The Infant System Part 10

Of all the difficulties I ever had to encounter, to legislate for rewards and punishments, gave me the most trouble. How often have I seen one child laugh at that which would make another child cry. If any department in teaching requires knowledge of character more than another it is this. Many a fine child's spirits are broken through the ignorance of teachers and parents in this particular; but for me to lay down invariable rules to manage every child, would be like a person undertaking to describe a voyage to the moon. Every person's own good sense must decide for them according to character and circ.u.mstances; and as to rewards, the same discrimination must be used. One child will set much value on a little book, whilst another will destroy it in a day; and though the book might be worth the sixpence, a half-penny worth of what they call good stuff would be much more valuable. I have had more business done sometimes for a plum than for a sixpenny book. It is never necessary to give the child badges of distinction, and to allow it as many orders and degrees as an Austrian field-marshal. Crosses at the b.u.t.ton holes, and bits of ribbon on the shoulders are unnecessary; they throw an apple of discord between the young creatures, who have sense enough to see that these things are frequently given away with a wonderous lack of discrimination, and sometimes to please parents more than reward merit. A carraway comfit put into the mouth of an infant will do more good than all the badges of distinction that I have mentioned, as a reward; but with respect to punishment, more will be said on it in my larger work, when we come to treat of National Education. Each creation of the most High is truly wonderful, and worthy of our constant study. We may learn lessons of the truest wisdom from the meanest leaf or insect, if we would regard it as one of His works. But how much more may be learnt, and what an amount of useful instruction may be gained, by a study of the finite mind, the highest work in creation. Many have turned their attention to minerals, plants, and animals, and thus added to our stores of knowledge. If equal attention had been paid to the young mind, to mark the gradual germination of its intellectual and moral powers, how much more accurate would our knowledge be of the proper methods of dealing with it both in instruction, direction, and punishment. Thus to study it has been the aim of my life, and I have made observations on thousands of children. When this great and living book is more constantly read, the contents of this humble volume may have a better chance of being appreciated; and the utter absurdity of many things palmed upon the public for the education of infants made glaringly manifest.

CHAPTER XI.

LANGUAGE.

Means for conveying instruction-Method of teaching the alphabet in connection with objects-Spelling-Reading-Developing lessons-Reading lessons in Natural History-The Arithmeticon-Bra.s.s letters-Their uses.

"Without things, words, acc.u.mulated by misery in the memory, had far better die than drag out a miserable existence in the dark. Without words, theirs stay and support, things unaccountably disappear out of the storehouse, and may be lost for ever; but bind a thing with a word, a strong link, stronger than any steel, and softer than any silk, and the captive remains for ever happy in its bright prison-house."-Wilson.

The senses of children having revealed every object in its true light, they next desire to know its name, and then express their perceptions in words. This you have to gratify, and from the time you tell them the name of an object, it is the representative of the thing in the mind of the child; if the object be not present, but you mention the name, this suggests it to the infant mind. Had this been more frequently thought of by instructors, we should have found them less eager to make the child acquainted with the names of things of which it has no knowledge or perception. Sounds and signs which give rise to no idea in the mind, because the child has never seen or known the things represented, are of no use, and can only burden the memory. It is, therefore, the object of our system to give the children a knowledge of things, and then a knowledge of the words which represent those things. These remarks not only apply to the names of visible things, but more particularly to those which are abstract. If I would say, shew a child a horse, before you tell it the name of the animal, still more would I urge it on the teacher to let a child see what love, kindness, religion, &c. are, before it is told what names to designate those principles by. If our ignorance as to material things be the result of instructing the children in names, instead of enabling them to become acquainted with things, so, on the other hand, I believe we may account, in the same way to some extent, for virtue being so frequently a mere word, an empty sound, amongst men, instead of an active principle.

Our next endeavour is to teach the children to express their thoughts upon things; and if they are not checked by injudicious treatment, they will have some on every subject. We first teach them to express their notions, we then tell them ours, and truth will prevail even in the minds of children. On this plan, it will operate by its own strength, not by the power of coercion, which renders even truth disagreeable and repulsive; the children will adopt it from choice in preference to error, and it will be firmly established in their minds.

It will no doubt be perceived, that for the promotion of the course here recommended, it will be advisable to connect with our alphabetical and reading lessons, as much information as we possibly can. By so doing, the tedium of the task to the child will be considerably lessened, as well as much knowledge attained. The means of doing this in a variety of ways will, no doubt, suggest themselves to the intelligent teacher; but as an ill.u.s.tration of what we mean, the following conversational plan may not be useless.

We have twenty-six cards, and each card has on it one letter of the alphabet, and some object in nature; the first, for instance, has the letter A on the top, and an apple painted on the bottom. The children are desired to go into the gallery, which is formed of seats, one above the other, at one end of the school. The master places himself before the children, so that they can see him, and he them, and being thus situated, proceeds in the following manner:-

A.

