son.

After a month's careful study of

Get

possible done to develop him. the case, I made up my mind that I must get down to him. down upon the floor, get down where the child is, right down there. If he knows anything, it is down there. You must take hold of the slightest thing in your favor. Day after day, for an hour at a time, for three months, I took a book and read aloud to that boy-intelligently, as if he understood every word I said, adapting the intonations as if I were reading to an intelligent perWhen mothers talk to their little babes, telling them little goo-goo" stories, what is the effect? The bright child wakes up by and by to this pleasant voice in the ear. And so it might be with this unfortunate boy here. And so it was. He finally heard this voice that was ringing around him in a musical tone month after month, and one day when I came and simply sat in a chair and read to myself, I looked to one side to see if he missed me, and the child actually appeared uneasy. Imagining that he missed me, I lay down on the floor beside him as usual saying, "Oh, you want me, Sylvanus? Well, I am here." He breathed a soft "Ah." I had planted the first want. He wanted me and he wanted me there. He had felt my influence there. I was too far off in the chair. So I read to him two or three months more. Then, instead of reading aloud, I read to myself one day. After a long time, I saw he was trying to do something. I watched him. Gradually he lifted his finger and laid it on my lips. "Oh, you want me to read to you, do you?" And so I read. Another want had been implanted. I read to him every day, letting him always have the privilege of opening my lips. At last he smiled -the first smile of recognition that ever came over that unfortunate child's features. It was enough to pay me ten thousand times over for all I had done for him. "If we can redeem one," I said to Dr. Howe, "we will redeem them all over the country. We will open the door so wide that every state shall pass an act to found an institute for these unfortunates, and every intelligent being shall feel that it is a privilege to enter into this great work." This boy, step by step, went on. Finally, I could take him up and have him where I pleased. He was near me, we were

one.

He felt it and I knew it. He was glad to be taken up. The training went on until one day I found he could move his limbs. I put him on his hands and knees to teach him to creep. This was nearly a year and a half after he came into the institu

tion. As I placed him there, I said, "I wonder if I can help him to talk." He had not talked any. I said to him, "Now move this hand; that is right. Now the other, that is a good boy; now this leg, that is right, now the other, that is a good boy," guiding them as I spoke. I did this every day for months, till finally, I found he was trying to do it himself between the drills. After a while I thought I saw his lips moving as he did it. Putting down my ear very close, I found he was talking. He was whispering to himself, "Now move this hand, that is right. Now the other, that is a good boy. Now move this leg, that is right. Now the other, that is a good boy." He had heard me talk in such a way, and it aroused him to talk.

We went on. Object lessons came in. He must go down to the shoemakers every day to see the shoemaker make him a pair of shoes. "What are these, Sylvanus ?" we would ask, and he would say "shoes." "Who made them?" "Shoemaker." "What is this?" "Bread." "Who made it?" "Betsey" (the girl). And so the object lessons had a connection in his mind. One day I showed him an apple. "What is that?" "Apple." He had picked them up on the ground: "Who made it?" "Don't know." "Didn't the shoemaker?" "No." "Didn't Betsey?" "No." It was time to give him another lesson.

I took him up stairs one morning to an east window, to see the sun rise. "What is that, Sylvanus? Say sun." "Sun," he repeated. "Who made it, Sylvanus? Say God." "God,' he repeated. I left him there and went down stairs. When breakfast was ready I sent the nurse for him. When I came to

the school-room, there was this little boy. He had crept up to the window and was talking to another boy. "What is that, Charley? Say sun, Charley." "Who made it? Say God, Charley." Calling up one child after another, and going through his brief lesson,-"What is that? Say sun. Who made it? Say God." He was the best teacher I ever had.

That is the way; you must take the class before you, and not always thrust yourself in. Some days after, in my object lessons, I took up the apple. "Who made it?" I asked of the children. All were silent but Sylvanus. He looked up as if he had a thought. "What do you think, Sylvanus?" I asked. "God" was the reply. He made the connection. Remember, this was the little child who, when eight and a half years old, lay upon the floor, and could not recognize a thing about him.

One day Sylvanus saw a mother come in and take up another child and try a jacket on him. Sylvanus looked up in my face He wanted a mother. Yes,

and asked, "Have I a mother?" we all want mothers; and this little boy wanted one too. I told him he had a mother. He said that he wanted to see her. So she came one day; and when she came into the room, she looked all around, and said "Where is Sylvanus ? When he heard his name, he answered, "Here I am: is that my mother? Oh mother, And there was joy in heaven over one

I am so glad to see you."

soul that was redeemed.

ST. VALENTINE BUSY WORK.

