Hate (?nUBgE of Agriculture At (flarneU Ininecaita 3tl)ara, Si. |. Sitbtar^ ^ mmSlliiiIimimiff ^ '" elementary 3 1924 014 016 988 The original of tliis bool< is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924014016988 The Teaching of Geography in Elementary Schools By RICHARD ELWOOD DODGE frafissor of Geography, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York City; Author of "A Reader in Physical Geography far Beginners"; of Dodges Geographies; and of Dodges Geographical Note Books and CLARA BARBARA KIRCHWEY Instructor in Geography in the Horace Mann School and Teachers College, Columbia Uniwersily, New York City RAND McNALLY & COMPANY CHICAGO NEW YORK Co^right, igi3. By Richard E. Dodge and Clara B. Zirchwey In the teaching of geography, as in in- struction of every kind, the fundamental con- dition for success is that the teacher has so thoroughly mastered the subject himself, and takes so much real interest in it, that he can speak to his pupils about it, not in the set phrases of a class book, but out of the fullness of his own knowledge, being quick to draw his most effective illustrations from the daily ex- perience of those to whom he addresses himself. Sir Akchibald Geikib THE PREFACE ^ THIS book is the outgrowth of a number of years' experience in helping prepare teachers for work in elementary schools or for positions as critic teachers !n normal schools, and is an attempt to organize the under- lying principles which, from the standpoint of good geography and good teaching, are necessary before one can effectually attack the problem of framing a course of study in geography for elementary schools or of teaching any phase of this related whole. The authors have no plea to offer for a certain way of doing things which shall be applicable in all grades. They have tried to view the problem, first, from the standpoint of what good geography is; second, from the standpoint of what special problems in teaching geography offers, differing from the problems in other fields; and third, so as to see how the principles laid down by the expert geographer and educational expert can be made to meet practical needs in geography work and secure valuable training. We must bear in mind that we are teaching children geography, among other things, and also that we are teaching geography to children. Hence our plan must be organized from two contrasted points of view, always bearing in mind that while the work must be worth while at every stage, it must also be valuable as a whole in preparing pupils for the adult life they will meet out of school. After discussing, certain of the underlying principles which run through all the work the authors attempt to show how these principles may be worked out in practice in the several grades, and finaUy consider certain practical vi' The Preface matters which it has been found from experience are of great need in the training of most teachers. Certain chapters have been prepared by the senior author, and certain others by the junior. Each has reviewed the work of the other for the purpose of making the book a unit in character. Our experiences from different viewpoints have brought us to similar con- clusions, and therefore it has been possible to prepare an outline that meets our convictions without any serious compromises. Some of the larger suggestions have been put forth at intervals during the last fifteen years and will now be fotmd in practice in many schools of the country. Hence we feel that our suggestions are not based on insufficient data of experience, and that they have been rigorously tested in practice. Richard Elwood Dodge Clara Barbara Kirchwey Teachers College, Columbia University, New York City March, 1913 THE CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGB The Preface v I Scope and Purpose op School Geography Teaching i II The Organization op a Course op Study IN Geography 15 III Home Geography and the World Whole 26 ly Geography op the Intermediate Grades 47 V The Principles of Geography .... 61 VI Geography in the Upper Grades . . .81 VII The Relation op Geography to Other Subjects in the Curriculum ... 98 VIII Geography and Expression Work . .110 IX The Place and Use of a Textbook in School Geography 120 X The Use and Misuse op Maps . . . .126 XI Observational Work IN School Geography 135 XII Geography in Rural Schools . . . .153 XIII Industrial and Commercial Geography. . 164 XIV Collateral Reading 181 XV The Preparation, Organization, and Con- duct OP A Lesson 193 XVI The Preparation op a Teacher of Ele^ MENTARY-SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY . . .205 XVII The Use OF Equipment; Museums . . .217 The Appendix o. A List of Eqtiipment with Sources . . 232 6. A List of Valuable Collateral Reading . 234 c. Some Representative Lessons Outlined in Detail 236 The Index 244 vii THE TEACHING OF GEOGRAPHY CHAPTER I SCOPE AND PURPOSE OF SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY TEACHING What Good Geography Teaching Is GEOGRAPHY teaching in schools is not merely a question of making pupils learn certain facts out- lined in a course of study, made up perhaps from various sources without any conception of the value of the com- ponent parts; neither is it a matter of mechanically following a textbook which may have been compounded in the same way. Geography teaching requires primarily a good knowledge of the essential facts and principles of geography; for no teacher can teach that which he does not himself know. The second requirement is an under- standing of the scope of school geography; of the relation of this part of the subject to other work in the same field; of the pxttposes of school geography and the ways in which the subject may best be organized and presented so as to be of the most permanent value to the pupils. The Relation op School Geography to the Science of Geography School geography cannot be separated from the whole vast field of geographic knowledge. Therefore the small part of the field presented in the elementary school must be geography, as this term is interpreted by the geog- raphers who have done most to organize the science and to show its unity, in spite of its close interrelations with 2 The Teaching of Geography biology, astronomy, history, anthropology, economics, and many other sciences. "Geography" must not continue to be what it has so long been — as taught in schools — a vast collection of more or less related facts about things on the earth; it must be a portion of the science of geog- raphy as defined by the authorities in this field. The scope and content of geography is perhaps best indicated by the generally accepted definition: "Geogra- phy is the study of the earth in its relation to man and life " 1 ; or, more fully, " Geography is, the exact and organ- ized knowledge of the distribution of phenomena on the sur- face of the Earth, culnunating in the explanation of the interaction of Man with his terrestrial environment. "^ Geography as thus defined involves, at any stage in one's progress in the study, the consideration of the rela- tions of two great subjects — the earth and man. The study of geography therefore means that the "causal relation" between life and the earth shall be constantly kept in mind and that the interactions of causes and consequences shall be increasingly brought out. This causal relation is the keynote that binds the several factors of geography together as a science. The definition of geography does not give us any clew as to the order in which we shall take up our study of earth and man in school work. It does not say that the life consequences must foUow the earth causes, or the reverse./^t merely indicates that however we take up the work we must be sure that what we are doing is a necessary step in the task of finally making most clear the relation between man and the earth. Hence we have a right at certain times to study one subdivision of geography alone, in order to get the best point of 1 Mill, Realm of Nature, p. 331. ' Mill, International Geography, p. 2. The Scope of School Geography j departure for our later work. This means, for instance, that we may study certain topics in physical geography at one time, as things by themselves, that we may have certain basic facts clear before we relate the life conditions to them. In the same way we may for a time study the life facts separately from the physical facts with which they are related, if such a method of presentation and study will make the ultimate result more strong. The scientific definition of geography merely gives us a measure with which to judge the value of facts suggested for a course of study. Any topic that is a necessary or valuable contribution to the well-ordered study of the relations of man and the earth is good geographically. Those featvtres of man's distribution and of his mode of life that are directly or indirectly the result of his living on the earth at a certain place, amid certain physical and racial surroundings, are possible contributions to school geography. But those ways of living or acting which are merely the results of human invention, and which have not been suggested to men's minds by the earth con- ditions in which they live, are not good geography, unless the geography of the world has in some way been modified by such inventions. Such topics may belong in some .special phase of the study of mankind, Uke sociology, history, or economics, but not in that phase of geography which deals with the reasons for man's distribution over the earth or with his manner of life or thought as deter- mined or influenced by the earth environment In which he lives. The Geographer and the Course op Study IN Geography The scientific geographer therefore does not demand that the teacher of geography shall follow this method or 4 The Teaching of Geography that; he does say, however, with reason and right, that the content of the school course in geography shall be geographically sound, and that the general plan of teach- ing shall insure the best geographical training. The maker of a course of study should see to it that his course in geography shall be geography and not something else. The geographer should also suggest in a general way how the subject should be treated so as to bring about the best geographic training. This means that while he recognizes the necessity of considering the subject as a subject, he also bears in mind that the purpose of the school course is to teach children geography, among other things, and that the best preparation of the child for his life work is a far more vital point to keep in view than the question of teachmg any one subject for the subject's sake. It is obvious, however, that the best training of a child in geography will not be secured unless he acquires the best possible introduction to the content of geography and the methods of studying the subject. Hence the subject and the child are closely interwoven. While we are teaching children geography we must, for their own best advantage, teach geography to children. The Duty of the Supervisor in Reference to the Course of Study in Geography The task of the geographer being then to outline the content of the field and to indicate what is good geographi- cally, the task of the supervisor or superintendent is, within these limits of content and purpose, so to organize the subject as to give children the best understanding of the phenomena of geography about them. As the geographer's chief responsibility is the subject, that of the superintendent or supervisor is the larger problem of seeing that children secure the best possible preparation The Scope of School Geography 5 for their life work, in which preparation geography plays a small but vital part. The Duty of the Teacher of School Geography The teacher then, within the limits set by the scientist and the professional educator, must do his part to give the children the best possible development and to make the work practical and efficient at every step. He is to make the work personal, vital, and strong. He must see that while his work is good teaching it is also good geography teaching. He should criticize particularly the pertinency and value of the course outlined for his particular group of children, whose personal weaknesses and strengths he knows as no one else can. The teacher therefore, within the limits set by the authorities noted above, should be perfectly free to plan his work so as to give his children the best training he can. He should adopt any "methods" that seem suited to his needs, but should never forget that he is supposed to be forging one of the necessary links in the whole chain of geographic study and that his work must be strong geo- graphically, as it should be pedagogically. The teacher of geography in any grade, if he would do his best, must know the relations of his year's work to the whole course of study. The Limits of School Geography The first problem for a supervisor or superintendent is to decide the limits of school geography. It is necessary to know what pupils may be expected to have learned in reference to geography before their formal geography work begins, and which may therefore be taken as the point of departure in outlining the work. It is more important that there be a clear-cut decision as to what 6 The Teaching of Geography pupils may reasonably be expected to know about geog- raphy at the close of their elementary-school work and what they should be able to do, because of their work in geography. It is obvious that no good, well-knit, effective course of study can be outlined if the maker of the course has no definite ideas as to the goal he would reach, but merely blindly organizes work for the several years with no thought of the necessary climax. Yet, strange to say, this matter has been little discussed until within a few years. A study of the better known cotu-ses of study would seem to indicate that the plan of work in geography is in many cases merely a device for insuring that pupils shall have "covered both books," the elementary or primary geography and the advanced or higher geography, before the close of the dementary school. The field covered by a pupil during his elementary- , school course is but a part, though a very important part, of the geography he begins to know as soon as he walks and talks, and which, consciously or unconsciously, he studies during his whole life. School geography, therefore, should be based on the geographic results gained from nature study in the first years of school work, however scattered that work may have been. The cotirse should be so arranged that a pupil will gain something of per- manent value from the study, no matter at what age he leaves school; at the end of the seventh graide he should have a working knowledge of the elements of geography, not only valuable in daily life but as a foundation for later geographic study either by himself or in the secondary school. From the educational standpoint there should be no break in the unity of geography teaching from the kinder- garten through the university. At every stage the work The Scope of School Geography J should be so arranged that what has been previously studied is a necessary foundation for the present work; the work of the moment must in the same way be based on the work which has preceded and lead up to that which follows. This principle should be followed as closely when we are considering the relation of large units of work, like that of one year to another or of the secondary to the elementary school, as it would be in the organization of a series of given lessons on one topic or even of the principal points in one lesson. In the latter case we wotild agree that good teaching required a well- ordered plan. Why should not this principle be followed as rigorously at all times, and for the same reason — because it is pedagogically strong? The Purpose op School Geography It should be borne in mind, however, that no scheme of organization of geography, however strong it may be theoretically, will be effective tinless the practical needs of each year's work are kept in mind. We have to remem- ber that in most public-school systems a large proportion of the children leave school by the end of the fifth or sixth year. Therefore, the course of study must be so arranged that a pupil will have learned much of his own cotmtry by the dose of the fifth year, and that the results he may have secured will be practical and usable in later life, no matter when he leaves school. The work for any grade must also be possible for pupils with the mental exp^ri- 0nce of that grade. Jlence the practical side must be kept in mind at every step, while we see to it that the material, of advantage at the moment, is so taught as to be of the most value as a foundation for the work of the higher grades. With a possible scope as large as the whole great 8 The Teaching of Geography science of geography, it is no easy matter to select and organize the several parts that can be adapted to the school program so as to make the work strong geographi- cally at every step and as a whole, while at the same time it is practical and usable. The decision as to what should be included in a school course in geography, then, depends on our understanding of what we would like a pupil to gain from his elementary- school study of geography. The desired result may be considered under two heads: first, knowledge of geo- graphic facts and principles; and second, power to use that knowledge in daily life both during the school years and afterward. The Importance op Geographic Principles Within recent years there has been a great change in public opinion as to what should be the purpose of school geography. Formerly we were satisfied if a child's mind was well stored with the facts of "sailor geography" which he had laboriously memorized. The recent emphasis in school work of the reasons for geographic facts has come to the front because we have seen that while the facts may change in quantity they remain true in quality, inasmuch as they are the results of certain world-wide general principles, as true to-day as they have been throughout all time. It is of more value, therefore^ for a pupil to understand the reasons for the growth of such a city as New York or Chicago, because of the geographic conditions which have favored it, than it is for him to know the approximate population of these cities at the last census or the names of the railroads that enter them. It is a well-ordered principle of geography that cities spring up at certain favored places in the world -because of certain geographic conditions. A knowledge The Scope of School Geography g of the simpler reasons for the location of cities — as at the junction of rivers, like Pittsburgh; at water gaps or the openings to mountain passes, like Harpers Ferry or Denver; on favorable harbors, like New York, San Francisco, or Liverpool; at the crossing of natural high- ways of trade, like Vienna or Singapore — is of value in understanding the geography of the world, and Is not merely a thing to be applied to the city imder considera- tion. This knowledge, based on individual instances, may be summarized in a series of world-true relations or principles. Such principles of geography are an important part of the training of any educated man, and are the larger part of the knowledge of the subject on the part of the worker in geography, however advanced. Hence they should be the larger item in any course of study. The principles of geography cannot, however, be developed and made strong unless they are based on enough facts to be clear, and unless they are accepted because they are seen to be large truths and not merely because they are stated with authority. A general principle in geography should not be presented first as a device for organizing seemingly scattered facts. It should rather be developed as the outgrowth of the causal study of a number of separate items, and later appUed in the qtuck and effective study of other facts of perhaps larger scope. The Importance op a Knowledge op Geogkaphic Facts The emphasis of principles, as being the more valuable part of geography, shotdd not, however, be taken to mean that facts must be omitted in geography. A knowledge of principles, not illustrated in the pupils' minds by certain instances, is no more valuable than a knowledge of the to The Teaching of Geography proper rules of personal conduct not applied in daily life. Therefore a pupil must learn many facts in his geography work. So far as possible these facts should be studied causally and summarized in certain principles. Time will not, however, permit all the facts necessary for an imderstanding of current events, as chronicled in the newspaper, to be developed causally. There is a certain minimiun amount of geographic facts that a pupil must know by the close of the elementary- school course. Some of these — perhaps a larger part — can be the outgrowth of careful causal work. The remainder must be gained through deliberate map study and memory work. Location is not, as one author says, "merely incidental in geography." It is a vital part of geog- raphy, because geography deals with the distribution of phenomena over the world. Workers in the 'field of school geography cusagree somewhat as to the amount of knowledge of facts that should be gained from a school course in geography, but they agree as to the inclusion of certain facts, as is shown by a comparison of a series of papers published in the Journal of Geography in 1904 and 1905 tmder the title, "What a Child should know at the Close of his School Course in Geography." Perhaps the best stun- mary of what is necessary on the fact side has been made by Professor Whitbeck' as follows: Knowledge of Location "Given an unlettered map of the. United States, on which the states are outlined, our grammar-school graduate ought to be able to write the names of the states in their proper places! He ought to be able to do as much for ' R. H. Whitbeck, "Results to be expected from a School Course in Geography," Journal of Geography, April, 1905, pp. 149-155. The Scope of School Geography ii the important divisions of South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. "He should know the approximate location of the eight or ten best known rivers of the Mississippi system; three or four of the Pacific Slope rivers, and two or three of Canada; the three great river systems of South America; four or five of Africa, a half-dozen of Asia, two or three of the British Isles, of France, of Germany, and of Russia; also the Po and the Danube. He should, of course, know the rivers of the region in which he lives. "He should know the location of such arms of the ocean as are highways of the world's great commercial movements. "He should know the location of those islands and groups of islands that are real factors in the world's activities, or have a general historical interest. "He should know the facts of position, direction of trend, etc., of the half-dozen most important mountain systems or mountain groups of North America; the Andes, Alps, Pyrenees, Apennines, Caucasus, Ural, Himalaya, and Altai; the location of a few of the most frequently mentioned peaks, such, for example, as Mt. Blanc and Mt. Everest. "There are a few capes that are often mentioned, such as Horn and Good Hope, and their location is worth knowing. "He ought to know somethmg oi the location of the chief colomes of Great Britain, France, Germany, Holland, and the United States. "He ought to know something of the location of some twenty-five of the chief cities of the United States, what those cities stand for in our industrial and commercial life, and the advantages of their situation. There are twenty-five or thirty foreign cities whose location shotdd 12 The Teaching of Geography be definitely known, and also something of what those cities stand for. In addition to these, there are fifty or more other cities at home and abroad whose names ought to be familiar to the pupil. It is sufficient to know merely in what state or nation these are located." The facts to be gained from a study of physical, commercial, and political geography must be acquired mainly through a study of the relation of causes to con- sequences. Not all the possible facts in any of these three great divisions of geography ought to be incorpo- rated in school work. Only the most important, either as permanent acquisitions or as a necessary part of the whole school course, can be studied in the elementary school. These facts are well given in almost any one of the latest school geographies and need not be itemized here. Care should be taken, however, that too many details are not introduced, for an overcrowded course is less valuable as a working basis than a meager one. A teacher can develop a meager course and make it rich and valuable, while an overcrowded course, which must all be covered, leads to a memorizing of mere skeletal facts without any comprehension of the vital connecting relations and principles Power to Do as an Aim in School Geography Knowledge of facts or principles, however strong and complete, is of little worth unless the pupil has gained from his work the power to use these items. Unusable items are merely bits of information which will occasionally come to the siuface when a similar fact is mentioned. Information is not knowledge, for no one really knows a thing until he can make it clear to others or use it for his own improvement. Hence pupils must gain from their school work the The Scope of School Geography . 13 power to use the facts and principles of geography in interpreting the geographical news items of the day, and to apply their knowledge in the reading of history and literature, of books of description or travel. Such reading, especially of the newspapers, will bring to their attention many so-called facts in geography, perhaps startling and awe-inspiring in character, which the average reader accepts because of his natural faith in the authority of printed words. A pupil should be able to test the accuracy and value of such "facts" as a result of his geographic training, and should have learned enough at least to be skeptical concerning materials that seem to overthrow the established principles he has been taught in his school course. A pupil should realize that geography is so vast a subject that it cannot all be presented in his school text; that geographic conditions change so rapidly that many of the details in his text of a few years back may be already out of date. He should therefore be able to use works of reference, in order to keep up to date, and use the best. The chief sources of reference are atlases, encyclopedias, gazetteers, higher textbooks in geography, books of description, and commercial reports. To be able to use an atlas a person must know how to use an index, how to use latitude and longitude in locating a place, how to read map scales and the ordinary map sjmibols. A pupil should be introduced in his school work to the reference volumes in geography available in the local library, that he may know what is best for reference use and learn how to gather desired information quickly and accurately. Finally, he should gain from his work in geography, more than from any other school subject, the power of thinking accurately and quickly and of testing the 14 The Teaching of Geography accuracy of his own or other peoples' thinking. Until nature study and elementary science are better organized and systematized than they are now, geography must remain the one organized science in the elementary-school curriculum from the study of which the best training in scientific thinking may be secured. To think clearly and accurately is one of the most important results that can be gained from one's education. A dear thinker will do his own thinking, will be less ready to yield to the will of others, will be able to gather seemingly unrelated facts into generalizations and to go out into the world and test new materials and use the parts that are valuable. References Journal of Geography, November, December, 1904; April, October, November, 1905; February, September, October, 1906. McMurry, C. A., Special Method in Geography, Chapter I; Geikie, A., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter I; Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, chapters I, III, VI, VII; Archer, Lewis and Chapman, The Teaching of Geography in Elementary Schools, chap- ters I and II; Davis, W. M., "An Inductive Study of the Content of Geography," Geographical Essays, pp. 3-22, and "The Progress of Geography in the Schools," Geographical Essays, pp. 23-69. CHAPTER II THE ORGANIZATION OF A COURSE OF STUDY IN GEOGRAPHY What is Good Geography Teaching? THE teaching of geography, like the teaching of other subjects, involves the subject, the teacher, and the children who are being taught. The subject can be readily organized and classified so that it is definite and the same for all persons and places. But the teacher and the children are personalities which cannot and should not be systematized and classified according to rule. Hence the method of approaching the subject must be varied to suit, so far as possible, the particular needs of the children with whom the teacher is dealing. The teacher should be sufficiently a master of any subject to be at home in it without a book; then he can use his best per- sonal powers in teaching the children, and can change the method of approach or the point of view for different individuals, as need demands. Such an ability to shape means to ends and to teach individuals rather than groups is a diflicult task, successfully accomplished only by the most expertly trained "natural teachers." Certain principles are, however, applicable to all conditions and should be borne in mind by all teachers. To prevent floundering, and in order to follow the lines of least resistance, the work in geography should always proceed from the known to the tmknown. The work should further be arranged to give the children the best mental training and the best grasp of the subject, not primarily as a subject but as a tool in everyday life. 15 i6 The Teaching of Geography No teacher can succeed in giving the best training if, at least in the earlier years, he puts the development of the subject ahead of the development of his pupils. In the later years the development of the pupils may usually be best accomplished through the development of the subject. Though this is not invariably true, this method of instruction, generally followed, will lay an increasingly strong foundation for the best study and for the use of the several school subjects in after-school life. Good geography teaching is teaching that is sound geographically and which will be judged so by geographers when they view not merely the results of the day or year alone, but these as related to the ultimate results to be gained from the school course as a whole. Good geog- raphy teaching necessitates a choice of topics in order to gain the greatest efficiency in the long run and to encourage the most rapid and strong development of the mental powers of the pupils. Good geography teaching must be pertinent to the child's present abiUties, must deal with facts of immediate use, must lead to the knowledge of facts and principles of the greatest permanent value, and must be sotmd pedagogically as well as geographically. The Approach to the Adult Point of View Such teaching does not mean that the method of approach at all steps should be the method of the adult mind, but such a varying point of view as will, in the course of years, best develop the adult method of learning. Therefore the work should not always be from causes to consequences, that is, from the physical features to the life conditions, as is the usual method in later study. We sometimes see this embodied in the statement that we must follow the "pedagogical and not the logical" Organization of a Course of Study 17 method of approach, as if the pedagogical method were illogical, as it often is. Any method is generally called logical when the later stages of the work are the natural outgrowth of the earlier stages, in a definite sequence. Good pedagogy demands such a method at every stage of procedure. Hence we should recognize in geography that the best logical method and the best pedagogical method are at one time from consequences to causes and at another from causes to consequences. The latter is the method of the later years, and will be more fully developed in adult life; the former Is the method of the earlier years. Both methods of procedure demand a logical sequence of topics and steps, and both are pedagogical. To reverse the time of emphasis so as to proceed from tiauses to consequences in the lower grades might be as bad pedagogically as it would be to follow one method only throughout the grades. Good geography teaching also demands that the teacher fit his methods to the subject and to his special needs, and that no particular "method" shall be followed exclusively. Some Larger Problems concerning the Division OP THE Course of Study In the making of a course of study in geography, supervisors and superintendents find one of the most difficult tasks with which they are confronted, and yet it is a necessary task for the reason that no one course of study can fit the particular conditions of all localities. There are certain large principles that should be con- sidered in every course of study, and the experience of the generations has shown that, in general, school geography must follow a certain rough plan. The mental develop- ment of the children for whom the course is made, the length of time the majority of them will remain in school. i8 The Teaching of Geography and the particular physical and industrial surroundings make it advisable, if not necessary, to have a course of study for one place that wUl in some ways be different from that of any other place, while at the same time it meets the demands of good geography teaching as already outlined. Types of Courses of Study Courses of study may be divided into four groups, as follows: (o) those which demand the covering of so many pages per year in a given textbook; (6) those which are outlined to teach the subject by a certain method; (c) those which are made up, like a patchwork quilt, of inviting scraps from 'many unrelated and uncritidzed courses of study; and (d) those which are constructed soundly, sanely, and carefuUy to teach geography to children of a certain region. Unfortunately the first class is at present the largest in number, regardless of the fact that a textbook, written to be used in all localities, cannot be the best course of study for many special places. A textbook should be a good course of study for any teacher who cannot secure a more personal course, but every teacher should be able to make the text his slave and not be the slave of the text. Courses of the second class are relatively few in num- ber, as they should be, for here again a certain formal treatment, with many valuable factors, is imposed on all