Chapter VI: Part I: Grammar (2)

This was the real lesson on the noun, and when, after great difficulty, the word "_sweet_" came out, the children would run and bring me every possible object that was sweet. I would refuse each one in turn. "No, I didn't ask for candy! No, I didn't ask for sugar!" The children would look at the object they had in their hands, half laughing, half puzzled and beginning to realize that _sweet_ was not a _name_, that it was not a _noun_. These first lessons, which seemed something like commands that needed the help of the children to express themselves, brought the children to understand some part of speech, while evoking, at the same time, vivid and interesting scenes. They furnished the original impulse to the development we have reached to-day in our lessons on grammar. For such lessons we have adopted the term "commands." But with normal children these "commands" were gradually multiplied and evolved. They are no longer entrusted to the teacher's ingenuity; nor are they dependent solely upon her dramatic sense--something essential if she is to stimulate the weak nervous reactions of little defectives and so gain and hold their attention. The "commands" to-day are written and may be read. They are combined with the card-exercises where the cards are read in silence and interpreted through actions--a method which grew spontaneously and with such great success from the work in the "Children's House." That is why, to-day, we speak in the elementary courses of "reading commands" or even of "writing commands."

The study of grammar has finally been arranged in a methodical series of exercises and the material has been prepared after careful and rigid experiment. Those who read this method will get a clear idea of the teacher's task. She has a material ready for use. She need not bother to compose a single sentence nor to consult a single program. The objects at her disposal contain all that is necessary. She need know simply what they are and how they are to be used. The lessons which she must give are so simple, and require so few words, that they become lessons rather of gesture and action than of words. It must be borne in mind, further, that the work is not as uninteresting as would appear from this arid summary. The actual school is a real intellectual laboratory, where the children work all the time and by themselves. After the material has been presented to them, they _recognize_ it and like to hunt for it. They know how to find for themselves the precious objects which they want to use. They often exchange materials and even lessons with other children. The few lessons the teacher gives connect, as it were, a system of live wires, which set in motion activities quite disproportionate to the energy expended in the simple act she performs. She pushes, so to speak, a button and here a bell rings, there a light goes on, there a machine begins to buzz. Very often the teacher sees a whole week go by without any need of intervention on her part.

And yet what delicacy and tact are necessary properly to "offer" this material, to give in an interesting way a lesson calculated to exert a direct action upon the child's spiritual activity! How skilful we must be to leave all the child's spontaneous impulses free to develop themselves, to keep careful watch over so many different individual impulses! This we must do if we are to "keep the lamp burning"! When, for example, on passing a table where the child has analyzed a sentence with the colored cards, the teacher shifts about, as if in play, one of the little slips, not only must she be possessed of the psychological insight necessary for intervening in this child's work at the proper time, but she must also have in mind the grammatical rule of which she wishes to give the child his first intuition. It follows that every single act of the teacher, however insignificant apparently, is, like the acts of the priest in the service, of the greatest importance, and should come from a consciousness thoroughly awake, and full of potentiality. Instead of giving out what she has in herself, the teacher must bring out the full possibilities of the children.

The teacher's extrinsic preparation is a matter of thorough acquaintance with the material. It should be so much a part of her that she knows at once what is needed for each individual case as soon as it arises. Actual practise soon develops this skill.

The exercises are performed with these little packages of specially prepared cards. The most important problem (for Italian grammar) is in the _agreements_; the agreement of article and noun, as we have already shown, the agreement of noun and adjective, and later on of pronoun and verb, and pronoun and noun. There are two kinds of exercises, which we have termed respectively "analyses" and "commands."

The _commands_ involve both work done by the teacher and exercises performed by the children. The purpose here is to clarify the meanings of words and often to suggest a _practical_ interpretation of them. This _explanation_ is followed by an exercise of the children themselves, who in turn practically interpret the meaning of one or more sentences written on a card which they read just as they did in the first exercises of reading in the "Children's House." On this card are the words which the teacher has just explained. In our experiments we gave these lessons immediately after "silence" just as we did for reading in the "Children's House." All the children, however, do not necessarily take part in these executions--oftenest it is only a group of children, sometimes one child alone, again, at other times, almost all of them. If possible the commands are given in another room, while the other children continue their work in the large hall. If this is not possible it takes place in the same room. These commands might be called "an introduction to dramatic art," for right there little dramatic scenes full of vivacity and interest are "acted out." The children are singularly delighted in working for the one exact "interpretation" which a given word requires.

