Preface
A product of the school-room in every sense is this new plan-book. The author worked the plans out day by day for use in her own school, because she felt the need of a definite purpose and plan of procedure for each day, and with no thought of publication.
The benefits derived from these outlines and the interest manifested in them by her superintendent and associate teachers led the author to submit them to the publishers, who first brought them out in Teachers Magazine, and now, so cordially were these papers received, present them in book form. It is hoped that the work will prove especially helpful to young teachers who have had but little experience in selecting and adapting material to the comprehension of small children.
Believing that a knowledge of things near at hand should be acquired first, the author has taken this principle as a keynote and has endeavored to present the lessons in a manner to arouse curiosity, engage attention, and inspire a desire to investigate surrounding conditions.
An attempt has been made in the nature lessons, which are taken from the life round about, to enlist sympathy with, as well as to awaken interest in, animal life, with the hope of discouraging the naturally destructive instincts of childhood. To develop in the child the power to express his thoughts has been the primal object in the language lessons. The difficulty has been too often that the child has no thoughts. Poems, stories, pictures, legends, and games supply this deficiency, and call into play the esthetic faculty. To make him acquainted with the peoples and customs of all lands, as well as familiar with the primitive conditions which pertain in his own land, has been the object of the geography lessons. Special days and birthdays of American heroes and poets have suggested the work in history. Busy work and drawing correlate closely with the other subjects and always have a! definite aim.
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V^ MARCH that blusters, and March that blows, What color under your footstep grows ?
Beauty you summon from winter snows, And you are the pathway that leads to the rose.
— Cklia Tbaxikb.
FIRST WEEK
MORNING TALK — NEW MONTH
HAT do we welcome this morning ?
What is the name of the new month ?
How does this month differ from all other months? (First month of spring.)
What season has just closed ?
Will this be a warmer or colder month than last ?
What kind of weather may we expect?
Of what use to Mother Nature are the winds ?
What kind of winds will they be ?
Did you notice any signs of spring as you came to school this morning ?
How many days in the month ?
Who has a birthday this month ?
We will mark them on the calendar.
What are some of the changes we may expect to see in Mother Nature's house this month ?
Read :
The cock is crowing, The oldest and youngest
The stream is flowing, Are at work with the strongest ;
The small birds twitter. The cattle are grazing,
The lake doth glitter, Their heads never raising ;
The green fields sleep in the sun ; There are forty feeding like ono,
I T
Like an army defeated There 's joy in the mountains ;
The snow hath retreated, There 's life in the fountains;
And now doth fare ill Small clouds are sailing,
On the top of the bare hill ; Blue sky prevailing ;
The ploughboy is whooping — anon — anon : The rain is over and gone !
— Wordsworth.
Poem : The IVind.
1 SAW you toss the kites on high, And blow the birds about the sky, And all around I heard you pass
Like ladies' skirts across the grass, O wind a-blowing all day long, O wind that sings so loud a song.
I saw the different things you did, O you that are so strong and cold,
But always you yourself you hid ; O blower, are you young or old ?
I felt you push, I heard you call, Are you a bird of field or sky ?
I could not see yourself at all, Or just a stronger child than I ?
O wind a-blowing all day long, O wind a-blowing all day long,
O wind that sings so loud a song. O wind that sings so loud a song.
— Robert Louis STBVENSOif.
Memorize first stanza.
To what are you talking ?
What things did you see the wind do ?
What did you hear ?
What sort of a sound is a rustling sound ? What did you ever hear rustle ?
Was it a loud noise ?
You may make me a rustling sound.
At what time of year was this ?
What does the wind do all day ?
What kind of a song does it sing ?
What did that other little boy, about whom we talked a long time ago, think the wind said ?
Why was that ?
GEOGRAPHY — HOLLAND
X O what country did the Pilgrims go on leaving England ?
What are the people called who live in Holland ?
How did the Dutch treat the Pilgrims ?
What kind of people do you think they must be to treat strangers so well ?
Do we wish to know more about them ?
Who will show me on the globe just where Holland is?
Is it near us ?
How can we go to Holland ?
Will it be a long journey ?
What people do you know about who crossed this same ocean .''
Perhaps some of the little people here have parents or friends who have also crossed this ocean.
What kind of a boat did the Pilgrims have to sail in ?
What kind of a boat did Hiawatha use ? The Eskimo ?
When we visit Holland in what kind of a boat shall we go ?
As we near Holland what shall we notice ? (Windmills.)
Do we have any windmills here ?
What are they for ?
Why so many in Holland? (Explain.)
Show pictures of Dutch people and windmills.
