children must be expert in the use
Of these processes and tables before
they can view such examples with
out shock and fear. They want to
work the short, easy ones that come
even, because they get them right.
The long ones fatigue them; the op-
portunities for errors are multiplied,
and they get them wrong. Every time
they get one right they are encouraged
and strengthened. Every time they
get one wrong they are sunk to the
depths What we want to do Is to
get them to like doing this work. and
to do that we must feed out the easiest
ones first, gradually adding seven,
then an odd nine or eight combina-
ton This must be watched IN the
third and fourth grades.
Long division is very hard for
beginners It is only combination
of tables, the four fundamental op-
erations used together. but the chill
dren have barely mastered the use Of
these operations singly. and to find
them all tied up in one spot Is ave-
| some, to say the least.
First steps must be very easy, small
numbers, answers coming out even.
Then the gradual approach to the odd
numbers. the uneven result. Always
| short numbers. Alternate the diff
cult example with the easy one SO
as to encourage and rest the children.
In time they handle any combina-
ton easily, but this ease will never
come II they have been frightened
and stunned by the long and hard
example.
Some very earnest teachers think
that they must pick out the very
hardest types of work so as to
strengthen the children's power
Power is gained by long. slow prac-
tice. with success as a steady accom-.
paniment. The surest way to make a
child fail in any subject is to give
him a hard problem. and let him
fail.
Failure will come often enough un.
invited. It is our task to guarc
against it, to so teach a subject st
grade its steps, as to allow all but
the UNIT to succeed; and even thu
UNIT ought 70 find themselves pro-
vided for in"the special sheet thai
Is handed them. There is no virtue
in difnculty. Virtue and the strength
that lies in it are born of triumph
and success over a period of time
Experience is the mother Of virtue
which is but another word for wisdom
Mr.. Patri will give personal atten'
tion to inquiries from parents ans
school teachers on the care and de-
velopment of children. Write him IL
care Of this paper, inclosing Seen
! stamped. self-addressed envelope TO
{ reply. (Copyright, 1888. }