regions regardless of local conditions. Courses of the third class are perhaps the weakest in character and are, tmfortunately, numerous. No course of study that is not outlined consistently as a unit can have ultimate strength, because the various parts do not interlock as the parts of a unified course should. Organisation of a Course of Study ip Courses of the latter group are becoming more common every day, and our teachers in training are being taught how to fit the subject to the local conditions and how to train the children to do good work in the subject. The best work can be done only when such a course of study is in hand and is followed thoughtfully, intelligently, and sympathetically, with due regard to the purposes of the work as a whole and the gain to be expected each year. Wherever the locality, however, and whatever the plan followed, there are certain larger divisions in a course of study in geography which are borne in mind by all workers in the field. It is because these divisions have been proved and are recognized as generally valuable that it is possible to outline courses and texts that in. a large way may be used as guides in all parts of the country. The Natural Divisions op the Course of Study The first division, only lately recognized and approved in this country but long ago adopted abroad, is called Home Geography. All the leaders in school geography teaching recognize the pedagogical and geographic strength of this phase of the work as a necessary foundation for later work. There is also a general agreement that the study of Home Geography should lead up to a knowledge of the simpler elements of the World as a Whole. It is also generally recognized that Regional Geography should oc- cupy a larger part of the course, and that we may divide this work into that of the intermediate years and that of the upper grades. Leaders of thought are, however, not agreed as to the number of times all the continents should be studied in the grades. Many courses of study demand a consideration of all the continents twice. This plan usually reqiiires the work to be too hasty and too 20 ^ The Teaching of Geography scattered to be of the greatest advantage to the pupils. There is an eqtaally strong objection to the plan of studying no continent more than once, as is advocated by some. It is obvious, considering the fact that many children leave school by the end of the fifth or sixth year, that the United States and North America should be studied early in the course. These are the most important regions to us all, and these regions we need to know the best and to know before we take up any foreign coun- tries. Hence it would seem beyond question that our own country should be studied first of all countries. It ought also to be studied again as late as possible in the course, so that pupils will gain as advanced and complete a knowledge of their own country as their abilities will permit. The countries of western Europe, some of the cotmtries of southeastern Asia, and, if time permits, sections of South America should also receive an elemen- tary and a more advanced treatment. The best course of study, judged from the standpoint of utility, permanent effectiveness, and worth, should call for the study of certain countries twice — once early in the course and once later from as advanced a standpoint as possible. The more progressive comrses of study in recent years advocate such a plan, leaving much of South America, a large part of Asia, Africa, and Australia to be studied but once, at such a time in the course as may seem most practical. Certain of these sections may be studied in the injtermediate years and others in the higher grades. Hence textbooks gen- erally treat all the continents twice so as to fit all courses of study as closely as possible, but with, the expectation that the continents and countries of lesser importance will not be studied twice merely because they are included in both books in the series. Organization of a Course of Study 21 The Change op Plan in the Intermediate and Upper Grades The method of approach to the study of a continent should be different in the intermediate grades from that used in the advanced grades. The old-fashioned "con- centric" plan called for the study of all continents from the topical standpoint, working from causes to con- sequences but bringing out little of the causal idea. Children of the intermediate years are, as a whole, too immature for such work, and hence good teaching requires a plan more adapted to their abilities. Any plan needs to be varied as the years go on, for the same plan followed blindly becomes so hackneyed and monotonous that it provokes no thought response from the pupils. Children in the intermediate years are more interested In the life relations found in a region, and generally have a certain acquaintance with the familiar but perhaps little understood features of their own locality. The method of analysis, characteristic of Home Geography, shotdd therefore be followed in a similar way in the in- termediate grades, and out of such an analysis should be developed an understanding and appreciation of the causal controls and influences over life. In the later years the pupils are prepared for a more advanced study from causes to consequences. To proceed from consequences to causes in the earlier work, and from causes to consequences in the later work, is to take advantage of children's interests, to have the work related to their abilities, and to produce application by making the work varied and constantly thought- provoking. Such a plan also gives the best preliminary training for using adult geographic materials in after- school life. 22 The Teaching of Geography i The Place op Physical Geography in a Course of Study The place that physical, geography shottld occupy in a course of study has probably been more discussed and more experimented upon than any other phase. Physical geography obviously has a right to more than passing emphasis in any well-ordered course of study, as it is the larger part of the causal side of geography. Certain phases of the subject have practical application in the interpretation of everyday life and they offer an opportu- nity for excellent observational work. Physical geography includes certain processes that may be seen in operation and which therefore appeal to children who like to observe power and activity. There is a great danger, however, in giving too much attention to this subject. If studied in the earlier years teachers will probably devote too much time to it — time that might better be given to more necessary and pertinent phases of geography, c Such a treatment postpones the more valuable side of geog- raphy until too late an age, and gives beginners the wrong outlook on the subject. Life geography, aqd not the physical features, is the phase of the subject that from every consideration deserves the greater attention in the earlier years and in the course as a whole. The Stages op the Course of Study in which Physical Geography should be Emphasized The physical side of geography naturally comes into the coiu-se at three distinct places, though certain aspects of the subject are used constantly throughout the work. In Home Geography certain phases of the physical envi- ronment need to be emphasized "because they are some of the most striking features with which children come into Organization of a Course of Study i^ contact and because they give an opportunity for observa- tional work which is particularly effective. Observational work needs to be based on definite things and on objects or relations that can be readily seen and understood by the pupils. A child can more easily see and study the slopes that inclose the valley about his home than he can some of the larger and more general facts of the life environment. The direction of movement should be from the definite and personal to the larger, more general, and impersonal. Hence the value of including the study of certain physical features in Home Geography. The physical side must also be considered constantly in the study of the world by regions. The understanding of the physical conditions of climate and sxorface is impor- tant in all regional work. In the intermediate grades this understanding should be developed through the study of the life consequences centered about any locality. It should be borne in mind, however, that no efiicient or satisfactory study of any region is possible from the life side unless that region is placed somewhere. Hence any regional work in the intermediate grades needs to be introduced with a brief consideration of the physical features, which are necessary to give a setting to the picture to be studied. Out of a study of the lives of people from the causal standpoint, in the intermediate grades, should be devel- oped an increased understanding of the importance of the conditions that influence or control life over the world. These controls and iixfluences we usually find thought- lessly grouped under the head Physical Features, but the conditions that determine the distribution of mankind over the world are something more than mere climate, surface, and oceans. The distribution of plants and animals, of the races of men, and of the great xiations 24 "^he Teaching of Geography is equally important. Hence we would better speak of these larger topics as the Principles of Geography, and bear in mind that out of the study of regions, with their attendant facts of life and physical features, should be developed certain generalizations as to the reasons for the geographic conditions. These generalizations should be the summaries which are constantly being brought out, developed, and criticized in the intermediate grades, the causes coming out in the study of consequences. Before any work is undertaken in the study of regional geography from a more advanced standpoint, the principles which have been considered more or less individually thus far need to be amplified a bit — related, systematized, and studied with sufficient thoroughness so that they can be used as a basis of work in the upper grades. Hence at this stage of progress the study of regional geography, as such, should be interrupted by a brief study of the principles. The physical features are basal in determining the larger questions of life distribution, and therefore the simpler elements of mathematical and physical geography deserve first and strong emphasis at this time. Here physical geography rightly receives greater emphasis, as a thing by itself, than at any other stage of the work. It is necessary, however, to keep in mind here, as else- where, that we are not studying physical geography for itself, but as a vital and related part of a larger subject. Our choice of details and the emphasis to be given to the elementary principles-will therefore be determined by the purposes toward which we are striving. These principles are usually simimarized in the so- called "Introduction" to the larger book in geography, and xnany teachers cover this introductory material as Urgamzation of a Course of Study 25 if it were a "Preface" to be read and forgotten. On the contrary, these principles are introductory to good work in the upper grades, and therefore should be constantly used and applied in all succeeding work. Thus physical geography and the principles of life geography are an important part of the course, and they should receive attention at such times and so long as is necessary from the standpoint of the needs of the work as a whole. The Place of Industrial and Commerical Geography Another special phase of geography teaching that must be considered with care by the maker of a course of study is the emphasis to be given to industrial and com- mercial geography. The geography tmderlying the chief industries and occupations of mankind is an extremely interesting and necessary part of the training of any one, and is destined to be of increasing value as the years go on. The problems centering around these phases of the work cannot, however, be dismissed briefly. Therefore details in reference to industrial and commercial geography will be deferred to a later chapter. Suffice it to say now that no modem course of study in geography is well balanced or properly effective unless due consideration is given to the industrial and commercial phases. References Teachers College Record, March, 1901, pp. 9-15; McMurry, C. A., Special Method in Geography, Chapter II; Redway, J. W., New Basis of Geography, Chapter X; Bagley, W. C, "Function of Geog- raphy in Elementary Schools," Journal of Geography, Vol. Ill, pp. 222-233; Dodge, R. E., "Some Suggestions concerning a Course of Study in Geography," Journal of Geography, Vol. VII, pp. 7-14; Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter X. 3 CHAPTER III HOME GEOGRAPHY AND THE WORLD WHOLE What Home Geography is HOME Geography is now recognized as the best phase of the work with which to begin the formal study of geography. There is a great difference of opinion, however, as to what Home Geography is and is not, and there is no agreement as to the objects of the work. Home Geography, reduced to its lowest terms, is a study of the simpler elements of the local geographic environment, with a view to helping children to understand their own relations to that environment and to giving them the necessary training and knowledge for proceeding into the next higher phase of the work. The relations to be studied, the facts to be observed and classified, the defi- nitions to be developed, must be simple and elemental. Present need and future use determine what special topics shall be included in a course in Home Geography. Home Geography is not a title to include topics which might be illustrated in the locality in any order that may strike the fancy. It must be organized and planned with care. As no two localities are exactly alike, either in their physical features or in the life relations to those features, it is not possible to organize a detailed course that can be applied blindly to any locality. Yet it may be possible, in the cotirse of time, to develop a uniform agreement as to what elements should be emphasized in every locality, and the point of view with which the work should be approached. Good teaching demands that the work should progress 26 Home Geography and the World Whole 2f from the known to the unknown, that is, from the facts which are personal and familiar to the children to those which are less obvious and more impersonal. The work should therefore be developed through a discussion of children's experiences and observations, and should be founded on the results gained in nature study in the earlier grades. In order to save wandering, to give training in observa- tion and in making good, simple generalizations, and to lay the best foundation for later geographic work, attention should be devoted to the geographic elements in the environment only, interpreting the idea of geography broadly. Gradually the work should be made more intensive and more extensive — the children should be led farther afield and should be held to more concise and accurate stimmaries of their observations. Care should be taken in teaching Home Geography not to call for a knowledge of distant regions, for in the nature of the case the distant regions cannot be known at this time, and children have no basis for taking up such a study tmtil after the work in Home Geography has become a thing of the past. The topics studied will vary in order in different localities, because the local environment will in one place suggest one series of relations to be interpreted and in another an entirely different series as a point of departtire. The sequence of topics, however, should be close, and each succeeding topic should naturally grow out of the pre- ceding study. Care also should be taken not to study isolated details but to analyze and become acquainted with related parts of important wholes. Only by such a plan can the work be given any unity or sequence. The units selected for study should be geographically sound, while at the same time they are pertinent and sS The Teaching of Geography rational; that is, each luiit should have some geographic foundation and contain a fundamental geographic relation- ship. Such units should also be of such a character as to allow the close relation of local history with Home Geography. In fact, in most places the study of local history should be carried on hand in hand with the work in Home Geography. Definitions in Home Geography Each topic should be summarized in a simple, gener- alized statement or definition which brings together the elements already studied in such a form that the general- ization may be amplified and expanded as the years go on. This generalization should summarize not only the points already studied, but should be generally as well as locally true. For instance, a summary of a hill as a place on which people usually build houses may, in some instances, be locally true, but from the standpoint of geography as a whole it is bad because generally untrue. Pupils who later find that the great cities of the world, and the greater proportion of the population of the world, are in the lowlands and not on the elevations would have to destroy this earlier generalization before they could frame a general statement that would be true in a world- wide way. Or again, a river should not be defined as a stream of water rising at a source and flowing into the sea, for several reasons. Rivers have many sources, as may be illustrated in almost any locality. Many do not flow into the sea or into any body of standing water, and a child in most localities can see only a stream flowing through the land. In most places the relation of rivers to the sea cannot, therefore, be brought out in Home Geography. Hence this relationship should be deferred Home Geography and the World Whole 29 irntil the ocean is studied. Again, all rivers include rock detritus in some form and in varying quantity. The detritus is as important a part of the river as the water, and shoiild not be omitted, particularly as in many places the detritus is more obvious than the flowing water. To define a river as a stream of water which carries detri- tus and flows through the land is, therefore, a better definition than the definition given above, because it sum- marizes what may be seen in any locality and can be de- veloped or expanded as the years go on, without requiring pupils to unlearn what they have previously learned and accepted as generally true. The formation of sound summaries and definitions is one of the hardest tasks in all geography teaching, and especially difiicult in elementary work. It need scarcely be noted in the present day that definitions should be summaries brought out through the study of observed facts, and not "texts" to be brought in at the beginning of a lesson and preached about. The purpose of a recitation in Home Geography is not to develop or make dear a definition, used as a point of departure, but to study certain simple, geographic con- ditions and to summarize the results in a simple, short- hand statement which will be valuable in all later work in geography. Such definitions should define and not merely describe what has been taken up, and should be formed in such a way that no two overlap. Unless a definition demarks one topic or point from all other similar topics, it is not a definition and has but little value. The Units that may be Included in Home Geography The units to be studied must be carefully selected and arranged for the sake of simplicity and clearness. The 30 The Teaching of Geography teacher needs to know the geographic features underljdng each unit, that he may teach individual topics so as to bring out the geography in them. Unless a teacher tmderstands the geographic elements involved in such units he has no basis for choosing the topics to be studied, and he cannot follow a plan that will lead to more than mere information about things, or lay any foundation for later work in geography. Many topics that might be taught have little geog- raphy in them and are hardly worth teaching at all. Our endeavor should be to choose the most important topics which have a geographic foundation, while they are also personal and interesting, and to teach them in such a way as to bring out their worth geographically. The possible elements of most value in a locality may, for convenience, be divided into two classes— social units and earth units. The social units are as a rule the earliest to be considered because they deal with the hfe side and through them an understanding of the reasons for the study of the earth environment may be brought out. In practice, of course, the social and the earth units cannot be wholly separated, and neither group can be studied as a whole before the other group is taken up. Such a plan would be formal and impersonal and would prevent the best relation of causes and effects, thus defeating one of the primary ptirposes of the study — the understanding of the reasons for things geographic to be seen in the home locality. The social units include the study of the reasons for the grouping of people in homes, villages, towns, cities, states, and nations; the needs of communication between groups of people and how they are met; trade relations, why and how carried on; the industrial conditions to be seen in neighboring localities, and how the children and Home Geography and the World Whole 31 their parents are related to the products of different industries, with a special emphasis of the necessities of life — food, clothing, shelter, and fuel. The earth topics are the relations of life — plant, animal, and human — to the surface features in the neighboring locality, to the drainage features, to the weather, to soils., to direction, and to distance and maps. Not all the topics that might be included under any one of these heads should be studied, and the choice of topics and the emphasis given to them should be deter- mined by the conditions of the local environment. Such topics as mountains or the ocean cannot well be included in a course in Home Geography in any locality where mountains are not to be seen, or which is so far from the sea or a great lake that the children have no personal knowledge of the, essential features of great bodies of water. Topics that cannot be illustrated in the locality shoiald be omitted until in the study of World Geography they are needed for clearness and completeness. Social Units. The home is the simplest illustration of the fact that people live in groups the world over; it is the simplest instance of the fact that some form of government is necessary in every group of people, and is the best example for showing the necessity of government, because it is a form that all children know from experience. The home is also the simplest illustration of a division of labor among individuals in a group. All of these essential facts, illustrated in the home, are bases of comparison which will help children to understand similar features of a larger scope the world over. The geographical conditions which favor large groups of people in certain places make some form of government necessary — it is the necessity that has geographic significance; the division of labor among individuals in a large group causes the 32 The Teaching of Geography interchange of products of labor which we know as trade or commerce. The Village or City. The village, town, or city, even the grouping of two or three houses in a rural district, is a larger illustration of the same geographic elements to be seen in the home. It is more complicated and yet clearly understood if studied as a group of people brought together for some geographic reason for the common good of all concerned, as is the home group. Each group has some geographic reason for its location which involves the study of the relation of the group to its earth surroundings. The Need of Means of Communication. The need oi communication naturally arises in any group of people, because of the existence of the group and because no individual or no group is wholly independent. The ways in which communication is brought about involve a study of the earth conditions also, but the need of commtmica- tion has a certain definite geographic reason wherever a group of people is located. Industrial Groups, Just as there is a division of labor among the individuals of a household, so, for a similar but larger reason, there is a division of labor among the individuals of diflEerent localities. What these occupations are, how they are carried on, and how they are individually related to the children and people in any locality, may be studied simply or fuUy; but, however studied, the geog- raphy behind the industry or occupation gives meaning to the reasons for the division of labor, because of the eco- nomic advantage of such a division to the individuals of the group. The geographic conditions favoring any spe- cial industry or group of industries is another matter, but industries as a group have a common geographic reason for their existence and for being emphasized in any course of study in Home Geography, Home Geography and the World Whole 33 Commerce and Trade. The exchange of products of labor naturally arises because of a division of labor among individuals or groups of people. How this trade is carried on, and our relation to it, should also be brought out as fully as the needs of the children require, but this cannot be done without considering the earth side of the subject. The geographic reasons for commerce and trade are the same, no matter in what ways this trade is carried on, and these reasons should be developed out of the study of this most general and widest form of the social relations of people or nations. The Earth Units. The earth units necessary for an understanding of the simpler social and life conditions of a locality are few, though the details in each unit should be considered at some length in certain cases. It must be borne in mind that we are not studying any one subject to know it fully as a subject, but that we are studying the simpler features illustrated in our own locality in order to understand the reasons for the accompanying life con- ditions and to prepare otirselves for later work. Each topic considered should be studied fully enough to allow for the making of a summary or definition that will bring together the essential elements in a brief, definite state- ment. After a clear concept of the unit has been gained as a result of observation, description, comparison, and summary, the simpler causal relations to the lives of the people in the community should be brought out. In many cases it is even better to begin with an analysis of these relations and to lead to a conception of the physical unit through each analysis. For instance, a hill may be studied directly as a form to be seen in profile from the school window, and then the relations of roads, houses, and vegetation to the hill may be brought out; or a study of these relations to varying slopes may first be made and 34 The Teaching of Geography the necessity for recognizing different slopes led up to; then the hill may be introduced as a climax to the study. In one locality, or with one set of children, one method tnay be preferable; in another, the other method. The earth topics that might be studied are so many, and their relations to life so numerous, that the untrained teacher is at a loss what to study and how fully to go into details. As a rule the danger will be that too many details are considered and a fineness of classification attempted that would be too minute even for the adoles- cents of high-school age. The earth features may be included under the heads of surface, drainage, soils, and atmosphere. Other topics that depend directly upon these and the others outlined above are trade relations, transportation, direction, distance, and maps. Each of these larger topics may, and indeed must, be subdivided into many parts, but only those parts should be included that are to be seen in the home locality. The Surface Features In approaching the first study of surface features it should be remembered that what a child sees as he looks about him is not the details of the stirface but the whole landscape. Our task is to help him to see varieties of form and to note the relations of life in this broad sweep of surface. The landscape in one place may be generally flat and the minor irregularities of hillock and vale so inconspicuous as to be secondary in importance. Ob- viously, in such a locality the idea of plain is the first to be brought out. In other localities the landscape is rolling and the varieties are so conspicuous that the con- cepts of hills and valleys as forms may be easily given. Care should be taken not merely to study the slopes but to study the forms. So many children imconsdously Home Geography and the World Whole 3$ get the idea that valleys are set about the world like canoes on a shore, or that the hills are like inverted canoes that do not touch, that particular pains should be taken to make clear the fact that slopes meet and that the side of a hill is also a part of the slope of a valley. Per- haps no more common misconception than this can be found among our children. In many cases the error is not corrected for years, and the continuity of profiles comes as a surprise in adolescent years. The Order of Topics The following outline will indicate the main points that the teacher should have in mind in taking up the several topics indicated. The method of approach and the details of the treatment in any given locality cannot of course be indicated here, for the method must vary with the location of the school. The order given is merely suggestive, and should be departed from freely so as to make the work best fit local conditions. The outline includes, however, all topics that will be met with in most places. When volcanic features, the ocean, or any large body of water is a part of the local environ- ment, these topics, here introduced later, should be inclMed. The general order of procedure here suggested is to work out from the most obvious social conditions to the landscape amid which the children live; thence to the details of stuiace; to the drainage that follows the slopes, as do the people; to necessary details of drainage; to the soil which, except in large cities, is available because of the slopes and water; thence to the atmosphere, which is less readily observable but none the less personal. These larger topics are the geographic features that influ- ence the distribution and character of occupations. The interrelation of peoples naturally leads to questions of 36 The Teaching of Geography transportation and business relations, and transportation involves distance and direction, which in turn involve maps. In some localities the physical conditions may be best approached through an analysis of local occupations, and obviously the simpler features of maps should be intro- duced where first the order of topics demands their use. The order of sequence will depend not only upon local conditions but upon the interests of the children. Those topics should first be studied in which the pupils are most vitally interested. The order of topics, however, should be such that one point naturally leads to the next in a definite causal sequence. Children's so-called interests are often temporary and fleeting. They form, therefore, a poor guide for a teacher to follow. The permanent interests are, however, more safe, as these interests usually reflect the environment amid which the pupils live. Children can be made inter- ested in any simple features about them if these f eatvires are rightly approached and if the teacher has a su£5cient knowledge of the facts and belief in their importance to teach the topics as vital things. Children should be trained from the beginning m right ways of thinking, and this; means that the teacher must order the topics so as to proceed logically from one fact to another that is the natural outgrowth of the first. To pick up every chance suggestion of an active-minded child, and to attempt to follow it out, when such a sug- gestion cannot be brought into line even by force, does not give training in right thinking; neither can a sotmd course in Home Geography be btiilt up by picking out a curious or striking point here and another one there, as a bower bird builds a nest. Such a plan means that the result will be, like the bower bird's nest, a medley of chaotic bits without definiteness. Home Geography and the World Whole 37 In other words, a teacher who blindly follows the supposed interests of children will often find himself straying from the main highway into a blind alley from which he must grope his way back to the main thorough- fare, and start again. Yet every chance suggestion which can be brought into line should be used, not only because one or more pupils may be temporarily interested therein, but also because such a plan will show how seemingly unrelated thoughts may be related, and will illustrate how to organize and classify bits of information. The Essential Elements op the More Important Earth Units Plains: Almost universal location of houses on the more gentle slopes in a given landscape. Broad and often long-distant views. Arrangement of streets and roads and division of area into farms and individual land holdings. Ease of transportation and travel. Minor irregularities as related to crops or vegeta- tion. Names for local details of surface when those de- tails are of sufficient definiteness to need naming. Rolling Land: Ready division of landscape into hills and valleys. Variety in slopes. Beauty of scenery. Use of slopes by vegetation and animals; by man, in reference to home building, traveling, or crops; by children, in their play or in going back and forth to school. Rugged Lands {Mountainous Regions): Steepness, extent, and variety of slopes. Scenery. Quality of air at different altitudes. 