Q. Where am I? A. Opposite to us. Q. What is on the right side of me? A. A lady. Q. What is on the left side of me? A. A chair. Q. What is before me? A. A desk. Q. Who is before me? A. We, children. Q. What do I hold up in my hand? A. A letter A.Q. What word begins with A? A. Apple. Q. Which hand do I hold it up with? A. With the right hand. Q. Spell apple.[A] A. A-p-p-l-e. Q. How is an apple produced? A. It grows on a tree. Q. What part of the tree is in the ground? A. The root. Q. What is that which comes out of the ground? A. The stem. Q. When the stem grows up straight, what would you call its position? A. Perpendicular. Q. What are on the stem? A. Branches. Q. What are on the branches? A. Leaves. Q. Of what colour are they? A. Green. Q. Is there any thing else beside leaves on the branches? A. Yes, apples. Q. What was it before it became an apple? A. Blossom. Q. What part of the blossom becomes fruit? A. The inside. Q. What becomes of the leaves of the blossom? A. They fall off the tree. Q. What was it before it became a blossom? A. A bud. Q. What caused the buds to become larger, and produce leaves and blossom? A. The sap. Q. What is sap? A. A juice. Q. How can the sap make the buds larger? A. It comes out of the root, and goes up the stem. Q. What next? A. Through the branches into the buds. Q. What do the buds produce? A. Some buds produce leaves, some blossoms, and some a shoot. Q. What do you mean by a shoot? A. A young branch, which is green at first, but becomes hard by age. Q. What part becomes hard first? A. The bottom.

[Footnote A: It is not supposed that all or many of the children will be able to spell this or many of the subsequent words, or give such answers as we have put down. But some among the older or more acute of them will soon be able to do so, and thus become instructors to the rest. It may be proper to mention also that the information in Natural History, &c. &c., displayed in some of the answers, is the result of the instructions in Natural History which the children simultaneously receive, and which is spoken of in a subsequent chapter. Mr. Golt's simple arrangement of the Alphabet I much approve of, and no doubt it will come into general use.]

B.

Q. What is this? A. The letter B-the first letter in baker, b.u.t.ter, bacon, brewer, b.u.t.ton, bell, &c., &e. [The teacher can take any of these names he pleases, for instance, the first:] Children, let me hear you spell baker. A. B-a-k-e-r. Q. What is a baker? A. A man who makes bread. Q. What is bread made of? A. It is made of flour, water, yeast, and a little salt. Q. What is flour made of? A. Wheat. Q. How is it made? A. Ground to powder in a mill. Q. What makes the mill go round? A. The wind, if it is a windmill. Q. Are there any other kinds of mills? A. Yes; mills that go by water, mills that are drawn round by horses, and mills that go by steam. Q. When the flour and water and yeast are mixed together, what does the baker do? A. Bake them in an oven. Q. What is the use of bread? A. For children to eat. Q. Who causes the corn to grow? A. Almighty G.o.d.

C.

Q. What is this? A. It is letter C, the first letter in cow, c-o-w, and cat, &c. Q. What is the use of the cow? A. The cow gives us milk to put into the tea. Q. Is milk used for any other purpose besides putting it into tea? A. Yes; it is used to put into puddings, and for many other things. Q. Name some of the other things? A. It is used to make b.u.t.ter and cheese. Q. What part of it is made into b.u.t.ter? A. The cream which swims at the top of the milk. Q. How is it made into b.u.t.ter? A. It is put into a thing called a churn, in the shape of a barrel. Q. What is done next? A. The churn is turned round by means of a handle, and the motion turns the cream into b.u.t.ter. Q. What is the use of b.u.t.ter? A. To put on bread, and to put into pie-crust, and many other nice things. Q. Of what colour is b.u.t.ter? A. It is generally yellow. A. Are there any other things made of milk? A. Yes, many things; but the princ.i.p.al one is cheese. Q. How is cheese made? A. The milk is turned into curds and whey, which is done by putting a liquid into it called rennet. Q. What part of the curd and whey is made into cheese? A. The curd, which is put into a press; and when it has been in the press a few days it becomes cheese. Q. Is the flesh of the cow useful? A. Yes; it is eaten, and is called beef; and the flesh of the young calf is called veal. Q. Is the skin of the cow or calf of any use? A. Yes; the skin of the cow or calf of any use? A. Yes; the skin of the cow is manufactured into leather for the soles of shoes. Q. What is made with the calf skin? A. The top of the shoe, which is called the upper-leather. Q. Are there any other parts of the cow that are useful? A. Yes; the horns, which are made into combs, handles of knives, forks, and other things. Q. What is made of the hoofs that come off the cow's feet? A. Glue, to join boards together. Q. Who made the cow? A. Almighty G.o.d.