The _analyses_, on the other hand, are of quite different character. "Analysis" is done at the table. It is work which requires quiet and concentration. While the command gives the _intuition_, the analysis provides for the _maturation_ of the idea. The grammar boxes are used in these exercises. In a larger compartment which each box contains, are placed several slips bearing a printed sentence; for example, _Throw down your handkerchief_. The child draws a slip and places it to one side on the table. Then he takes from the different boxes the colored slips corresponding to the different words in the sentence and places them side by side one after the other. In this way he composes the entire sentence: _Throw down your handkerchief_. The child is actually doing here a very simple thing: he is merely translating into colored cards the sentence which is printed on his slip. He composes this sentence in the same way in which he has already composed words with the moveable alphabet. But here the exercise is even more simple because the child need not remember the sentence, for it is there right before his eyes. His attention must be concentrated on other facts, so that all intellectual effort in the composition of the sentence itself is eliminated. The child has to note the colors and the position of the cards in the different boxes, since he must take the cards now from the noun box, now from the adverb box, now from that of the preposition, etc.; and the colors together with the position (each section has a title, as we have already seen) strengthen his consciousness of a _classification_ of words according to _grammar_.

But what really makes this exercise in analysis so interesting is the teacher's repeated permutation of the different cards. As she goes by a table she changes, as though in fun, the position of a card, and in this way provokes the intuition of grammatical rules and definitions. Indeed, when she takes out the card, which refers to some new part of the exercise, the remaining sentence with its changed meaning emphasizes the function of the part of speech which has been moved. The effect shows a distant analogy to the light that pathology and vivisection throw on physiology. An organ which fails in its function illustrates exactly that function, for never does one realize the precise use of an organ more clearly than when it has lost its power of functioning. Furthermore the removal of the words demonstrates that the meaning of the sentence is not given by the word alone but by the _order_ of the word in the sentence, and this makes a great impression on the child. He sees the same cards first in a chaotic mass and then in an orderly arrangement. What was first a collection of meaningless words has suddenly become the expression of a _thought_.

From now on the child begins to experience a keen interest in the _order_ of words. The meaning, the only thing the child is after, is no longer hidden in confusion. He begins to enjoy subtle permutations, changes which, without destroying the expression of a thought, obscure its clarity, complicate it, or make it "sound wrong." It is here that the teacher must have at her fingertips the rules governing the position of the various parts of speech. This will give her the necessary "lightness of touch," perhaps even the opportunity of making some brilliant little explanation, some casual observation, which may suddenly develop in the child a profound "grammatical insight." When the child has understood this he will become a deep "strategist" in mobilizing, disposing and moving about these cards which express _thought_; and if he really succeeds in mastering this secret, he will not be easily satiated with so fascinating an exercise. No one but a child would ever have the patience to study grammar so profoundly and at such length. This subtle work is, after all, not so easy for the teacher. That is why the material must be such as to suggest each step in detail. The teacher should be relieved as much as possible of the labor of preparation and research: for her delicate work of _intervention_ is a task hard enough in itself. In preparing this material we have worked for her: we have acted as the workmen who produce the various objects necessary to life; she has but to "live" and "make live." This will show still more clearly how far from truth is the modern conception of pedagogy which attempts to realize its desire for freedom in the school by saying to the teacher, "Try to respond to the needs of the pupils without being conscious of your authority over them." When we ask a teacher to respond to the needs of the inner life of man, we are asking a great deal of her. She will never be able to accomplish it, unless we have first done something for her by giving her all that is necessary to that end. Here is our material:--

COMMANDS ON NOUNS

"CALLING"

Call loudly:
Mary! Lucy! Ethel!

Later call again:
Blonde! Beautiful! Good!

Call:
Peter! bring a chair.
George! bring a cube.
Louis! get a frame.
Charles! Charles! quick! bring me the ... bring it to me,
quick, quick.

Call slowly this way:
Come! Come! give me a kiss--please, come!

Then say:
Mary! come! give me a kiss!

These commands lend themselves to a little dramatic scene. It is really a sort of play, which the children recite.

The tendency to recitation and to imitation is very strong and often well developed at the age of five years. Little children experience a singular fascination in pronouncing the words with sentiment and in accompanying them with gestures. One can hardly imagine the simplicity of the little dramatic acts which interest the five year old child. Nothing but actual experiment could possibly have revealed it to us. One day, in fact, our little children were invited to be present at a dramatic entertainment given by the older children of the Public Schools. They followed it with really surprising interest. However, they remembered only three words of the play they had heard; but with these three words they made up a little dramatic action of their own, which they repeated over and over again the following day.

The commands of these "call" cards are, accordingly, real plays for our little ones. The child calls, pronouncing the name with a sort of sustained drawl; the child who is called comes forward; then the same thing is done with the other names, and each child obeys as he is called. Then the incomplete calls begin: _blonde!_ _blonde!_ _beautiful!_ And no one moves! This makes a great impression on the children. Imperative commands, like requests, lend themselves to active dramatic action. Peter has been called and has brought his chair; George has brought the cube; Louis has taken out a frame; but Charles sits there intent, expectant, while the child calls out,--_But bring it to me, bring it to me quickly!_ And how expressive we found the vain request,--_Come, come! please give me a kiss,--come, come!_ At last the cry,--_Mary! come!_ brings the resulting action and Mary runs to give the kiss which has been so long invoked!