38 The Teaching of Geography Relation to summer or health resorts when local movintains are so used. Relation to highlands, of which mountains are usually a part, as indicated by roads, use of passes, and general avoidance of peaks. Relation of mountains to forests, to hunting, to wUd animals, to roads and railroads, and to minerals. Plateaus: . General character of top and lateral slopes. Profiles. Depth and use of valleys. Relation to animals and plants, to occupations, and to travel, as in above topics. Running Water: Origin of running water. Occurrence of water in rocks of earth and in air. Uses of water by animals, plants, and men. Sources of underground water, wells, springs. Water supply in cities. Presence of earth matter in spring water; in run- ning water. A river as a stream of water and earth matter, or detritus, flowing through the land. Presence of detritus suggesting source of material and effects of running water on land sturfaces. Simpler features of river work. Uses of rivers by men. A river system as the combination of streams that unite in one main channel. River basin as an area whose water and detritus are being removed by one system. Relation and work of branches or tributaries. Divides between rivers and where found. Home Geography and the World -Whole Jp Changes in slope of river bed as indicated by occur- rence of shallow rapids and deeper pools, or of lakes and rapids or falls. Uses of lakes and falls; swamps. Deltas; how formed, and uses. Flood and alluvial plains; relation and uses. Note that all these features cannot be illustrated in many localities. Hence few beginning courses should contain aU the items mentioned. Only those terms or definitions should be included which are needed for clear- ness and as a basis for the immediately succeeding work. Soils: Relation of soil to solid rock and detritus. Simple consideration of what soil is and how it is formed. Emphasis of combination of organic and inorganic materials in soil. Relation of soil to slope. Meaning of fertile and infertile soils. Importance of soils from the standpoint of use to plants, animals, and men. Classification of soils as to origin or as to character should not be attempted unless the simpler divisions of local soU will help make clear the matter of fertility or infertility. Atmosphere: Proof of atmosphere about us, based on analysis of children's experiences with wind. , Uses of atmosphere and of wind. The seasonal weather of the locality and its rela- tion to the [plants and animals and to mankind. Emphasize especially relation to occupations, to kind of clothing used, and to sports children indulge in at each season. 40 The Teaching oj tjeugTuyny Note that children should be taught to observe weather phenomena at this stage without the use of any instru- ments except a thermometer. They should be called upon to make daily records for only short periods at a time. Observations for a week or two, three or four times a year, are much more valuable than one continued period of observations lasting a month. Children should realize that the observations are taken for a purpose, and not as a matter of routine or as an item of drudgery. These ob- servations should be studied and compared in class, and made the basis for studying seasonal types of weather. The generalizations made should be simple and accurate and capable of being applied in the interpretation of the weather experienced. The Necessities op Life The study of these topics, as an outgrowth of the experiences of children, lays a good foundation for follow- ing their experiences gradually outward until the whole world is seen in its relation to the community. The breakfast table and the physical needs of daily life suggest the point of departure. The necessities of life — food, clothing, shelter, and fuel — are easily studied first-hand, and through their study children may be led farther and farther afield until the whole world is enccxmpassed, the point of view being always the same — our dependence on all parts of the world. The items first selected for study should be those of near-by origin, such as milk, vegetables, and other perishable products. In cities and large towns these products are mainly secured from the neighboring rural districts, and hence perhaps introduce the pupils to areas beyond their experience. Under each topic study its origin, the simpler elements of its production, how it is brought to the community, and how distributed. This Home Geography and the World Whole 41 involves a study of the elements but not the technical details of the local occupations and of transportation. At this stage of progress the local map will of necessity be introduced as a means of showing relative position, distance, and direction. Following the study of the necessities of local produc- tion, the same method of procedure should be followed radially outward to distant parts of our country. The wheat and flour, the meats, butter, cotton, wool, fuels, lumber, bricks, and other necessities may all be traced to their sources, and the physical and the human relations to the areas of production studied. How TO Introduce the Geography op Distant Regions Thus a knowledge of our relation to our own country, and of our country as a great nation, in which we should all feel a patriotic pride, may be built up. Somewhere in the plan, varying with the locality, children must be brought in their studies to the shore, and must be given the story of our relation to the ocean. In New York or San Francisco and other port cities our relations to the great bodies of standing water must come in early in the course. In interior localities these topics should be deferred until in the process of moving outward the study of the ocean naturally comes in. Here we may well study harbors, wharves, lighthouses, life- saving stations, and other human relations to the ocean, to show how commerce is carried on and property protected on the sea. Such a method of procedure along lines of mutual relationship is more natural than a procedure along political boundaries. Why should a child be led outward in concentric circles from the schoolroom, to the school 42 The Teaching of Geography yard, to the street, the block, the ward, the city, the cotmty, the state, the nation, when the intimate things of his life relate him to more distant regions than to these political imits of area? The radial plan of procedure does not in any way inter- fere with a development of the knowledge of the town, township, state, and nation as political imits, but it makes it possible to develop our relations to them rather than to present them as invisible bounds that hem us in constantly. The same plan of procedure may be followed beyond the sea, until the whole world is summarized as a globe occupied by many peoples doing different things because of varied environing conditions, and all bound together in an intimate interdependence. The teacher should see to it that the products selected in the work as a whole intro- duce the children to the several continents and the several heat belts, for a summary of the work should be a knowl- edge of the distribution of the heat belts as a preparation for the continental work of the intermediate grades. The plan followed by the teacher must be well thought out, but the order of procedtire must vary with circum- stances. For instance, it is necessary for completeness to study at some time products secured from the Cold Caps, and at another, products from the Hot Belt. The latter, other things being equal, should perhaps be studied first, as they are more familiar to the children. But no hard and fast rule can be laid down, for the choice of the particular country to be studied at a particular time would naturally be influenced by the season of the year, by a striking "spell of weather," or perhaps by some special interest in some corner of the world. Before the work is complete the following regions should be considered. The products mentioned below are merely suggestive. Any one may be used as an introduction to the country. Home Geography and the World Whole 43 to be studied, or some other, equally well adapted, may be chosen. These suggestions are a guide for the teacher and not a course of study to be followed blindly as the race track is by a runner. Northern North America and Northern Eurasia. Furs, including sealskins, bear, sable, wolf, ermine. «^ Southern North America. Bananas, tropical woods, rice, rubber, cacao, and silver may also be used if desired. Northern South America. Coffee, rubber, qviinine, manioc, Brazil nuts. Southern South America. Hides and meat products. West Central Europe. Cheese, wine, embroideries, silk goods. Southern Europe. Olives, olive oil, cork, lemons. Western Asia. Rugs. Southern and Southeastern Asia. Spices, tea, silk, rice, firecrackers. Northern Africa. Dates. Central Africa. Ivory, pahn oil. Southern Africa. Diamonds. Australia. Wool. United States Dependencies. Alaska: Salmon, gold, sealskins. Hawaii: Sugar, rice, bananas. Philippines: Hemp. Porto Rico: Sugar, tobacco, coffee, tropical fruits. 44 The Teaching of Geography The World as a Globe In this work a globe should be constantly used, and preferably every child should have a small globe for individual use. The work should not at first be based on a Mercator map, for Mercator maps give wrong impres- sions of distances and areas. Every region noted should be studied in its relation to the continent in which it is placed, and in its direction from the home community. Distance should be measured in time of passage in days and not in miles. Each locality treated shoiild be studied briefly as a region where people are living and working, as we are, but perhaps differently because the conditions about them are different. Emphasize the similarity of purpose of life in these regions and at home, and the different ways of doing things. Omit the details, and do not study the countries thoroughly as countries. Emphasize the ways of people that have a geographic reason for being, but omit curious customs and personal racial characteristics. The study of tea should include a study of the Chinese method of living and working, but the vivid impressions left should not be of queues, slanting eyes, loose clothes, and the other features that are usually associated with the Chinese. The object of the work is to develop an imderstanding of ovis relation to the globe. (The fact that the world is a globe must be assumed, for it cannot be developed by any nvimber of imaginary journeys around it. One can go around a city block, a cube, a gas tank, or a rock boulder, but the ability to return to the starting point does not prove the globular shape of the object encircled.) It is not expected that children should study countries as countries at this stage, for that is beyond the purpose of the moment. The summary of the heat belts, and the Home Geography and the World Whole 45 relation to these belts of the principal areas of production selected, is the goal to be reached. Points to be Omitted in Home Geography As has been already stated, not all the topics that might be included in a given locality ought to be a part of a course of study. Many items are not in the remotest sense geographic in character; others are little worth studying either for their present or future worth; and still others are beyond the abilities of pupils of the third or fourth grade. Among the topics that are not geographic in character are the names and fimctions of the officers of the local government; the mechanical details of any trade, like the building of a house, the making of hats, the weaving of cloth; topics in geology or mineralogy that cannot be studied except through museum specimens. Some of these items may need to be studied, but not wholly, in the recitation time assigned to geography. Minerals and rocks are germane only in localities where they may be gathered out of doors and compared. The study of specimens from a distance, gathered in a museum collection, is neither geographical nor valuable at this stage of the work. The development of coal from peat, or marble from limestone, and similar problems which are testing the powers of our greatest investigators, ought not to be presented in a classroom, as if all that were necessary to make coal from peat were peat, some weight, and a hot oven. Such topics can only be memorized, they cannot be understood; and a glib reiteration of the words of a teacher or a text cannot be considered a test of knowledge. Among the topics beyond the powers of children are the relations of bodies in the solar system, the movements 46 The Teaching of Geography of the earth, and the theory of storms. The times of sunrise and sunset and of moonrise and moonset involve observations that cannot be taken under the teadier's guidance and that call for study at hours that children of the third and fourth grade ought to be in bed. Such topics should be left tmtil later years, when they can be taught with some degree of satisfaction, though perhaps not as perfectly as might be desired. These topics are but a few of the many that should be omitted from a course in Home Geography. They are samples which wiU perhaps be of some value as guides to teachers. The successful teacher of Home Geography must know what not to teach as well as what to teach. The work in the geographical phases of nature study in the earlier grades, and the work in Home Geography, are the phases of geography teaching that present the greatest difficulties to any teacher, no matter how well trained in the subject he may be. A teacher in the upper grades may do fairly successful work with a knowledge of geog- raphy which is far less than that necessary for the teacher in the lower grades, who must select, from the myriad of facts and relations about him, those few items which are worth studjring in themselves and which give the best preparation for the work of the intermediate years. References Teachers College Record, March, 1901, pp. 15-17; Davis, W. M., "Home Geography," /oMrno/o/Geogmp^y, Vol. IV, pp. 1-5; Geikie, A., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter II; McMurry, C. A., Eoccur- sions and Lessons in Home Geography; Farnhatn, A. W., "Oswego Geograph}) Course," Journal of Geography, Vol. V., pp. 109-119; Teachers College Record, March, 1901, pp. 17-20, 24-27. CHAPTER IV GEOGRAPHY OF THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES The Importance of Continental Geography THE work outlined under Home Geography and the World Whole has been carefully planned to give the necessary basis for the more serious continent study which is presented for the first tinie in the intermediate grades. The pupils have studied their home locality in order that they may have a basis for the understand- ing of the more distant parts of the earth, and have had glimpses of life and environment in more remote regions in their world study. The intermediate teacher builds upon this knowledge and attempts to bring within the grasp of the children a fairly comprehensive view of the geography of the world. It is an ambitious undertaking, and one that can be realized only very imperfectly. Whatever is to be ac- complished in the study of the continents must be done in the elementary school, for two reasons. In the first place, comparatively few children ever pass beyond the elementary school; and secondly, those who do enter out secondary schools, or even our colleges, receive practi- cally no training in the study of continents and countries. Where geography is included in the curricula in the higher institutions it is for the most part specialized in charac- ter, the physical or commercial phases being emphasized rather than a more general study. Pupils who enter college are painfully ignorant of the very fundamentals of this most important subject, 47 48 The Teaching of Geography and there is no reason to suppose that those who leave the grammar school or the high school to enter upon a bvisiness career are any better equipped. What is the difficulty, and where should the responsibility be placed? Surely not all upon the grade teacher. The scope of geography is so vast, its interrelations so complicated, that it certainly might be studied with profit through a much longer period of time and at a stage of greater matur- ity on the part of the pupils than is commonly the case. In many of our schools the subject is completed at the end of the seventh year, and in some cases even at the end of the sixth year. Thus the work is closed just at the age when pupils are becoming sufficiently mature for a really satisfactory handling of the subject. The fact that regional geography receives such scant treatment naturally places a heavier responsibility upon those grades where it is taught and, among these, upon the -teachers of the intermediate rather than of the upper grades, for a large proportion of our pupils never graduate from the elementary school, many of them dropping out by the end of the fifth or the sixth year. The continental study of the intermediate years is therefore the climax of their geography study for these pupils, and hence is of great importance. What Continents to Teach in the Inter- mediate Grades There are many problems that must be considered in outlining a course for this stage, perhaps the most funda- mental being that of the scope of the work. How many of the continents shovdd we attempt to teach in the intermediate years? The answer ordinarily given is "All of them," the reason for this decision being the fact already stated that many pupils do not carry thdr work Geography of tke Intermediate Grades 4Q beyond this intennediate stage. It is, of course, desirable to teach as much of the world as one can, but the ques- tion that confronts us is whether we should teach all of the continents hastily or a few of them well. The answer is self-evident to those of us who believe that education is not simply the acquisition of facts, and that teaching and cramming are not synonymous. The particular facts taught are, after all, of secondary importance, the teaching process being of prime importance. Continent study offers an unsurpassed field for true teaching. The training involved in the collection of data, in the deducing of principles, in the testing of these principles and in their use, if they survive the test, is of more value than is any amount of verbatim knowledge taken from the text. Instruction of this kind reqtiires much time, but a few of the most important conti- nents, well taught, are surely of more value, both from the standpoint of training and of knowledge, than are all where the end and aim of instruction is the imparting of facts. As has been previously stated, the continents that should by all means be studied in the intermediate grades are our own, first and foremost; secondly, Europe, with selected portions of Asia, and then, if there be time, South America. The Two Important Phases op Geography The piurpose of all geography teaching is to present life and its physical environment as graphically as possi- ble. It is generally agreed in these modem days that the physical environment alone is ^ot geography, nor is life alone geography. The interaction of the two consti- tutes the science with which we are concerned and is its excuse,, if it needs one, for existing. 50 The Teaching of Geography One of the great dangers at this stage of the work is that details of industry or physical features will be over- emphasized and that the teacher and the class will wander far from the true realm of geography and will lose them- selves in the technique of industry or in the intricacies of other related sciences. In order to avoid this pitfall, the teacher must constantly ask himself the question: Is this really geography, or is it perhaps one tenth geography and nine tenths something else? This does not mean that a teacher may never present to his class material that has not the label of geography attached to it. He may and should borrow from any and all fields whatever he needs to make his point clear or to drive his lesson home. Such excursions into related fields should be for the purpose of strengthening the work in geography and for no other reason. : The weakness of much work in this subject lies in the fact that teachers do not limit themselves closely enough to their own line. The time has long since passed when it is safe to tmload upon geography "topics that cannot be taught elsewhere" — an old argtmaent for the inclusion of certain features in the course of study, and one that actually carried weight. The geography teacher should bear in mind the fact that his subject is no more responsible for the odds and ends of instruction than are the other subjects of the curriculum, and the good teacher will see to it that one of the best instruments for the awakening and developing of the child is not made worthless through misuse. The obvious and most interesting phases of geogra- phy are related to the industrial life and social conditions in any community. These are the phases that offer the best problems for analysis and study in the intermediate grades. This means that the physical features should be subordinated to the life conditions, not only in degree of Geography of the Intermediate Grades $1 emphasis given to each but in the approach as well, the causes being developed through the study of the related life consequences. The Method of Approach The method of approach possible in any section may be well illustrated by the following outline devoted to the topic of ranch life in the West. In discussing the main features of this life — namely, the location of the ranch house, the size of the ranch, the distances that the cattle wander, what they live upon, the life of the cowboys, the round-up, losses in this industry, and other features of ranch life — the children will unconsciously absorb a knowledge of the physical features of the region if the teacher will simply emphasize causal relationships through- out this study. Questions like the following cannot fail to make the situation clear. Why are the cattle allowed to wander such great distances? What does this suggest in regard to the abundance of food? They eat coarse and rather dry bunch grass; what do these facts tell you in regard to the climate? Many cattle die during the winter; can you suggest a reason for this fact? The cow- boy lives in the saddle much of the time; do you think you would enjoy that life? Let us listen to an account of one day spent in this way. (A good description should be read by some pupil.) What do you think about it now? What makes it a very hard and danger- ous life? Can you picture the country over which the cowboy rides? Describe it. Pictures should be used freely throughout the discus- sion in order to make the topic as realistic as possible. At its conclusion the children will have not only an understanding of the life which has been portrayed but 52 The Teaching of Geography of its determming causes — stuface, drainage, and climate. Maps, too, will be found to be essential for this work, but the photograph should be the main reliance of the teacher, showing, as nothing else can, not only the various aspects of the industry under consideration but the physical environment as well. The function of the map is the interpretation of the picture at this stage. Photographs of this region, for instance, will show few streams and scanty vegetation. The map reveals the underlsmig cause in showing that a great mountain barrier prevents the moist winds from reaching the section, and that light rainfall is therefore to be expected. In the teaching of any continent, however, one cannot plunge at once into the life or industries there represented. A general view of it in relation to other continents and to surrounding waters, the distribution of the chief highlands and lowlands, and some appreciation of their extent, a familiarity with the great drainage lines and some idea of climate through location in the heat belts, will ftimish a background for the detailed study which will follow. This bird's-eye view of the continent may best be given through simple map exercises and is a necessary foundation for the study of life conditions in detail. There is no excuse for the assignment of paragraphs from the text for this work, when all can be read so clearly from the map by the pupil himself. He should be allowed to solve his own problems as far as possible. How TO Divide a Continent for Study In breaking up a country into sections for study, various methods have been resorted to. The industrial division — that is, into the cotton-growing section, the wheat- and corn-growing sections, the grazing section, and the manufacturing section — has much to recommend it, Geography of the Intermediate Grades 53 for the division is based upon phases of life that cannot fail to interest. There are diffictdties in working out the details of this plan, however. In the first place, it is not an easy matter to locate, for instance, the "wheat- growing region,", this cereal being fotmd widely scattered over the northern part of the United States. Neither is there a "manufacturing area." In attempting to divide the country in this way it is impossible to avoid over- emphasis of a given industry in one section and too slight an emphasis in another, thus leaving an incorrect impres- sion in regard to its distribution. There is danger, too, of vagueness where knowledge should be definite. Pupils should know the states and their relative positions, but where an industrial tmit is substituted for a political unit, the industrial side is frequently developed at the expense of the political. Children are often able to talk glibly about "the cotton-raising section," without realizing the states that compose the section. They frequently know the conditions tmder which cotton is grown but are hazy with regard to the exact location of the great cotton centers. This result is not inevitable from this plan of study, but it is too frequently the case that the "cotton section," or any other section that may be under con- sideration, is allowed to cover a multitude of sins on the part of the teacher and half knowledge on the part of the class. Similar difficulties are found in following out any plan that is not based on the political areas that are commonly used. The "journey method," which when used occasion- ally is interesting, is adapted only to sections of the world where a bird's-eye view sufiices. This method is generally too sketchy to be productive of anything approaching a well-roimded knowledge of a subject or a region. The title itself carries with it the temptation to take a glimpse S4 The Teaching of Geography here, another one there, or to flit over a region instead of living in it. The result is a smattering of facts too often disconnected and unrfelated, where we should have a body of organized knowledge. Its greatest strength perhaps lies in the opportunity which it offers of so binding together more or less distant parts of a coimtry that comparisons almost inevitably fol- low. In taking a shore trip, for instance from Florida to Maine, one is very likely to bring out differences in climate, in coast features, and in life. A lesson of this kind is in place occasionally, but as a means of teaching a continent or a country the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Another method that is used frequently is the teaching of a country according to types. In this method a striking example of a class is selected and studied in great detail, the object being to make the chosen illustration as graphic as possible. This is then used as a basis of comparison, similar conditions in different parts of the cotmtry being examined. For instance, a Ivimber camp in Minnesota is studied with care. The life and work of the lumber- men, the conditions favoring the growth of the forests, the disposition of the Ivtmber, are all topics of study. When this region is thoroughly known, comparisons are made with the same industry in the Pacific States, in the Southern States, in New England, until a fairly compre- hensive view of the situation is obtained. The types selected for study are chosen from widely separated re- gions, as a coal mine in Pennsylvania, a cattle ranch on the western plains, an orange grove in Florida, a gold' mine in California, until finally the entire country has been covered. In all of this study causal relationships are emphasized, thus teaching the physical as well as the life conditions Geography of the Intermediate Grades 55 that are involved. If this method be adopted, the teacher should choose his types with care. A type is a representative illustration of a class, not an exceptional one, and better results wUl be secured if this be kept in mind in maMng one's selection. Not the most com- plicated center of manufacturing, for instance, should be chosen for study, but one stripped of tmnecessary im- pedimenta, where the dependence of the industry upon determining causes is clearly apparent. There is one serious objection, however, to the type method when the attempt is made to fit a continent or a country into it. It seldom results in a well-rounded view of the section of the country vinder consideration, for again one industry or one product is exploited, little attention being given to others. A lumber camp or some other center of industry may occupy the entire foregroimd when perhaps an iron mine or a wheat farm is of too great importance to be relegated to obscurity. Those who uphold this plan of teaching expect and claim that such topics may be sufi&ciently taught through comparison; that when iron mines are thoroughly studied in Minnesota, mining in Alabama may also be taught; that when a wheat farm in CaUfomia is presented in detail, wheat raising in Minnesota may be introduced, and that thus gradually all of the important features of each section will have been presented. This is undoubtedly true, but the question is a fair one whether topics so presented are an actual part of a given section in the mind of the child. There is no doubt that the one or two types in a region that are actually taught will stand out pronoinently in that region, but will the section be seen as a unit made up of many interrelated activities, or will the one, or at the most two tj^es taught in any one section stand for that section as far as the pupils are concerned? There is every S6 The Teaching of Geography likelihood that the latter will be the case; that if a manu- facturing city be taught in New England, New England will stand for that industry instead of for manufacturing, for quarrying, for fishing, for agriculture, for trade. It is our duty as teachers to devise or to adopt some plan which will not only leave a deep and true impres- sion of the regions studied, but which will lose nothing in interest. This condition is met in the industrial considera- tion of political divisions, each division being studied from various standpoints and with varying degrees of emphasis upon the industries represented. For example, the Middle States of the Atlantic Coast might be studied from the standpoint of manufacturing, mining, farming, and com- merce, the first two and the last being considered in detail, farming less intensively; the Southern States from the point of view of agriculture in particular, though also from that of manufacturing, mining, and commerce to a lesser ejrtent, comparisons constantly being made with sec- tions previously studied. In each section, then, the industries will be seen in their proper perspective, the most important standing out most prominently, but those of lesser importance also being seen as a true part of the whole. It may not be possible, according to this plan, to study all or indeed any of the important topics in great detail, but it is possible to introduce a sufiident amount to make geographic pictures that may become permanent possessions if the latter part of the work is properly per- formed. Overmuch detail is deadening and defeats the purpose of the work because the essentials are lost in a mass of non-essentials. The suggestions on the follow- ing pages are given as illustrative of the teaching of the sections of the United States according to the plan which has been recommended. Geography of the Intermediate Grades 57 A Suggestive Outline for a Series of Lessons The Southern States of the Atlantic Coast. What states are included in this group? Mention some articles of food or of clothing that this sec- tion furnishes for us. (If you do not know, the pictures in your geography will give you sug- gestions. Look at the pictures carefully.) Which industry represented seems to you the most inter- esting? TeU me some of the things you want to know about it. Let us find out what we can about these points to-day. (Cotton growing has been selected here, though an orange grove, a sugar plantation, or some other industrial feature would be equally satisfactory as an introduction to the region.) Study the photographs and see what you can find out for yourselves in regard to the appearance of a cotton plantation. (Magazine picttires mounted on cards will answer the purpose if larger ones are not available. The following points should be brought out: the extent of the plantation; how the cotton is planted; the appearance of the plant, its approximate height, its blossom, its fruit; the appearance of the plantation when the cotton plant is in bloom and when the boll is formed.) Describe the life on the plantation as far as you can. Tell about the houses of the people ; the work in the field. Why do you think that colored people do so much of this work? (Some member of the class should be asked to read a good description of a cotton plantation.) Judging from the pictures, do you think that cot- ton grows better in a level or in a hilly country.? S8 The Teaching oj Geography Some of the best cotton is grown in river valleys. , What does this tell you about the soil it needs? In what heat belt is this part of our country? Describe the summer as to length; as to tempera- ture. Has this section much or little rain? (See rainfall map.) Describe the conditions under which cotton grows best. (Summary.) What is done with the cotton after it is picked? (See illustrations.) What does your textbook present on this subject ? (Bring out the fact that the seeds must be removed and the cotton put in bales before it is finally shipped.) Turn to your maps. Mention some cities that you think may be great cotton centers. Why do you think so? (Show the importance of their location in the heart of the cotton region and their favorable positions for transportation.) Have you found out what you wanted to know about plantations? What are the most interest- ing things that you have learned? How may the people of this part of the country and the people of New England, for instance, benefit one another? Other important agricultural products of these states, such as rice and sugar cane, may be studied very briefly, for the region as a farming country is already well known through the study of cotton. The treatment of the other indus- , tries of the section should also be brief, for the important ones have been studied elsewhere: manufacturing in New England and in the Middle States and mining in the latter section. Geography of the Intermediate Grades gg A few suggestions follow for lessons on the more important remaining industries and their relative rank. What other industries are carried on in this sec- tion? (See illustrations.) What articles are probably manufactured here? What can you learn from the illustrations about the changes through which cotton passes before we see it in the form of cloth? (A brief discussion of the process.) What industry is found here that we studied in the Middle Atlantic States? Can you tell from the illustrations what sort of mining this is? (Work briefly described.) Locate the mining section. What products are manufactured here besides cot- ton cloth? What part of this section is partic- ularly adapted to manufacturing? Why? See if you can tell what cities would be likely to carry on this industry. Which cities would you expect to be important commercially? What products would naturally be shipped from each? Judging from your knowledge of the physical fea- tures of the region, which industry do you think the most important here? Read your text care- fully for to-morrow and see if you are right. Is it important that these other industries should also be carried on? Give as many reasons for your opinion as you can. (Discuss with class the relative importance of the industries of this section and those of other sections studied.) When the study of the region has been completed, exercises like the following shotild be given: On an out- line map of the United States color in the cotton-growing 6o The Teaching of Geography section. Make those states darkest where the cotton crop is heaviest. Locate the leading cotton centers, naming each. Show by what routes cotton would probably be sent from the South to New England. The distribution of some of the other leading products may be shown in a similar manner. The outline maps may also be used during the study of the various products as well as at the conclusion of the work. References McMurry, C. A., Special Method in Geography, Chapter IX; Bagley, W. C, "Geography in the Intermediate Grades," Journal of Geography, Vol. IV, pp. 299-7-308; Farnham, A. W., "Oswego Geography Cpurse," Journal of Geography, Vol. V, pp. 211-223. CHAPTER V THE PRINCIPLES OF GEOGRAPHY The Importance of the Principles of Geography ^T^HE teacher who attempts to give instruction in -*- geography without a thorough grounding in its fun- damental principles will find himself in the position of a blind leader of the blind. The pupils of such a teacher will always find the work "too hard" and the subject a dry one, A thorough knowledge of these principles is needed throughout the entire course, but it is indispen- sable in handling the introductory matter that usually precedes the advanced study of the continents. This material, so necessary to the understanding of the later continental work and so fuU of interest, if rightly pre- sented, is usually condensed within a few pages at the beginaiing of the advanced textbook. The subject is a difficult one to present in print in such a maimer that children will do more than memorize the paragraphs without much regard to their meaning. Much of the work is rather too abstract in its natttre to be grasped by immature minds unless it is made concrete arid filled with meaning by a teacher who knows both his subject and his children. The subjects treated in our best geographies in this introductory work are those that are foimd, for the most part, within the covers of our physical geographies, though necessarily greatly condensed. The following topics sug- gest the nature of the work: The Earth as a Globe. Form, size, motions, latitude, longitude, seasons, zones, varying length of day and night. 