Sometimes imitation and instruction can be effectively reinforced by suggestion and approval. For example, some morning when the pupils are fresh and in a good frame of mind to accept suggestion, the teacher might say: “I want to tell you how proud I am this morning” (pausing, allowing the pupils to wonder what will come next), then continue: “A visitor came into one of my classes a few days ago and I noticed a good number of my pupils sitting up just as straight as could be, with their shoulders back like this.” (Here she should put her shoulders back decidedly.) “Now, a visitor always notices this. I have visited some schools where the pupils didn’t seem to have good postures at all, while in other schools where I have visited, the pupils were all healthy looking, robust, with big, broad shoulders kept well back. They made a fine appearance. I’m going to watch from now on and just see how many I can count who keep their shoulders back. It’s mighty fine to see everyone in the room sitting up straight. I like to see a straight physique and I am going to tell you tomorrow morning how many I count today.” The next morning the teacher should again approve the pupils regarding how straight they sat the day before, bringing out the fact that she noticed several more yesterday than ever before. The skillful use of imitation is a particularly good means of bettering conditions in schools in which there is no real badness, but in which quietness and order are absent. It is not enough that children mean well; they must also learn to work economically and efficiently, or they are not being educated truly. One reason for the noisy school-room is that quietness has not been held before American children as a universal need. There have been teachers enough who have insisted on a death-like solemnity in school-room routine, but few that have seen that training in quietness must have a bigger end in view than mere school-room order. Young people, having strong nerves and stronger motor impulses, are not naturally quiet; therefore, the advantage of quietness must be shown them conclusively, and ways of being quiet, of doing things without unnecessary noise, must be made concrete by illustration. With the desirability for quiet and the definite ways of attaining it both made clear to them, imitation of quiet ways of accomplishing their ends will follow. CASE 77 (SIXTH GRADE) [Sidenote: Quiet Manners] After three weeks’ work following the holidays, Miss Herbert found school-room conditions in Farmerstown gradually declining. A series of annoyances was instituted; certain troubles seemed to become the fashion, then die and give place to new ones, none very serious but all disconcerting. Awaking finally to the situation, she decided to watch for the next outbreak and deal with it severely. “Louis Fischer, you dropped your pencil on purpose, I just believe!” and before she was done with the sentence another and another went clattering on the floor.