IN THE NURSERY
Lesson I. NUMBERS
"Do not give much time to teaching arithmetic to a child under seven or eight years old. Teach him to count to ten or even to one hundred, if he wants to count that far. Teach him to count by two's with buttons or other objects—2, 4, 6, etc. Play store with him, teaching him to make change for a dime or a nickel. Answer his questions.
Lesson II. THE ALPHABET
Before the age of seven the child may profitably get some of the teaching that will enable him to read. For this, three things are necessary: the pupil must know the alphabet, be able to spell, and must have a desire to read. He can then, with very little help, teach himself to read. The mother may proceed in the old-fashioned way and have no fear that this plan of teaching, by which many of the greatest living men and women were trained, will be a drawback to progress in school. Teach the alphabet then so that the child will know all his letters by sight and by name. Teach spelling, beginning with such words as CAT, PIG, HEN, and have the little pupil learn one new word a day, at first. Later on, two words a day."
Excerpted from Parents' and Teachers' Guide, by the Grolier Society, The Colonial Press, Boston, 1923. Courtesy Terry Johnson, fourth generation, Oscar's branch