D.

Q. What is this? A. Letter D, the first letter it dog, dove, draper, &c. Q. What is the use of the dog, A. To guard the house and keep thieves away. Q. How can a dog guard the house and keep thieves away? A. By barking to wake the persons who live in the house. Q. Is the dog of any other use? A. Yes; to draw under a truck. D. Does he do as his master bids him? A. Yes; and knows his master from any other person. Q. Is the dog a faithful animal? A. Yes, very faithful; he has been known to die of grief for the loss of his master. Q. Can you mention an instance of the dog's faithfulness? A. Yes; a dog waited at the gates of the Fleet prison for hours every day for nearly two years, because his master was confined in the prison. Q. Can you mention another instance of the dog's faithfulness? A. Yes; a dog lay down on his master's grave in a churchyard in London for many weeks. Q. How did the dog get food? A. The people who lived near noticed him, and brought him victuals. Q. Did the people do any thing besides giving him victuals A. Yes; they made a house for him for fear he should die with wet and cold. Q. How long did he stay there? A. Until the people took him away, because he howled dreadfully when the organ played on Sundays. Q. Is it right to beat a dog? A. No; it is very wrong to use any animal ill, because we do not like to be beaten ourselves. Q. Did Almighty G.o.d make the dog? A. Yes; and every thing else that has life.

E.

Q. What letter is this? A. E, the first letter in egg. Q. What is the use of an egg? A. It is useful for many purposes; to put into puddings, and to eat by itself. Q. Should country children keep an egg if they find it in the hedge? A. No, it is thieving; they should find out the owner and take it home. Q. Do children ever throw stones at the fowls? A. Yes; but they are mischievous children, and perhaps do not go to school. Q. What ought children to learn by going to school? A. To be kind and good to every body, and every thing that has life.

F.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter F, the first letter in frying-pan, father, &c. Q. Let me hear you spell frying-pan. A. F-r-y-i-n-g-p-a-n. Q. What is the use of the frying-pan? A. To fry meat and pan-cakes. Q. Spell me the names of the different kinds of meat. A. B-e-e-f, p-o-r-k, m-u-t-t-o-n, l-a-m-b, h-a-m, &c. Q. Of what shape are frying-pans? A. Some circular, and some are like an ellipsis.[A] Q. Are there any other utensils into which meat is put that are circular? A. Yes, please, sir, my mother has some circular plates; and, please, sir, my mother has some elliptical dishes. Q. Any thing besides? A. Yes, please, sir, my mother has a circular table; and, please, sir, my mother has a rectangular one, and it is made of deal.

[Footnote A: It may possibly strike some of my readers as strange that a geometrical question should be put in a conversation on the alphabet, but it should be remembered that, according to the Infant School system, language is not taught exclusively, but in connection with number and form;-questions like the above, therefore are calculated to excite their memories, and induce an application of their geometrical knowledge.]

G.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter G, the first letter in goat, good, girl, &c. Q. Spell goat. A. G-o-a-t. Q. What is the use of the goat'? A. In some countries people drink the goat's milk; and the skin is useful to make the upper-leather of shoes. Q. Are goats fond of going into the valleys and low places? A. No; they are fond of going up hills and high places. Q. If a goat is coming down a hill which has only one narrow path merely wide enough for one goat to walk on without falling down, and another goat is coming up the same path, what do they do? A. The goat that is coming up lies down and lets the other goat walk over him. Q. Why does not one of the goats turn round and go back again? A. Because there would not be room, and the one which should try to turn round would fall down and be killed.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter H, the first letter in horse, house, &c. Q. What is the use of the horse? A. To draw carts, coaches, stages, waggons, fire-engines, &c. Q. Spell horse, and cart, and coach. A. H-o-r-s-e, c-a-r-t, c-o-a-c-h. Q. What is the difference between a cart and coach? A. A cart has two wheels, and a coach has four. Q. Tell me some other difference. A. The horses in a cart go before each other, but the horses in a coach go side by side. Q. What is the use of a fire-engine? A. To put the fire out when the house is on fire. Q. Is it right for children to play with the fire? A. No, very wrong; as many children are burnt to death, and many houses burnt down from it. Q. Should the horse be cruelly used? A. No; he should be kindly treated, as he is the most useful animal we have. Q. Who created him? A. Almighty G.o.d.