6i 62 The Teaching of Geography Atmosphere. Climate and weather; temperature, winds, rainfall. Ocean. Currents, waves, tides. Lands. Plains, plateaus, mountains, volcanoes, shore lines, rivers, glaciers. Life: Distribution of plants, animals, man. . No more interesting matter can be found within the textbook than this, if it be well presented. The Earth as a Globe The first topic, the earth as a globe, has for an indefi- nite period been a bugbear to pupils and teachers. This could not be otherwise, and cannot be so to-day except in cases where the teacher realizes that his function is to teach, not to hear recitations. Children cannot learn this work from a textbook; indeed, few college students can do so. The facts must be developed by the teacher, his presentation being based upon simple observations made by the pupils and upon pieces of apparatus or other graphic means of representation. Much of the difficulty in this work Hes, too, in the fact that teachers too often lose sight of the definition of geography in this part of the course — that It consists not merely of earth study but of the relations of life as well. This cannot be too strongly emphasized where the physical facts are so difficult to visualize. A rotating, globular earth traveling in space about the sun is not a simple conception for the mind of a child. It is surely advisable to throw the emjJhasis upon the influence of this globe upon our lives. For years we have taught the form of the earth, the really conscientious teacher, perhaps, insisting that we live The Principles oj Geography 63 upon an oblate spheroid. We have taught proofs of the shape of the earth, usually inaccurately it is true, for most of the proofs given in our own textbooks show only that the surface of the earth is bounded by curves — not that the curvature is practically equal. We have thus attempted, though with indifferent success, to show that the earth is a globe. We have not led the children to realize the more important fact that its form is a matter of moment to them. The shape of the earth resulting in a practically equal pull of gravity at sea level the world over, is certainly worth mentioning. OUr commercial relations are based upon this fact, for equal gravity means equal weight of a given mass. It also means equal average density of air at sea level, which is important to us for many reasons, and particularly that man is thus adapted to live in any latitude. Rotation. The influence upon our lives of a rotating globe is equally interesting. We are all familiar with the fact that rotation gives us day and night. Attention should also be called to the fact that the period of our day is one earth's rotation; that the period of noon, when the sun is highest in the sky, when shadows are shortest and point to the north in otu: latitude, is also a result of the rotation of tha.earth, for the sun is then passing from the eastern to the western part of the heavens. Every teacher will realize the importance of stripping latitude and longitude of their unreality and of reveal- ing them as a natural method of blocking off the globe by imaginary lines by means of which we may locate places exactly as we locate a house at the intersection of streets. The use of latitude and longitude may be shown by placing a dot on a slate globe without lines of any kind, the chil- dren being asked to locate this point on their maps. When 64 The Teaching of Geography this is seen to be impossible, parallels and meridians may be drawn and the directions repeated. If the time-honored spelling match be set aside occasionally and a latitude and longitude game be substituted, as, " I live in 20 degrees north latitude and 10 degrees east longitude; about where is my home?" the children will soon cease puzzling ovei which one is north and south and which east and west, and will realize that the subject was not invented prima- rily for their mystification. Revolution. The subject of the revolution of the earth cannot be taught too carefully. Here again textbook work is useless until the subject has been developed step by step in the most painstaking manner. In no part of the course is apparatus of some kind more necessary, for much of this work is beyond the child's power of visualization imless it be reduced to tangible form. A good season apparatus is desirable for this work, but it is by no means indispensable. The essential thing is to show by means of a globe that travels about a sun, perhaps a globe carried about a lamp by the teacher, that the constant parallelism of the inclined axis causes first one hemisphere, the north- em, and then the other, the southern, to be inclined some- what toward the sun, while the opposite hemisphere is turned away. This must be clearly shown in order that change of seasons may be taught, one of the most impor- tant results of the revolution of the earth, and that the difference in length of day and night, puzzling because usually poorly presented, may be understood. It is not difficult to show children that at the equinoxes, March 21 and September 22, when the rays of the sun are vertical at the equator, the circle of illtamination must cut the earth at the poles and that therefore at this time day and night must be of equal length all over the earth. When this point is actually grasped, it may readily be The Principles of Geography 65 shown that when the vertical rays strike 23 J^ degrees north latitude at the Tropic of Cancer, the lighted hemi- sphere must shift an equal amount, the circle of illu- mination then falling exactly 23^^ degrees beyond the north pole and the same distance short of the south pole. If it be shown that the circle of illimiination again, and in fact always, bisects the equator, the reason for the equal day and night throughout the year at the equator will be apparent. The chief difficulty which the teacher will encoimter in this question of Hght distribution is in drawing the distinc- tion between length of day and night at the polar circles and at the poles. A very simple piece of apparatus will suffice to show that the Arctic Circle is flooded with light /or owe day only m the year — ^June 22 — ^when the rays of the sun are vertical at their most northein point, the Tropic of Cancer, and when the circle of illumination falls farthest beyond the north pole, completely covering the Arctic Circle. We may show by means of the same piece of apparatus that the light reaches the north pole at the time of the spring equinox, March 21, and that the pole remains in the light during the progress of the circle of illimiination beyond the pole to the Arctic Circle on June 22, and until its return on September 22, thus giving a six months' day at that point but at no other spot on the earth except at the south pole at the opposite season. Various devices may be used to illustrate these points. A paper cap representing the lighted portion of the globe, exactly fitted to a hemisphere, will be foimd very satisfactory. Its edge (the circle of illtmiination) extend- ing from pole to pole will represent Ught distribution at the time of the equinoxes. Slipped beyond the north pole 2z}4 degrees, length of day and night over the earth at the summer solstice will be shown, while an equal shifting 66 The Teaching of Geography beyond the south pole will represent the length of day and night during the winter Solstice, December 22. If light distribution be thoroughly understood for the northern hemisphere during our summer solstice, the teacher will have no difficulty in showing that those conditions are duplicated in the southern hemisphere during our winter solstice, and that the, proportion of light in one hemi- sphere is balanced by an equal amount of darkness in the other. In this work on light distribution, whether at the equinoxes, at the summer solstice, or at the winter solstice, the teacher should be sure that the pupils are clear on the three following points: first, the position of the vertical rays; second, the position of the circle of illumination; and third, the consequent length of day and night at various latitudes over the earth. Two points should be emphasized in presenting the subject of zones: that they are primarily belts of light distribution, not heat belts, and that their width is determined by the inclination of the earth's axis. The incUnation of the axis being 23^ degrees, it is not difficult to show that the torrid zone must necessarily be 23^ degrees wide on each side of the equator, the vertical rays of the sun moving north and south in accordance with the amount of the inclination, and that the frigid zone will also be 23 J^ degrees in width, the circle of illumination fall- ing 2s}4 degrees beyond or short of the poles at the time of the solstices, thus marking the boundary of these zones. The children may discover for themselves the width of the intenrening space, the temperate zone, by finding the degrees unclaimed by the torrid and the frigid zones. The pupils' comprehension of this subject may easily be tested by tilting the axis at imaginary angles — 30 degrees, 45 degrees, or perhaps with no indination from The Principles of Geography 6f the perpendicular — and allowing the class to decide upon the number and width of the zones in each hypothetical case. If the preceding zone work has simply been memo- rized, they will be helpless with a problem of this kind to solve; if each step has been thought out, however, they will need little assistance in making this new application of their knowledge. Climate Under climate the most ftmdamental topic for study is temperature. The isothermal maps naturally form the basis for temperature work. The follov\ring points are among the most important: the comparison of land and water temperatures in similar latitudes for winter and summer in both the northern and southern hemi- spheres; the comparison of coasts and interior; the amount of variation between the equator and the poles; the com- parison of summers in the southern hemisphere with summers in the northern hemisphere; the comparison of winters in each hemisphere; the study of the average yearly range of temperature in the northern and southern hemispheres and the location of the heat equator. Reasons for conditions found and for differences where comparisons are made should invariably be called for. The topic that natttrally follows, that of the winds, is stripped of much of its difficulty if it be developed step by step. The diagram that follows, with the accompany- ing brief explanations and questions, covers the chief points to be presented. Describe the temperature of the air at the equator. How will this heated air move? Why? After it rises it starts for the poles. Describe the temperature when it has reached "middle lati- tudes." How will the air then move? Where 68 The Teaching of Geography the air descends there is much air, or "high pressure." Where there is less air there is "low pressure." Can you mention one region where the pressure must be low? (The teacher will be obliged to tell the children that pressure is low at the poles r/orlhPpTe SouthPoh The wind, systems of the world i. Equatorial calms or Doldrums. 2. Northeast trades. 3 Southeast trades. 4, 5. Tropical calms or Horse Latitudes. 6. West-south wester- lies. 7. West-north westerlies. 8, p. Circumpolars. as well as at the equator.) If there is much air in one region and less in another, what will happen? How then will this air move? Try to draw a straight line on this rotating globe from The Principles of Geography 6g the pole to the equator in the northern hemi- sphere and in the southern hemisphere. Describe your lines. As the air moves equatorward and poleward, it is deflected to the right in the north- em hemisphere and to the left in the southern, just as were your lines on the globe, due to the rotation of the earth, giving us the circulation outlined above. This diagram, which illustrates the approximate dis- tribution of the winds during spring and fall when the heat equator is near the mathematical equator, may be drawn step by step during the development of the subject, the children doing the work themselves. This work may be carried a little further, for the system as outlined is not immodified throughout the year. If the foundation has been well laid, however, the next stage will present few difficulties. The following suggestions are given for Jtdy and for January: Winds for July. Is the heat equator always close to the mathematical equator? Where is it in July? Draw it. Show me where you think the northeast trades will stop. Why do you think so? What must the southeast trades do? What will be their direction as they cross the mathematical equator? Why? You have seen that as the heat equator moves northward the southern trades are drawn north- ward across the mathematical equator. All of the other wind belts are likewise affected, shift- ing slightly to the north. Find the belt in the northern hemisphere that has tropical calms in spring and fall. What winds will you find h^re in July ? What winds will you find in the corres- ponding belt in the southern hemisphere? (As 70 The Teaching of Geography the various points are discussed they should be represented in diagrams as before.) Complete your diagram, showing the position of the remaining wind belts. The same method of procedure may be followed in teaching the winds for January. When this has been done a comparison should of course be made. What winds or calms are f ovmd close to the equator in spring and fall? What winds lie directly north of the equator in January? in July? How do these winds compare in direction? We call winds that blow from opposite directions during the wanner and cooler parts of the year monsoons. Do you find any other monsoons in this vicinity? From what directions do they come? (Particularly striking winds of this class, such as the monsoons of India, may also be pre- sented here.) In what other belts do the winds change? Name the winds or calms that we find in each of these belts in spring and fall; in January; in July. What winds have they both during their summer? What winds during theu: winter? The preceding suggestions are given sinlply as aids in teaching the fundamental circulation of the atmosphere and the modification resulting from the shifting of the heat equator. Lessons should foUow on the characteristics of the various wind belts and the distribution of the leading countries of the world in these belts. The teacher will feel repaid for a careful development of this topic, for he will find it necessary many times to draw upon the children's knowledge of winds both in their later continent work and in the study of rainfall and its distribution as well. The Principles of Geography 7/ Rainfall Under rainfall the most important topic to teach is its distribution and its influence upon life. For this work a map showing the distribution of rainfall over the world is necessary, together with physical maps for purposes of location. In order to explain the rainfall of any section the wind belt In which the region lies must be known, its situation with reference to the sea, its alti- tude and its position with reference to adjacent high- lands or lowlands, and something in regard to its temperature. In class work on this subject children should be required to state the chief cause or causes for the amount of rainfall in each section studied. ' For instance, in the case of the northern part of the western coast of the United States the heavy rainfall should be explained as due to the fact that the region lies in the westerly wind belt on the windward side of the motmtains, while Kalahari, in southern Africa, is a desert due to its location in the southeast trade-wind belt on the leeward side of the mountains. Sometimes temperature is the controlling cause, as in north-central North America and in northeastern Asia, where the low temperature results in "cold deserts." The regions conspicuous either for heavy or for extremely light rainfall (deserts) should be studied care- fully, as well as the distribution of precipitation in our own country. Pupils should be allowed to work out for themselves the relation between rainfall and industries by locating some of the great agricultural lands of the world and noting the amount of rainfall in each region, and by comparing the rainfall of the grazing lands and the lumbering districts with that of the agricultural and other sections. 72 The Teaching of Geography Weather Surely no topic under the atmosphere has a greater claim for an important place in the course of study than has the weather. It is difficult to make certain por- tions of geography clear to children, for we are forced, from the nature of the subject, to deal with many topics so remote that only by illustrations and careful word pictures can we hope to show the region approximately as it is. In the case of the weather, however, our material is not only at hand but presses upon us so closely that we are in danger of mistaking familiarity for knowledge. The laws governing the weather are not beyond the compre- hension of upper-grade classes and not only repay study from the standpoint of the teacher but from that of the pupils as well. The latter soon form the habit of consult- ing the weather map in order to see whether "To-morrow will be a good day for the game," or to get help in deciding as to the advisability of planning out-of-door excursions of various kinds. In order to understand the weather . changes of temperate latitudes it is only necessary to make a study of what are called low- and high-pressure areas for, as we shall see, these areas control our weather, sweeping alternately across our country, one succeeding the other with almost no intervening conditions. In other words, we are almost constantly under a "high" or a "low," escaping from the characteristic feattu:es of one only to plunge into those of the other. The definite study of "lows and highs" should be preceded by the keeping of weather records during typical spells of weather. Late fall, winter, and early spring furnish the best conditions for weather study. The pres- sure, temperature, wind direction, state of the sky, and precipitation should all be noted. The most conscientious The Principles of Geography 73 record of weather conditions is of little value, however, if no further use is made of it, as is too often the case. The relationship between wind direction, state of the sky, and precipitation should be observed. A cloudy or actually rainy day should be chosen for the first work on lows. The barometer should be read, wind direction noted, the state of the sky and precipitation observed. When clearing begins, the same observations should be made. It will not be long before a low-pressure area will stand in the minds of the pupils for stormy weather, while a high, when studied with the same care as the low, will mean clear weather. The weather map should now be introduced, and a further study of lows and highs should be made. The size of the areas should be noted approxi- mately, the distribution of pressure— that the low is lowest in the center, while the high is highest at the same point — the direction of the prevailing winds with reference to the center, the state of the sky in each area, and the distribu- tion of precipitation. If successive maps be used, the paths of lows and highs across the country may be seen and the rate of movement per day ascertained. From the study of the daily map the children wiU thus be able to make simple weather forecasts, knowing the position of these areas in the United States, that they move from west to east, and that their rate averages approxi- mately seven hundred miles per day. When the pupils are fairly familiar with the weather map, problems like the following may be given to test their understanding: The country to the east of the Rocky Mountains is under a high-pressure area, while the region about the Great Lakes is under a low. Fore- cast the weather for the next twenty-four hours for the Great Lakes and the Atlantic coast. A low-pressure area lies directly west of New York 74 The Teaching of Geography City. Describe the weather changes during its passage over the city in regard to wind direction as it approaches and passes; state of sky; rainfall. The Ocean The study of the ocean, after a brief, general treatment in regard to its proportionate area as compared with that of the land, and the distribution and extent of continental shelves, falls naturally into three divisions: waves, tides, and ocean currents, only one of which, ocean currents, is of great importance in grade work. The elliptical move- ment, or the eddy, in the heart of each ocean, is the most striking featture in the distribution of the currents. The directions of these eddies may best be taught from maps showing the distribution of the prevailing winds. Each pupil should be furnished with an outline map of the world, on which he should represent, by means of arrows, the winds of the various oceans, the work afford- ing a review of that previously done on winds, the teacher aiding by questions where necessary. - When the winds are shown, let the pupils swing their pencils lightly over the various oceans, showing how the waters will be driven. Arrows may be placed on the ellipses so drawn in order to show the direction of movement in each ocean. The current maps should be completed and any necessary corrections made by referring to the map of ocean currents given in the textbook. Cold currents may be differentiated from warm by some simple device, that their distribution may be seen at a glance. Separate outline maps should be used to represent the currents of the North Indian Ocean for January and for July, that the change in direction in accordance with the seasonal reversal of the winds may be shown. The Principles of Geography 75 The currents of each ocean should be described, the important points in each being noted. In the North Atlantic Ocean the main points to be emphasized are as follows and may be taken as a guide in the description of the currents of the other oceans : the direction of the main eddy from left to right; the westward direction of the equatorial portion of this eddy until a land barrier (the West Indies) is reached ; the resulting division of the water, the main portion being deflected to the right to complete the eddy, while a small portion runs into the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, issuing forth through the narrow Florida Straits as the Gulf Stream; the Gulf Stream, flowing as a true stream to Cape Hatteras only, where it broadens out, becoming a drift, crossing the Atlantic as a part of the North Atlantic Drift; the chilling of the currents as they are carried far northward and the return of a portion of this water in the form of cold cur- rents, namely, the Labrador and Greenland currents. An important topic and one that is usually incor- rectly taught is that of the influence of ocean currents upon climate and so, indirectly, upon life. Care should be taken not to overestimate the influence of currents upon temperature. It is a fallacy to teach that the tempera- ture of the British Isles is due to the Gulf Stream. Two errors are involved in this statement. In the first place, the Gulf Stream as a stream practically ceases at Cape Hatteras, and in the second place, the North Atlantic Drift does not make the climate of the British Isles. That their winters are much warmer than those of Labrador, a coimtry in the same latitude but on the opposite side of the ocean, is due primarily to their western coastal posi- tion, the westerly winds thus bringing them the warmth of the whole ocean mass. In other words, if there were no Gulf Stream western Europe would still be much wanner 7tf The Teaching of Geography in winter than would eastern North America in the same latitude. The North Atlantic Drift is, however, an element in influencing the climate, though it is not the greatest one. Little should be attempted with the subject of tides in elementary-school work. Their ebb and flow, restdting in two high tides and two low tides in a little more than a day; the tidal range, slight in the open sea, strong in funnel-shaped bays; the influence of tides upon naviga- tion, and other facts relating to the subject that are not too difficult of comprehension may be presented, but the explanation of the cause of tides should be reserved for secondary-school work or perhaps better for colleges. There is little need for this subject in continental work, except in connection with harbors and navigation; so for this reason, too, little time should be given to it in a course that is intended primarily to prepare for regional work. For the same reason it is unnecessary to devote much attention to the subject of waves except as they are instrumental in modifying shore forms. Their work in the building of off-shore beaches, thus forming protected waterways and affording favorable locations for srnnmer resorts, is an important element in determining occupa- tions in many coastal regions. The Lands The largest and perhaps the most significant topic of this elementary summary of the important topics of physical geography remains to be considered^— that of the lands. We may take up the various land forms, developing them, step by step, as in the preceding topics, or we may pursue this study in connection with continental work, deferring the study of a given land form until it is needed in connection with a country. The Principles of Geography 77 For instance, instead of studying the various classes of plains — as coastal, alluvial, and lake — under the general topic of plains, we may study the first when we take up the coastal-plain portion of the United States, alluvial plains when we reach the Mississippi Valley, and lake plains in connection with the Great Salt Lake region. The latter seems the more advisable method of procedure, both from the standpoint of the study of the continent and from that of the study of the particular land form. Continent work is strengthened by a careful consideration of the physical features of the region under consideration, while the treatment of the land form will surely gain through the many associations which necessarily result from this method of study. It may be argued that if land forms are better treated in connection with continent work rather than as separate topics, the same must be true of many or all of the preced- ing subjects. Practical experience, however, shows that this is not the case. Many of the topics which must be taken up in the study of a region are parts of a much greater whole and are so inextricably bound together that the whole must be developed in order that the parts may be understood. This frequently involves too great a digres- sion in the study of any region to be practicable. For instance, in studying northern Africa the winds of the region must be considered. The winds of this or of any one section cannot be explained without going into the whole question of atmospheric circulation, thus making a serious break in that closely interwoven body of knowl- edge that a particular region should sjncabolize. This difficulty does not present itself in the case of land forms. We may study coastal plains without going into the whole subject of plains, thus keeping closely to the particular region under consid^ation. 78 The Teaching of Geography The details and generalizations associated with land forms are sufficiently clearly outlined in most textbooks so that itemized suggestions need not be given here. Whether the sections on river valleys, soils, mountains, and other subjects are studied as things by themselves or in association with the later continental work, the general relations to life outhned in the texts comprise the main topics to be emphasized. The land f onhs may be pictured more readily than the larger features of climate, and hence offer few difficulties to those teachers who know the subject. The Distribution of Life The same argument applies to the treatment of the last topic included under " principles " — the distribution of life. Here again there is no reason against and many in favor of studying life in connection with a particular environment. In the general study of a continent, for instance, that ordinarily precedes the more detailed work, an excellent opportunity is afforded for the study of the flora, distribu- tion of the fauna, and the people of that portion of the world as compared with the world as a whole. The distribution of.plants over the world is a subject that deserves more careful treatment in school gepgraphy than do the other topics usually included under "life," for the distribution of mankind is vitally associated with plants, either directly or indirectly. The types of man- kind and of civilization seen in the tundra region, on the deserts, in tropical forests or temperate forests and grass lands vary with the plant and climatic surroundings in each case. Just as any continent should be studied as related to the wind systems, so shotild it be placed in the plant realms, in order to give the proper background for the study of social and economic conditions in a causal way. The Principles of Geography 7P The distribution of animals as great groups and of manMnd by races is of less consequence as a point of de- parture in continental work. These broad groupings may be well brought in as summaries of the continental work. The elements of coinmerce and trade, now included as a part of the principles of geography, deserve special emphasis in the treatment of a continent, for the com- mercial relations are the climax of the study. The mod- ern interest in the commercial side of geography is so great, and the topic is so important from an educational standpoint, that it will be cpnsidered in detail in a later chapter. (See p. 164.) Summary The principles of geography as briefly outlined above are necessary tools in any study of a continent. Some of them must be studied before the advanced treatment of the continents, to give a proper basis for continental work. Other phases may equally well be studied in asso- ciation with the several continents and used as summaries for bringing together the generalizations reached in the study of the different continents. These principles are usually placed together at the beginning of the larger geog- raphy to show their proper position in the course as a whole and that they may be equally well used in the study of any of the continents. In practice, however, the good teacher will develop some of the principles in the later intermediate work and the earlier advanced work, and wUl use the text presentation as a summary and source of reference. For instance, the study of the distribution of plant regions as related to rainfall and temperature, and the dependence of these on the relation of the earth to the sun at difiEerent seasons, can be beautifully worked out througt 8o The Teaching of Geography a study of South America and Africa. The movement of the wind systems, their relation to the distribution of highlands and lowlands, the consequent rainfall, drain- age conditions, and the resulting social conditions are nowhere better seen than in Australia. Thus the princi- ples, if rightly taught in part as Summaries of the inter- mediate work, in part as points of departure for the advanced work, and in part through the continental study, should offer no bugbears either to pupils or teachers. The principles form a necessary part of the course 3,nd must be treated as such and constantly used and applied. They are not a preface to be read and then laid aside until the next year. References Redway, J. W., The New Basis of Geography, Chapter VIII; Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter II; Archer, Lewis and Chapman, The Teaching of Geography in Elementary Schools, Chapter X. CHAPTER VI GEOGRAPHY IN THE UPPER GRADES The Point of View 'TpHE teaching of geography in the upper grades is -*• generally identical with that of the lower, except that more detail is introduced. In many cases all of the continents are studied briefly in the intermediate grades and repeated in the grammar grades with additional details, largely brought in as memory work. There is no particular incentive to work under these conditions. The novelty and freshness have been destroyed by the earlier work, and the pupils feel and say that they "have had that," and therefor^ evince little eagerness for a repetition. Their desire for " something new " is a per- fectly normal onie and should be met by the teacher. Neither does this method of work take into account the increased ability of children of the sixth and seventh grades over those of the fourth and fifth. This is a quan- tity that must be reckoned with if our subject is to be a power in the development of the pupils. In the earlier grades, as has been suggested, the life conditions, especially the industrial conditions^ should be studied in detail, the physical causes being sought simply as an interpretation of these life conditions. We should work from effects back to the controlling causes. In the upper grades the process should be reversed for the most part. The physical should be studied with care, while life conditions, culminating in a consideration of commercial relationships, should be seen as a conse- quence to be expected under the existing physical 8z Sz The Teaching of Geography influences and controls. In the first study of the con- tinents we have slowly accumulated data and arrived at tentative generalizations. The advanced work is for the most part a testing and further application of these principles. The Emphasis to be given the Physical Features In the advanced work on New England, for instance, its surface, composed of upland, highland, and lowland, as well as the more superficial features, should be studied. The teacher, if he is an enthusiast in his science, may even go back a step farther and explain to his class the origin of these fundamental forms. He may, if he wishes, go so far as to teach the somewhat difficult subject of peneplains — the wonderful leveling of the whole region until it was brought practically to the sea, with the exception of occasional masses, the monad- nocks, which for various reasons were never reduced so low; its later uplift and the accompanying revival of the streams, resulting in the lowlands of the present time, the uplands or the old peneplain with the even sky line giving an indication of its history, and the highlands or monadnocks overlooking all. This suggestion may not meet with universal approval, for an understanding of this topic is necessary neither for the passing of examinations nor for earning one's living, but a teacher misses one of his greatest opporttmities if he fails to open his pupils' eyes to the marvelous works of Nature and to broaden their miads by an occasional vision of her results. The other physical features as well will be found to be equally worthy of study. The drainage of New England, with its many lakes, falls, and rapids, can be explained Geography in the Upper Grades 83 only when the work of the great glacier that once covered North America is understood. The soil with its many bowlders is again largely of glacial origin and can be accounted for only by at least touching upon the changes brought about by the great ice sheet. The irregular shore line is another feature that should not be merely noted but should be explained, especially in regard to its significance in the industrial development of the region. Climate should be studied in detail, summer and winter temperatures read from isothermal maps, prevailing winds and storms explained, and the distribution of rainfall noted. At the conclusion of this work the pupils will certainly have an intelligent opinion as to the industries to be found in this section, for in studying the life of the various parts of the globe in their earlier continent work the constant seeking for physical controls and in- fluences must have resulted in the association of a certain industry with one environment and other industries with a different environment. In other words, principles must have been deduced which are ready and waiting to be applied. Pupils will see at once that falls naturally lead to manufacturing; that while farming would be carried on in the lowlands, the bouldery character of the soil and the hilly aspect of the country make it diflScult, and that farms would necessarily be smaller where so much of the labor must be performed by hand. Fishing and commerce would without doubt be prophesied along an indented coast, and some form of naining, in this case quarrying, would naturally be expected in the moimtain- ous sections. The significance of the location of small harbors in New England, as related to the manufacturing centers, is of extreme significance in understanding the importance, of the large ports of New York and Boston. 