Ontario Teachers' Manuals: Household Science in Rural Schools Part 6

METHOD OF WORK

Call the pupils together early in the morning or at some time previous to the lesson period, and give them directions for sprinkling the articles to be ironed. When the cla.s.s hour comes, demonstrate the method of ironing, folding, and hanging the articles, and let the pupils take turns in doing the work.

LESSONS XVI AND XVII: CARE OF THE BABY

SUBJECT-MATTER

Because young girls are fond of little children and must help their mothers often with their baby brothers and sisters, they should know how to care for them. It is essential that they should understand the following points: The little body needs protection. The head is soft, and the brain may be injured by hard b.u.mps or pressure. The skin is tender and is easily irritated by the bites of insects, friction, and so on. Kicking and wiggling are necessary to the development of the muscles, but the baby should not be played with all the time; and it is well for it while awake to lie quiet for part of the time. It should not be made to sit up until ready to do so. A desire to creep should be encouraged. Standing or walking should not be taught the baby until it tries to stand or walk itself, and then it must be helped very carefully.

The baby should have plenty of fresh air and should be allowed to spend much of its time out-of-doors. In cold weather it must be warmly covered and sheltered from high winds. Its eyes should always be protected from strong sunlight.

Regular hours should be observed for sleep, and the baby should be put to bed early in the evening. If the house is not well screened in summer, a mosquito bar should be put over the crib. The clothing should be light and loose, so that the body can move freely.

Perfect cleanliness is necessary to keep the baby's skin in good condition; and a daily bath should be given. A morning hour, midway between the meals, is usually the best time for this. The baby should be taught to use the chamber before the bath and after the nap. Everything should be ready before it is undressed. The room should be very warm.

The water should be only moderately warm, and should be carefully tested to make sure that it is not too hot. The towels and covers for the baby should be at hand. The head and the feet should be washed first, and the body soaped before putting the child into the bath. Little soap should be used, for even the best soap is strong and is apt to irritate the delicate skin. The bath should be given quickly, and the body wrapped at once in a blanket or towel and kept covered as much as possible while it is being dried.

The baby should be fed in small quant.i.ties at regular intervals and given plenty of cold water to drink. Not until it is eleven or twelve months of age should it be given solid or semi-solid food. Even then, milk should continue to form the basis of its diet, and of this a considerable quant.i.ty should be used--about a quart a day from the twelfth month on. As the child grows older a more varied diet will be necessary. The most hygienic methods of food preparation should always be observed.

Certain foods should never be given; for example, fried foods, pastries, condiments, pickles, preserves, canned meats, fish, pork, sausage, cheap candies, coa.r.s.e vegetables, unripe and overripe fruits, stimulants, foods treated with a preservative or colouring matter, and half-cooked starches.

PRELIMINARY PLAN

The teacher should talk with the pupils, in order to see what points in connection with the care of the baby it is necessary for them to know, so that they may do their work at home intelligently.

METHOD OF WORK

It will probably not be possible to have anything more than a cla.s.s discussion of the points in question, but the pupils' home experiences ought to make this discussion vital. If there is a nurse in the neighbourhood who can be secured to give one lesson on the care of the baby, the teacher should supplement her own lessons by an additional lesson given by the nurse.

LESSON XVIII: COST OF FOOD, CLOTHING, AND HOUSE

SUBJECT-MATTER

It is of great importance that children should learn in an elementary way the value of property. This will prepare them for the knowledge of the cost of living that is essential. They should learn that the cost of food can be decreased by having gardens, and by the proper choice, care, and handling of foods; that taking care of clothing will reduce another item of expense; and that the owning of one's own house and lot is something worth working for, in order to obviate the necessity of paying rent.

PRELIMINARY PLAN

The teacher will have to acquaint herself thoroughly with conditions in the community, so that she can talk intelligently with the pupils, emphasize the right points, and give constructive help.

METHOD OF WORK

Begin with a discussion of the cost of food; how much the pupils earn or spend during the week; and why it is worth while to cook and sew well and to look after property. Continue such discussions from time to time, in connection with other school work.

LESSON XIX: HOW TO KEEP ACCOUNTS

SUBJECT-MATTER

It is well for every one to keep a written record of all money received and all money spent. Children should be taught to do this as soon as they are old enough to have money in their possession. A simple little note-book in which all expenditures are entered on the right side and all receipts on the left side, with the balance drawn up each week or month, will prove an easy and satisfactory method of keeping accounts.

