Slate and black board exercises

Front matter

FT MEADE

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Preface

The importance of the black board as an instrument of instruction in the common school, has been insisted on in every periodical on education which I have seen, either of this country or Europe; as well as in almost every recent treatise on the same subject. It has also been introduced into most of our improved schools, of every grade, especially in New England and New York. In many of our common schools, however, it has been but barely introduced. The teacher knows almost as little how to use it as his pupils. It is vain or nearly in vain that ouf more intelligent Committees and even the Secretaries of our Boards of Education Urge the importance of its use, from year to year, so long as no instruction is given concerning its use.

It is in this view that I have prepared the following manual. It is, of course, n'ot designed for pupils,, but solely for teachers. Nor is it intended to be .used blindly, even by teachers themselves. Let such oply of its methods be tried as seem adapted to the circumstances of the teacher, and let even those be modified to meet the pecula iarities of his own school room. Hardly any mistake could be greater than for the teacher, who should take up a book like this, to adopt its various methods without reference to existing circumstances.

It is the object of the writer of the following work to make it worthy of being studied by teachers as a system of slate and blaelc board instruction. Not indeed as a complete or perfect system, for it makes no such claims. It is a pioneer work, on the subject ; and undoubtedly contains many imperfections. It was ready for the press, and its contents submitted to the Secretary of one of our New England Boards of Education, before the little work of Mr. Bumstead, of Boston, called “ The Black Board in the Primary School, and designed principally for instruction how to proceed in teaching Arithmetic” made its appearance. I have, however, added to Chap. XVII a few thoughts suggested by the work of Mr. B., for which this is intended as an acknowledgment.

Let it not, for one moment, be imagined that I am desirous of substituting slates and black boards for books and all other implements ; or a few lessons on these last, for hard study. Very far from it. What I would gladly do is to prepare the pupils of our common schools for the right use of books, and proper benefits of study. But although the exercises which have been suggested are intended as preliminaries rather than principal things in a course of education, I have no doubt that much might be done towards securing a thorough English education, with nothing but the black board and slate, and a suitable course of oral instruction.

Should the teacher who takes up these “ Exercises,” attend to the suggestions I have made both in this preface, and in several of the chapters, and instead of following, mechanically, the methods which are pointed out, attend rather to the principles of which these exercises are intended as illustrations, and thus be led to form his own plans and methods, my object will be far more perfectly accomplished than if he should only transfer its scanty exercises to the black board, and there let the matter end. I say scanty exercises, for to present as many of these methods and exercises as some might desire, or at least as many as would suffice for the wants of the indolent, would requiie a volume of immense size ; such as few teachers would buy, were it ever so desirable. To promote thought and progress, has been my object ; believing that we have facilities enough already among us for the promotion of mechanism.

Let me add, in conclusion, that I shall be very much disappointed if the same instruments and methods which might effect a revolution in our common schools, should be found useless in families. On the contrary, I believe they are even more valuable in the family than any where else. The truth is, that the family and the improvement and elevation of the family and the schools, can hardly be separated ; they must stand or fall together.

Dedham , iJ/s., October , 1841.

Chapter I. Preliminary Remarks

A black board, in every school house, is as indispensably necessary as a stove or fireplace ; and in very large schools several of them might be useful. They should, in general, be suspended on the wall, near the teacher’s desk or platform, so as to be, like the latter, in full view of the whole school. Of course they ought to be moveable, that they may be hung up in any part of the house convenient. And though the largest may be six or eight feet long, and half as broad — and indeed the larger the better — it is certainly a convenience to have one or two so small and so light that they can be held in the arms like a slate.

Now the word black board need not awaken in our minds the thought of any thing difficult, rare, or costly. Why it is simply a black board. Is there any difficulty in painting a piece of board black ? It is indeed desirable to have the board planed before it is painted, and to have it smooth and soft ; but neither in this is there any thing very difficult and mysterious. The greatest difficulty to be encountered is that of finding a single board wide enough; for if we use several pieces, it requires some little tact to frame them to- ' a* gether in such a way as to have them answer « valuable purpose ; though even this is not beyond the art of the mechanic.