84 The Teaching of Geography How TO Study an Industry The industries are not simply mentioned, however. They are again studied, though in a broader manner, and in less detail than in the earlier work; for, as has been suggested, the emphasis in the upper grades is upon the physical, and upon the influence of the physical, in shaping the life of tliese, regions rather than upon the details of life itself. The following suggestions for teaching agriculture will indicate the character of the work on industries for this stage: The pupils should be asked to indicate the regions where agriculture would naturally be carried on, their con- clusions being based upon their knowledge of physical conditions. The conditions favorable and unfavorable fOT the industry should be stated, emphasizing on the one hand the comparatively high temperature of the growing season, its length, the abtmdance of rain together with its distribution throughout the year, the percentage of sim- shine, and the fertile character of glacial soil. On the other hand, the difficulty of carrying on agriculture in a hilly country and the stony character of the soil will be seen to be sufficiently serious drawbacks to lead the people to turn their attention mainly to other industries. Small farms will be expected in a section of com- paratively steep slopes, where work cannot be done on a large scale with great machines as is the case on the western prairies. The products that can best be grown under the physical conditions found in the locality, and the disposi- tion made of them, should be noted. The various industries of the section and the part that each one plays in the commerce of the country, and of the world, where of sufficient importance, should be empha- sized, the important towns being located in connection with the industry with which they are associated. Geography in the Upper Grades 85 The Necessity op Presenting Real Problems TO Pupils Although the physical is of great importance at this stage, the teacher should not make the mistake of present- ing it as an end in itself. It has no place in school geog- raphy except as the determining cause of existing life conditions, and should be taught with the life constantly in mind. This result is best secured by placing before the pupils a problem full of human interest really worth solving, and which may be disposed of only through the study of the physical features. This binds together, as nothing else can, the physical and the human and serves the further purpose of transforming desultory work into true effort. Teaching a region by means of a problem to be solved has another and an equally great advantage. Pupils will go through the routine of the position, surface, drainage, and climate of a section and get very little knowledge as the result of their effort. If, on the other hand, some problem is presented that they can solve only by knowing these facts concerning the region, they will not only attack their work in a very different spirit but will have a central thought which will bind together all that they learn. It is this that makes it of vital impor- tance to put an aim or a problem before a class; not so much to hold the attention — a good teacher will do that without stating a specific ptu-pose — but in order so to relate the facts presented that they will become a perma- nent possession rather than a collection of unrelated items that are no sooner learned than they are forgotten. A Problem Lesson Outlined Suppose that the steppe region of central Asia is to be taught. Instead of simply studying the various physical 86 The Teaching of Geography features for no reason except that they are told to do so, let the pupils find out why the people of this part of the world have no settled homes. Every point ordinarily taught will be fovtnd to revolve about this question. The various physical features will naturally be examined in succession in the effort to find a reason for this mode of life. It will be seen that the people live on extensive roll- ing plains, that the seasonal temperature changes are great, winters cold and summers hot, that the rainfall is scanty and unevenly distributed throughout the year, that, in consequence, vegetation is sparse, agricultture is difficult to carry on, and the people are forced to seek a livelihood from flocks and herds. The scarcity of fodder leads to a nomadic life, because it is necessary to drive the herds from place to place in search of food, as the scanty pasture grotmds are successively exhausted. The principal features of this region, when studied in this manner, will certainly make a more lasting impres- sion than where the usual method is followed. Maps as the Basis op the Work It is evident that in this work the map must be the main reliance of the teacher, and his first duty is to become so familiar with this method of portraying a region that he will be able to lead his pupils to read a map as easily and as truly as they read a printed page. While it is customary to make use of physical and political maps to some extent, their real significance is rarely appreciated. They should n!ot be regarded, as is so generally the case, as supplementary to the text. On the contrary the text should be a summary and a supplement to the map. Before geography can be well taught the usual method must be reversed and the map, not the text, be made the basis of the lesson. If this method of work Geography in the Upper Grades 87 were adopted, geography in the schools would be revolu- tionized. There would be no more dull, uninteresting recitations that accomplish little or nothing. Children would no longer attempt and fail to learn their lesson because the assignment was utterly beyond them or because their interest was not aroused. The strongest argument for map work is found in the fact that the responsibility for acquiring information should be thrown upon the children as far as possible. Why should they be permitted to take from the text what they may discover for themselves ? This is poor pedagogy, and poor geography teaching as well, even if by the teach- ing of geography we have in mind only the imparting of information. It would be interesting to test classes at the close of a term's work, instruction in the one case having been based on the text, in the other on maps. Practically all the larger facts that the best textbooks contain may be read from the accompanying maps. The distribution of surface features is certainly more graphic- ally shown in this manner than by means of the printed page. Climate, too, may be worked out in much or little detail from maps which show the distribution of dimate. In studying the climate of any country, pupils should be taught to refer to isothermal maps for summer and winter temperatures and for seasonal differences between coasts and interior. They should not only consult the rainfall map in order to learn the amount of precipitation, but wind and surface maps as well, that they may understand the cause of the scanty or plentiful supply, as the case may be. Knowing the physical and climatic conditions, life rela- tions, too, may be read from the map, industrial centers located, and routes of trade traced. All the maps needed in such a method of study are available in the modem school texts and should be used constantly. 8S The Teaching of Geography An Illustrative Outline The following suggestions on Norway are given to show how a region may be taught largely through map reading. Norway. What countries have we studied that lie far to the north? Mention some people who live in this northern region. Describe their life, the climate. To-day we shall study another country that is found far to the north. Find Norway on your maps. What is its latitude? Compare it with Greenland. What do you know about Green- land? (Some pupil should have been asked to tell the class in a few words about the great glacier of the interior, or to read a short descrip- tion of Greenland.) Let us find out how many of the people of Norway make their living. Do you think it is as cold as it is in Greenland? Why not? Turn to your isothermal maps. What is its January temperature? What is the January temperattire of Greenland? What part of the eastern United States has the same temperature as Norway? What part of western Europe? How does the winter temperature compare with that of your own home? Can you think why their winters are so much milder than in other countries in the same latitude? What is their July temperature ? Is the summer warm enough to raise crops ? Is it warm enough in Greenland to do so? Do you think they have much rainfall in Norway ? Why ? (See physical map.) Where would you expect to find it heaviest? Turn to your rainfall map and see if you are right. How heavy is it? Find other Geography in the Upper Grades 8q places you have studied that have about the same amount. Look at the physical map again. Describe the surface of Norway. About how high are the mountains? Compare the amount of lowland and highland. What other mountainous coun- tries have we studied? Describe the western coast. Can you tell me why it is so irregular? Let us try to imagine how the country looks. (Study and discuss photographs, that the beauty of the region may be appreciated.) Summary of temperature, rainfall, surface, coast line. What important occupation would you expect to find in a rugged coimtry like Norway, where the temperature is high enough for vege- tation and where rainfall is heavy? (Lumbering discussed, and a short description of it read.) Look at your maps. What are probably the leading cities in the lumber trade? Locate them. What important industry does the irregular coast hne suggest? What does yotu" textbook tell you of the Lofoten Islands? Judging from the position, what cities are probably interested in the fishing industry? Locate them. What have you found out about the way a large num- ber of the people of Norway make their Uving? Did you expect this, or did you think they would live as the inhabitants of Greenland do? Turn to your reference tables at the back of your geographies. (Commercial tables.) Is either country important to the world commercially? In what respects? To what extent? Read your text on Norway for to-morrow. The boys may bring in all the additional information go The Teaching of Geography that they can find on the people and their industries, the girls on the scenery. The Use of Maps in Association with Texts In addition to the map study which has been discussed, much map work, with the outline or a rough sketch as a basis, should be required of the pupils. A great variety of features may be represented in the study of various countries. Surface and drainage, the distribution of rainfall, isotherms — where the distribution of temperature is tmusual, as in Norway — products and cities, density of population — whereit is either especially dense or sparse — and finally routes of transportation. Perhaps only two or three features will be shown for any one country, the most important of cotirse being chosen. Occasionally these may be shown on one map, though results will usually be better, and much less con- fused, if more space be taken, except in cases where topics are naturally associated, as are surface and drainage, or products, cities, and routes of transportation. Map work of this kind is exceedingly valuable in order to fix in mind the important points of a country, as a means of review, and later on as a test of the knowledge which the children should possess. Although too much use can scarcely be made of maps, the teacher should not go to the extreme of limiting himself wholly to this method of instruction. While it should form a very substantial part of the work, no one method is sufficient xmto itself. Photographs should be used in abundance, that the map may actually represent land and water to the children. Otherwise there is danger that the Mississippi River will exist in their minds perhaps as a black line and New York State as a green patch. It is a good plan to call for word pictures of the region under Geography in the Upper Grades pi consideration, occasionally, as, "Describe the Sahara Desert as you imagine it." Much supplementary read- ing, too, should find a place in the course, that those details of life may be supplied which are so necessary in making the picture of a region complete. The importance of map work has been so strongly urged that at first sight it may appear as though the text were necessarily relegated to obscurity. The method advocated, however, does not in any way supplant the textbook. On the contrary, if the work is to be suc- cessful, constant and intelligent use must be made of it. Textbooks make available valuable tables of refer- ence which should be used in practically every lesson. Teachers as well as pupils are too often ignorant of the amotmt of information that these last pages offer. A care- ful study of this portion of the book will amply repay the teacher and will suggest innumerable applications to his work. These tables should be used constantly in con- nection with map work. For instance, when mountainous regions are studied the pupils should turn to their reference tables and find the altitudes of the highest peaks. When the lengjh of some great river is measured, these tables should again be used as a means of verification. No feature of the textbook is of greater importance than are the diagrams found in some of our best books, showing graphically the rank of the leading coimtries of the world in the production of the important commodi- ties. In this day of practical, utilitarian knowledge, commercial geography must take a prominent place, and material for its study should be accessible to every pupil in the grammar grades. Apart from these various tables, the text should constantly be used as a source of reference. Pupils should verify their conclusions by consulting it. It should represent and should be used show teachers what they need to bear in mind, standpoint of geography, that this somewhat detailed, consideration of the geography of industries has been given. The amount of detail to be introduced ra the study must depend largely on local conditions and the object of the work. However studied, the work should lead to such an understanding of the basal geographic conditions as is outlined above. iy6 The Teaching of Geography These principles, thus worked out through the study of the lives of people in different regions, lay a foundation for the work of the upper grades geographically and educationally strong and of permanent as well as iname- diate value. Commercial Geography in the Upper Grades Commercial geography differs from industrial geog- raphy in its content and purpose of study. It is a phase of geography teaching that deserves emphasis in the upper grades, as industrial geography is adapted particu- larly to the intermediate grades. Commercial geography is a large topic, and only its elements can be included in elementary schools as a phase of geography teaching. As a special subject it can be studied with success only with more advanced pupils than those found in elementary schools. A real study of commerce involves a good preparation in the elements of economics as well as in physical and regional geography, and hence is not adapted to the elementary school. Yet commercial geography is so important a part of the necessary training for modem life that the elements of the subject have come to be recognized as the necessary climax to elementary-school geography. Commercial facts have long been a part of school geography, but facts are a minor, and in some ways, the least important portion of the subject. Statistics, except in round numbers that will show relations, are poor food for any youthful pupils, for values change so rapidly that what is learned as true to-day may be out- lawed to-morrow. What the pupil needs to know in reference to com- mercial geography are, first, the geographic conditions which explain the distribution of products over the world; second, the distribution of the natural markets for these Industrial and Commercial Geography 177 products; third, how trade is brought about between areas of demand and supply and the methods of trans- portation involved; fourth, the reasons for the commer- cial importance of the leading nations; and fifth, a knowledge of the relative rank of the great commercial nations and their relations to the great land and water trade routes of the world. In the course of the work pupils must learn the loca- tion and reasons for importance of the great ports and manufacturing cities of the world, as well as the world distribution of the great commodities that are the basis of industry, such as wheat, cotton, silk, iron, coal, sugar, and textile fibers. Throughout the work the causal relations should be developed clearly and little should be memorized. The relations between a dense manufacturing population in the United Kingdom, the supply of iron and coal available for manufacturing, and the needs of the country for food and raw materials, are of greater importance as a con- tribution to knowledge than an acquaintance with the latest statistics of industry in the United Kingdom, not considered from the causal standpoint. The last summary of the elementary-school geography work should make clear the reasons for the relative com- mercial standing of the great nations, which will give pupils an ability to take part in the commercial life that surrounds us all and of which, from the world, viewpoint, the United States is so important a factor. These conclusions can only be reached, however, if the regional study of the several continents has been well done in the upper grades. Each country considered shotild be studied in such a way as to bring out its commercial fea- tures as the climax of the causal study of the physical and political geography of each region. In the upper grades 178 The Teaching of Geography the emphasis in the regional treatment should be on the commercial relations of one region to another, just as in the intermediate grades it should be on the industrial development of each region. The earlier study should be devoted to an interpretation of the local industrial con- ditions in any locality and the later study to the commer- cial interrelations of industrial areas. If this method is followed the work will be adjusted to the needs and abilities of pupils at different ages, and the emphasis at each stage of progress will be on phases of geography that make possible the best interrelations with other subjects in the curriculum. Special Courses in Industrial and Commercial Geography Thus far attention has been devoted to the problems of teaching industrial and commercial geography in the grades where these phases of geography teaching are emphasized as parts of the normal course in regional geography. In some localities, however, the, tendency is developing to have a specialized course in this phase of geography in the upper grammar grades. In such cases the work is not wholly geographic, inasmuch as certain of the industrial processes have to be taken up in association with each topic considered. Hence the work is broader and more complex than can be taken up in a regular course in geography. Further, the point of view is somewhat different. In our usual courses in the inter- mediate grades we study the great groups of industries, as has been indicated above; in these special courses the plan seems to be to study in some detail the distribution, production, exchange, and usefulness of the many great raw materials that enter into industrial life — the bases for the necessities of life — food, clothing, shelter, and power. Industrial and Commercial Geography fjp Thus far this work is but partially organized, and teachers will find the available materials scattered and the maps and atlases necessary for good work few. The organization of the field is therefore a difficult theme. Yet the several products that will ordinarily enter into such a course are not many in number and can be readily agreed upon. They include obviously the cereals : wheat, com, oats, rye, barley, rice; the flesh-producing animals: cattle, hogs, sheep; the chief fruits: apples, bananas, lemons, oranges; the fibers: cotton, hemp, flax, silk, wool, goats' hair; the fuels: oil, gas, coal; the woods for lumber, implements, paper, and gums, as seen in the tropical forests, in the southern, southeastern, northern, north-central and Pacific states; the clays, building stones, building materials, and abrasive materials secured from the earth-, together with a few other common prod- ucts of special origin. The object in treating each topic is to study its area of natural distribution with the simple reasons therefor — how it is secured through commerce, how and where manu- factured, and for what used. The work shotild be as causal as possible and should involve a comparative study of maps and a certain amount of supplementary reading. Where possible, some points should be given as to the relative standing of the United States in the world pro- duction of each product. It should be borne in mind, however, that the object of the work is not to make a study of the distribution of raw products over the world, but of how our country, and especially our locality, is supplied with the necessities of life. The danger in this kind of work is that pupils will be given facts and will not be made to think and to aim at generalizations. Therefore teachers should insist that the topics be studied in reference to the surface and l8o The Teaching oj Geography climatic conditions of otir country, that pupils learn the location of areas of production and manufacture, and that all work be done with the map as a constant reference basis. Only a hint can be given here as to the scope of this work, for its details are beyond the purposes of a volume devoted to the course of study in geography as an organ- ized field of work. Commercial and industrial work are only in part geography and are as yet in a formative stage. Teachers who know their geography, however, will not be at a loss in outlining work in this new and related field. References Teachers College Record, March, 1901, pp. 29-35; Whitbeck, R. H., "Geography in the Elementary Schools," Proceedings Na- tiotud Education Association, 1908; Journal of Geography, Vol. IX, pp. 141-164. CHAPTER XIV COLLATERAL READING The Value of Collateral Reading TEACHERS of geography in any grade need to realize that efiEective work can be secured only when all the available sources of helpful material are used and when pupils are led beyond the book and the classroom into the broader fields of literature and natture. In our efforts to make otot pupils letter perfect we narrow our field, reli- giously drilling them on the pages of the text apportioned to our particular grade and hesitating to leave the beaten track for the bypaths where a broader training lies. Collateral reading is one of these bypaths which should be thoroughly explored. The well-read man is the edu- cated man, though his education may have been secured entirely outside of the classroom. It is our duty as teachers to open these paths to the children, even at the expenditure of time that we feel can ill be spared from required topics. A library is of great assistance in establishing the habit of collateral reading. A small school library is invaluable, and the public library, frequently with attractive accom- modations for children, equally helpful. A child is very unlikely to select the kind of reading that the teacher wotild choose for him unless his interest has been aroused in some way. If an interesting chapter or portion of a chapter be not only reconamended but read aloud in the classroom, there is no danger that the book will be uncalled for. A few carefully selected books bearing upon the work i8i i82 The Teaching of Geography of the year shotild be kept in the room, that the pupils may have ready access to them. The pupils should be encouraged to use them before school, occasionally during study periods when a piece of work is finished before the allotted time, or they shotild be allowed to take them home. A point should be made of requiring some collateral reading in connection with every important topic studied. This is possible to-day to a degree that was tmthought of a comparatively few years ago when textbooks were practi- cally the only printed matter available for the instruction of children. In the affections of children, travel and ad- venture naturally occupy the first place among books that may be classed as geographic in character. These often- times give excellent pictures of the regions described, but a careftd selection should be made among them, that only the moderately reliable may fall into the children's hands. Many are not geographic in the true sense of the word, for they so completely sacrifice truth of description to the tale itself that nothing whatever is gained from the standpoint of our subject, and much lost in the erroneous conceptions fixed so firmly that they are difficult to eradicate. Magazines as Collateral Reading The current magazines and the daily papers are too little used in school work. Articles of much value are to be fotmd in both, but where the field is so large a good deal of time is required to keep in touch with it. Where the magazines are accessible, a committee of pupils might be appointed to acquaint themselves with their contents, that they may bring to the notice of the class any articles of value that bear upon the work. These articles perhaps rank next to the books on travel and adventure as interest- ing forms of geographical literature. A dull piece of work rarely finds its way into the pages of a magazine. They Collateral Reading 183 are published to entertain as well as to instruct, and if an article fails to satisfy the first requirement it will have no opportunity to fulfOl the second. The fine illustrations that are a feature of these articles not only add greatly to their value, but in attracting the attention and in arousing interest, in the first instance, they make an appeal for collateral reading that is not easily resisted. There are several magazines dealing exclusively with geographical topics that should be in every school. The National Geographic Magazine, valuable both for its arti- cles and for its wealth of illustrations, is such a publica- tion. Either feature would entitle it to a place as an important aid in school work, while the combination places it in the foreground of the valviable supplementary materials for teachers and pupils alike. There are other magazines, not of the popular tjrpe or yet wholly geograph- ical, that should not be allowed to escape the attention. Foremost among these is The World's Work, devoted, as its title indicates, to various lines of activity, among which commeraal problems, the development of a great industry, exploration, and kindred subjects all have a place. Prob- ably no magazine will have more of value to contribute to the work of the upper grades than will this one. Pupils should be encouraged to watch the newspapers for items of interest bearing upon their work. They do not need much urging to bring in such articles, especially if some use be made of them. These might be given to a committee of the pupils, whose duty it should be.to pass upon them. Those of value might be mounted upon a bulletin board whenever they would be of particular interest, or perhaps pasted in a blank book kept for that purpose, the committee being responsible for their use at the appropriate tinae. Magazine articles, however, merely give us glimpses of 184 The Teaching of Geography a country. To accumulate a series of such articles cover- ing the leading regions of the world would be a difficult task and when completed would still be unsatisfactory as the main soiurce of reference, for the result would be a collection of interesting fragments, not a picture of the region as a whole. These fragments are illuminating but should be based on a more general view of the coun- try; this the geographical reader gives us. The Use of Geographical Readers The reader furnishes the most accessible and the most inclusive form of supplementary work and is therefore in wide circulation. The material is not only at hand with- out the necessity of searching for it, but the important covintries are covered in considerable detail. The books morebver are adapted both to elementary and to advanced classes. ^ These are certainly important considerations, and the reader rightfully has the first place in the list of supplementary material, though its style is ordinarily less interesting than is that of the material to which reference has previo\isly been made. Naturally the object of the reader is primarily to give information, not to tell an interesting tale with information woven in. ; Neither can it dilate or enlarge on its subject to the extent of the magazine article for, though its space is not limited in the sense that that of the textbook is, it must nevertheless cover a large territory in a comparatively small compass in order to keep pace with the requirements of the work for the term or the year. While the choice among readers that practically cover the geography course is not very great, a sufficient number, of varying degrees of worth, are on the market to make a careful inspection necessary before making a selection. Truth of impression should be the first requirement, this Collateral Reading 18$ to include not only accuracy of statement but a correct interpretation of the personal traits, characteristics, cus- toms, and habits of life of people living in an environ- ment differing from our own. Children should be taught that people are not "queer" because they difEer from us, and that their manner of life is largely a result of en- vironment, as is otir own. The opposite point of view is frequently taken, perhaps with the idea of impressing the characteristics of the people under consideration, but the end does not justify the means. The next requirement of importance is a good style — well-written English and interesting from the standpoint of the pupils. The mis- take of "talking down" to children is often made in the attempt to interest them. A book written in this vein is never a success. The children detect the slight which this involves and resent it. The reader chosen should supply thpse details of life and environment that would otherwise be largely lacking. The teacher, by means of map and picture study with his dass, can present little more than an outline of a coimtry; the textbook covers much the same groimd. When we consider that the textbook must present the important featiures of all the countries of the world, more cannot be expected of it. Much therefore devolves upon the geo- graphical reader, but its value will be greatest if it does not attempt too much. Certain phases of the work are in need of an especially full treatment. If these dark places are made Kght, the reader will fulfill its mission. It will be worth much to the teacher in lessening his research for this material that is so much needed, and to the pupils in putting within their grasp much that would otherwise be utterly beyond them. In order really to know a country, to get into the heart of it, one must understand its people. If they are presented from the 13 i§^ The Teaching of Geography ^6StiiSlpoint of their own environment, as has been sug- gieSfed, not from that of ours, the resulting point of view ti^ be the true and the sympathetic one. Such a study 5f 'Eskimo life, for instance, will reveal these people not as af6Hftb little above savages, living upon food never intended fSPhiman beings, but as a people who have shown wonder- MFSftelligence in adapting themselves to their environ- S^S'and a high degree of skill in making use of the few SSbfces at their disposal. •^^^Miother respect~in which the information given by the fefe ieeds supplementing is in regard to the stage of de- vlSStrfnent of distant parts of the world, and distant giS^tSfof our own coimtry. Few adults realize the prog- ^sS'that has been made in recent years in the United ^fe We need to bring out the sidelights on American life as well as the fact that Africa, Australia, and much ^'A^ are not in completie darkness. Nothing apparently iS^jfeses the true state of afEairs so forcibly as does the §tud^ of the great cities of the various continents. A dJiSiSption of such a center, for instance one in Australia Sgfcdffipanied by illustrations showing its fine buildings, JtSf^feets, and its parks, is always a surprise to a class, ^yp^'exclamations, "Why, that might be in our own c®^ify!" showing the benighted state of their minds, ffilB&E^ they may have glibly mentioned that particular S!fy%s one of the important "centers" of the world. 