program in operation in a typical conservative kindergarten, Miss Alice Temple wrote as follows:

[While] there is no criticism to be made of the selection of some of these forms of industrial or civic occupation, [there] are objections. . . to using them in the manner described. There is an attempt to cover too much ground. The children are introduced in the course of a few weeks to too large a number of objects, processes, and ideas. The treatment is, in consequence, very superficial. . . . There is not time for the children to become acquainted with the material. (5: 28)

In place of such an encyclopedia of trades, modern progressive kindergartens organize their activitives around a few large projects, such as a large playhouse, a grocery store, or a dry-goods store. In speaking of these Miss Temple says:

The accompanying photographs illustrate the objective expression of group projects which have proved most valuable as a means of holding interest and organizing activity for relatively long periods of time; say, five or six weeks.

Playhouse. The playhouse (shown in the pictures on pages. 16, 122, and 123), as the center of housekeeping plays, supplies motive for building necessary furniture, for making bedding, table furnishings, kitchen utensils, and window curtains. The objects to be made are so familiar that the children have definite ideas to start with, and, given some suggestion and suitable material, they are able to work with relative independence. The intense interest in the project stimulates the children to put forth their best efforts in planning and in making the necessary objects. The variety of things needed calls for the use of a variety of materials, and the objects made must stand the test of use in play. The children are thus enabled to judge their own products.

The grocery store. - The building and equipping of a grocery store like that shown on page 127 is a project still richer in possibilities. It necessitates excursions to the store to learn how and with what it is stocked. It calls for a quantity and variety of provisions. It suggests dramatic plays of buying and selling, and its relation to the home (represented by the playhouse) is expressed

through these plays. Wagons and baskets need to be constructed to deliver the groceries satisfactorily, and the buyers need pocketbooks and money to pay for them.

Community buildings. The groups of community buildings represented on pages 124 and 129 are the objective expression of community needs and relationships. They show many houses, a school, a church, some stores and shops, the street, street lights, automobiles, etc. (5: 36-37)

KINDERGARTEN PROJECT-GROCERY STORE

Constructed from light fruit boxes covered with paper. From the Myra Bradwell School, Chicago. Similar stores are often constructed of large building blocks

Real relations of social activities appear in large kindergarten projects. It is clear from these descriptions that Froebel's fundamental idea of familiarizing children through play with home and community activities is not neglected by this project method of organizing kindergarten activities. On the contrary, the descriptions show that these projects provide the most vivid kind of active experiences with typical social activities in very real and natural relations to each other.

Values of large topics or projects summarized. Thus by examples from geography, history, and kindergarten activities we have illustrated the tendency to discard the

encyclopedic organization of subject matter and to substitute the organization around a few large topics, each of which becomes a large project in which the pupils center a great variety of activities for several days or weeks. In each case the value of this type of organization was commented on. These values may now be summarized as follows:

The intensive study of large topics as projects results in 1. Vivid impressions by the pupils of important topics; for example, of old Roman life, of lumbering, of irrigation. 2. Better understanding of important relations; for example, between stores and homes, or natural resources and industries. 3. Training in gathering and organizing material for large enterprises; for example, for a store or a play.

4. Training in using general ideas in interpreting new situations; for example, in studying a new country in geography.

5. A permanent memory of useful general impressions, ideas, and methods of work which may be used by the pupils in after life.

The memory element mentioned in paragraph number 5 was not discussed in connection with the examples. Hence we shall consider it further at this point.

Project method focalizes large issues and impressions to be remembered. It is commonly said that nine tenths of what we learn in school is forgotten. This is probably true. Therefore it is especially important that some method be adopted that will assure that the one tenth that is remembered is worth remembering. As long as encyclopedic, unrelated, unorganized details are taught, the part that will be remembered depends largely on chance. On the other hand, if large fundamental issues are emphasized, and the details so selected as to bring these large issues to a clear focus, we may feel reasonably sure that these will be the parts that will be remembered.

Many details necessary to make general issue real. There may be just as many details in the project method as

in the encyclopedic method, but their character and purpose is different. For example, when fourth-grade children spend their history periods for two or three weeks on "Horatius at the Bridge," scores of details of Roman life are brought out. But these details all fit into the general picture that is being created in their minds of Rome in "the brave days of old," when "Romans were like brothers," when

none was for a

party," but "all were for the state." Similarly, a few weeks later, when many hours are spent in studying Cæsar, the details serve to give a vivid lasting impression of Roman life in Cæsar's day and of the personality and achievements of one of the greatest figures in history.

Scattered encyclopedic details do not support a general meaning. Thus we see that the details used in the intensive study of large topics are carefully selected and arranged for the purpose of contributing to the better understanding of these general topics. The details may be spoken of as supporting the general principle, fact, or impression. Thus

they make the matter under consideration meaningful — they fill it with meaning. In the encyclopedic treatment of many topics, on the other hand, we find thousands of details that are more or less isolated in character. They do not contribute to form a general impression or general idea, but often seem to be all on the same dead level of insignificance.

Details to be forgotten; general meaning remembered. — In the intensive study of large topics, while the details are necessary to build up the general impression or meaning, they do not constitute this meaning. For example, the details of dress, of action, of enunciation, etc. used in dramatizing the Horatius incident help at the time to give the impressions of Roman plebeians and patricians united in the defense of Rome. But this general idea does not consist of these details. Long after these are forgotten the general idea may persist and be used in thinking about other plebeian and patrician situations, such as the Bolsheviki fighting against the bourgeoisie of Russia in 1917 instead of uniting with them against the common enemy. Once the details have served their purpose of building up a vivid general impression or meaning they may be forgotten, and many probably should be forgotten for purposes of mental economy. The general meanings or ideas or impressions should remain permanently, however, for use in later experiences. They constitute the important permanent products resulting from the organization of subject matter in terms of large topics or projects, which is the first principle of organizing subject matter to be discussed in this chapter.

Limitations of project organization. The project method of organizing subject matter has been illustrated in the above discussion with examples from geography, history, and kindergarten activities. Examples could also be given from the teaching of English, nature study, and manual training. In these subjects much of the material (though not all) may be easily arranged under large project headings. In some