DRAWING — PAPER FOLDING r OLD (i) windmill.
(1) Put a pin in the centre and stick in the top of lead pencil.
A
BUSY WORK A.M.
DIVISION : Letters — (i ) new story.
B Division : Letters — new words.
A: (2) Number stories — fill blanks.
B: Dominoes — place (3) dots.
P. M.
A : Write spelling — (4) I see.
B ; (5) Word slips — copy.
A: Mats — weave.
B : Worsted — sort by lengths.
TUESDAY MORNING TALK — PUSSY WILLOWS
Repeat: Pussy Willow,
O.
'H I you pussy •willow, Now, my little children,
Pretty little thing, If you look at me
Coming in the sunshine And my little sisters,
Of the merry spring. I am sure you 'II gee
Tell me, tell me, pussy, Tiny little houses,
For I want to know. Out of which we peep,
Where it is you come from? When we first are waking
How it is you grow ? From our winter's sleep.
(1) Sentences from reading lesson hektographed on slips.
(2) Written problems : Two birds and — birds are four birds.
(3) To illustrate new number.
(4) Copy from board. Fill both sides of the paper.
(5) Action words. One word on each slip.
As the days grow milder, And when warmer breezes
Out we put our heads, Of the springtime blow,
And we lightly move us Then we little pussies.
In our little beds ; All to catkins grow.
— Elinor Smith's " Songs and Games for Little Ones," Oliver Ditson & Company, Publishers.
What can you see in the schoolroom this morning that tells you spring is here ?
Why do we call them Pussy Willows ?
What kind of a coat does the little pussy wear?
What kind of a coat has it worn all winter ?
Why did it wear the brown coat in the winter ?
Why has it put on the soft silky one now ?
Can you find on your twig a little baby pussy that has not taken the brown coat off?
Who has ever cut his finger ?
What has it left? (Scar.) , v|y
Can you find a scar ^ Y' on your twig ?
What made the scar ?
Where were these little pussies all last summer? (Explain.)
Will they wear these coats all this summer ?
We will put some of our twigs in water and watch to sec them change their coats.
LANGUAGE— SENSE TRAINING— VISUALIZATION
JL LACE objects in a row in front of the class. Have them named from right to left and from left to right. Which one is in the middle ? Name the one at the right. Name the one at the left. Change the position of the objects and question in the same way. Children bow their heads on desks and close eyes.
Teacher changes position of objects. Wake up. Teacher calls on some one to replace objects in former order.
Continue the exercise. Try to increase the number of objects, by one, each time. Begin anew when a mistake is made.
GEOGRAPHY — WINDS
W HAT may we expect a great deal of this month ?
Why does Mother Nature send so much ?
Can we see the wind ?
How do we know when the wind is blowing ? (Hear it, feel it, see the effects.)
How can we tell whether the wind is travelling fast or slowly ?
How can we tell in which direction the wind is blowing ?
Which wind brings us rain ?
Children repeat :
The east wind, children and farmers know, The cows come shivering up the lane, When the east wind begins to blow.
Make tne (i) east wind.
Which wind brings the flowers ?
Children repeat :
The west wind, children, and soft and low, The birdies sing in the summer hours "When the west wind begins to blow.
Make the (i) west wind.
Which wind brings the cold ?
As before :
The north wind, children, and all the snow, And sheep come scampering into the fold When the north wind begins to blow.
Make the (i) north wind Which wind brings the heat ?
As above :
The south wind, children, and com will grow, And peaches redden for you to eat.
When the south wind begins to blow.
Make the (i) south wind.
How many winds are there ? Mary may name them.
Which one do you like the best .? Why ?
Which do you think is the most useful ?
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DRAWING — PAPER CUTTING
REE hand cutting of Pussy Willow. Cut from white paper, mount on black paper.
A
BUSY WORK A.M.
DIVISION : Letters — Make (2) stories.
B Division : Letters — new words.
(1) Previously explained.
(2) Printed on cards. Embodying familiar words.
A : Dominoes — write number story.
B : Tablets — trace (i) — illustrate number.
P.M.
A : Write spelling — I see a tree.
B : Word slips — copy.
A : (2) Forms — - trace around — cut.
B: (3) Name slips — copy.
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WEDNESDAY MORNING TALK — BLUEBIRD
ATERIAL — mounted specimen.
What do you suppose all the birds are doing down south Will it take them very long to get here ? Why do they not remain south through the summer? Will the birds get tired on the way ?
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(2) Different conyeyancef — boat, cart, car, etc.
(3) Pupil's name.
lo Day by Day
What will they have to stop to do ?