Many have thought it better to paint black the whole end of the school room, near which the teacher’s desk is placed. This would not be so agreeable, as a brighter color, nor perhaps, so well for the eye, unless indeed the house was exceedingly well lighted ; nevertheless it might answer some purpose. A smaller portion of the wall, of suitable size, painted black, — say six or eight feet square of it — would, in my view, be preferable. In either case, however, one or more moveable black boards would be necessary, for reasons which will appear in the progress of these exercises.

Slates are as necessary as black boards, and even more so. But they are so liable to be broken, it will be said, as to render it expensive to parents to keep their children supplied with them. There would be weight in this objection were it not that this liability to injury can be for the most part prevented. 1st, by care on the part of the teacher to withhold the slates whenever the pupils are not sufficiently careful of them. 2, by having the frames made sufficiently strong. A simple band of cord, tin, or wire, round each corner, will greatly diminish the liability to injury from falling; but sheet iron fastened tightly around the corners of a good oak frame, is much better. Such preparation may seem a little costly at first ; but if it were left to my choice to furnish a school with books or slates, as a means of employment, I should not hesitate on account of the expense to furnish the latter.

j For let it be distinctly understood that no com- / mon school can thrive well, and the moral and | physical character of the pupils be properly attended to, without furnishing the children with ample employment; and I repeat it, I know of no way of employing them so well as by means jof slates and pencils. On this subject, moreover, I speak from considerable experience.

But are not books necessary at all, when the pupils are furnished with slates 1 I may be asked. Not for a large proportion of the children who attend our summer schools, nor for some of those who attend in the winter. To such I believe books are not only useless, but on the whole, worse than useless. As they advance in years, however, they may be indulged with a book, now and then, as a favor. Sucli a favor will not be esteemed a light thing ; and will come in time, to be sought more frequently, and with more and more earnestness.

It is true we should not allow the pupils to have slates in their hands the whole time. Though it should be our aim to give them constant employment, yet their employment should be varied. Even the slate, if it were at their command continually, would become tiresome. To sit still, at times — ^ltirely still — if not continued too long, is one form of doing something ; and I consider it as much a part of the teacher’s duty to form his pupils to the habit of sitting still, as to teach them spelling and reading. Not of course an hour at a time, or half an hour, or a quarter, even. To some children, five minutes would be long enough ; and to most, ten minutes would be the full extent of what would be useful.

Bat there are numerous other exercises which are useful to the young, in the school room ; such as standing, marching, singing, &c. ; to say nothing of exercises, at least every hour, out of it.

But having black boards and slates provided for a school, what shall be used on them — chalk, crayons, or pencils 1

For the black board, a simple piece of chalk will answer very well. There is no objection, however, to what are called, by some, port crayons. These keep the chalk from the fingers, and of course from the clothes. B y port crayons , I mean tin or brass tubes, about as large as a common crayon — or if a little larger, it would do no harm — with two slits at the end, into which a piece of chalk might by pushed, where by the elasticity of the tube, it would be retained with sufficient firmness.

For writing on slates, nothing is better, on the whole, than common pencils. As they are liable to be broken, however, the question has been raised, whether short pieces, which are not so readily broken, should be used, or whether larger ones are not preferable. My opinion is in favor, on the whole, of long ones ; and for the following reasons. * If the pencil is long, and of a texture sufficiently soft, it will not be difficult to teach the pupil to hold it as he would a pen ; and thus he will be preparing to hold his pen properly whenever he comes to write on paper. But if the pencil is short, only an inch or two in length, it will, in all probability, be held in a very confined, awkward manner ; and the pupil will be unfitting himself for holding a pen properly, in time to come. I know well that the habit he acquires of contracting his fingers, around the pencil, can sometimes be broken ; but it is often carried through life.

To prevent them from being broken, the pencils may be wrapped in strong paper covered with paste, which should be well rolled round them and dried. As the pencil wears away, the paper and the stone may easily be cut away together. Or the port crayons , or handles for the chalk already mentioned, made a little smaller than a crayon — say about the size of a common quill — may be used ; in which case, a longer or shorter piece of pencil will serve the purpose, just as may happen to be convenient. The pencils or crayons should be attached to the slates loosely, by means of strings. In the case of the younger pupils, this will save them from being losf ; and in that of both the older and the younger, will prevent much confusion and noise. The desks of a school room should all be so constructed as to furnish a place for a slate. This, of course, would not prevent the teacher from taking the slates away from them whenever he should deem it best, especially those of the younger pupils.

