For example, choose a very simple picture for the child to reproduce on another piece of paper. It is a good plan for a teacher to have at least a dozen or more pictures in one drawer of his desk all the time, because many pupils like to draw and copy pictures and it is an excellent way to get them interested in other work. Present the picture of some ordinary scene. Tell the pupil before he begins that you are going to make a collection of pictures which your pupils draw. The picture need not have much life in it to start with, but right here we make use of the child’s imagination to wonderful advantage. Suppose the picture, which you have in hand, shows a tree or two, a house, a couple of bushes or any kind of natural objects whatsoever. Talk to the pupil in this fashion, pointing to different parts of the picture with your pencil and have your face near the picture, indicating interest and enthusiasm as you talk: “Now, right behind this tree here, I want you to draw a boy, sticking his head out from behind the tree. And right over here, where I make this little cross mark, I want you to draw a little girl hiding behind this bush. We will suppose they are playing ‘Hide and Seek.’ Right over here, between this tree and the house, draw a boy’s hat. Maybe he has lost it while he was running to hide. You know how to make a hat. Just like this:” (draw a very simple hat, merely making a straight line and a semi-circle connecting two points in it.) “Maybe you can draw a better one than that. I’ll come back to your desk pretty soon and see what kind of a hat you drew and also that little boy sticking his head out from behind the tree. Is your pencil sharp enough?” The child will say that his pencil is all right. Then leave him at once and in ten or fifteen minutes return. Go back with this one thought in mind, that you will say nothing at all except that which is complimentary. For example, say, “Well, I should say you _can_ draw. I believe you made a better hat than I did. Now this afternoon, I am going to give you something else to draw. Maybe a pony with a boy on his back and a girl riding in the pony cart. You are going to be good at drawing things for me, I know. I want to keep all of your drawings after you have finished them for me.” In case the child should interrupt and ask to draw the pony right away instead of waiting until afternoon, answer by saying, “I will have the picture ready for you after dinner and then I will bring it to you.” Of course, it is not necessary to use the exact words we have suggested, or to use the same pictures or even to use pictures at all. The important point is to offer something that is at once interesting in order to get the pupil started in drawing. Do not insist much upon regular lessons during the first day or two in which your chief problem is to get the pupil’s confidence.