Which will be the first to get here ?
How shall we know it?
Show the children specimen.
How large is this bird? (Compare size with other birds.)
What color is there the most of?
Do you think the bird is rightly named ?
What other colors can you see ?
What color is its bill ? How long?
Do you think it eats seeds or insects ?
Why? (Explain.) What color is its tail ? Length ?
How many toes? Color of legs and feet?
Does this bird hop or run ?
Where do you think he will build his nest ? (Bluebird not a builder.)
What is the first thing that he will do on arriving here ? We must watch for the first bluebird to see how he flies, where he makes his home, and what he eats.
Do you think he is a song bird ?
Repeat :
Never the song of the robin
Could make my heart so glad ; When I hear the Bluebird singing
In spring, I forget to be sad.
Hear it! A ripple of music !
Sunshine changed into song !
It sets me thinking of summer,
When the days and their dreams are long.
— £ben Eugenx Rbzfobd.
Story telling : The Bluebird and the Crocus.
JTIERE you are at last," cried the Bluebird to a tiny Crocus which had just put its head up out of the ground ; " I 've been waiting for you ever so many days. What a sleepy head you are ! "
" Is that you, Bluebird ? " the Crocus replied, pushing its head up higher as it spoke. " Oh, but how cold it is ! "
" Cold ? Not at all ! " chirped the Bluebird. " Just wait until that sumbeam over there reaches you. Then you '11 be warm enough."
" I wish it would hurry," said the Crocus. " But tell me, Bluebird, have you had a pleasant winter ? "
" Fine," answered Bluebird, hopping about in search of something to eat. " Still I am glad to get back. And what do you think ! Look at that cunning little house over your head, high up on a pole. I rather think I shall make it my home."
" Oh, do," said the Crocus, " I would like to have you so near me.
" I wonder who could have put it up there and if it was meant for me ? " went on the Bluebird.
" Perhaps the little girl who visits me every year had something to do with it," said the Crocus. " Look, here she comes now. Fly up to the little house and I will see if I can find out about it for you."
Just then the little girl came dancing into the garden. She stopped beside the star-shaped flower-bed at the head of the path. " Not a sign of a flower yet," she cried. " Oh, I do wish they would hurry."
Then she caught sight of the blue Crocus standing alone in the bed. "Oh," she cried, "here is a dear little Crocus. How glad I am to see you, you dear little blue thing."
The Crocus was very happy at these words, but the little girl did not notice this, for a merry song over her head made her look up. She danced up and down in her glee at what she saw.
" A Bluebird is going to live in our house," she cried. " I told Brother Ned I knew one would come, but he laughed at me all the time he was making the house. I must tell him." And she ran into the house.
The Bluebird flew back to the Crocus. " It is as I thought," said the Crocus, " that little girl had the house put there for you.
She was very happy when she saw that you had found it. She was pleased, too, because I had come."
" Glad to hear it," said the Bluebird. And he flew to the lilac bush and sang his best spring song. _From Child World.
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GEOGRAPHY — LIFE IN HOLLAND
-EVIEW previous lesson.
How did we go on our play journey to visit the Dutch ? Across what water ?
What was the name of the boat?
What made the boat go ?
How long did it take us to go ?
Where did we sleep ? Eat ?
Who took care of the boat ?
Who were his helpers ?
What work did the sailors have to do ?
How were they dressed ?
Was the boat a better one than Columbus had ? Why ?
What made Columbus' boat sail ?
As we neared Holland what did we see?
Of what use to the people are the windmills ?
How are the streets of Holland different from ours?
Where do some of the little Dutch children live? (On canal boats.)
Should you not think that they would get very tired of living on a boat ?
What do the children do ?
How do they keep their boat home? (Very neat and clean.)
Where do some of the other people live ? (In windmills.)
What are the people who live in the mills called? (Millers.)
Would you like to live in a mill ?
Do any of the people live in houses as we do ?
Next time we will talk about these other homes.
D
A
DRAWING RAW March landscape. Trees swaying in the wind.
BUSY WORK A. M.
DIVISION: Letters — story slips.
B Division : Letters — words containing new phonogram.
A: (i) Stories on board — fill blanks, B : Dominoes — (2) Place dots.
P.M.
A : Spelling — Write. I see a big tree. B: (3) Words — write.
A : Pegs — outline (4) kite flying.
B : Pegs — outline (5) design.
THURSDAY MORNING TALK — WEATHER OBSERVATIONS
H< low does this morning differ from yesterday morning? (Snowy.)
From where does the snow come ?
What was the snow before Jack Frost turned it into snowflakes?