If the little girl learns to do this with her pennies, she will be better able to take care of the more important household accounts when she is in charge of a home. However, there will be no real incentive for her to keep accounts unless she is endeavouring to save for some good purpose. If she learns to save for the future purchase of a book, a dress, or some little treat, she will feel that her account-keeping is worth while. As a housekeeper, she will appreciate the importance of saving for some future benefit to the family.

PRELIMINARY PLAN

In order to make the lesson of vital interest, introduce it at a time when the pupils are saving for some specific purpose--material for a dress to be made in the sewing cla.s.s, refreshments for a party for their mothers, a school library, or something else that will be a pleasure and help in the work of the school.

METHOD OF WORK

After discussing the sources of income of the pupil and of her family, and the means of increasing and taking care of that income, discuss simple methods of keeping accounts, ill.u.s.trate these on the black-board, show how to balance the accounts, and see that each pupil has a small book suitable for the purpose. It may be necessary to make or to rule this book as a portion of the cla.s.s exercise.

LESSON XX: CARE OF THE EXTERIOR OF THE HOUSE

SUBJECT-MATTER

Closely allied to the housekeeper's work within the home is the care of the exterior of the house and its surroundings. It is absolutely necessary that the grounds be kept neat and clean. In addition to this they should be made attractive by the careful selection of a few trees and shrubs suitably placed. While the gardens at the rear of the house may be planned solely for the pleasure and use of the family, in planning the lawn at the sides and front the neighbours and pa.s.sers-by must be considered. The grounds should be a picture of which the house is the centre, the trees and shrubs being grouped to frame the picture.

In placing shrubs, the effect of the whole landscape should be considered. As a rule, shrubs should be placed in corners, to hide outhouses from view, or to screen other places which should be shielded.

The centre of the lawn should be left free, and in no case should a shrub be placed in the middle of an open s.p.a.ce in a lawn or yard. A few flowers should be planted among the shrubs, to give colour at different seasons.

The exterior of the house must be considered, if the picture framed by the shrubs and vines is to be a pleasing one. The house should be painted in a soft brown or dark green to blend with the landscape of oaks and pines. The paint will help to preserve the house, but its colour must be carefully chosen to give a pleasing effect.

The general plan of the grounds and local conditions in regard to soil and climate will determine to a large extent the kind of shrubs to be used. Many beautiful shrubs which have been introduced from foreign countries do well in Ontario, but our native shrubs serve all decorative purposes. For damp ground there is no better shrub than the red osier dogwood. This shrub will do well on almost any kind of soil. The swamp bush honeysuckle grows quickly and is suitable for clay land; so are the black elderberry and several species of viburnum. The hazel which may be obtained from the woods makes a good dense shrub, and the wild rose also has possibilities. The common barberry is an attractive shrub; but, as it a.s.sists in the formation of wheat rust, it should not be used in rural sections. The lilac may be used where a high shrub is desirable.

The common arbor vitae or cedar of the swamps makes a good evergreen shrub. It serves well as a shield for both winter and summer and thrives with moderate care. The weigela, forsythia, and spiraea are also excellent shrubs.

The ground at the back of the house should be used for vegetable gardens with flower borders. For this purpose a deep, rich soil is necessary, and every square foot of s.p.a.ce should be utilized. Every family should learn to make use of an increased number of vegetables and fruits and to cook them in a variety of ways. No crops should be allowed to go to waste. A family of five people could be entirely provided with vegetables for the summer and autumn from a garden less than fifty by seventy-five feet.

The attractiveness, as well as the usefulness, of the borders depends upon the choice and arrangement of flowers. These should be chosen with due consideration as to height of plants, colour of blooms, and seasons of blooming. The tallest plants should be placed at the back of the border; for a border six feet wide none of the plants need be over five feet in height. There can be a riot of colours, if the flowers are arranged in clumps of four to six throughout the entire length of the border. In a well-planned flower border some flowers should be in bloom each month. Hardy perennial flowers should predominate, with enough annuals to fill up the s.p.a.ces and hide the soil. The well-tried, old-fashioned flowers will give the best satisfaction. Every four years the flower borders need to be spaded, well manured, and replanted.

The following lists of flowers for borders may be suggestive: