The Ely miner., 1943-07-01
Bv KATHLEEN NORRIS
Bell syndicate.-wNU Features.

IT is always a mystery to me
how any woman can choose
L to be school teacher. Chill
dren are my favorite people, for
company, for amusement, for
holidays, picnics, birthdays,
summer vacations. But when it
comes to marshaling them in
to classrooms, keeping their
restlessness quiet and their ut
ter boredom amused, bringing
on the dull ones and holding in
check the smarties who get the
whole class into trouble, my
spirit fails.
Yet there are women so fine in
spirit that they can be patient with
all this, and year after year start in
with a fresh crop, and begin all
over again on fractions, penman-
ship, American history and "Our
Friends of the Seaside and Way
side" It wouldn't be so bad if the
mothers carried on their end of edu-
cation, if children came to school
with lessons prepared, with pencils
and books in order, and had been
taught ordinary care of their pos
sessions; rubbers, raincoats, lunch
boxes, nickels and dimes. It wouldn't
be so bad if manners, gentleness,
politeness, unselfshness had been in
culcated at home.
Mothers Should Help Children.
But thousands of mothers never
think of helping Bob and Betty with
their lessons; all they know is that
Betty and Bob get bad marks, and
that that fussy teacher is always
telephoning to ask if they may not
have extra coaching. Sometimes
one hour of help every week will
start the youngsters on the right way
of studying, or a simple word of
explanation will clear up problem
that has been holding a child back
for weeks. But the child doesn't get
that hour or that word, and so
founders on uncomprehending, and
Teacher has to fill in the gaps out
Of her own spare time.
"One child in my class, boy of
eight" writes teacher from north
ern New York, fused to get so
naughty and unmanageable at about
II every morning that I finally in
vestigated home conditions. He
never ate any breakfast, that was
the answer. His mother had break
fast in bed; his father was always
gone for the day when he came
downstairs; little Tom was usually
late, and not being particularly hum
cry he dawdled about for a few
minutes and went off to school un-
fed"
Another teacher, this one from
Arkansas, has this to report:
Zone bad-mannered child in
room of rather young children, chill
dren from to 10, can demoralize
the whole group. Last year I had
a boy who made a fine art of an
noying me, interrupting work, and
getting all the other children into
an uproar. For example: he went
into drugstore and bought snuff
for three days he sneezed and
sneezed before investigated. have
43 children in my room and cannot
give each one much individual at
tention After the snuff episode this
boy broke pencils; raised his hand
and said sweetly: I've broken my
pencil Other small boys began to
break pencils. My little tormentor
was quite smart enough to know that
if he was refused a pencil he could
skip the lesson and report at home
that having no pencil he naturally
got bad marks. / told him that I
would have to charge his mother
five cents for every pencil; his moth
er promptly got in touch with our
principal, who told me that we were
not allowed to sell anything to the
children; he must be kept supplied.
The next day Jack asked me several
times if Mr.. Stone had told me that