These little "plays" require a real study of the parts, and the children rehearse their different rôles over and over again.

FOOTNOTE:

[2] See pp. 446-448.

V

ADJECTIVES

ANALYSES

MATERIAL: _Grammar box._
_Various objects already familiar to the children._
_New objects._

The material for word analysis consists of small cards for articles (tan), nouns (black) and adjectives (brown). There is one box with three compartments, each section marked with a card bearing the respective title: _article_, _noun_, _adjective_. At the front of the box is a space for other cards containing printed sentences to be analyzed.

DESCRIPTIVE ADJECTIVES

The child is to read the sentences, find the objects described in them, and finally build the sentences with his cards as follows: suppose the card reads:

il colore verde the green color
il colore turchino the blue color
il colore rosso the red color

The child finds the three colored tablets used in the familiar exercise of the "Children's House" for the education of the sense of color. He places these tablets on his table. Then he builds the phrases out of his word cards:

+----+ +--------+ +-------+ +-----+ +-------+ +-------+
| il | | colore | | verde | | the | | green | | color |
+----+ +--------+ +-------+ +-----+ +-------+ +-------+

Beside the completed expression he places the green color-tablet. Passing to the next phrase, he does not disturb the words _the_ and _color_. He removes only the word _green_ and substitutes for it the adjective _blue_, at the same time removing the green tablet and substituting for it the blue. Similarly, for the third phrase, he changes the adjective, putting the red tablet at the end. Thus the _three different objects_ were distinguished _only_ by the adjective:

{ verde { green}
_il colore_ { turchino _the_ { blue } _color_
{ rosso { red }

All the phrases and sentences refer to objects used in the previous educational material. Occasionally the teacher will have to prepare something herself (e.g., hot, cold, warm, or iced water; clear water; colored water). For this exercise on _water_, the box contains six slips with the six printed phrases. In the box-sections, the child finds the corresponding word-cards which are exactly in the number needed for the exercise (not corresponding, that is, to the number of words in the phrases, since the articles and nouns are not repeated). There are five groups of such exercises, dealing with various kinds of sensation.

A. SENSO CROMATICO SENSE OF COLOR

il colore rosa the pink color
il colore rosa scuro the dark pink color
il colore rosa chiaro the light pink color

il prisma azzurro the blue prism
il prisma marrone the brown prism

il colore verde the green color
il colore turchino the blue color
il colore rosso the red color

i lapis neri the black pencils
i lapis colorati the colored pencils

l'acqua colorata the colored water
l'acqua incolora the clear water

il colore giallo the yellow color
il colore arancione the orange color

B. SENSO VISIVO: DIMENSIONI SENSE OF SIGHT: SIZE

l'asta lunga the long staff
l'asta corta the short staff

il cubo grande the large cube
il cubo piccolo the small cube

il cilindro alto the tall cylinder
il cilindro basso the short cylinder

il prisma marrone grosso the thick brown prism
il prisma marrone fino the thin brown prism

il rettangolo largo the broad rectangle
il rettangolo stretto the narrow rectangle

l'incastro solido the solid inset
l'incastro piano the plane inset

C. SENSO VISIVO: FORMA SENSE OF SIGHT: SHAPE

il triangolo equilatero the equilateral triangle
il triangolo isocele the isoceles triangle
il triangolo scaleno the scalene triangle

il triangolo acutangolo the acute-angled triangle
il triangolo ottusangolo the obtuse-angled triangle
il triangolo rettangolo the right-angled triangle

l'incastro circolare the circular inset
l'incastro quadrato the square inset
l'incastro rettangolare the rectangular inset

la piramide quadrangolare the quadrangular pyramid
la piramide triangolare the triangular pyramid
il prisma azzurro rettangolare the blue rectangular prism
il prisma azzurro quadrangolare the blue quadrangular prism

la scatola cilindrica the cylindrical box
la scatola prismatica the prismatic box

D. SENSO TATTILE: MUSCOLARE SENSE OF TOUCH: MUSCULAR SENSE

la superfice piana the flat surface
la superfice curva the curved surface

la stoffa ruvida the rough cloth
la stoffa liscia the smooth cloth

l'acqua calda the hot water
l'acqua fredda the cold water
l'acqua tiepida the warm water

l'acqua fredda the cold water
l'acqua ghiacciata the iced water

la tavoletta pesante the heavy black-board
la tavoletta leggera the light black-board

la stoffa morbida the soft cloth
la stoffa dura the hard cloth

E. SENSO UDITIVO; SENSES OF HEARING;
OLFATTIVO; GUSTATIVO SMELL; TASTE
il rumore forte the loud noise
il rumore leggero the faint noise

il suono acuto the sharp sound
il suono basso the deep sound

l'acqua odorosa the fragrant water
l'acqua inodora the odorless water

l'odore buono the good smell
l'odore cattivo the bad smell

il sapore amaro the bitter taste
il sapore dolce the sweet taste

il sapore acido the sour taste
il sapore salso the salty taste

The teacher who is observing notices whether the child has taken the right objects; if so, she proceeds to the permutations.