What does every little snowflake look like ?
How many points has the snowflake star?
What is the wind doing this morning?
What kind of a wind is it ?
How do you know that?
Are the snowflakes all moving in one direction ?
Recite poems learned about snow.
(1) Number.
(2) On domino. Write corresponding number below.
(3) List on board.
(4) Imaginary.
(5) Hektographed on cards.
GEOGRAPHY — HOLLAND — HOMES
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HAT other strange things besides the windmills do we notice in Holland? (High walls.)
Of what are these walls built ?
Why are they built ? (To keep the water from overflowing the land.)
Why would the water cover all the land were these walls not made ? (Ocean is higher.)
What would happen were the walls to break ?
Tell me about the homes in which the Dutch live.
What kind of houses do the rest of the people make? (Built of red or pink brick.)
What do they put around the windows and doors ? (White stripes.)
Do they have cellars as we do ?
What is underneath ?
How do the Dutch keep their houses? (Very neat and clean.)
When a little baby, boy or girl, comes to a house how do the people passing by know about it? (A little silk pin-cushion is hung on the door.)
What color is the cushion ? (Blue for a girl — red for a boy.)
Which room in the house is most used ? (Kitchen.)
Would you like to live in Holland ?
Why?
DRAWING — PAPER CUTTING
LOTHES hanging on a line.
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LANGUAGE Poem : The Wind.
EMORIZE second stanza.
Review first stanza.
Can you see the wind ?
What can you see ?
What did you feel ?
Why can you not see the wind ?
How do you know the wind is there?
What kind of a wind do you think this wind is ?
What makes you think so ?
You may repeat the poem after me.
Would you like to know who wrote this poem ?
Tell the children something of Stevenson's life.
A.M.
A DIVISION: Letters— newwords.
B Division : Letters — new words.
A: Number game — stories from chart.
B: Dominoes — place dots.
P.M.
A : Write spelling — I see a big apple tree.
B : Spelling slips — copy.
A : Pegs — lay snowflake.
B : Straws — string.
FRIDAY MORNING TALK — SIGNS OF SPRING
W)
HAT animals have been sleeping all winter?
In what month did thev go to sleep?
To what season does that month belong ?
What insects have been asleep ?
Have they wakened yet?
Where have they TxaA been sleeping?
Where are the snakes ? The squirrels?
What birds have remained all winter with us ?
What are the little buds on the trees beginning to do ?
What wakens them ?
In what month did Motner Nature begin to put her children to sleep ?
What is she doing now ? (Calling them to wake up.)
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Picture Lesson : Pictures of Life in Holland.
'IVE each child a picture. He must when his turn comes tell a connected story about his picture.
J. MAGI NARY journey to the four cardinal points.
Mary, where will you travel to-day ?
Why do you wish to go south ?
How will you go ?
What kind of clothing will you take with you ?
What people will you see? (Colored.)
What will they be doing ? How dressed ?
What sounds will you hear ?
What will you have to eat ?
What wind will blow ?
Will you stay long ? Why ?
Choose another child and continue in this way with other directions.
A
A.M.
DIVISION : Letters — spelHng (i) words. B Division : Letters — new words.
A: Number slips — write stories.
B : Tablets — trace place (2) rings.
(1) Review — from slips kept in desks.
(2) Illustrating new number.
P.M.
A : Write spelling — I see a star.
B : Write numeral — three.
A : Pegs — lay boats.
B : Peas — same.
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SECOND WEEK
MORNING TALK— -NATURE LESSON
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HAT are your mothers getting ready to do? (Clean house.)
What will Mother Nature soon begin to do ?
What helpers will she have ?
What does your mother do first ?
What will Mother Nature do first? (Take off winter coverings.)
What are her winter coverings? (Snow and ice.)
Who will help her do this ?
How long will it take him ?
After the coverings are off what comes next? (Must sweep her house.)
What brooms will Mother Nature use? (Winds.)
Which broom is the very largest and strongest of all ? (March.)
What things must they sweep and brush away ?
After your mamma has her floor nicely swept what next?
What helper will wash Mother Nature's floor? (Rain.)
In what month does Mother Nature get ready for that helper? (In April.)
What helper dries her floor? (Sun.)
After the floor is dry what must be done ? (Put a carpet down.)
What color does Mother Nature wish her carpet to be? (Green.)
Do you like a green carpet ?
Which helper makes and puts down the carpet? (The grass.)
Does she wish her carpet to be all green ?
What other colors does she like ?
Which one does she wish to try first?
Upon what helper does she call for this color ? (The dandelion.)
Then what other colors does she wish to have in her carpet ?