Perhaps it should be added that a piece of $ sponge to each slate, and a larger piece for the black board — or if not of sponge, of cloth or wash leather — is as necessary as the slate and black board. The teacher, moreover, needs something for a pointing stick.

I ought also to say here, that the preceding remarks, as well as those which follow, are made upon the presumption that every pupil of every age has his own separate desk ; for I conceive this to be a highly important point, in the construction of every school house. Some, I know, undertake to say that one desk will serve for two pupils; and so it may, when we cannot do better. But one pupil, and one o/ily, to each desk, however young he may be, is certainly preferable. The expense of adding a few feet in the length and breadth of a house, in order to admit of space for separate desks, will be more than made up in increase of comfort and facility of progress to the pupils. These desks, moreover, should be at a considerable distance from each other. The reasons are obvious to the teacher. It is better to prevent evil, when we can, than to attempt to cure it.

CHAPTER II*

FORMING LINES, CIRCLES, &C.

At first, it will be well for the small portion of each day in which very young pupils are allowed to have slates, to let them use them much in the way they please. Some will make one thing, some 4 another. What they make is of comparatively little consequence, provided they attend, each to his own business, and do not interfere with that of others.

When a pupil has become somewhat familiar with the slate and pencil, he will esteem it a favor to be pernlitted to have a copy or lesson, and do something. Let him, then, have his lesson ; and if there are others, so as to form a little class, so much the better.

The teacher may be the leader of the class, or he may employ an elder pupil for the purpose. In the outset, however, I like to have the wisdom of the teacher put in requisition, as much as may be ; assistants or monitors will do better afterward.

One of the first exercises should be that of making mere lines, parallel to each other, or vertical. I have thought that vertical lines were most readily made. Not that I would insist, at once, on an exact perpendicular to the line formed by the bottom of the slate or black board, but something as nearly approximating to this position as could reasonably be expected. They should have a copy on the black board, thus

These I would teach them to make of different lengths and at differing distances ; and even in greater or less numbers. The teacher may have variety in the lessons, by merely varying the number of the marks. After writing these a few days, I would present to them a lesson of horizontals, to be copied, in like manner, on their slates, thus :

A perpendicular and horizontal line rrfight then be drawn together thus.

No teacher should expect too much of a young pupil, at first. His efforts will often be very rude ; there will hardly be the slightest resemblance between the copy and the original. Yet if there should be manifested but the slightest desire to imitate the copy, the teacher should endeavor to wait patiently for the results. If a pupil is in earnest, he will do something. If not, it will be easy to refuse him the use of his slate.

Next,. two horizontal and two vertical lines may be united to form a square, and this may be a lesson for the pupil, for a day or at least half a day. Here is the lesson, except that for the sake of distinctness, I would have it much larger than this, on the black board ; and much larger there than I expected the pupils would have it on their slates ; since their eye, at first, cannot be supposed sufficiently trained to enable them to make allowance for the difference in size made by distance, b

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The parallelogram, or long square, is next ; and. may be of different proportion and size, at different lessons. For I hardly need to say that in forming these squares the pupil is still perfecting himself in the art of making perpendiculars or verticals, and horizontals.

Oblique lines should come next in order, of which the following may be a specimen.

In another lesson the slope may be reversed, as in the following example.

These lessons being made sufficiently familiar, together with the parallelogram or long square, the pupil should proceed to combine the Vertical and horizontal lines with oblique ones, to form triangles. Let me here say, however, that I would not give,, the names of these various lines and figures 7 ' at first, at least as a part of the lesson.-** J would occasionally call them by their proper names, (as if without any particular intention,) but would not at first require them to remember them.

Here are some of the various triangles which I would present them for imitation, one at a time, beginning with those on the left hand.

Every intelligent teacher will see the reason for preferring the order above, as well as the propriety of placing but one of the triangles on the black board, for imitation, at a time.

