APT Pgs. 3-4, 1911
American Primary Teacher pages 3 and 4, but page 3 is pretty full. So, I suppose, let's get started.
“Defective School Children.” (?!)
A first glance at this title quite ruffled my feathers, I have to admit. I mean, couldn’t there have been a slightly less cold way of putting it?
Text for easier reading:
The enormous number of defective school children should not alarm us too greatly. Bad as it all is, there is plenty of evidence that it is an old, old phenomenon—as old, indeed, as man himself—but now more evident because there are more people. It is less in rural districts, though still present, and as the population is now largely urban, it is quite natural that the proportion of defectives should increase, though as a matter of fact there is no evidence that it has. Big cities are modern affairs, and that is why their phenomena are being discovered, but the accounts of London some centuries ago showed a deplorable number of defectives, probably far greater in proportion than in New York now. Though it is appalling that there should be nearly a quarter million diseased school children, yet the defects are of minor things, while formerly they were severe. The seat of most of the trouble is said to be malnutrition, but it is not nearly so bad as in European cities of the last century. That is, the new facts must not cause undue pessimism, but rather the reverse, for they show that though there is an immense preventative work ahead of us, the progress made in a century or even a half century has been enormous. Optimism is in place, even if we are sure that perfection is unattainable. Moreover, our preventative work is rapidly becoming more and more efficient now that we are learning the exact conditions and their causes. —From American Medicine.
Gosh. I don’t know what’s more bothersome—the term “defective” when referring to children or the fact this little article was submitted by “American Medicine.” The Journal of American Medicine?
“Get A Transfer.”
If you are on the Gloomy Line,
Get a transfer.If you're inclined to fret and pine,
Get a transfer.Get off the track of Doubt and Gloom.
Get on the Sunshine Train, there's room.
Get a transfer.If you are on the Worry Train,
Get a transfer.You must not stay there and complain.
Get a transfer.The Cheerful Cars are passing through,
And there is lots of room for you.
Get a transfer.If you are on the Grouchy Track,
Just take a Special back.
Get a transfer.Jump on the train and pull the rope
That lands you at the station, Hope.
Get a transfer.--Ladies' Home Journal
“Robert Fulton as a Lad.”
Safe to assume that the Robert Fulton referenced in this story is the Robert Fulton who grew into quite an accomplished man. According to Britannica, he was an “American inventor, engineer, and artist who brought steamboating from the experimental stage to commercial success. He also designed a system of inland waterways, a submarine, and a steam warship.”
It makes me think of the kids in my own classes who were always giving the teachers trouble. The teachers, then, would get onto them about “growing up” and “taking responsibility” and “you’ll never be anything if you don’t set your mind to it," etc.
I believe one of the great mistakes in all of education is simply that not all the different methods of learning are offered to children. I recognize offering all those methods would be a financial undertaking, but if you take the money completely wasted on other non-important issues and put it towards the education of our kids, what a fine thing that would be!
There are several anecdotes which relate to Robert Fulton's early interest in mechanics--the first step of progress toward his later skill. In 1773, when he was eight years old, his mother, having previously taught him to read and write, sent him to a school kept by Mr. Caleb Johnson, a Quaker gentleman of pronounced Tory principles--so pronounced, in fact, that he narrowly escaped with his life during the revolution. But Robert Fulton did not care for books, and he began at a very early age to search for problems never mastered and bound in print. This greatly distressed the Quaker teacher, who spared not the rod; and it is said that in administering such discipline on the hand of Robert Fulton, he one day testily exclaimed, "There, that will make you do something!" To which Robert, with folded arms, replied: "Sir, I came to have something beaten into my brains, and not into my knuckles." Without doubt he was a trial to his teacher.