What helpers bring these ?
Will Mother Nature stop then ?
She will be very tired I am sure. j
Next time we will see if she does.
P
OEM — "The Wind."
Complete the poem.
Repeat first two stanzas.
What question have you asked the wind ?
Is the wind small ?
What word tells you that it is not ?
Do you think that the wind is a bird ?
What do you think about it ?
You may say the poem after me.
Recite the whole poem.
Fable : 'The Old Lion,
A
LION who had grown too old and feeble to go out and hunt for prey, could hardly find enough food to keep him from starving.
At last he thought of a plan for bringing the game within his reach.
He kept quite still in his den and made believe that he was very sick. When the other animals heard of his distress, they came, one by one, to look at him and ask him how he felt. But no sooner were they within his reach than he seized upon them and ate them up.
After a good many beasts had lost their lives in this way a Fox came along.
" How do you feel to-day, friend Lion ? " he asked ; but he took care to stand at a safe distance from the den.
" I am very sick," said the Lion. " Won't you come in ? It does me a great deal of good to see my kind friends."
"Thank you," said the Fox; "but I see that all the tracks point toward your den, and none point away from it."
— From Fairy Stories and Fables.
DRAWING — COLOR DUTCH PICTURE
A. M.
A
DIVISION : Letters — Sentence slips — copy. B Division : Letters — new words.
A.M.
A: Pictorial Number.
B : Number boxes — Select new number.
P.M.
A: Write March.
B : Outline March.
"1
A : Spelling Slips — copy.
B : Name Slips — copy.
TUESDAY MORNING TALK — STUDY OF TWIGS
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.ATERIAL — twigs from the horse-chestnut tree.
What color is your twig ?
From what tree did it come ?
Is your twig all one color ? What does the bright part tell us ?
Can you see some little rings on your twig ? What do these rings tell us ?
Find me a scar on your twig.
Who will make me a picture of the scar on the board ?
What shape is it ?
What do the little dots on the scar tell us ? (Number of leaflets the twig had last year.)
What made the scar ? What does it tell us ? Let the children count and see how many leaves the twig had last year.
We will put the twigs back into water and notice what happens.
LANGUAGE — SENSE TRAINING — HEARING
v^ALL four or five children to the front of the room. Arrange them in a row and blindfold them.
Let them answer in turn.
Teacher raps on the desk.
" Mary, what did I do ? "
** You struck the desk."
Continue with the other children, each time tapping on a different object. Ex : — bell, book, glass, etc.
GEOGRAPHY — DUTCH — DRESS
M.
.ATERIAL — doll dressed in Dutch costume. Procure a doll having rosy cheeks, blue eyes, and flaxen hair braided in two braids.
We have a visitor this morning. From what country do you think she has come ?
What is her name? (Gretchen.)
What color are her eyes ? Hair?
How does she comb her hair?
Is not she a very tidy looking little maid ?
What color is her skirt ? Waist ?
What is her waist called ?
Do you think she likes bright colors ?
When does she wear this pretty little muslin cap ?
How do you suppose she dresses in winter?
What kind of ( i ) shoes has Gretchen ?
(1) May be cut from cork stoppers.
Should you not think that these would be very noisy at school and in the house at home?
What is done to prevent the noise ?
What other reason have they for leaving their shoes at the door?
What keeps the shoes white and clean? (Are scoured and scraped every Saturday.)
We will put Gretchen here on the shelf with Agoonack, Priscilla, and our other visitors.
DRAWING — DRAW TWIG
A.M.
J\ DIVISION: Letters — new words.
B Division : Letters — new words.
A : Blocks — draw.
B : Number boxes — story.
P.M.
A : Write spelling. I see a pretty star, A : Name slips — copy.
A : ( I ) Word envelopes — arrange.
B: Pegs — copy (2) design.
(1) Words hektographed on slips. To be sorted according to endings.
(2) On chart.
WEDNESDAY MORNING TALK — NATURE
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HAT did we leave Mother Nature doing in our last talk ? What do you think she will do next to make her house more beautiful ? (Put blossoms and leaves on the trees.) What visitors will she have ?
Will she have rooms for all ?
Where will the frogs find rooms ?
The birds ? The squirrels ?
The bees ? The butterflies ?
An
Tell : The Obstinate Pig.
old woman was sweeping her house, and she found a little crooked sixpence.
" What," said she, " shall I do with this little sixpence ? I will go to market and buy a little pig."
As she was coming home she came to a stile ; but piggy would not go over the stile.
She went a little farther and she met a dog. So she said to the dog :
" Dog, dog, bite pig !
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