Papers and Proceedings of the Twenty-Third General Meeting of the American Library Association: Held at Waukesha, Wisconsin, July 4-10, 1901
Science
Papers and Proceedings of the Twenty-Third General Meeting of the American Library Association: Held at Waukesha, Wisconsin, July 4-10, 1901
American Library Association; Library science -- Congresses
We want to lead the child from results back to causes. The possession of
a vast number of facts, unrelated among themselves, is valueless and
even harmful, for the child does not look upon nature as a whole.
Nature-study, perhaps more than any other subject, leads the child into
sympathy with his environment. He observes carefully and thoughtfully
and thus the individual is developed. From personal contact with nature
he gains the power of accurate observation, correct thinking and
judgment; thus strengthening his moral character. If this is the effect
of nature-study upon the development of the child, the question comes to
the librarian--What principles shall guide me in the selection of books
that the library with which I am connected may be of assistance in
accomplishing these results, and meet the demand of modern education?
A book for children should be attractive. The exterior should present a
harmony of color and tasteful decoration. The text should be printed
with clear type upon good paper and should be well illustrated. Colored
plates are preferable, provided the coloring is good, otherwise
uncolored illustrations are far more desirable. The text should be
clear, simple, and scientifically correct.
The new scientific book differs from the old. The old style book gave
dead results, no sympathy in or interest for life was aroused, no
suggestions were given for first-hand observations of nature,
consequently the book failed to stimulate a desire for personal
investigation that could be verified by the recorded work of others. The
new scientific book not only gives results but a detailed account of the
methods employed in obtaining those results. The reader is interested in
trying the same experiments, gains a sympathy and interest in the
wonderful life history of a plant, bird, or insect, develops a
tenderness for life and feels that all nature is a sympathetic unit.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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