I.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter I, the first letter in iron, idleness, &c. Q. Spell iron. A. I-r-o-n. Q. What is the use of an iron? A. To iron the clothes after they are washed, and to make them smooth. Q. How do they iron the clothes? A. Make the iron hot, and then work it backwards and forwards on the clothes. Q. Should little children come with clean clothes to school? A. Yes; and clean hands and faces too. Q. Is not iron used for other purposes? A. Oh, yes; for a great many things, as knives, forks, &c.

J.

Q. What is this letter? A. J, the first letter in jug, John, &c. Q. What is the use of the jug? A. To hold water, or beer, or any other liquid. Q. What is a jug made of? A. Of clay, which is worked round into the shape of a jug, and then burnt, and that hardens it. Q. Should children be careful when they are carrying a jug? A. Yes; or else they will let it fall and break it. Q. Then it is necessary for children to be careful? A. Yes, every body should be careful.

K.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter K, the first letter in kite, &c. Q. What is the use of the kite? A. For little children to fly. Please, sir, my big brother has got a kite. Q. What does your brother do with his kite? A. Please, sir, he goes into the fields when he has got time, and flies it. Q. How does he fly it? A. Please, sir, he has got a long string, which he fixes to another called a loop, and then he unwinds the string, and gets some boy to hold it up. Q. What then? A. Please, sir, then he runs against the wind, and the kite goes up. Q. What is the use of the tail of the kite? A. Please, sir, it will not fly without a tail. Q. Why not? A. Please, sir, it goes round and round without a tail, and comes down. Q. Then what do you suppose is the use of the tail? Please, sir, I don't know. Another child will probably supply the answer. Please, sir, to balance it.

L.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter L, the first letter in lion, &c. Q. Spell lion. A. L-i-o-n. Q. What is the size of a full grown lion? A. A full grown lion stands four feet and a half high, and is eight feet long. Q. How high do you stand? A. Please, sir, some of us stand two feet, and none of us above three. Q. Has the lion any particular character among beasts? A. Yes, he is called the king of beasts on account of his great strength. Q. When he seizes his prey, how far can he leap? A. To the distance of twenty feet. Q. Describe some other particulars concerning the lion. A. The lion has a s.h.a.ggy mane, which the lioness has not. Q. What other particulars? A. The lion's roar is so loud that other animals run away when they hear it. Q. Where are lions found? A. In most hot countries: the largest are found in Asia and Africa.

M.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter M, the first letter in Monday, mouse, &c. Q. What is the use of the mouse? A. To make the servants diligent and put the things out of the way. Q. How can mice make servants diligent? A. If people do not put their candles in a proper place the mice will gnaw them. Q. Are mice of any other service? A. Please, sir, if the mice did not make a smell, some people would never clean their cupboards out.[A]

[Footnote A: This answer was given by a child four years old; and immediately afterwards another child called out, "Please, sir, if it were not for bugs, some people would not clean their bedsteads."]

N.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter N, the first letter in nut, &c. Q. What is a nut? A. A thing that is hard, and it grows on a tree. Q. What shape is it? A. Something in the shape of a marble. Q. How can it be eaten, if it is like a marble? A. Please, air, it is the kernel that we eat. Q. flow are nuts produced? A. They grow on trees.

O.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter O, the first letter in orange. Q. Of what colour is an orange? A. An orange is green at first, but afterwards becomes of a colour called orange-red. Q. Do they grow in the ground like potatoes? A. No, they grow on trees like apples. Q. Can you tell me anything in the shape of an orange? A. Yes, the earth on which we live is nearly of that shape. Q. On what part of the earth do we live? A. The surface. Q. What do you mean by the surface? A. The outside. Q. Who formed the earth, and preserves it in its proper motions? A. Almighty G.o.d.

P.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter P, the first letter in pig, plum-pudding, &c. Q. What is the use of the pig? A. Its flesh is eaten, and is called pork. Q. What is the use of the hair or bristles? A. To make brushes or brooms. Q. What is the use of a brush? A. Some brushes are to brush the clothes, and others to brush the dirt out of the corners of the room. Q. Does a good servant ever leave the dirt in the corners? A. No, never; a good servant or any clean little girl would be ashamed of it.

Q.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter Q, the first letter in quill, &c. Q. How are quills produced? A. From the wings of geese and other large birds. Q. What is the use of the quill? A. To form into pens and many other things. Q. What is the use of the pen? A. To dip into ink and write with it. Q. What do you write upon? A. Paper. Q. What is paper made of? A. Rags.

R.

Q. What letter is this? A. Letter R, the first letter in rabbit, &c. Q. What is the use of the rabbit? A. The flesh of the rabbit is eaten, and is very nice. Q. What does the rabbit eat? A. Corn, gra.s.s, cabbage-leaves, and many different herbs. Q. What is the use of the skin? A. To make hats, and to trim boys' caps. Q. Are they very numerous? A. They are to be found in almost all countries.

S.