Teachers' training includes subject matter, general skills, devices, principles. The study of this book provides only a small part of the training which a teacher needs. The preparation of a teacher is a complex task and should include thorough training in each of the following:

1. The subject matter which she is to teach; for example, a teacher in the middle grades should have in her normal-school course a thorough study of the geography of North America and similar thorough courses dealing with the other subjects of the intermediate grades.

2. Certain general habits and skills; for example, a primary teacher needs to be skilled in handwriting, in blackboard drawing, in some forms of constructive work, such as weaving or modeling, in adding and subtracting numbers, and in using good English.

3. The use of hundreds of specific devices, such as games for teaching phonics in the primary grades, methods of teaching the use of decimal fractions in the intermediate grades, etc.

4. Understanding and applying the general principles of method, such as the principle that drills are made effective by securing zest and concentration of attention or the principle that new ideas must be related to a child's past experience in order that he may understand them.

This book explains principles illustrated by devices. This book is not concerned with numbers 1 and 2 above, namely, a mastery of subject matter and general skills. It is concerned primarily with number 4, namely, the general principles of method. In order that the reader may secure a working understanding of these principles, however, it is necessary to indicate how they are actually carried out in practice. Consequently, all principles are illustrated by examples and devices, generally from real teaching situations. Skill in teaching usually involves the use of such specific devices as are noted in paragraph 3, above, but in order

that a teacher may know which devices and practices are correct and which ones are harmful it is necessary that she understand the principles of method. These principles will enable her to judge of the correctness or validity of devices which are suggested to her and may also start her on the right road to the invention of valuable original devices which she may use in her particular work.

Main topics to be discussed. The principal topics which will be taken up are the following:

Part I. Fundamental Points of View

I. Artistic teaching.

II. The broadening purposes of elementary-school teaching,the change from religious salvation to complete living as the aim of elementary education.

III. Economy in classroom management, - applying principles of scientific business management.

IV. Selecting subject matter, choosing the most valuable material to meet the social needs of to-day.

V. Organizing subject matter, avoiding meaningless encyclopedic details and organizing subjects as children learn them most readily.

Part II. Learning Processes; General Aspects

VI. How children learn - through their own responses and efforts.

VII. Building on pupils' past experiences.

VIII. Putting pupils in a favorable frame of mind.

IX. Utilizing children's active interests in order to secure concentrated attention and economy in learning.

X. Drill, the use of ready-made scientific drill systems to secure interesting economical learning by repetition. XI. Individual differences, — adapting class instruction to differences in capacity so that the fast pupils will not loaf or the slow ones be dragged so fast that they fail to learn.

TEACHING AS A FINE ART ILLUSTRATED BY FIFTH-GRADE CONSTRUCTION PROJECT

See complete story of this picture on opposite page

The above outline does not include all the principles of method in teaching, but only some of the most important general aspects of method. There remain, moreover, many special methods, such as teaching children to write, to spell, to read, to solve problems, to behave morally, etc., which must be postponed for future discussion.

Observations of teaching should supplement study of the text. The study of this text will prove much more profitable to the students if they can observe teaching which illustrates the principles set forth and discuss the observed teaching in class. Hence it is recommended that the instructor of the course in methods of teaching arrange for the students to observe excellent lessons which illustrate the specific phases of teaching under discussion at the time.

Story of the picture on opposite page. The castle and fortified town shown in the picture on the opposite page were constructed out of cardboard by a fifth-grade class which was studying the Feudal Age in European history. The children had read the King Arthur and other stories, as well as descriptions of the life in town and castle. On the basis of this reading, they planned an imaginary medieval town and castle as shown in the drawings on the blackboard. They then constructed the walls and buildings from cardboard coated with a preparation of flour and salt to resemble stone. Certain parts were colored with coffee, water colors, etc.

The fortified town shown on the left contained one building for each type of craftsman or merchant,- the tailor, the metal worker, the importer of baled goods, etc. In the public square was shown a medieval fair. The crowded condition of a medieval town was brought out by the narrow streets and overhanging second stories of the houses. On the right is the castle of the baron who was lord of the region. Between the town and the castle are the feudal lands, owned by the baron, and cultivated in strips according to medieval practices.

Too small to be seen in the picture is a procession of knights proceeding from the castle to the town to attend the fair. On the

blackboard in the left-center are sketches of historical costumes in which the little dolls representing the characters were dressed.

The next fifth-grade class which worked on this project constructed a historical castle instead of an imaginary one. They chose the castle of Kenilworth and from books of travel, encyclopedias, etc. obtained the details for its construction. Later they wrote a play centering in a visit of Queen Elizabeth to Kenilworth and the return of Drake from one of his voyages. As a piece of coöperative work in English the class wrote the following poem concerning their work:

OUR CASTLE IN THE SAND-PAN
Within our sand-pan straight and long,
We've built an ancient castle strong;
It has some battlemented towers
That guard the lovely ladies' bowers;
A moat that's deep and wide around,

And green grass growing on the ground.

We now have built a mighty keep,

Also a hall where knights do sleep.

We've built a wall around the grotto

Which we have carved with Leicester's motto.

Our Kenilworth is fair and gay
With banners floating all the day,
For good Queen Bess in royal array
Is coming in her barge this day.
All loyal hearts these means employ,
To show how full they are of joy.

See reference 2 on page 11 for a description of the course of study in which these projects appeared.

The picture illustrates vitalizing and clarifying historical ideas in teaching, as well as the utilization of children's interests in romance and adventure and in manipulation. It is introduced at this point as an example of the fine art of teaching as practiced by a teacher of thorough training, wide experience, and energetic interest in her art.

Incidentally, notice the compact map equipment above the blackboards. About ten maps can be seen hung on rollers like those of window shades.