He entered school one day very late, and when the master inquired the reason, Robert, with frank interest, replied that he had been at Nicholas Miller's shop pounding out lead for a pencil. "It is the very best I ever had, sir," he affirmed, as he displayed his product. The master, after an examination of the pencil, pronounced it excellent. When Robert's mother, who had been distressed by his lack of application to his studies, expressed to his teacher her pleasure at signs of improvement, the latter confided to her that Robert had said to him: "My head is so full of original notices that there is no vacant chamber to stow away the contents of dusty books."
These incidents to the contrary. It is nevertheless true that Robert Fulton did absorb a good knowledge of the rudiments of education. --The Century.
*Check out his Nautilus Submarine here.
“Advises Boys and Girls to Paint.”
In a practical talk on landscape painting for boys and girls, in the Woman's Home Companion, the author says:--
If you wish to discover the real beauty of the out of doors, learn to paint. Even though you do not yet draw very well, you may still attempt to work in color, and may learn drawing and painting in the same picture. If you can get the shapes of objects fairly well, and can set them down in their relative proportions, that will do for a beginning.
"You may use water-colors, pastels or oils. Oils are by far the best. The great pictures of the world have been done in oils. It is the best medium for students to use, because it requires large and direct handling; faults are more readily seen, and if you can use oils well, you can paint in other mediums without much trouble.
"If you can study with a good landscape teacher, by all means do so. If that is not possible, there is still much that you can do by yourself, for nature is the great teacher, and everyone who wants to paint well goes constantly to nature. Go out in the fields, and look and look, and then, with the best skill you have, put down what you see. Every time you look and study, you will paint better for it, and every time you paint, trying carefully to reproduce on your canvas the shapes and colors of nature, you will see more and better."
And if you’d like to see some inspiring art today, you can visit one or all of these stacks:
who shares with us her beautiful work of drawings and paintings; shows us well-known and sometimes not so well-known pieces accompanied by some background and history of the piece as well as their creator; and shares biographies of historical artists and writers.
“Read Irving.”
You will do well to allow yourselves to become really familiar with Irving's warm, wise humor, his easy culture, and his delightful style, so flexible and full of color, flowing as freely and naturally as a noble stream.
The book I am thinking of in particular is his "Life of Mahomet." In which is related the history of that strange genius, founder of one of the great world religions: an Arab born in poverty, left an orphan at an early age, with not a friend but a faithful [B]lack woman, and who yet managed to become one of the forces that have made an immense portion of humanity what it is to-day, who created an empire, and whose book, the "Koran." is to-day read and believed as the living truth by millions.
Certainly there are exciting possibilities in a life like that, and Irving has made his story of this amazing man, and of the times and the conditions amid which he lived, as thrilling as you have a right to expect.
If you’d like to read a bit about Washington Irving yourself, here’s the Bing search. 😊
And finally, we have reached the end… of page 3. 😅
“A LOVING CHILD.”
An attempt at a bit of humor.
Pupil (to schoolmaster)—"Sir, would you mind taking great care how you draw up my report? My parents suffer dreadfully from nerves."—Fliegende Blaetter.
Stranger—"Boy, will you direct me to the nearest bank?"
Street Gamin—"I will for a quarter."
Stranger—"A quarter! Isn't that too much?"
Street Gamin—"Bank directors always get big pay, mister.""Eddie, I want the lawn thoroughly watered this evening. Exceptionally well, understand."
"Yes, dad."
"In fact, you might even try to get as much water on the grass as you do on yourself."
Well, I did at least learn what a “gamin” is. 👍
I know today’s was super long—thanks for reading!!
God bless.
Such an interesting essay, Celena. Thank you! And for the Beyond Bloomsbury mention. It’s truly appreciated! 💕
Thank you so very much for the kind shout out! I am honored to be mentioned here❤️. This was very interesting and informative, especially the part about trying to fit all kids into the same educational mold. Brilliance takes many forms, as you proved! And I agree about nature being an excellent art teacher if one will only take the time to look and look again. Thank you for a very interesting and thought provoking article.