ON TEACHING THE ALPHABET.

AN individual is found, now and then, who strenuously defends the old method of teaching the alphabet, that is, by teaching the letters first and directly from a book; others improve upon this plan, and make use of the blackboard, but do not teach the sounds of the letters or form any words until the whole alphabet is learned. The reasons they urge in favor of this course, are more ingenious than sound. It would be useless to deny that the alphabet can be mastered in this way, for the feat has often been performed, as most at the present day can testify by sad experience.

Scarcely any two persons can succeed equally well with the same method, and therefore it is not proper for one to claim that he has discovered the only true mode of doing a thing, not for another, who has tried that mode and met with only a partial success, to affirm it to be the opposite of what it was claimed to be, because with him it proved a failure. The only true course for teachers, is to adopt some method or methods, presuming, of course, that each is based on right principles of teaching, and make it as much their own as possible, incorporating it, as it were, into their very being and throwing around it, in the presentation, all that is peculiar in thought and manner, and investing it with their own individuality.

We can affirm, without any great risk, that one of the principal causes of want of success in teaching the alphabet in any of the methods except the first mentioned, is the lack of interest, not only on the part of scholars, but on that of the teacher, in the first place, and consequently in the pupils. What a great difference is observed in the same school under different teachers, in regard to the interest of the pupils and their progress. The subjects are the same in both cases, and presented to the same minds; other things, then, being equal, the fault, if there is any, is with the teacher. Small children cannot keep their attention fixed a long time upon the same subject, and ought not if they could, and therefore it is extremely necessary that the teacher should possess the faculty of creating an interest in any branch of study almost instantly.

Some preparation is necessary for successful instruction in the method pursued. This may, at first view, seem to be a waste of

time, as it does not, in the opinion of some, enter directly upon the subject to be taught. Those who have given more attention to this matter, however, are fully convinced that there is no loss of time in any preparatory steps that enable us to lay a broader and surer foundation for the future structure. In order to teach successfully, we must know that the pupils understand the use of such terms as it will be necessary to employ, in presenting the subject in a proper manner. This is much more important than many suppose. Let us imagine a teacher before a class of ten pupils ready to learn the alphabet. He intends to embrace the best part of three methods, namely, letters, sounds, and words. In the first place, he goes through with some physical exercises, in order to see how quickly they can act as well as think. He thus begins: Rise; be seated; hold out your right hand; your left hand; raise your right hand; your left hand; hold up one finger; two fingers; the middle finger; both hands; put the right hand on the top of the head; the left hand; both hands; say one; two; three; rise; count as far as four.

It would be a rare thing to find a class of ten pupils no one of whom could count. The teacher wishes to know if they understand the words first, second, third, etc., so as to make use of such expressions as first word, second word, first sound, second sound, first letter, second letter, etc., and instructs them if necessary. He then proceeds, giving the sounds indicated by the letters in the direction. Make this sound, a; again; what did I tell you to make? A sound. What sound? The sound ă. Make the sound ǎ twice, so. What did you do? Made a sound twice. Why did you make it twice? Because you told us to. Make the sound b; once more. Make the first sound again; now make the second sound. Listen to me; a, b. The teacher gives the sounds. Were these sounds alike? They were not. How do you know they were not alike? By the sound. Listen again, ă, b. Is there any difference in these sounds? There is. How do you know? By the sound. Make the second sound; now the first sound. Look at my mouth when I make the sounds, a, b. Is it in the same position each time? It is not. How is it when I make a? The mouth is open. How when I make the sound b? The lips are shut.

The teacher now wishes to introduce signs of sounds. Look at

--

me, children. When I make this sign, he snaps his finger, you must make the sound a. What are you to do when I make the sign? Make the sound a. What is the sign that I shall make? The pupils snap their fingers. Very well. That is the sign for what sound? The sound ă. Be makes it. Pupils, a. I will make the sound. is another sign, two snaps of the finger, for the sound b.

ready for the sign; he

Sign. Pupils, a.

You make the sign and

Pupils make the sign. Teacher, d. Here

Make Make the

the sign. What is this the sign of? The sound b. sounds as I make the signs. Pupils, a, b, ă, ă, etc. You may make the first sign for me. Teacher, a. Are the sound and the sign alike? They are not. Look at me again, I will make a sign upon the blackboard for the first sound. The teacher makes a capital A. When I point to this sign, you must make the sound ă. What are you to do when I point to this sign? Make the sound ă. Ready. Pupils, ă, ă. Very well.