5^3 ishould not surprise us,, for a similar illusion in i€gffl^ to the backward state of development of some of 6™ Wm large cities is scarcely dispelled in the minds §f ^6ny otherwise intelligent foreigners. Travel, the id^Sl'inethod of studying a coimtry, has largely corrected 'Hlu^iinpression. Detailed, illustrated descriptions are a ^Sy3 substitute and should be made accessible through «d^ Sfeader. Collateral Reading ^j^ The Importance op the Picturesque in ^^^ Geography Teaching ^S^^ '3 o;t The geographical reader, again with the aid of iUMS- trations, is our main reliance in revealing the picturescme in our study. Space is needed for word pictures, andonfy by means of a full, graphic description of a region c^ it be even imperfectly revealed. Bare statements of iapts are inadequate here. The statement that the Colorado Canon is in places over a mile in depth and that the ^*r is inaccessible throughout much of its course, does not reveal its wonders. This side of our subject is too often slighted, principally for the reason that teachers depend too exclusively upon the textbook, where the adequate treatment of such topics is out of the question, ^ To awaken and to cultivate in our pupils an appreciation of the beauty in the world about them will increase iQSur happiness in life and will add to its value perhaps Jong after ova more formal instruction is forgotten. Certain regions of the world are so distinctive that they, too, must be added to the list of topics requimaa more detailed development than can be offered by the textbook. The desert, the jungle, the steppe, the tundra, are such regions. We may study the desert with our pupils from maps, thus showing them the cause <}^s^s aridity; we may teach them the fundamental fac$^|n regard to it so well that they will be able to recite ^h apparent intelligence on the subject, and still theftjijie picture of the region will be lacking. A good descrij^n creates an atmosphere that is needed in visualizing j|e imfamiliar, and this it is the province of the readgg^ give us. A detailed account of the desert, of its <^^- sified surface, its bare rocks, its wastes of sand, its frQp.- derful color, its silence imbroken by the moving jg^a i88 The Teaching of Geography leaf or the chirp of an insect, its scarcity or absence of vegetation, should leave an impression sufficiently strong to destroy the traditional feeling in regard to it, more barren than the region itself — that it is always a "dry, sandy plain." Other regions as far removed and as little known are equally in need of graphic descriptions. As in the case of the desert, the names applied to them generally call up no picture except that afforded by some definition that has been memorized. A jungle, for instance, may be known verbally as a tropical region of dense vegetation, but still be an imknown land as far as any real concep- tion of it is concerned. Few topics are in greater need of amplification than are the particularly characteristic industries of a section. The many industries of any locality should not be treated in detail, but where one has been developed in a striking manner, as has the wheat growing of the Middle West or the cotton of the South, or where an industry is especially unique, as is the rubber industry of the Amazon, the ivory of Central Africa, or the diamonds of Kimberley, a full account should be given. Essentials of a Good Reader Summarized Thus far, three of the essentials of a good reader have been discussed — its reliability, its style, and its function as a supplement of the textbook. While the remaining are perhaps of lesser importance, they are by no means to be disregarded in making a selection. The reader should be illustrated, the more fully the better so long as the pictures are well chosen. A few carefully selected photographs are better, however, than many where the majority are indifferent or poor. A teacher should be able to rely upon the illustrations as he does upon the printed maj;ter. Every one should serve a defiiiite purpose or Collateral Reading i8q It has no place in the volume. Finally, the book should be pleasing in appearance. Good paper, clear type, well- executed illustrations, and an attractive binding are all elements in furthering the cause of collateral reading. The Use of Books of Reference Besides the books aheady mentioned as available for supplementary work are those that may be classed not as readers but as books of reference. An excellent series has been edited by F. D. and A. J. Herbertson entitled Descriptive Geography from Original Sources. Each con- tinent has a volume devoted to it but, unlike the readers, the book is made up of many short selections contributed by a variety of writers. The sotirces are "original," for each article is furnished by an eyewitness. Many other books of reference should be drawn upon. This will be found especially necessary in the study of the industrial and commercial phases of our subject. Here conditions chang6 so rapidly that no textbook can pre- tend to keep abreast of the times in these matters. It is not safe to accept the statements of the textbook or even of the best commercial geographies on this subject, except in the most generalized form. That a country or a state ranks among the greatest producers of a certain commodity perhaps need not be verified every year; that it ranks first should, however. For these ever-varying statistics govenmient reports should be consulted, as the Yearbook of the Department oj Agriculture, the Monthly Summary of Commerce and Finance, the Census Reports and the Statesman's Y ear-Book, which latter is one of otu- best references in such matters. Except for the latter, these reference volumes may be secured for the asking. Another valuable source of reference is furnished in annual almanacs published by several of the leading newspapers. The Teaching of Geography bluo -IbrN How TO USE Collateral Reading Ufilt is evident that there is no dearth of material that ma^ be drawn upon for piuposes of collateral reading, and that it is an essential part of our subject all will admit. It is nevertheless frequently neglected, not through a lack k^reciation of its value, or through ignorance of the alwrilability of the supply, but for the very practical t&mn that the geography period is too short for both tbef Actual requirements and the quantity of supplemen- tatgoreading that an understanding of the subject demands. A?pfo; of the work must evidently be relegated to some (M^ time of the day. But we must not encroach upon Sis^ other subject. The practice of using the geographical readers as literature, and so absorbing the English period, isndghtly unpopular with the supervisors of that subject. N^her does the usual method of handling the work in gee^phy, an assignment from the textbook for home wei^ and repetition upon repetition of the same the f oUow- i*i|; day, solve the difficulty, for no time either at home OBPili'School is thus left for supplementary reading. The irie^od previously advocated for the treatment of our sub^pct, the use of the period assigned to geography for I4is;fetetual teaching of the lesson to the pupils, meets the ^Mttion admirably. The lesson taught in school leaves Ijcettlome assignment open for any reading bearing upon tii^Work of the day. This not only provides time for C^Ukteral reading but puts it in its proper place both with ndfeittence to the development of the subject and with fespect to the relative difficulties of the textbook work airflJsupplementary reading. It should usually follow pgtiyr than precede the lesson, that the pupils may go iou&eJT reference books for information that they were taiable to get through their own efforts in the classroom. Collateral Reading f jjl Assigmnents from the text for home preparation, whei^ the work is not developed by the teacher, generally prove "too hard," and therefore result in loss of tiras^ as that work must be redone in the schoolroom oajitti© following day. h^atd Where supplementary reading or reference wodgorf some kind is given as home work, the assignment wiOTnot prove troublesome and the school period will be left jfeai for the really difficult work. Occasions may arise 3(feh®d the teacher will wish to make preparation for the lessemoof the following day by assigning some reading in advarioK This is legitimate where the reading does not givaitiffi pupils information ^hat they should discover for thteiii* selves. A child should promptly be asked to report t^jtiie class on some topic which the others do not prepare. Reference work ofEers a real opportunity for givinp^as well as getting on the part of the children, of whic^^^ should take advantage. There is an additional stimulus in preparing work and in reciting if one is conscious that one's audience is not equally well informed on the topic in question, and that the object of the recitation is not pri- marily to test one's knowledge or lack of knowledge but to really give information to others. Where the reading is given as home work, care should be taken to ascertain that it has been done to some purpose. An oral stunmary may be called for the next day, an outline of the important points may be handed in, or a few minutes may be taken from the geography period for a brief written description of some important feature. Occasionally this reading should be done in school under the eye of the teacher, perhaps during a study period, that the children may be taught the best way of mastering such an assignment. A lesson is not well prepared if a child is unable to give an intelligent summary without detailed questions on the tQ2 The Teaching of Geography part of the teacher. He should be able to mention the several leading topics which are discussed and the chief points that are made in connection with each. A rough outline of heads and subheads made by him for his own benefit as he reads will soon teach him to sift out the most important points. There should be one absolute requirement in connec- tion with reading of this character. It should invariably be done with a map beside one, that all features men- tioned may be located. The reading will lose half of its value if this provision is not made. Map study in con- nection with collateral reading not only fixes the location of the places referred to but makes the reading itself much more intelligible. ' References Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter XVI; Carney, Mabel, Country Life and the Country School, pp. 366-367. CHAPTER XV THE PREPARATION, ORGANIZATION, AND CONDUCT OF A LESSON The Worth of a Teacher THE conception of the function of the teacher has changed completely within the past generation. His duties were formerly twofold — the first and most impor- tant to "make the children mind," the second to "hear lessons." If he proved to be a "bom disciplinarian" his position was iadeed the sinecure that it was generally regarded, for there was no burden of preparation for the next day's work after school hours and no painstaking instruction in the schoolroom. The work of the teacher, to-day, if it is well done, is as exacting and arduous after hours as during the daily session itself, for his appointment carries with it the duty of teaching, not of hearing poorly prepared lessons, and in order that he may teach a most careful preparation must be made. The Necessary Basis of Knowledge The first step in this preparation is to obtain command of his topic — not of the one lesson that introduces the series but of the whole, of which the first is only a small part. The result will be fragmentary and unsatisfactory if the attempt be made to work out the subject lesson by lesson, as it is needed. It must be seen in its entirety by the teacher, in order that he may gain the grasp nec- essary for its clear presentation. For instance, if the topic is the climate of India it will not do to study its temperature, the portion of the subject with which he 193 ig4 The Teaching of Geography would naturally begin, and give his lesson on this part of the work and then go on to the winds of India in the same manner and finally to its rainfall. The objection to this method of work is its utter lack of perspective. Certain points in regard to the temperature of India are compar- atively unimportant and may be ignored; a knowledge of others is absolutely essential to the succeeding work on winds and rainfall. Only by means of a knowledge of the whole can any portion be well taught. Therefore before attempting to give any instruction on this subject, climate, including temperature, winds, and rainfall, must be thoroughly mastered. The teacher is then in a position not to give but to prepare his first lesson. No adequate preparation of a topic can be made from any one textbook ; two or three of the best should always stand on the teacher's desk for purposes of reference. These should be consulted as well as other books bearing upon the subject. The teacher must read widely if he wishes to teach successfully. He must have a reserve fund of information or he will constantly find himself at a loss in the classroom. If the intellectual curiosity of children is not aroused by a lesson, if they do not care to discuss it or to ask questions, a teacher does not need his supervisor to tell him that his work has been a failure. Too many teachers willfully repress questions on the part of their classes; knowing that they have practically nothing to give their pupils, they take refuge in assigning a lesson from the text which they hear on the following day without countenancing deviation from the beaten track; or they resort to the simple and very effective device of forbidding questions on the ground that if the children are only attentive to their explanation, none will be needed. It is uimecessary to comment on work of this character, which shows so plainly an utter lack of The Conduct of a Lesson igs appreciation of the meaning of education as Well as a failure to understand children. A teacher should be thoroughly informed on the topic which he presents that he may have a fund of knowledge upon which to draw for purposes of illustration. Detailed information is necessary if he would throw such strong sidelights upon the problem under consideration that the children cannot fail to get true impressions. A vital grasp of the subject on the part of the teacher will arouse a life interest on the part of the class. The statement, for instance, that glaciers have wide and deep cre- vasses is not of great interest to children. They may not have a very clear idea at the time of what a crevasse really is, and in the near future will have no recollection of it whatever. A description of a crevasse actually seen, or known through reading, so wide that it could not be crossed, so deep that on looking into it the beautiful blue of the ice gradually changed to black; an account of the dangers of traveling across glaciers as a result of these crevasses, especially after a snowstorm; and finally the story of the immortal " Stickeen," will insure an absorbing interest in the topic that will make reviews superfluous. Work of this kind requires time and the professional spirit. The teacher is no more exempt from study than is the doctor or the lawyer. As the doctor's time must be given largely to research and to study, so must that of the successful teacher. There is no royal road to this detailed knowledge that is the very life of the recitation. Summer schools, extension courses, reading circles, and other courses of instruction are all of great aid in arousrag enthusiasm, in ofEering suggestions, and in directing a line of study, but nothing can be substituted for the careful preparation of each topic before it is presented in the classroom. This is not the impossible task that it may ig6 The Teaching of Geography appear to the busy teacher who is not a specialist in any one line but is supposed to fill the r61e in a variety of subjects, for the topic once prepared furnishes material not for one but for many lessons, and the preparation of the lesson is, after this preliminary work, a comparatively simple task. How TO Outline a Series of Lessons There is an intermediate step between the thorough study of the topic on the part of the teacher, which has been discussed, and the preparation of the lessons them- selves. This is the careful outlining of the topic on the basis of class work. All that has been acquired will probably not be wanted; some of it may be too difficult, some not of sufficient importance. Only those portions of the topic that are to be presented to the class should be included. An outline of this kind not only systematizes the work, insuring a logical presentation, but its close sequence will also serve to recall the subject when it would otherwise be forgotten. The following outline is given as suggestive of work of this character: Climate of India Temperature for January: Land and adjacent water masses compared; dif- ferences accounted for. Highest: Temperature stated; area located. Lowest: Temperat\are stated; area located. Position of heat equator; reason for location. Temperature for July: Land and adjacent water bodies compared; differ- ences accounted for. Highest: Temperature stated; area located. The Conduct of a Lesson igf Comparison with January conditions; reasons for differences. Lowest: Temperature given; area located. Comparison and reasons as above. Position of heat equator. Comparison and reasons as above. Winds: January: Direction, cause. July: Direction, cause. Definition of "monsoons." Eainjall: Distribution: Heaviest; location of area; amount; cause. Least: Location: amount; cause. The Preparation . op a Lesson The next step in the teacher's work is the preparation of the lesson. The material that he wishes to present must be again arranged and organized, but this time in a form adapted to the comprehension of the children. In other words, a lesson plan of some kind should be drawn up. Scientific investigation of any description involves first of all a clearly conceived problem which is to be solved. The first step in such an investigation is a careful review of the work already done along the same line, that one may be sure that no point necessary to further progress has been overlooked and that the line between the known and the unknown may be clearly defined. The next step is the collection of data bearing upon the problem; the third, the conclusion or inference to which these facts inevitably point; and the fourth, the testing of the inference. A geography lesson, too, should be an investigation for the pupils, and if so conducted falls naturally into the ig8 The Teaching of Geography same divisions : first, the review or the preparation for the new work; second, the collection of data bearing upon the problem which is to be solved; third, the inference or the statement of the solution of the problem; and finally, its testing or application. The teacher's plan may be of the simplest as long as it recognizes these main parts of the lesson. A few questions for the guidance of the work should be noted under each division. These are not supposed to cover the topic completely. The class work itsdf, the questions of the children, their perplexity or their insight, must be an important factor in the detail of the lesson. Though the plan need not be elaborated, its importance must not be underestimated, for a thorough knowledge of the subject on the part of the teacher will be of little avail if the laws governing the recitation are^ disregarded. The problem, as has been said in a preceding chapter, at once makes the topic under consideration worth study- ing, for something tangible is seen as the goal — not some far-off good, as the getting of an education, which does not appeal to the ordinary child. Neither does the usual method of introducing a topic, as, "To-day we shall study Egypt," prove interesting, nor does it offer any definite line of work to the children. A problem should have both of these qualifications — it should attract the pupils and make them feel at once that something is expected of them. The greatest benefit, however, to be derived from this method of studying a topic is the unity which results from it. A problem acts as a check upon the teacher who attempts to cover altogether too wide a field in one les- son, and upon the pupil who wants to tell an interesting adventure or story suggested by some fact in the lesson, but not pertinent to it. It also gives a perspective that every lesson should have and that is too often lacking. The Conduct of a Lesson igg According to this method the lesson naturally falls into points of varjdng degrees of importance. The problem aroimd which the work revolves occupies the place of first importance; the inferences arrived at as its possible solu- tion occupy the second place, while the details on which the various conclusions have been based fall into their proper position as of minor importance. The Importance op the Various Parts op the Lesson The review or preparation which follows the statement of the problem is an important part of any lesson. Its object, on the part of the teacher, is mainly to ascertain whether the pupils have a foundation on which it is safe to bviild, and if they have not, to lay one. Where this step is omitted the teacher frequently finds himself un- able to make headway with the work. The children do not understand, are uninterested, and little or nothing is accomplished. The second stage of the lesson, the collection of data under the guidance of the teacher, or the presentation of the new material, as it is usually called, occupies the greater part of the period. In connection with this work comparisons with topics previously studied should con- stantly be made, in order to bring out resemblances and differences, that light may be thrown on the subject tuider consideration from every possible quarter. After the collection of sufficient data the pupils should be asked for the conclusion toward which their evidence points or for a tentative answer to the problem which their work is supposed to solve. The work is not complete with- out a testing of the inferences which they have reached. This may often form the last step in the lesson for the day, or a succeeding lesson may verify or overthrow 200 The Teaching of Geography the conclusion which has been deduced. For example, the careful study of the distribution of temperature in North America may lead to the conclusion that coasts are more equable than interiors; that in the westerly wind belt the eastern coast has a greater temperature range than the western. These inferences should be verified by a study of the temperature distribution in other continents simi- larly situated, before they are accepted as final. The duty of the teacher is not primarily to assign lessons to be prepared at home and to hear them in school, years of this practice to the contrary notwithstand- ing. His duty is to teach during the periods assigned to the various subjects. Instead of giving children a lesson to learn at home, the teacher should generally use the geography period to teach that lesson to them, giving as home work some additional reading or some other exercise suggested by the work in school. Or if a home assignment is made from the textbook this should be used as a foundation on which to build during the period devoted to the subject in school. The period should still be used for teaching, not simply for a repetition of the home work. An enormous amoimt of time might be saved in the eight or nine years of the grammar-school course if the hours of the school day were used to the best advantage. The Presentation of a Lesson Suggestions have already been made in previous chap- ters in regard to the best method of handling the work of various stages, but the question is of sufficient importance to be treated in considerable detail, even though this in- volves some repetition. While there are many ways of presenting lessons, and while the details of the method must depend upon the stage of the work and upon the The Cmtduct of a Lesson 20t particular topic which is under consideration, there are certain fundamentals which must not be disregarded if our work is to educate. In the first place, children should not have done for them what they can do themselves. This is the chief argtament against basing the lesson solely upon the text, for there the pupils find data and inferences ready-made for them. They are spared the exertion of gathering details and of drawing their own conclusions. This is a shorthand method of getting information, for the col- lection of data consumes much time, but even from this point of view it is doubtful whether, there is much or any gain for, in the one case, information so obtained is for- gotten almost as soon as it is learned, unless it is kept in mind by constant reviews, while in the other the effort expended in reaching the conclusion does much to fix it in mind, making frequent repetition uimecessary.- The method peculiarly adapted to the study of geog- raphy is the method of personal investigation. This is not an innovation, as far as college and secondary- school work is concerned, for in our higher schools field and laboratory work are not only a recognized part of the course, but in the case of the high school laboratory work is actually required in connection with the geography course. A method that is so successful in the secondary school may have some virtue for the elementary as well. The laboratory method is the recog- nized method of teaching biology and physical science in the elementary school, where they occur. There seems to be no good reason for discriminating against geography, especially as the fact has been established by our best sdiools that this method meets with unqualified success. The laboratory method in geography in the elementary school is the map method of teaching this subject, the term 14 202 The Teaching of Geography including the study of all of the various illustrative mate- rials that can be brought together. By this method is meant not the slavish adherence to the map that has too long characterized the use of the text, but the basing of the work on the map and other illustrative material rather than on the text. In the classroom the custom has been for the children to sit with closed books while they were questioned by the teacher on the statements of the text. Instead of this, every book shotild be open during the lesson, while the children, under the direction of the teacher, search their maps and study photographs in order to solve whatever problem is before them. For instance, if a lesson in one of the upper grades were given on the Sahara, with the problem, "Let us see if we can find out why the caravan trade across the Sahara is carried on in spite of its difficulties and dangers," every bit of information that maps and photographs had to offer on the question should be sought. This would form the skeleton of the lesson which the text, class discussion, and reference reading would fill out.. Preparation for the work should be made by ascertaining that the children know exactly what is meant by a caravan, what its equipment involves, and what load each camel is able to carry. In order to answer the question suggested, what the dangers really are must be known, on the one hand, and what the benefits are that result from the trade, on the other. In order to appreciate the dangers one must have, in the first place, some idea of the vastness of the region. This the scale of the map readily supplies. If the Sahara be compared with the size of some region with which the pupils are familiar, as their own country, the figures will have a meaning which they would otherwise lack. The surface should then be studied from a physical map, in order to learn whether this feature shovdd or The Conduct of a Lesson 203 should not have a place among the difficulties which attend such a trip. Climate must be known; therefore tem- perature should be studied from isothermal maps, rainfall from maps showing its distribution, and, in connection with rainfall, wind maps should be examined, that the reason for the scanty supply of moisture and the con- sequent danger of dying of thirst may be imderstood. Questions and photographs will bring out the lack of vegetation in an arid region, the quantities of sand, and therefore the possibility of occurrence of sand storms. The map, aided by the photograph, thus shows most of the dangers which must be encountered — the great size of the desert, which involves a trip many weeks in dura- tion, the sandy waste with few landmarks and therefore the possibility of losing one's way, the lack of water which carries with it the danger of dying of thirst, and the drift- ing sand which makes the sand storm of frequent occur- rence. Other dangers, as the possibility of robbery by the wandering tribes, cannot be read from the map, but are naturally inferred in a region where the conditions of life are so hard that people are led to prey upon one another in their struggle for existence. While many of the ques- tions have thus been answered, text and reference reading are needed to supply detail and to make more vivid the various pictures which are called up. For instance, when the lack of vegetation and the drifting sand are mentioned, a description of a sand storm should be read or given by some pupil, and when the scarcity of rainfall is noted, is. order to impress the value of water in a desert, an account of the extremity to which travelers who lose their way are often brought, should be given. The lesson should constantly be illuminated in this way, that an approach to a realization of conditions may be made. Before the question which is before the class can be 204 T^ Teaching of Geography answered, the products carried by the caravan and their value, as well as their commercial importance, must be known. If central Africa has already been studied, the products entering into this trade would naturally be in- ferred. If not, the textbook should be consvilted for this point, and reference tables for information in regard to the commercial value of the articles carried. After summarizing the various points which have been collected, the difficulties on the one side and the value of the trade in the world's commerce on the other, opin- ions on the question may be called for, or the inference may be drawn. The conclusion may be tested by com- parisons of the relative values and the accessibility of the commodities carried by the caravans with similar prod- ucts procured from other parts of the world. This method of conducting a recitation makes neces- sary careful preparation for the period, but the gain on the part of the children in independence of thought, in initiative, in interest, and in knowledge of the subject is so great that every earnest teacher will feel that it is well worth the effort. ' References Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, chapters X, XI, XII. CHAPTER XVI THE PREPARATION OF A TEACHER OF ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY The Necessary Training of a Teacher FEW teachers in elementary schools can be expected to be specialists in the field of geography. Indeed, it is not desirable that theyshotdd be, for if all teachers had the same hobby, other subjects in the curriculum would be neglected and children would suffer in consequence from having one side of their work unduly emphasized. It is desirable, however, that every teacher in elemen- tary schools should have some one subject in which he is particularly interested and in which he is so at home that he can teach it as a master. Those who choose geography as their special field of study offer no problems to those primarily interested in the training of teachers for ele- mentary schools, for they will go beyond the high schools and will, secure help, inspiration, and guidance from the leaders in geography in our normal schools and other higher educational institutions. They will become spe- . cialists, and need only to be warned not to carry back tmchanged to the schools the methods of study and expo- sition they have learned while themselves students. With their fuller mastery of the field it will be their task to adapt their larger learning to the problems of elementary- school geography teaching and to assist their less fortunate fellows (from the standpoint of geography) in improving the quality of the geography work in schools. The larger body of elementary-school teachers will secure their training for geography work, as a part of their SOS 2o6 The Teaching of Geography general training for teaching, in oiir normal and training schools. They will there secure the necessary