But we ought not to be tedious with young i pupils at first. Whenever we find their attention beginning to waver, to any | considerable extent, instead of insisting on their going on, from lesson to lesson, in this precise order, we should, for a time substitute something else. Let 1 them try to make the picture of a horse, or a dog, or a man, or of any thing else. But even in this case I should prefer to have a copy of the object which is to be imitated, placed on the black board.

One caution here may be neeessary. It may not be advisable to exhibit to a whole school, on the larger Black board, what only concerns a very few small pupils. I would here, therefore, at all events, employ an assistant or monitor ; and having set the copy, on a smaller black board or slate, would require it to be held at a little distance before them. *

It has been said, in a preceding paragraph that the teacher, should not, at first, give out the names of the various lines, figures, &c. which the pupils were required to make. The reason for this is that it will only tend to confound or perplex them. One thing at a time should be our rule, as much as the circumstances may admit. But as soon as the lines and figures themselves become familiar, and the pupil is somewhat expert at making them, it will be well to teach him names. It may be done with advantage in the following manner.

Standing by the black board, with his chalk in his hand, the teacher observes ; Now, my scholars, I am to make some vertical lines, on the black board. How shall I make them ? Is this right ? at the same time making some wdiich are either horizontal or oblique. No. No ; say several voices. ft How then ? Is it so ?” making another wrong one. No. “ Is it so, then ?” at the same time making the line as it ought to be. Yes. ^ ,

Allow me, here, to make two remarks. One is, that it will be better, in many respects, to habituate the pupils, from the first, to signify their assent or dissent, their yes or no, by raising their hands. Such a practice will be especially necessary in a course of slate and black board instruction ; for it will both save much time, and prevent much disorder.

The other remark to be made is, that not a few teachers in pursuing this negative mode of instruction, both deceive themselves and defeat their own purposes. They wish to compel their pupils to think ; whereas, in fact, they prevent their thinking.

Take, for example, the case above. The teacher, on proposing to make a vertical line, b* makes at first an oblique one, and then asks them to raise their hands, if they think it is right. No hands are raised. He then makes a horizontal line, and asks ; “Is that -right ?” They signify that it is not. Then making a vertical line, he says, “ Is that right?” in a tone of voice and with a manner, especially with an emphasis , which as fully convinces the pupils that he has now made the true line, as if he had said so, in plain words. I have often been astonished at the extent to which teachers deceive themselves, in this way. Without intending to tell the pupils that they have now done the real thing proposed, they certainly do tell them by their motions, their tones, or their emphasis ; and no pupil who is attending to what they say, will mistake them.

But there is another common form of mistake. Many fall into the habit of asking a certain number of questions, say one or two or three, before they come to the right. Thus, in the case above, they would make one wrong mark, and the next, each pupil would kqow to be the right, because it was the teacher’s uniform habit to refer to the right at the second question. In a thousand ways — certainly in very many — do teachers fall into habits which defeat their own purposes. It may be, too, that the pupils are sometimes deceived as w^ell as the teacher ; mistaking that for their own — something which their own minds have originated — which, in effect, they receive "from the teacher, and is a mere echo of his opinion.*

He who is convinced of the truth of what is here affirmed, will take special pains to avoid falling into such an erroneous habit. He will endeavor to lead his pupils to think rather than to imitate, or decipher, or echo back his own thoughts. It is indeed one excellence of slate and black board and oral exercises, that there is not apt to be so much of the error alluded to, connected with these modes of instruction, as with many other modes. Still, as we have seen, there is danger , even here.

When horizontal, vertical, *and oblique lines have been formed, from time to time, into squares, parallelograms, and the various sorts of right angled triangles, the pupil should be permitted to make circles of various sizes like the following ; beginning, of course, with the larger, and proceeding, at successive lessons, to the smaller.

He should also be required to make parts of circles ; of which I here present a specimen :

* Children are better physiognomists, at least they are better “ discerners of the thoughts of the heart,” by the appearance of the countenance, than we are apt to regard them. What are conceived by many a teacher to be the children’s own cogitation* or inventions, are very often the mere echo of his own heart or brain, or the plain indication of his manner, tone and emphasis.

Here, too, as in the former case, I would first teach them to make these various figures without their names ; and afterward apply the names, in the form of a review oi the lessons, at the black board ; as mentioned under another head.