You all have names. What is yours? Mary. And yours? Susan. And yours? John. Well, this letter has a name also. How many would like to know its name? We all would. Its name is a. Give me its name. Pupils, A. As I point to it, give me its sound. Pupils, a. What was the other sound you made? Pupils, b. Here is a new sign for it. Give me the sounds again. Pupils, a, b, b, ă, ă, ă, b.

Another. Now look at me.

Now go to the board, and take some chalk. Look at me. What am I doing? Making a mark. How many marks? One mark. Look at me again. See how I make the mark. You make one like it. Quite good. Take the chalk cloth in your left hand, and the chalk in your right. Rub out the line. See me make another line. Now make one like it. Rub it out. Another. Rub it out. Another. Another. Be quick. How many lines did I make? Two. You may make two in the same way. Give attention. I am going to What did I do to them? You rubbed them you to erase a mark, what will you do to it? the two lines. Look again. How many lines have I made? Three. Make three in the same way, as fast as I count, one, two, three. Be ready; one, two, three. Erase. Again, one, two, three. That will do. What is the name of that letter. Pupils, A. What is the sound? Pupils, a.

erase these lines. out. When I tell Rub it out.

Erase

so,

What have I in my hand? A hat. Wear it. What is this in the book?

What can I do with a hat?

A hat. Where is the hat?

On the table. Is this a real hat in the book? It is not. What

cannot.

Listen: I will speak Point to the real hat. What can I speak?

am writing the word How many real hats

is it, then? A picture of a hat. Can I wear the picture hat? You What can I wear? The real hat. the word hat. You speak the word hat. Can I speak the real hat? You cannot. The word hat. Now look at the board. I hat. What have I written? The word hat. are there. One. How many pictures? One. How many words? Three. Which can I wear? The hat. The hat. Which can I speak ? The word hat. Which can I write? The word hat. See how the word hat looks. Can you find the word hat in your books? Yes, sir. Hear how I speak the word hat. Have you ever heard these sounds before? Yes, sir. What is the first one? Pupils, h. The next one? Pupils, a. The last one? Pupils, t. The teacher has no tablets, or block letters, and therefore reserves the words on some part of the blackboard for constant reference and repetition, so that the children will be able to tell the words as soon as they see them. If he has tablets, etc., they will save much time. His exercises are very short but quite frequent, and generally only one part of the subject is given at a time. As he is wide awake, so are the pupils.

He sometimes gives the sounds, and the pupils give him the letters; and again they give him the sounds, and he gives the letters. The letters, sounds, and words are learned in a short time in this way, and then arranged in the usual alphabetical order. The children analyze the words to see how they are to be pronounced, if they have never seen them before, and then name the letters and thus learn to spell. In this way, they will soon be able to master all the new words of regular formation that occur in their reading lessons, and know that they are pronouncing them correctly. They will be able, also, to make a distinction between reading, spelling, and study.

THE bud and blossom give promise of the future fruit.

ELEMENTARY EXERCISE IN MENTAL PHILOSOPHY.

LET the exercise be commenced without announcing the subject. Tell some story which will interest the class, and when it is finished, ask what they were doing while listening to you. Some one will probably answer that he was thinking of what you were saying. Then inquire if the body was thinking. CLASS. No. TFACHER. What was it, then? C. The mind. Ask if their feelings were excited, if they were amused, grieved, or angry, as the case may be. "Yes," will be the reply. T. Did the body feel? Was the body pleased, etc.? C. No. T. What was it that felt? C. The mind. T. Raise the right hand. Drop it. Did the body act? C. Yes. T. Why did you raise your hands? C. Because you told us to do so. T. Could you have determined not to comply with the request? C. Yes. T. When I asked you to do thus, you could will to obey or not to obey, just as you were inclined. You chose to obey, and willed that the hand should rise. What part of you did the willing? C. The mind. T. Right. The mind, in some mysterious way which I will not now explain, sent a message down to the hand that it must rise, and the body obeyed. You see that the mind can think, feel, and will; do you think of anything else which it can do? If there is no answer, tell them that there is nothing that the mind does which may not be placed under one of these three heads, thinking, feeling, and willing. T. What is the mind? Very likely nothing satisfactory will be given in reply. T. We cannot tell what it is. It is one of those things which we can define only by telling how they manifest themselves, what they do. It is that which thinks, feels, and wills. In what part of the body is it said to have its seat? C. The brain. T. We say of a person who succeeds well in any particular thing, that he has a faculty for doing that thing. What do we mean by that? C. That he can do it well, and better than others, perhaps. T. We really mean a little more than the word implies. The faculty of acting is simply the power of acting; but, in our use of the expression, we add to that and imply the power of acting in an easier, better, and more remarkable way than is common. The mind has the power of thinking, feeling, and willing. We may say, then, that it has