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will help many a forgetful writer to spell Georgiana and Llewellyn correctly. In the list of Fictitious Names one can find all he need know about Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, for instance; and in the list of Abbreviations are included some recent ones not found in other lists of this sort, such as L.H.D. The Biographical Dictionary is up to date, and printed accurately. There are several thousand woodcuts, and though they are all not new, and cannot be said to be up to the best standing of artistic engraving, they are all of use, and many of them are great improvements over the ones they supplant; as an instance of the intelligibility they lend to a subject, see page 1952, Manual of Arms. The printing and binding, being the work of the Riverside Press, are of course well done; the paper is of good quality. Take it all in all, the International Dictionary is a worthy successor of what was the best dictionary of its time. It reflects credit alike on editors, writers, and printers. It should be in the hands of everyone who uses a dictionary; and the men and women who use a dictionary the most frequently will be the ones who will prize the International most highly. It is emphatically a dictionary for dictionary users.- Christian Union.

Reading.

BY LILLIAN H. PICKEN, EURFKA, KANSAS.

The difficult part in teaching any subject may perhaps be stated as the presentation of its bones. An inventive mind may evolve sparks of illustration and illuminate its instruction with flashes of inspiration, but a teacher is the teacher who can keep a steady glow of patience and interest in the souls of his pupils while they acquire a vocabulary, learn the multiplication table, assimilate compound numbers, and commit the declensions of the Latin.

The teacher who finds a pupil of his "first," 'second," or "fourth reader class," floundering through despairing pages, delivering unmeaning words by intermittent jerks, anon attacking their characters in a courageous attempt to "spell it out," should check his methods suddenly. He has begun at the wrong end, where the radical mistakes are made. First. In assigning too long lessons.

Second. In attempting to read aloud before the child knows all the words of that lesson at sight.

Third. In not testing the pupil's assimilation of words.

Fourth. In leaving the pupil dependent, by omitting to teach the spelling by letter and by sound of all the words used in an assigned lesson. Fifth. In not teaching phrasing by rhetorical pauses.

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Sixth. By reading the lesson aloud in too early a stage of its prepara

tion.

Seventh. In attempting difficult or stupid subject-matter.

A few remedies are suggested.

First. Assign very short lessons, and prepare special plans for the pupil's work in studying them.

Second. Elementary work in reading demands that two-thirds the time and effort in both preparation and recitation shall be spent in acquiring the vocabulary.

Whole recitation periods should be given to this work. In many readers the new words are placed at the head of the lesson. These may be acquired at sight in careful concert drills. If any pupil can pronounce a word, allow him the privilege. Teacher or pupil may give a question suggesting it. As:

"What do we dig from the earth and burn for its heat?"

"What kind of boy was cross to his sister and told a story to his mother?"

"What did father plant in the garden, Elmer hoe and dig, and mother mash and stir to a feathery white for your breakfast?"

Next commence at the end of the lesson and give spirited drills in pronouncing toward the beginning; children call it "reading backward."

Use both individual and concert exercises until pupils are familiar at sight with all the words of your short lesson. Let them pronounce from book and from blackboard, and write them until they recognize the forms of these words anywhere. In concert pronunciation do not allow harsh tones, drawling voices, and slovenly articulation. Insist upon wellmodulated tones, prompt delivery, and distinct enunciation. Criticise the volume of voice until it is full, clear, and pleasing-never loud and abrupt. A well conducted concert exercise is helpful and attractive, while a careless one is an injury to those who participate in and a distress to those who witness it.

Third. The teacher should test the child's comprehension of the words he uses. He may give any synonym he knows and bring from the dictionary one he did not know. He may use the word in short oral and written sentences. He may supply it when teacher or pupil reads a sentence and omits it. He may write a short paragraph using a word and its synonym. He should at all times use the word promptly and intelligently.

Fourth. It is extremely helpful to the pupil and tends toward independent work if he be taught to spell all the words in these short lessons both by letter and by sound. The ultimate gain more than compensates the time expended.

Fifth. From the earliest beginnings pupils should be instructed to read words in groups. The egg' is' in the nest. Lois and Jack' have bought'

a new ball. The horse' and the cow' are' in the field.

These groups

may be set off by slight rhetorical pauses which are marked by tiny rests. These rhetorical pauses should also be marked where special emphasis is required, or where there is a tendency to slight the articulation. The youngest pupils may be taught to mark these slight pauses, and thus "phrase" their reading.

Sixth. Let the formal reading of the lesson be the last thing attempted. Previous to this the pupil should be encouraged to gather all he can by silent study, and to express in his own words the ideas he has gained from it. Reading the lesson should be the crowing effort in all this preparation. Each pupil should be allowed to express a portion of the lesson, and the class may be questioned upon their ideas of the delivery and the best forms of expression. Later, let each individual read the

whole of this lesson in his best style.

Lastly, it may be taken up as a concert exercise and carefully rendered in well-modulated tones. The pupils may then reproduce, in oral or written form, their ideas of the lesson, and these reproductions may, in their turn, be used in recitation. A review lesson should be made of several of these short assignments, and pupils be called upon to read them at sight.

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Seventh. Difficult and stupid selections should be avoided. necessary that a child should read any book "through" in school. The brightest and most interesting numbers may be chosen, and particular prominence given to conversational lessons. Supplementary matter may be supplied from stories cut up and distributed among the class, each pupil preparing a separate paragraph. This exercise is a pleasant diversion from the regular work.