This room of little first year childern, had been working for two or three weeks getting ready for St. Valentine's day. They had prepared a great many valentines, and on this particular afternoon, these were to be distributed.

The busy work during this intervening time had been on hearts, hands, booklets, and envelopes. By use of the hectograph, the teacher had outined hearts and hands three and four inches long which the children cut out with scissors. The teacher put a spray of blue forget-me-nots with green leaves on the board, and with the colored pencils, the children did the same on the hearts, and these words with colored pencils were printed or written irregularly below—

"With this little heart of mine,

I send to you a valentine."

Sometimes two hearts were tied together with the tiniest pink or blue bow of baby ribbon. The teacher furnished the ribbon but the children made the tiny holes and tied the bows.

The little paper hands and some pretty colored baby ribbon put through small perforations across the wrist, and on these hands were also printed or written with a colored pencil,

"With this little hand of mine,

I send to you a valentine."

Sometimes there was a tiny spray of forget-me-nots on the hand or across the wrist.

The little booklets had a spray of some kind on the outer leaf and a heart or hand sewed or drawn on the one inside. The two leaves were tied together in two places with a bit of bright cord

or ribbon. Rulers had been used to get the books just right, and to make sure that the holes through which the cords were put, were exactly the same distance from the back, and the same from top and bottom.

The work would have been more artistic probably, if the children had used water colors. But these have not been given to the pupils, so colored pencils were used instead.

On the afternoon of St. Valentine's day the box was opened. Each child had put one valentine in the box addressed to his own mother, and one to any other child to whom he wished to send some little memento. Those children who would otherwise not have received anything, were provided for by the teacher out of the stock of hands and hearts and booklets that the children had made in the mean time and were not already addressed to some

It is needless to add that the pleasure derived from the St. Valentine part of the afternoon was not greater than the pleasure the children had derived from making their own little valentines.

It seems unnecessary to note at any length some of the valuable features connected with this particular observance of St. Valentine's day. The children understood just as clearly as children usually understand this particular holiday, and in addition had felt a personal interest in their particular celebration because of the fact that all the valentines and many of the envelopes they had themselves made during the school hours. It is also unnecessary to speak to any primary teacher of the value of the work with the hands in connection with the other school work. These children had used rulers and scissors and colored pencils in the most careful and exact way. No piece of work when done was allowed to show any finger marks, poor cutting with scissors, or dauby work with the pencils. If a child could not do this work at his first attempt, he was given another trial until the little article which he had made was perfectly clean and accurate.

The time has gone by when it is necessary to explain and to urge upon primary teachers the exceedingly high value of the work with the eyes and hands as reinforcing the other work of the school. It is just as unnecessary to say this, that the children find their greatest interest in all kinds of holidays and amusements that have a meaning to them outside of school work. The good primary teacher is the one who takes advantage of all these things and weaves them into the different phases of the work in school.

GRUBE METHOD-PRO AND CON.

The "Grube Method" of teaching number, brought with it some of the best notions of education that had, before its time, found their way into other phases of school work. First, it insists that children shall work with objects, that the meaningless work with figures is not truly educative work. Second, it insists that the child shall deal first with the smallest numbers, beginning with 1 and 2. Third, it says the child shall master all the possible relations in each of these numbers, that he is able to comprehend. Fourth, it insists that all four of the fundamental processes shall be taught with each number from the beginning.

These four are the ideas of number work that are usually in mind when it is spoken of as the "Grube Method."

It is not the purpose at this time to speak of the favorable features of this way of considering the number work. That it has many, is gladly conceded. But let us look at the other side.

In regard to the first idea, that children should see their number in connection with objects, very few will object. But there is also this idea, that the true idea of number involves measurement, and while in 6 apples the child sees 2 three apples, he should also see some of the exact units of measure that are everywhere used. That is, the child should work with the foot, the inch, the yard and the rod; the pint and gallon; dollars and cents and other units. These are units of measure that have a value in this outer world of society in which the child finds his larger self. So while a certain amount of time should be spent on seeing such measurements, as there are 2 three apples in 6 apples, by far the greater amount of time should be spent in seeing similar relations that have a practical value outside of the school room. The child can see there are 2 three inches in a 6 inch line; 3 four inches in a 12 inch line; 2 pints in 1 quart; 9 square feet in a square yard; and 27 cubic inches in a pile of blocks 3 inches each way. This does not mean that measurements using all sorts of common objects should not be used, but that they have been too exclusively used.

The second idea stated is, that the child should deal first with the smallest numbers beginning with 1 and 2 and probably reaching as high as 10 (or a little beyond) the first year of school.