minimum amount of training in geography that will enable them to understand the problems of geography teaching and read- ily to organize and use the materials outlined by the higher authorities in geography. That training should consist largely of a study of geography, for the first requisite of a teacher of any subject is that he know the subject, or at least be sulfi- dently at home in the subject that he cannot be led astray by any active-minded or ingenious pupil who sees his weakness and profits thereby. The content and amount of geography that teachers in training must acquire as a minimum is indicated by the character of the course of study as generally followed in the country. Tliis work readily resolves itself into two divisions, so far as the pupU-teacher is concerned — a knowledge of the principles of physical and life geography, including commercial geography, and a special study of certain of the continents of the world. The method of applying either of these divisions in classroom practice is a problem for later study, when the question of the teaching of geography is the point of view from which the field is approached. The method of study in either field should be the adult method of follow- ing the causal order from causes to consequences. The work for pupil-teachers should be as accurate, as scientific, and as thorough, so far as it goes, as that given to students who are preparing to become professional geographers. The differences between a course for teachers in training and for the specialist should largely be matters of emphasis and of quantity. No teacher in training can expect to cover the whole field. He must be taught, however, how to work scientifically, how to use maps, atlases, books of Preparation of a Teacher of Geography 207 reference, and texts, how to relate the various phases of the work causally, and how to be independent, if not original, in his studies. The emphasis should mainly be laid on those phases of the field that he will have to use in school work, though of course any part of the work must be taken up more deeply than will ever be possible in the schoolroom. In physical and life geography attention should be given to those phases of the subject that the teacher will have to use, and no attempt should be made to organize the whole field of physical geography, for instance, as would be called for in the case of classes of special students in the subject. Each topic should be considered in suf- ficient detail in classroom, laboratory, and, if possible, in the field, so that the pupil-teachers will see the unity of the science and will be prepared to gain profit from the available semi-technical literatiu-e on which they may be expected to draw for help in the years to come. In the same way, in the study of regional geography, it is usually best to devote the time to the somewhat careful study of one continent rather than to a cursory glance at several continents. Teachers who have learned how to study North America and the United States so as to get an imder- standing of the larger facts of the geography of these regions will gain thereby a power that will enable them readily to study any other continent for themselves. In this work, as in the work in elementary schools, power is greater than knowledge, for knowledge may leave one in a self-satisfied, static condition of mind, surfeited with details, while power gives one the ability and the eager- ness to go on and test one's strength in the solving of new problems. Diuing the progress of work the teacher in charge should constantly bear in mind the future needs of his pupils and should, therefore, choose his topics and 2o8 The Teaching of Geography bis illustrations from the practical standpoint. A great deal that is of value from the standpoint of methods of teaching can readily be introduced into a course in geog- raphy if the teacher is alive to his opportunities. His own method of presentation, his language in the classroom, his illustrations that bring out illuminating sidelights, particu- larly on the human side of the subject, should all be models of value to the students as illustrations of how to present the subject to children in a way to arouse and maintain their interest. Teachers who can go beyond this minimum of study of geography, and who have the natural liking for the subject that spurs them to greater and continued efforts, will find opporttmities for advanced study in many of our normal schools, colleges, and vmiversities. Teachers are flocking to our better summer schools in large numbers, and there for six weeks revel in their hobbies tmtrammeled by the thought of classroom work on the morrow. Much of the recent improvement in geography teaching in ele- mentary schools is due to the influence of summer schools and to the increased and improved opportunities for the study of geography that are now available to all who will attend, though it be at some sacrifice. Teachers who have made something of a specialty of the study of geography will find a field for usefulness in any locality in being able to help their fellow-teachers perfect their knowledge of the subject and become more exjjert as teachers. Such teachers will find also, in almost any region, opportunities for original geographic work of the most inviting kind. Practically every locality in this cotmtry has yet to be studied geograpldcally, for few areas have been worked out in any great detail. The geography of the home locality ought to be a fascinating field of study in aknost any place, for every city, town, or Preparation of a Teacher of Geography 209 hamlet in the country is the center of a complex geographic problem that gives full opporttinity to test one's power of observation and study. Teachers who will work out the geography of their home regions in a simple and yet adequate way will contribute much of great value to those who have to present the subject of Home Geog- raphy to pupils. As has been noted in a previous chap- ter, the course in Home Geography should be individual for each locality, and who is better qualified for working out such a course than the teacher who has made the locality a special study and who knows its social, physical, and life conditions from first-hand observation and study? The specialist in geography ought to be a leader among his fellows, a sotu-ce of inspiration to others, and of com- fort and strength to his superintendent and sujiervisor. Following closely on the study of the essential phases of geography, and based upon it, should be a study of the teaching of geography. Geography teaching, to be successful, must in most cases be based on more than a knowledge of geography as a subject. In fact, the person who is the best trained as a geographer may be a very poor teacher, especially for beginning pupils. A good teacher must know the essential principles of good teaching as outlined in current educational procedure. To begin to teach without having studied any of the principles of teaching is to practice on poor, imfortunate children and to make many serious mistakes such as thousands have made before, and not to take advantage of the experi- ences of the past. A knowledge of the essential principles of teaching and of general method, so called, is a neces- sary basis for aU teachers except the rare individual who, from personality or nattiral insight, succeeds without any obvious effort. Courses on the teaching of geography ought, therefore, 210 The Teaching of Geography to follow courses in geography and in the general princi- ples of good teaching. Such courses in geography teaching should involve much study of subject matter in geog- raphy and give training in the organization of topics from the standpoint of classroom use. A course in geography for teachers should never be free from the teacher's point of view, and a course on the teaching of geography should always be based on, and make use of, the subject as such. The two phases of the work from the standpoint of the teacher cannot and should not be divorced. Each is necessary to the other and neither can exist alone. On the other hand, it is doubtful whether pupils can be ade- quately trained if the subject material and the methods of teaching are given in one conglomerate course. The proper perspective of each phase of the work cannot be secured unless that phase is studied for its tmity from its own individual poiat of view. Courses in the teaching of geography will, however, vary in detail with the locality and the point of view of the person in charge of the work. Their content every- where should be determined by the field of work of the prospective teacher. Teachers in the grade schools^ust spend most of the time in geography on the teaching of regional geography, the all-rotmd geography of countries and continents. Any courses in a training or normal school in geography or geography teaching must, therefore, have as a goal the perfecting of the pupils so that they can do good work in regional geography. The order of pro- cedure outlined above is particularly well developed for producing such results, but many normal schools do not grant suflScient time in the schedule for such ordered work. Where only one year can be given to the subject of geography and its teaching, abridgment is necessary somewhere. Under' such conditions it would probably Preparation of a Teacher of Geography 2ii be best to make a careful catisal study of Europe or North America, followed by a brief consideration of the essentials of geography teaching. The larger part of the time that can be allotted to training in geography and geography teaching should be given to the study of subject matter, always, however, with the needs of the pupils guiding the teacher in his work. The study of the special prob- lems of geography teaching by those who have had no training in geography since perhaps the seventh grade in the grammar school is about as much a waste of time, and certainly is as foolish, as trying to balance a pyramid on its apex. Selected Reference List for Teachers GENERAL Andree's Hand Atlas. Velhagen & Klasing, Leipzig. Recent reference atlas containing excellent climatic maps and maps showing distribution of peoples, religions, plants, animals, etc. Herbertson, Senior Geography. A very useful volume sum- marizing geography of several continents in a causal order. Especially helpful for Europe. Lippincott's Gazetteer. A recent authoritative volume con- taining excellent brief descriptions of all places of any importance. Longmans's Gazetteer of the World. Longmans, Green and Co. The authoritative pronouncing and spelling gazetteer of the world. Contains excellent brief descriptions of all important places. Mill, Guide to Geographical Books and Appliances. George Philip & Son, London. A very helpful reference list with brief comments on the individual references. Especially strong on European geography. 212 The Teaching of Geography Mill, International Geography. DJAppleton & Company. The best single-volume reference book on general and regional geography. Regional Geographies. D. Appleton & Company. Ac- curate, readable, helpful volumes of first importance. Include volumes on Britain and the British Seas, Cen- tral Europe, India, The Nearer East, and North America. Scobel, Geographische Handbuch. Velhagen & Klasing, Leipzig. A splendid two-volume reference work on physical and commercial geography and the several continents. Stanford's Compendia (Reissue). Edward Stanford. The leading reference books on the several continents. Two volumes each on Asia, Australia, North America, Central and South America, Africa, and Europe. Stieler's Hand Atlas of Modern Geography. Justus Perthes, Gotha. The leading reference atlas. THE TEACHING OP GEOGRAPHY Archer, Lewis and Chapman, The Teaching of Geography in Elementary Schools. Adam and Charles Black, London. A British book full of detailed and general suggestions of great value. Geikie, The Teaching of Geography. The Macmillan Company. A very suggestive book on the essentials of good geography teaching. Lyde, The Teaching of Geography. Blackie and Son, London. McMurry , C. A. , Special Method in Geography. The Mac- millan Company. Discusses the scope of geography and outlines a course emphasizing teaching by types. Redway, New Basis of Geography. The Macmillan Com- pany. Interesting and helpful for teachers in upper Preparation of a Teacher of Geography 213 grades who need to teach continents from the prac- tical standpoint. Sutherland, The Teaching of Geography. Scott, Foresman and Company. A recent book full of suggestions. Especially strong on the presentation of necessary elements of physical geography. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY Bowman, Forest Physiography. John Wiley & Sons. Deals with geographic conditions determining the development of forests. Gives an excellent summary of physiography of the United States. Davis, Elementary Meteorology. Ginn and Company. The leading English book on weather and climate. Davis, Physical Geography. Ginn and Company. An authoritative secondary school text, particularly helpful in reference to the land features. Dodge, Reader in Physical Geography for Beginners. Longmans, Green and Co. Small volume on phys- ical geography, available as an introduction to the subject. Dryer, High School Geography. American Book Company. A book on new lines, including physical, commercial, and regional geography. Gilbert and Brigham, Introduction to Physical Geography. D. Appleton & Company. An authoritative and well illustrated secondary text on physical geography. Gregory, Keller and Bishop. Physical and Commercial Geography. Ginn and Company. A book dealing with man and his environment. Most suggestive. Less formal than most geographies with similar titles. Harrington, Mark W., About the Weather. D. Appleton & Company. Very helpful for teachers in elemen- tary grades. 314 The Teaching of Geography Mill, The Realm of Nature. Charles Scribner's Sons. A very valuable and simple book on physical and mathematical geography and on biogeography. Salisbury, Physiography. Henry Holt and Company. Most inclusive and best illustrated volume avail- able. An indispensable library reference volume. Salisbury, Barrows and Tower, Elements of Geography. Henry Holt and Company. A clear, forceful, and appealing treatment of physical geography, with a constant emphasis of illuminating human responses. Tarr, New Physical Geography. The Macmillam Com- pany. One of the newest and best high-school books. BIOGEOGRAPHY Guyot, Earth and Man. Charles Scribner's Sons. One of the older books, and hence not written from a modem standpoint; but still invaluable for present- ing the relation of earth features to life. Herbertson, Man and His Work. Adam and Charles Black. A very usable and interesting small volume, showing the manner of life of people living in different regions andfcnid different surface conditions. Kirchhoff, Man and the Earth. E. P. Button and Company. A readable book of the cultural type. Lyde, Man in Many Lands. The Macmillan Company. An excellent reading book dealing with man and his environment. Lydekker, Hutchinson, and Gregory, The Living Races of Mankind. Hutchinson and Company. Two splen- didly illustrated volumes on the races of men; simple, and popularly written. Ratzel, History of Mankind (3 vols.). The Macmillan Company. A comprehensive book on the races of mankind, the first volume being particularly Preparation of a Teacher of Geography 215 valuable for its consideration of the problems of race distribution. Semple, Influences of Geographic Environment. Henry Holt and Company. The leading book in the English language dealing with anthropogeography. Wallace, Island Life. The Macmillan Company. Classic book on animal distribution from the geographic standpoint. COMMERCIAL GEOGRAPHY Adams, Commercial Geography. D. Appleton & Com- pany. An accuratS and well ordered book on com- mercial geography. Maps and diagrams are very numerous and helpful for the teacher. Full of facts. Brigham, Commercial Geography. Ginn and Company. A well planned, readable, and accurate volume which presents the principles of the subject with special clearness. ' Chishohn, Handbook of Commercial Geography. Long- mans, Green and Co. The most inclusive volume in the English language. Contains excellent abstracts of general geography of each country in a good causal order. Robinson, Commercial Geography. Rand McNally & Company. Especially emphasizes the economic side of commercial geography, in an unusually interesting style for high-school pupils. Maps and diagrams especially helpftil. Deals with general relations rather than statistics. PERIODICALS Bulletin of the American Geographical Society. New York City. A monthly magazine including articles, valu- able notes on geographic Uterature, and an excellent 2i6 The Teaching of Geography bibliography. A valuable source for all who would keep up to date with world geography. Geographical Journal. London. Leading strictly geo- graphical journal in English-speaking world. Geographical Teacher. Phillips, London. Similar in scope to Journal of Geography and contains much of value to American teachers. Journal of Geography. Published at University of Wis- consin, Madison, Wis. Only journal in the coimtry devoted to the teaching of geography. National Geographic Magazine. Washington, D. C. Leading popular journal of geography in country. References Redway, J. W., The New Basis of Geography, Chapter XII; Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, Chapter IX; Davis, W. M., "The Teaching of Geography," Geographical Essays, pp. 87-104, "The Extension of Physical Geography in Elementary Teaching," Geographical Essays, pp. 105-1 14, and "Geography in Grammar and Primary Schools," Geographical Essays, pp. 115-128. CHAPTER XVII THE USE OF EQUIPMENT; MUSEUMS The Tools op a Geography Teacher WHILE a large equipment is not necessary in teach- ing geography, a few pieces of apparatus are essential to good work and should be at the disposal of every teacher of this subject. Wall maps, globes, and outline maps are essential materials in all geography teaching and they are as neces- sary as a textbook or a course of study, for no teacher can do himself or the cause adequate justice unless he is furnished with these fundamental tools. These do not, however, include all the available or desirable materials that may readily be secured for school purposes and the use of which will often turn cut-and-dried irrational work into Uliuninating training for life. Good local maps and guides are becoming so numerous and cheap, simple pieces of apparatus are so easily available at small cost or at the expense of a little ingenuity, that all teachers should know the latent possibilities. Wall Maps and Globes Not all the map study should be from small text maps. A twelve-inch political globe shovild be in constant use in the schoolroom. Globes are generally used in the teach- ing of the world as a whole, and again perhaps when the subject of latitude and longitude is reached. They are needed, however, throughout the entire course, in the study of continents as well as in the work referred to above. A twelve-inch globe is more useful than a larger one, as it 16 ^^7 2i8 The Teaching of Geography can be easily handled by both teacher and pupils and will therefore be more generally used than will a more elaborate globe. The opinion is widespread among teachers that a globe is a lujntry. It is, on the contrary, a necessity from the standpoint of instruction, and from that of expense it is not an indulgence, for a good globe may be secured for little more than the price of a map. Globes should be constantly used in the earher grades, and should be used in preference to maps and as an introduc- tion to maps. The first studies of the continents should be based, if possible, on individual small globes in the pupils' hands. Thus the children first get relative size and position of continents and countries from the globe and avoid many of the errors due to being introduced to a Mercator map too early in their work. These individual globes are helpful in many lessons. They are especially needed in the work on the world as a whole, and again later in the course when topics that have to do with the earth as a globe, or with mathematical geography, are taught. Latitude and longitude, parallels and meridians, lose half their terrors when studied from globes in the hands of the pupils. A blackboard globe is also a more than useful adjunct in the upper grades. Problems arising from the study of the rotation of winds, ocean currents, and heat belts can be presented best by means of a blackboard globe. One not over twelve inches in diameter will be found most useful. Such a globe is much more efficient in teaching topics like those indicated above than is any political globe with its complicated features. Good wall maps are equally necessary in every school- room. They are valuable for two purposes — as a basis for the study of general features of a country, continent, or world, and as a means of testing a pupil's knowledge oi The Use of Equipment; Mtiseums 2ig ' what he has learned from the text and from the maps in his geography. Wall maps, except those especially prepared for library use, are not for study of details and should not be so used in a classroom. The advantage in using a wall map is that all the members of a class can be required to fix their attention on one thing and one thing only. School wall maps are for class use and therefore must be equally clear to the pupils in the front row and the pupils in the back row of seats. They must first of all be legible. This means oftentimes that they are too generalized for detailed personal study at close range. A river, for instance, may seem out of all proportion when viewed near at hand, but from the back of the classroom it sinks into its relative place. The prime requisite of a wall map being legibility, it must not be overcrowded with details and it must be properly colored. Contrasts between different physical regions or political areas should be easily discernible, but this does not mean that colors should be glaring. The colors should so harmonize that no part seems to protrude from the map, but that all appear in the same plane and are yet easily distinguished. Many of our school wall maps fail to meet the requirement of legibility or even of accuracy that best usage demands. All maps should be as accurate in details and as little generalized as the scale will permit. An ordinary sized wall map of Europe, for instance, cannot show all the sinuosities of the shore line or all the crooks in the streams, but all should be shown that are of a size to be represented on the scale adopted for the map in question. A curve in the coast line represented on a map should mean a curve in nature and not be merely a device for showing a general irregularity of the coast with no relation to the actual shore features. 220 The Teaching of Geography The Minimum Wall-map Equipment Wall maps of the best tjrpe are absolutely necessary in every schoolroom, not merely for their use in the' geog- raphy work but in all subjects dealing with the distribu- tion of phenomena over the world. It is a well-known but extremely unforttmate fact that a great majority of the public schools in this country are poorly equipped with the necessary maps for class- room use. In many cases maps are absolutely lacking; in other cases there may be one set of maps for a school building, or perhaps each classroom may have a few, many of them old, worn out, and out of date. To equip all the schools of a large city adequately with maps is extremely expensive, but, on the other hand, they are a long-term investment and the cost per year for a complete equipment would be small. For the best work in geography, history, and literature every classroom above the third grade should have a Mercator map of the world, a series of political maps, one for each continent, and physical maps of the United States and Europe. The world map should show the ocean currents and the International Date Line as well as political features. It would be well, also, if it showed ocean sailing routes and cable lines. If this is impossible any classroom ought to have as a minimum equipment a Mercator map of the world, a political map of the United States, and maps of the continents to be studied in that grade. Less than this is more than inadequate — it is a shameful neglect of necessities. These maps should be the permanent prop- erty of the classroom and should not be allowed to go from the room. The minimum is not expensive and should be possible The Use of Equipment; Museums 22Z in any large city. Teachers should make it clear to "the powers that be" that maps are absolutely indispensable, not only in geography but in teaching history, literature, and current events. Much of the objection to buying maps is due to the fact that superintendents and pur- chasing agents think the necessary expenditure is large for one subject. If it can be shown that maps are neces- sary in many subjects less objection will be made. A series of maps available and used every day in the year will cost no more than a piece of striking apparatus to be used in one topic only for a brief period annually. Money will often be readily given to purchase apparatus to be kept in a case most of the time. Why should this money not be invested in apparatus to be used every day? Why should not teachers have maps and globes instead? Any teacher ought to be able to make his demands so forcible, from the standpoint of relative utility, as to be able to persuade a superintendent or school committee to buy maps rather than new pieces of apparatus that have not yet proved their general usefulness. Government Maps , First and foremost should be mentioned the several series of maps published by the United States government which are valuable for the more advanced work. The large-scale topographic maps of the United States are issued in sections, generally fifteen geographic minutes long and wide, and admirably show relief, drainage, and the distribution of life, or "culture features" as they are called. Both wagon roads and railroads, cities, — not only as to location but in regard to the arrangement of streets, as well, — scattered country houses, and miscel- laneous features for which man is responsible, such as lighthouses, are all clearly shown. Relief is represented 222 The Teaching of Geography by means of contour lines, the contour interval depending upon the amount of slope and varying from five to two hundred fifty feet in different parts of the country. These maps will be found very helpful, especially in the study of the important cities of the United States. They show details of location and environment so well that a selected group, those showing the great cities at least, should be ifotmd in every school. These maps are so inexpensive that no one need be deprived of them. The pilot charts of the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans are also interesting for upper-grade pupils. They show the principal steamer routes across the oceans, the prevailing winds, the paths of storms, and the safeguards of navigation such as the location of light- houses, buoys, and floating buoys. These maps are of special interest in connection with the study of com- merce and transportation. Large-scale Outline Maps A word must be said for the large wall outline maps of the world and the several continents. These may be procureJ for a small sum, readily take ink, crayon, or water color, and are sufficiently large to be seen across the room. In teaching certain topics one frequently is in need of a map that cannot be proctired, or perhaps those on the market may not answer the purpose exactly. In such cases it is a very simple matter for the teacher to fill in one of these outline maps with the required data, thus at small expense adding a valuable piece of permanent equipment. Perhaps isothermal lines for January and for July, drawn at ten-degree intervals, may be needed, or a teacher may wish to present the heat belts, not as they are ordinarily represented but with their boundaries in accordance with the latest meteorological atlas. Outline The Use of Equipment; Museums 223 maps are also invaluable as a basis for enlarging small maps from books of reference or texts so as to be avail- able for class use. This is particularly true in the case of economic and commercial maps not generally sold in this form. There are many uses for these maps, and only by resorting to them can equipment be at all satis- factory or complete. The United States Geological Survey, publishes a three-sheet contoured wall map of the country that is also exceedingly helpful and that may be used in much the same maimer. The physical divisions, as the Coastal Plain, the Piedmont Belt, and the Appalachian High- lands, may be shown on one map; drainage lines may be brought out on another, or any other features that a teacher may wish to emphasize in the study of the country. Attention should also be called to the' Land Office maps of the United States. Each map includes the gen- eral physical and political features, and the distribution of forest reserves, Indian Reservations, and similar matters. Apparatus for Mathematical Geography The most intrinsically difficult portion of our subject is that of the earth as a globe, or mathematical geography, and of the various topics that fall under this department none are more puzzUng than is the revolution of the earth and its consequences. It is no easy task to make this topic comprehensible to our pupils, and any help in this direction is eagerly welcomed. The best appliance on the market for this portion of our work is a planetarium, or season apparatus of some description. This shows the rotating earth traveling in its orbit about the sun. It shows the northward and southward migration of the vertical rays of the sim and therefore the reason for the position of the tropics. It shows the shifting of the circle 224 T^^ Teaching of Geography of illumination beyond the north and the south poles corresponding in amount to the shifting northward and southward of the vertical rays. The position of the circle of illumination with reference to the parallels makes it possible actually to see the reason for the varying length of day and night over the globe — for the twelve-hour day and night at the equator, for the long twenty-four-hour day or night at the polar circles, and for the six-month period of light and darkness at the poles. An apparatus of this kind is the best device, also, for showing the reason for the change of seasons, the northern and the southern hemispheres turning alternately toward and away from the sun. This appliance, when really satisfactory, is expensive, and for this reason a teacher must frequently resort to some substitute. A lighted candle and a globe carried about it at an approximately correct inclination, will help in clearing up many diffi- culties. The circle of illumination may be represented by a tightly fitting paper cap covering half of the globe, a simple device which may be made in a few moments. This may be shifted beyond the north and the south poles in turn, thus showing graphically the distribution of light at different seasons and the varying length of day and night. The shadow stick deserves a place in a discussion of equipment, though anything less complex can scarcely be imagined. It consists simply of a peg driven into a board in an upright position, its purpose being to indicate the length and direction of shadows in order that local noon may be found, that true north may be determined, and that the sun may be seen to be at a given angular distance from the meridian at a given hour every day in the year, no matter where it rises or how high or low it is in the sky. The Use of Equipment; Museums 225 Illustrations One of the most important pieces of eqtdpment is the photograph in all of its various manifestations, from the stereopticon to the picture postal. A lantern is such a valuable piece of equipment for any school that it should be procured if possible. It teaches geography in a most fascinating manner and may become an instru- ment of education, not in the school alone but for the neighborhood. There is an almost unlimited choice in slides for the illustration of geographical topics. The field has been so thoroughly canvassed that the teacher need do no searching for material — 'it remains for him only to make his selection. The stereoscope, which has been revived and improved during recent years, reveals natiire more truly than does any other form of photograph, perspective and relief coming out with startling effect. It justifies the claim made for it by the school supply houses that carry it — that it is the next best thing to an actual eye inspection. Stereographs may be obtained in sets illustrating various geographic topics. Special sets are available to illustrate industries, physical features, and home life and customs in all the continents of the world. There is more or less difficulty in using the stereograph for general class work, as the photographs' must of course be used in coimection with the stereoscope. For work of this kind each pupil should not only be provided with the instru- ment, but with duplicate photographs as well. A more usual method of using this material is that of keeping a selected series of the photographs bearing upon the lesson, with two or three stereoscopes, in a convenient spot for the children's use, that they may have access to them during their free moments. A book of directions and 226 The Teaching of Geography suggestions for the use of this valuable illustrative ma- terial may be obtained of the companies handling it, but any method that a teacher finds himself able to follow will repay him many times over. A teacher may have a good line of pictures to illustrate his work, with the expenditure of very little money. He should have illustrations of all sizes, some so large that they may be seen from all parts of the room, others that may be passed around for individual study. Many of these may be taken from the current magazines, or from the supplements of some of our daily papers, the children themselves frequently being able to help in the collection of this material. Not everything bearing upon geography should be accepted, or this equipment will become so bur- densome the collection will be valueless. Discrimination should be used in the first selection and a constant weed- ing-out process resorted to as the material accumulates. A most excellent series of illustrations of both near and distant parts of the world may be obtained through picture postals. These, too, may now be secured in sets illustrative of a great variety of topics bearing upon our subject. These are so inexpensive that collections may often be made by the pupils illustrative of the country that they are studying, or at least of one country out of a group, different pupils selecting difEerent regions that a larger territory may be covered. A