The busy, careworn teacher protests, "I have so much on my programme that I cannot find place for all this." Answer to your conscience this question: Have I not already wasted months and years of the time of these children in dragging them over unintelligible lessons and putting them "through reading books?" Emphasize the idea that not quantity, but quality is the proper object of your efforts. You will then recognize the true growth of the pupil, even though his advancement, when measured upon the printed leaf, may show but a few square inches instead of the dozen pages heretofore held to be the essential outcome of a given number of recitations.

If the power to read intelligently is to be acquired by any pupil, it must, unless he is especially gifted, be the product of painstaking effort, and the result of what he has assimilated through such effort under the guidance of his earnest teachers.

How many acceptable readers are there in your classes? How many in your circle of acquaintances?— Western School Journal.

School-Room Decoration.

BY C. A. P.

Everything that adds to the attractiveness of a school-room has an educational value "per se" as well as the general one of supplying pleasant associations to help nail the flag of knowledge to the mast. Now, I am aware that there are two common and certainly reasonable objections to extensive decorations, viz.-time and expense. Both of these are important considerations with teachers, so we will consider how to accomplish our purpose with the least amount of each.

The tinted walls form a pretty back ground and make all decorations effective, but we must bear in mind that the school-room is large, so that whatever we use is not meant for close inspection, consequently must be large also, else its decorative value will be lost.

In every school there are unused or seldom-used maps tucked away in closets or other places. Take them out and hang two or three on the longest walls. They are not very ornamental, but they help to cover the nakedness of the walls, and by their constant presence fix their outlines on the pupils' minds. Then take a piece of board-quadrant-shapeabout a foot in diameter; place it in the most conspicuous corner, resting on the top moulding of the blackboard, and cover with a bright Japanese napkin.

We must have pictures, but they cost a good deal, at least the framing does. But after all it is the pictures we want and not the frames. A good-sized heliotype or etching-print may be bought for fifty cents. The subject should be large and interesting, so that it may be understood at a glance. Then tack together four pieces of lath, which the children will gladly bring, making a frame which is fastened to the back of the picture to give it stability. Paint or ink a wide margin on the edge of the map, and the picture is ready to be hung.

Not only should every school house, but every school-room should be supplied with an American flag. Draw one in colors, as large as the board will allow, and underneath write: "Union and Liberty," "These Colors Won't Run," or any short patriotic sentiment.

It is not necessary to give suggestions concerning blackboard sketching to those who are skilful in this art. There are numberless subjects which their own taste will suggest. These may be drawn on the smaller boards, and will remain fresh for months with an occasional touching up.

One board should be devoted to an illustrated motto chosen by the class early in the year, and remaining the whole term as the class motto. For the benefit of those teachers whose talents do not lie in the direction of drawing, I will say that ferns in two shades of green are very pretty and graceful and extremely easy to draw. The flat of the chalk should be used.

Nothing adds so much to the brightness of a room as plenty of "green stuff"; so we must have it in our school-room. If there are any evergreens to be had in the neighborhood, ask the children to bring a few branches to put behind the pictures and over the clock. Plants are, of course, very desirable, but the time and care necessary to keep a sufficient number in good condition cannot be easily spared by a busy teacher. Besides, she is liable to have the discouraging experience of going to school some cold winter's morning and finding a collection of withered, frozen stalks in place of the blooming array she left.

Instead, procure two or three of the largest glass jars in which Cross and Blackwell's chow chow is put up. The children will bring enough "Wandering Jew" to fill them generously. Place one on the shelf in the corner, another on the window-sill, and a third on the teacher's desk. Changing the water once a week is all the attention this hardy plant needs, for, like a faithful friend, it flourishes in spite of coldness and neglect. The appearance of the desk may be further enhanced by bits of bright cloth under inkstand and bell.-Popular Educator.

CORRESPONDENCE.

ROCKINGHAM TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION.

MR. EDITOR:

The public school teacher's of Rockingham county, numbering about fifty, were convened in Harrisonburg on the 30th and 31st of December for the purpose of forming an Association on the plan recently proposed by the leading teachers of the State, and eloquently advocated by yourself in the Journal and elsewhere.

This meeting had been well advertised in local papers, yet you will notice that only about twenty per cent. of the enrolled teachers of the county were present. You are to remember, however, that the Valley of Virginia is not now the region of soft landscape and tinted sky, which you saw in the summer.

Many of its inhabitants, by reason of the accumulated snow, are living almost like hermits. Superintendent Hulvey, himself always indefatigable, is quite proud of the indomitable band of volunteers who came on snow shoes, and I know not in what other primitive fashion, to perfect the county organization.

From the nature of its constituency, you may judge that the meeting was interesting. After the adoption of the constitution and by-laws (subject, of course, to probable change upon the completion of the State organization), election of officers, etc., the session of the 31st was devoted to the discussion of educational topics. There was the usual riding of hobbies, and an unusual display of professional eloquence, with which I forbear to ornament your pages.

Following are the temporary officers of the Rockingham Association: B. F. Kirkpatrick, of Dayton, President; A. M. Andes, Vice-President; J. H. Floyd, Massanetta Springs, Secretary; Miss Nannie Alexander, Treasurer.

Prior to adjournment (on the 31st) the Association adopted the accompanying preamble and resolutions:

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