We should not proceed farther with our pupils, at once, toward the region of drawing, than to teach them to make straight lines and circles, and their various combinations. It might be useful, however, to combine these, rather more vari usly than has been thus far recommended. For example, I would add a triangle or a half circle- to the top of a square. One of these I would say, when the class could pretty well imitate it, resembles a house, except that it has no chimney ; can you tell me which it is ?

They might also, indeed they should be taught to combine triangles in such a way as to make larger triangles and squares ; and squares should be so combined as to make larger squares, and if possible other figures. Let the ingenuity of the pupils be particularly exercised, on this last point.

They may be asked, moreover, what objects, in the room or elsewhere, are square like the figure they have made on the slate ; or what ones approximate closely to such or such a shape.

In this connection, they may be led to see that a circle faintly, though but faintly, represents the sun, the moon, a button, a piece of money, a plate, a bason, the face of a clock or a watch, a ring, &c. The human face, an eye, &c. may be referred to, and the pupils may be told what is meant by elliptical and oval.

As the subject becomes more and more familiar, and the mind of the pupil advances, he may be taught to form many other geometrical figures. On this subject — that of teaching what may be called the elements of geometry to very young children, as well as for the sake of practical illustration — I am disposed, for once, to fortify my opinion by authority. The late Rev. Joseph Emerson, whose talents and skill as a teacher are known throughout New England, has the following remarks

“ Geometry, in its nature, is one of the primary studies. It may be understood by itself without the knowledge of any other branch, except a very little of language and arithmetic ; while scarcely any other branch can be well understood without some acquaintance with Geometry.

“It is my opinion that the child should commence the study of Geometry before learning the alphabet. He is not, indeed, prepared to encounter the elements of Euclid ; but he can clearly comprehend some of the distinguishing properties of a straight line and a curve ; of a circle, a triangle, a square, and an ellipse ; of a cube and of a sphere. As the subject becomes

* See “ Prospectus of the Female Seminary at Wethersfield, Connecticut,” for the year 1826, a pamphlet of about 60 closely printed pages; and one which is, in itself, quite a complete manual for teachers.

familiar, and his mind strengthens, lie is able to understand some of the distinguishing properties of a pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, &c. ; of the different kinds of triangles ; of an oblate and prolate spheroid ; of a parallelopiped, of a prism, of a cone, and of pyramids. He may then go back to the circle, and attend to its properties, more particularly in the consideration of arcs, chords, segments, sector, radii, diameters, sines, tangents, degrees, minutes, seconds, the mariner’s compass, &c., &c. He may then proceed to a more particular consideration of angles, triangles, squares, &c., &c.”

Nothing, it is true, is here said about the slate and black board ; but if these things are to be taught, at an early age, there can be no doubt that the slate and black board are most happily calculated to aid in the work.

Following out, then, on the black board and slates, — at least in some good degree — the ideas which Mr. Emerson has suggested, the pupils should be taught the pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, and octagon ; as well as be led to some general ideas of arcs, segments, diameters, and the like. We should be exceedingly careful, however, not to fatigue our pupils, especially at first, with hard names. The name of the plainest, most common figures, may, indeed, be taught them, but not so with the more difficult.

Perhaps, in the progress of this kind of instruction, it would be an excellent plan to give out a lesson on the black board, in which circles of various size might be said to resemble certain round, but very different objects. Thus the first circles might represent the sun ; the next, a little smaller, the moon ; another or two, very small, and perhaps a little gibbous, some of the stars.

The following might be drawn on the black board as specimens of combining both right lines and others.

Again, at another lesson, the first or larger square might be said to represent the floor of the room, the second, (very small, in proportion,) the table ; a third very small also, and rather oblong, a book. Again, on another occasion, but by no means at the same time, let the largest square represent the common, or some open field, well known to them all ; the second in size should represent some garden, equally well known ; a third the play ground, or the spot of ground on which the house stands, &c. c

But to return to circles. This figure* says the teacher, represents the clock idee ; and that the watch. Now, on this largest one, I will put letters like those on the clock. If the pupils are none of them quite prepared to imitate him, his efforts to please them will at least afford them a good deal of amusment. So would an attempt of the same sort to represent the mariner’s compass.