valuable aid to teachers and one too infrequently used is the diagram. The various textbooks have many figures of this kind that would be very helpful if they might be displayed before the class — such, for instance, as those showing the total production of any commodity and the amount supplied by the various countries concerned. These, enlarged sufficiently for class use, are readily trans- ferred to manila paper. The Use of Equipment; Museums 227 The Sand Table A piece of eqtdpment that often proves detrimental to good geography teaching is the sand table. This device has a use, but not the general use frequently assigned to it. The arguments against the modeling of large areas obtain here, too, in the use of sand. The results are so inaccurate that more harm than good must follow. It seems inadvisable, too, to represent definite areas, even comparatively small ones, in sand, for misconceptions are not only fixed but the vital part of the lesson may be actually lost. For instance, a class, perhaps with Vesu^ vius as an introduction, studies the subject of volca- noes. The teacher asks the pupils to model Vesuvius in sand. He may, by the use of some mild explosive, even have an eruption then and there. What is the result of this work? The reduction of one of the most awe-inspiring, wonderful manifestations of nature to an absurdity. What will they see in the future when a volcano is mentioned? Not one of the wonders of the world, but the sand pile on the desk. A mduntain, too, is a magnificent form, and children may be made to realize it, but not by means of the sand table. The sand table, however, has a function to perform, though not a very important one. It may be used in the representation of certain general rather than specific forms. For instance, a child may be asked to model a lull, though not a special hill, or a valley, which he may be required to describe. It seems better, then, not to use the sand table as the basis of instruction during the introductory work on a topic, for here specific illustrations should be used, and the sand table caimot present these. Points frequently arise in class work that call for 228 The Teaching of Geography graphic illustrations. Visualization without such assist- ance may be beyond the power of the pupils, and here the sand table, though filling a humble position, is valuable. It may also be used as a means of testing knpwledge, the children using the safid as they use the pencil, as a mode of expression. After the study of a certain topic, a river system for instance, pupils may be asked to show their conception of it in sand. Economic Specimens In the industrial study of geography, samples of the products of the world in their natural and their manu- factured states form one of the most necessary features of the equipment. These may be procured in various ways, the simplest by means of the "product cabinets." These cabinets contain a- series of large cards, each one being devoted to an important product. The product in its natural state, various articles manufactured from it, and its by-products are fastened to the card, on which a description of the commodity also appears. The cabinets are quite complete, but a collection made by the teacher and the pupils, though lacking in some respects, would be more valuable. Stores, factories, and importing houses are usually glad to respond to requests for sample products for such purposes. The pupils not only take a greater interest in a collection of their own making but gather up much information in regard to this material in the process and are frequently stimulated to further investigation. Instruments for Weather Study There are three important pieces of equipment for weather work — the barometer, the thermometer, and the daily weather map. The barometer may be of the simplest The Use .of Equipment; Museums zzg — it may easily be made by the pupils themselves — but weather work in the upper grades camiot be successfully carried on without it. For this work a barograph, or self-recording barometer, is to be preferred, for the passage of high and low pressure areas is so graphically shown by this instrument that interest is at once aroused and the study of the weather pursued without insistence on the part of the teacher. For purposes of weather work the thermometer should not be of the variety ordinarily found in schoolrooms. It should be a carefully tested instrument, the tube being backed by metal or by glass rather than incased in wood. The thermometer should be hung out of a north window, that the fluctuations of the mercury will record the variations of temperattore in the shade. The weather map may be secured daily either from Washington or from the nearest branch office. The latter is preferable for most stations, as the nearest office natu-- rally means the most prompt delivery of the map. The Care of Materials The care of equipment is as important as its selec- tion. The most perfectly equipped school is in as great a predicament as the poorly equipped school if its mate- rial is not arranged so that it may be drawn upon at a moment's notice. All the maps in any school should be mounted on rollers of uniform length, so as to be readily moved from one room to another, thus maMag it possible for maps temporarily needed to be easily and quickly changed from room to room. Maps should be rolled up when not in use so that they may be kept clean and so that their features will not be so familiar to the pupils that they will think they know everything the maps have to show them. 230 The Teaching of Geography There should be a stockroom for the safe keeping of the material that is needed only at certaui periods through- out the year. The maps kept here should be tightly rolled and put on shelves or on racks, that they may lie horizontally. The maps should be catalogued and each shelf or rack should be labeled, that the maps to be found there may be seen at a glance. The lantern slides should be numbered and a card catalogue made. If classified in this way it is an easy matter to select the slides illustrating any topic. The illustrations should be mounted and then cata- logued as in the case of the slides. If this is not done, the collection becomes almost valueless. The process of looking for photographs in an unclassified mass is very much like hunting for a needle in a haystack. This care- ful arrangement of material requires a great deal of time, but in the end saves much more than it consumes, and is besides a prevaitive against nervous strain and worry. . No school seems complete without a museum, no matter how simple it may be. This should not of course be purely geographic in character, though geography may contribute much of value, as the material collected for use in cormection with the various industries, selected photo- graphs that may be of general interest, or a collection of the rocks of the vicinity, or the common minerals. Cab- inets with glass doors are of course best for the preserva- tion and exhibition of much of this material. Some of the shelves should be fitted up with boxes and bottles for the smaller articles and for liquids. Everything in the cabinet should be carefully labeled, the label indicating any points of importance in regard to it as, for instance, the part of the world from which the article came, from whom and by whom it was procured, its market value, and other points of interest. Such museums should be for The Use of Equipment; Museums 231 the benefit not only of the school and the neighborhood but for other schools as well, whether in the town or somewhat more remote in location. Exchanges are often effected between schools, greatly to the benefit of all concerned. References Sutherland, W. J., The Teaching of Geography, chapters XVII, XVIII, XX; Dodge, R. E., "Equipment for Geography Teaching," Journal of Geography, Vol. V, pp. 241-250; Ridgeley, D. C, "The SchocJ Excursion and School Museum as Aids in the Teaching of Geography," Journal of Geography, Vol. Ill, pp. -322-332. THE APPENDIX A. A List of Equipment with Sources Maps Physical: J. Paul Goode. Physical Wall Map Series. World: Mercator's Projection; World: Hemispheres; North America; United States; Soufh America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia; Philippines. Others to follow. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Sydow-Habenicht. Orographical Wall Maps. World on Mer- cator's Projection; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia; Russia; British Isles; Scandinavia; German Empire; Austria-Hungary; France; Italy; Iberian Peninsula; Balkan Peninsula. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. EiEFERT. Physical Maps. Western Hemisphere; Eastern Hemi- sphere; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia and Polynesia; British Isles; Europe {Middle); Ger- many; France; Italy; Spain and Portugal; Austria-Hungary; Balkan States; Rttssia; Scandinavia. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Stanfokd, Edward. New Orographical Maps. North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia; British Isles. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Bird'sTeye View Series Wall Maps. The World; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; United Stales, Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Topographical Contour Maps of the United States. U. S. Geological Survey, Washington. Relief Models. E. E. Howell. Series: North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; United States. Washington, D. C. Commercial: Johnston, W. and A. K. Commercial Chart of the World on Mercator's Projection. A. J. Nystrom & Co., Chicago. 332 The Appendix 233 Outline Maps: Blackboard Outline Wall Maps. United States; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; The World on Mercator's Projection. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Wall Outline Maps. The World; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia; British Isles; Central Europe; United States; etc. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago & New York. McKinley Publishing Co., Philadelphia. Desk Outline Maps. Double Size Desk Maps; Large Size Desk Maps; Small Size Desk Maps. The various continents, the leading countries of the world, and sectional maps of the United States. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago & New York. Mc- Kinley Publishing Co., Philadelphia. New Centur' Development Maps. Silver, Burdett & Co., New York. Dodge's Geographiqal Note Books. Atkinson, Mentzer & Co., ■ Chicago. Weather Maps: Daily Weather Map. Washington, D. C. Pilot Charts: North Atlantic Ocean; South Atlantic Ocean; North Pacific Ocean; South Pacific Ocean. Hydrographic Office, Washington, D. C. Climatic Maps: Oxford Rainfall Series Wall Maps: The World; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia. Rand Mc- Nally & Co., Chicago and New York. Meteorological Charts of the Oceans: North Atlantic; South Atlantic; North Pacific; South Pacific; Indian. U. S. Weather Bureau, Washington, D. C. Vegetation Maps: Oxford Vegetation Series Wall Maps: The World; North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Australia. Rand Mc- Nally & Co., Chicago and New York. Globes Political: 6-inch, 8-inch, 12-inch, 18-inch, and 30-inch diameter. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Physical: Jones Model of the '^arth. 13-inch and 20-inch diameter. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago & New York. Slate: 12-inch and 18-inch diameter. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago & New York. W \ 234 T^ Teaching of Geography Season Apparatus Gardner Season Apparatus. Hammett & Co., New York. Lanterns and Lantern Slides Bausch and Lomb Optical Co., Rochester, New York. Gall and Lembke, New York. Buckeye Co., Cleveland, Ohio. The Mackintosh Stereoptican Co., Chicago. Underwood and Un- derwood, New York. T. H. McAllister Co., New York. Stereoscopes and Stereographs Underwood and Underwood, New York. Keystone View Co., Meadville, Pa. H. C. White Co., Chicago. Pictures The Nature Study Publishing Co., Chicago. Detroit Publishing Co., New York. Holzel's Charakter-bilder, E. Steiger & Co., New York. Weather Instruments Thermometer; Barometer; Thermograph; Barograph. (May be obtained from the leading optical companies.) B. A List op Valuable Collateral Reading Home Geography and World as a Whole Andrews. Each and All. Ginn & Co., Boston. Andrews. Little People Everywhere. Manuel in Mexico; Utne San in Japan; Rafael in Italy; Kathleen in Ireland; Fritz in Germany; Gerda in Sweden; Boris in Russia; Hassan in Egypt; Donald in Scotland; Maria in Holland; Betty in Canada; Josefa in Spain. Little, Brown & Co., Boston. Andrews. Seven Little Sisters. Ginn & Co., Boston^ Dodge. Home Geography and World Relations. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Fairbanks. Home Geography for Primary Grades. Educational Publishing Co., New York. Gaines. Lucita: A Child's Story of Old Mexico. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Long. Home Geography. American Book Co., New York. The Appendix 235 Morris. Home Life in All Lands. Lippincott Co., Philadelphia. Payne. Geographical Nature Studies. American Book Co., New York. Perdue and LaVictoire. Child Life in Many Lands. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Shaw. Big People and Little People of Other Lands. American Book Co., New York. Smith. Eskimo Stories. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Smith. Holland Stories. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. Starr. Strange People. D. C. Heath & Co., Boston. The Continents Bowman. South America: A Geography Reader. Rand Mc- Nally & Co., Chicago. Carpenter. Geographical Readers. North America; South America; Europe; Asia; Australia, Our Colonies and Other Islands of the Sea; Africa. American Book Co., New York. Chamberlain. The Continents and Their People. North America; Europe. The Macmillan Co., New York. Dodge. A Reader in Physical Geography. Longmans, Green &Co., New York.- Fairbanks. The Western United States. D. C. Heath & Co., New York. Herbertson. Man and His Work. Adam and Charles Black, London. Herbertson. Descriptive Geography from Original Sources. North America; Europe; Central and South America with West Indies; Asia; Africa; Australia and Oceania; The British Em- pire; The British Isles. Adam and Charles Black, London. Hotchkiss. Representative Cities of the United States. Houghton, Mifflin Co., Boston. Huntington. Asia: A Geography Reader. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago. MacClintock. The Philippines. American Book Co., New York. MacKinder. Elementary Studies in Geography. Our Own Islands; Lands Beyond the Channel; Distant Lands; The British Empire. George Philips & Son, London. 2j(J The Teaching of Geography McMuRRT. Larger Types oj American Geography. The Macmillan Co., New York. McMuRRY. Type Studies from United States Geography. The Macmillan Co., New York. Mardon. a Geography of Egypt and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Adam and Charles Black, London. MoNROE-BucEBEE. Our Country and Its People. Harper & Brothers, New York. Redway. All Around Asia. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Spyri. Heidi. Ginn & Co., Boston. Stories Retold from St. Nicholas. Stories of the Great Lakes; Southern Stories; Western Frontier Stories; Sea Stories; Island Stories; Stories of Strange Sights. Centiiry Co. , New York. WiNSLOW. Geography Readers. The Earth and Its People; Our American Neighbors; The United States; Europe. D. C. Heath & Co., New York. Youths Companion Series. Toward the Rising Sun; Strange Lands near Home; The Wide World; Northern Europe; Under Sunny Skies. Ginn & Co., Boston. Industrial and Commercial Carpenter. Industrial Readers. Foods; How the World is Clothed. American Book Co., New York. Chamberlain. Hew We are Fed; How We are Clothed; How We are Sheltered; How We Travel. The Macmillan Co., New York. Chase-Clow. Stories of Industry. Educational Publishing Co., New York, Keller-Bishop. Commercial and Industrial Geography. Ginn & Co., Boston. Robinson. Commercial Geography. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. RocHELEAtr. Great American Industries. Products of the Soil; Manufactures; Minerals, A. Flanagan, Chicago. Shillio. Four Wonders: Cotton, Wool, Linen, Silk. (For pri- mary grades.) Rand McNally & Co., Chicago and New York. C. Some Representative Lessons Outlined in Detail I. A Loaf of Bread A suggestive lesson in Home Geography, outlining the manner The Appendix 237 in which one of the needs of the home may be studied profitably. The teacher's aim is not merely to trace the development of the product but more particularly to show how people depend on one another for the necessities of life. Well chosen pictures, bearing upon the lesson, should- be ready for class use. Let us find out where the bread came from that we had for breakfast this moving. Did any of you, perhaps, buy it? Where did you get it? Of what did the baker make it? If you have ever watched any one make bread you may tell us about it. It is a good deal of work to make a loaf of bread, is it not? Compare the work of the baker, who makes bread for a great number of people, with the work of breadmaking in the home. Where does the baker get his flour? How is flour made? (Have some child read before the recitation a simple description of milling and report to the class.) From whom does the miller secure the wheat which he grinds into flour? Let us see what the farmer must do in order to grow the wheat out of which the flour is to be made. Have you ever planted a little garden? Tell us everything that you did from the very beginning. What do plants need in order to grow? What must the farmer do to help his crops grow well? Let us look at some of these pictures and see how he harvests his crop. Tell all that you can about this part of his work. Does it look very easy to you? Though the work is hard, do you think you would like to be a farmer? Tell all the pleasant things about it. What have we found out about the making of a loaf of bread? Some one who would like to do the farmer's work may tell us about his part of it. Some one who would like to grind the grain may tell us about the miller's part. Some one who would like to bake the bread may tell us about that part of the work. Why does the farmer work so hard? Why does he not cultivate 238 The Teaching of Geography only a little piece of ground, just large enough to supply wheat for his family? Where would you and I then get our flour for bread? Did it ever occur to you that many people must work to supply us with almost everything we need? Think of all the farmers and millers and bakers who are needed to supply all the people in our country with just this one article of food. Think of all the people who are working for us, and on whom we are dependent. What are some things that the farmer, the miller, and the baker need for which they are dependent upon others? Which of these things are made in our own city (or in the city nearest us)? Do you think we should make or produce only so much of an}rthing as we need? What then can we do with that which we do not need? Who will show now why every person's work is important? Does this suggest one reason why so many people live in towns or cities and not in scattered, lonesome homes? Have you ever heard about any one who was entirely cut ofiE from the rest of the world for a long time? Tell the story of Robinson Crusoe. What are the disadvantages of such a life? II. LiTUBERiNG IN New England A suggestive lesson for intermediate grades, illustrating the teaching of an industry, with emphasis on the geographical con- ditions Underlying that industry. On the day preceding the lesson different children should be asked to look up various phases of the life and work of lumbermen. At the time of the recitation the work of the class, based on pictures particularly, on the study of maps and text, should be supplemented by the contributions of these pupils. What did we plan to study to-day? Let us find out what we can about the work of the lumberman and how valuable it is to us. Have you ever been in a forest? Describe it. (Silence, shade, coolness, trees — great number, kinds, sizes, etc.) What did you do there? When the white people settled in America the whole eastern part of our country was a great forest. Try to picture this section as it looked then. Who can make us see it? The Appendix zjg Can you think of some reasons why our country now has fewer forests than formerly? How has much of this area been cleared? How may forests be destroyed in other ways than by cutting the timber? Think of some part of the country in which there is much wooded land. Look up this region on the map, and say where within it you would expect to find forests and where farming land. Why would you expect to find forests on the mountains rather than in the valleys? New England was a great forest, too, and some sections are still forested. Find the sections on your map that you think are probably wooded. What do we call the men who cut the trees? See what you can find out from the pictures about the way they live. (Logging camps to be described, the work of the class being supplemented by the pupil who had this topic assigned the day before.) When you think of the lumberman's work, what part of it comes to your mind first? Describe the felling of the trees. At what season is this work done? What is done with the trees after they are cut dowr.? Can you see any reason for doing this very, hard work, cutting and hauling, when the weather is cold and stormy? The men might find a much pleasanter time of year than the one they have chosen, might they not? Who is going to tell us how and when the roads are miade over which these logs must be hauled? (One of the assigimients of the previous day.) Look at the pictures and see if you can tell us about the next step in the lumberman's work. (Log drive to be described from illus- trations, supplemented again by some pupil who has been asked to prepare the topic.) What can you think of that might prevent the logs from moving along smoothly? How might some of these obstructions be disposed of? Who is ready to tell us about how the lumbermen dear the river of snags, and when it must be done? Even if this work is well done, what is liable to happen? Why? Who knows something interesting about a log jam? 240 The Teaching of Geography You may tell some of the di£Sculties of the work of the lumbermen before the cutting of the trees begins. Who can tell about the work during the cutting season? You may describe the work that is done in the spring. Do you think you wojild enjoy the lumberman's life? Give your reasons. Consult your text and see if you can fiild out to what cities of New England many of these logs are sent. What is done with the logs at these cities? (Text consulted.) Why is the situation of each city you have mentioned good for the lumber industry? Show ways in which we are dependent upon products made from forest trees. What do you tTiinlf about the importance of the lumberman's work? Since lumber is so necessary to us we should certainly take good care of the forests that supply us with this product. Have we done so? How have we been careless? For otu: next lesson we will find out what we must do to save our forests. III. Egypt A suggestive map-study lesson adapted to the upper graiqmar grades. What country are we to study to-day? Have you ever heard Egypt called "The Gift of the Nile"? Let us find out why it is so called and how valuable the gift is. Have you a picture in your minds of northern Africa? Describe it. (Main surface features should be brought out, and the desert should be particularly emphasized as to appearance and extent.) What is the economic value to the world of this great desert region? Is a desert ordinarily very valuable? Where does Egypt Ue with reference to this desert? Show where it lies with reference to us by walking toward it. (One pupil at a time, while others criticize.) Trace the route that you would take if you were going to Egypt. Describe it. About how long would it take to make the journey? Would you Uke to go? Why? The Appendix 241 What country lies to the east of Egypt? What have we learned with regard to the surface of the land, climate, and vegetation of Arabia? Compare with the country to the west of Egypt. Now let us see how conditions in Egypt compare with the countries on either side. Describe its temperature. (Pupils should refer to seasonal temperature maps.) In what wind belt does it lie? Describe the direction of these winds. Describe the surface of Egypt. (From relief or physical map.) What facts have we discovered that will help us in judging whether the rainfall is light or heavy? Tell what you would expect in regard to the amotmt and state your reasons. Verify your conclusions. (Rainfall map consulted.) Compare Egypt in respect to climate and siuf ace with the coun- tries to the east and to the west. (Similarity of conditions empha- sized.) Do you recall any stories from the Bible that you have heard about Egypt? Who can tell the story of Joseph? What kind of a coiuitry does this story show northern Egypt to have been? Is it productive to-day? (Text consulted for answer.) Have we thus far discovered anything to account for the fact that Egypt is productive while most of the adjacent region is a desert? Can you suggest anything that may account for it? Let us see if we can learn why the Nile makes this great difference. Describe the Nile. (Direction, length, etc. Pupils should use scale to determine its length and then consult table in appendix to verify. Its size should also be compared with that of other great rivers of the world.) Compare the numbers of its tributaries with those of the Mississippi. Can you explain why the Nile has so few? How far does it flow without receiving any tributaries? Compare the lowest part of the Mississippi plain and the lowest part of the Nile plain. What name do we give to this land? Tpll how deltas are formed. 2^2 The Teaching 0/ Geography Describe the course of the Nile through its delta. Consult your text to see through what kind of a valley the main portions of the Nile flow. (Upper and lower portions compared.) Name two important tributaries that the Nile receives from the east. Where do these rivers rise? What can you tell about the rainfall of this region? What influence must this heavy precipitation have upon the Nile? With what result? (Flooding of the lower valley.) We ordinarily think of a flood as a disaster. Do you know whether it is a misfortune in the case of the Nile? What are the advantages of this overflow? Tell what you can about the soil that is deposited by the river in flood. At what season would you expect the overflow? Why? (Shift- ing doldrums reviewed.) What provisions have been made for obtaining water at other times during the year? (The text might be consulted on this point, or some pupil might be asked to look up the subject of irrigation in Egypt and to be ready to tell the class about it.) What would you expect the leading occupation of the lower valley to be? Find out what the leading crops are. (Text consulted.) Do you know whether these crops are of any importance to us? See if you can find out how Egypt's leading product ranks in the world's trade. (Reference tables.) Where do you think most of the people in this section would nattu-aUy live? Verify your opinion. (Population map.) Locate the most important cities. Why should cities have grown up at the places which you see shown on the map? (Pupils should be required to learn something about these cities, perhaps as a home assignment.) To what extent are we justified in calling Egypt "The Gift of the Nile"? (A rapid analysis of the various physical conditions and of the bearing of each upon economic conditions.) Can you recall any river in our own country that flows through an arid region? Compare population and industries of the lower Nile and of the Colorado. The Appendix 243 What is needed to reclaim the desert in each case? Would it be appropriate to speak of Arizona as the " Gift of the Colorado"? Why not? Which region has the advantage in securing a water supply? What steps are we taking in the Southwest to reclaim portions of our desert? Under what conditions is there a possibility of reclaiming a desert? Is it probable that we shall ever be able to reclaim it all? Compare conditions in northern Africa in this respect with our own country. THE INDEX PAGE Actualities in Geography, The Necessity of Studying . . .135 Adult Point of View, The Approach to the 16 Advantages of a Textbook, The ^ 120 Agriculture, Geographic Basis of 169 Aim in School Geography, Power to Do as an 12 Apparatus for Mathematical Geography 223 Arithmetic, Geography and 106 Art Work, Geography and 116 Books of Reference, The Use of 189 Care of Materials, The 229 Climate 67 Climate and Weather 161 Collateral Reading, How to use 190 Collateral Reading, Magazines as . . 182 Collateral Reading, The Value of 181 Commerce, Geographic Basis of 174 Commercial Geography in the Upper Grades 176 Commercial Geography, Special Courses ia Industrial and . . 178 Commercial Geography, The Place of Industrial and ... 25 Continental Geography, The Importance of 47 Continents to be Studied, The . . - 92 Continents to Teach in the Intermediate Grades, What . . 48 Cooperation in School Work 98 Course of Study ia Geography, The Duty of the Supervisor in Reference to the 4 Course of Study in Geography, The Geographer and the . . 3 Course of Study, Some Larger Problems concerning the Divi- sion of the 17 Course of Study, The Natural Divisions of the 19 Course of Study, The Place of Physical Geography in a . . 22 Courses of Study, Types of 18 Definitions in Home Geography 28 Division of the Course of Study, Some Larger Problems concerning the 17 Divisions of the Course of Study, The Natural 19 Drainage 158 244 The Index 24S PAGE Earth as a Globe, The 62 Earth Units, The Essential Elements of the More Important . 37 Economic Specimens 228 Elementary-school Geography, The Preparation of a Teacher of 205 Equipment, The Use of 217 Excursion, The Field Lesson or 136 Ejtpression Work, Geography and no Expression Work, The Value of no Facts, The Importance of a Knowledge of Geographic ... 9 Field Lesson or Excursion, The 136 Fishing, Geography of Hunting and 172 Geographer and the Course of Study in Geography, The . . 3 Geographical Readers, The Use of 184 Geographic Basis of Agriculture 169 Geographic Basis of Commerce 174 Geographic Basis of Grazing 170 Geographic Basis of Lumbering 171 Geographic Basis of Manufacturing 173 Geographic Basis of Mining 172 Geographic Principles, The Importance of 8 Geography and Arithmetic 106 Geography and Art Work 116 Geography and History 103 Geography and Industrial Work n8 Geography and Language io7 Geography and Nature Study loi Geography of Distant Regions, How to Introduce the ... 41 Geography of Hunting and Fishing 172 Geography of the Intermediate Grades, Summary of ... 79 Geography Teaching, Modern Viewpoint in 164 Geography Teaching, The Importance of the Picturesque in .187 Globe, The Earth as a 62 Globes, Wall Maps and 2i7 Government Maps 221 Grazing, the Geographic Basis of 17° History, Geography and i°3 Home Geography, Definitions in 28 Home Geography, Points to be Omitted in 45 Home Geography, The Units that may be Included in ... 29 246 The Teaching of Geography PAGE Home Geography, What is 26 Hunting and Fishing, Geography of 172 Illustrations 225 Industrial and Commercial Geography, Special Courses in . .178 Industrial and Commercial Geography, The Place of ... 25 Industrial Geography 165 Industrial Gedgraphy, The Point of View of the Teacher in . 168 Industrial Work, Geography and 118. Industry, How to Study an 84 Instruments for Weather Study 228 Lands, The 76 Language, Geography and 107 Language of a Map, The 129 Large-scale Outline Maps 222 Latest Work in the Grades, The 95 Lesson, The Preparation of the 197 Lesson, The Presentation of a 200 Lessons, How to Outline a Series of 196 Life, The Distribution of 78 Life, The Necessities of 40 Limits of School Geography, The 5 Location, Knowledge of 10 Lumbering, Geographic Basis of 171 Magazines as Collateral Reading 182 Manufacturing, Geographic Basis of . .173 Map, The Language of a 129 Map Filling 115 Map Modeling . . . ." m Map Questions 133 Maps as the Basis of the Work . . 86 Maps, Large-scale Outline 222 Maps, Special 132 Maps, The Value of 126 Materials, The Care of 229 Mathematical Geography, Apparatus for 223 Mining, Geographic Basis of 172 Modem Viev^oint in Geography Teaching 164 Museums 217 Nature Study, Geography and loi The Index 247 PAGI Observational Work in the Schoolroom 142 Ocean, The 74 Outline for a Series of Lessons, A Suggestive 57 Outline Maps, Large-scale 222 Physical Features, The Emphasis to be Given the .... 82 Physical Geography in a Course of Study, The Place of . . 22 Physical Geography should ibe Emphasized, The Stages of the Course of Study in which 22 Plan in the Intermediate and Upper Grades, The Change of . 21 Points to be Omitted in Home Geography ... . . 45 Power to Do as an Aim in School Geography 12 Preparation of a Teacher of Elementary-school Geography, The 205 Preparation of the Lesson, The 197 Presentation of a Lesson, The . 200 Principles of Geography, Summary of the 79 Principles of Geography, The Importance of the . 6i Problem Lesson Outlined, A 85 Problems concerning the Division of the Course of Study, Some Larger 17 Purpose of School Geography, The 7 Questions, Map 133 Rainfall ■71 Reference List for Teachers, Selected . . 211 Relation of Geography to Other Subjects in Curriculum, The . 94 Relations of Geography, The Content 100 Relations of Geography, The Service 101 Rural Schools, The Possible Richness of Geography in . .153 Sand Table, The 227 Scenic Resorts '75 School Geography, The Duty of the Teacher of . . . 5 School Geography, The Limits of .5 School Geography, The Purpose of 7 School Geography to the Science of Geography, The Relation of I Series of Lessons, A Suggestive Outline for a 57 Slopes, The Importance of 156 SoU 157 Supervisor in Reference to the Course of Study in Geography, The Duty of the 4 24S The Teaching of Geography PAGE Surface Features, The 3 Teacher of Elementary-school Geography, The Preparation of a 205 Teacher of School Geography, The Duty of the 5 Teachers, Selected Reference List for 211 Teaching, What is Good Geography 15 Textbook, How to Use a 123 Textbook, The Advantages of a 120 Topics, The Order of 35 Training of a Teacher, The Necessary 205 Types of Courses of Study 18 Units that may be Included in Home Geography, The . . ■ . 29 Units to be Chosen for Study, The 92 Upper Grades, Commercial Geography in the 176 Upper Grades, The Change of Plan in the Intermediate and . 21 Use of Books of Reference, The 189 Use of Geographical Readers, The 184 Value of Collateral Reading, The 181 Value of Maps, The 126 Wall-map Equipment, The Minimum 220 Wall Maps and Globes 217 Weather 72 Weather, Climate and 161 Weather Study, Instruments for 228 Work in the Grades, The Latest 95 .':-Si