Part 12 (2/2)

Let the children guess the height and length of various objects in the room. Verify by measuring with the tape-measure. Tell them of Oliver Wendell Holmes, the great poet, who, whenever he drove into the country, carried a tape-measure with which to determine the girth of any large tree he saw.

Let children measure the size of the panes of gla.s.s, window-frames, etc.; have them tell how many feet it would take to carpet the floor.

Tell them to put father's hat on the floor, near the wall, and guess its height.

Such little exercises develop the powers of accurate observation in a way that may prove very helpful in an emergency.

CHAPTER V

THE PAINT BOX

or

EXPRESSION WITH PENCIL OR BRUSH

Let the child early be given charcoal or colored chalks, and later the three pigments--red, blue and yellow--wherewith to express his ideas.

Allow him some choice in the medium he uses--as pencil, charcoal or brush--as one may be best suited to his purpose one time, and another one at another time.

Encourage the child to tell a story by painting or drawing. The earliest graphic method by which man conveyed messages to one at a distance was through picture-writing.

LEARNING TO OBSERVE

=Painting From the Real Object= (_Paints_, _chalk or charcoal_)

Place before the child an apple, banana or flower of simple form and let him copy directly from the object without previous drawing. Encourage his efforts, however crude the results at first. It is more educative to draw from the real object than from a copy. Give him at first three colors only, in paints, till he learns how to get other colors by mixing these. For this purpose point out beautiful sunsets and cloud effects in Nature.

=Life Stages of Seedling= (_Paper_, _paints_, _seedling_)

Place before the child a bean or pea. Give him an oblong of paper 3 8 inches. Fold it into four parts. In the first let him draw or paint the seed as he sees it. Then let him plant the seed. In a day or so let him paint a picture of the seedling, after having grown so as to show the development of the seed leaves. Draw two other pictures to show later stages of growth. This gives a picture history of the little plant and while so occupied the child is learning to observe and note that which he sees.

ACQUIRING SKILL

=Calendars= (_Water-colors_, _brush_, _paper_, _calendar pad_)

Draw circles, squares, etc., and let the child fill in the outlines with color. A tiny calendar may be pasted in the center and ribbons put through wherewith to hang it up.

In filling in these figures show the child how to hold the brush lightly so as to secure freedom of stroke. Let him make long strokes beginning at the top of the paper and moving from side to side slowly downward, or rather as rapidly as is consistent with neatness. Have enough water on the brush so that the color will not dry from one long stroke before you are able to go back and carry it on to the next stroke. Practice making a clean, smooth surface.

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