PERMUTATIONS

At this point, the teacher should recall (in dealing with Italian) the grammatical rules for the position of adjectives, some of which (the fundamental ones) will certainly be very useful to her in executing these first permutations:--

I. In general, the adjective follows the noun. If placed before the noun, it is less conspicuous; if placed after, it assumes more importance and has a different force.

II. When the adjective is used to signify the exclusive superlative of a quality, it is not only placed after the noun, but is preceded by the article. (_Umberto il buono_, "Humbert the Good.")

Example:--The child has composed the following phrase with his cards: _il triangolo rettangolo_ "the right-angled triangle." The teacher can interchange the words thus: _il rettangolo triangolo_, "the triangle right-angled." Similarly also, for other phrases:--

il prisma rettangolare azzurro the rectangular blue prism
il rettangolare azzurro prisma the prism, rectangular, blue
i lapis neri the black pencils
i neri lapis the pencils black
il colore rosso the red color
il rosso colore the color red

Both the meaning and the child's habits show him the normal position of the adjective. In some phrases, such as,

il rumore leggero the faint sound
il sapore dolce the sweet taste

the placing of the adjective before the noun renders the meaning vague, figurative, emotional, or generic, whereas it would be clearly descriptive and precise were the adjective in its normal position:

il dolce sapore the taste sweet
il leggero rumore the noise faint

(In English the normal position of the adjective is before the noun. The permutation develops a strong rhetorical flavor, of which the child will become conscious later in his studies on poetic inversions.--Tr.)

After the teacher has made these changes, if they have interested the child, she may say for example: "The adjective comes after its noun" (for Italian); "The adjective comes before its noun" (for English). In this way she will have given a lesson in _theoretical_ grammar.

INFLECTION OF ADJECTIVES

(Exclusively for the Italian language)

Another exercise to be done at the table deals with the formation of the singular and plural of adjectives in the two genders. This exercise brings the child in contact with a great many adjectives of quality. Two series, one of twenty masculine, the other of twenty feminine adjectives (in the two numbers) and two other series, twenty singulars and twenty plurals (in the two genders), form four groups of cards, one-half of which (tied separately) serves to direct the placing of the other half. Here are the words in their groups:

_Singolare_ _Plurale_
acuto acuti sharp
allegro allegri joyous
attenta attente careful, attentive
basso bassi low
buona buone good
caldo caldi hot
cattiva cattive bad
dolce dolci sweet
duro duri hard
educata educate educated, well mannered
felice felici happy
fredda fredde cold
grande grandi large
grazioso graziosi graceful, pretty
gioiosa gioiose merry
gentile gentili kind
italiano italiani Italian
rabbioso rabbiosi angry
largo larghi broad
lento lenti slow
malata malate ill
odorosa odorose fragrant
arioso ariose airy
prezioso preziosi precious
piena piene full
pesante pesanti heavy
pulito puliti clean
rozza rozze rough, uncouth
rosso rossi red
robusta robuste robust
sincero sinceri sincere
studioso studiosi studious
stretto stretti narrow
stupida stupide stupid
vecchia vecchie old
morbido morbide soft
leggiera leggiere light (weight)
lunga lunghe long
grosso grossi thick
colorita colorite colored

_Maschile_ _Femminile_
alti alte tall
bello bella beautiful
brevi brevi short, brief
biondo bionda blonde
chiaro chiara clear, light (of color)
corto corta short
coraggiosi coraggiose courageous
disordinato disordinata disorderly
dolce dolce sweet
debole debole feeble
esatto esatta accurate
freddo fredda cold
grazioso graziosa graceful
grande grande large
garbati garbate polite
gentili gentili kind
italiani italiane Italian
inglese inglese English
lento lenta slow
svelto svelta lithe
ottimo ottima best, excellent
ordinato ordinata orderly
pigri pigre lazy
pallido pallida pale
piccolo piccola small
ruvidi ruvide rough
serio seria serious, honest
suo sua his, her, your
sgarbato sgarbata rude
tuo tua thy
timido timida timid
ultimo ultima last
vostro vostra yours
zoppi zoppe lame
zitto zitta silent
carino carina dear
liscio liscia smooth
obbediente obbediente obedient
contenti contente content, happy
allegro allegra joyous

Here, just as with the four noun forms (masculine, feminine, singular and plural), class games may be found useful. The plural forms may be dealt out to the class, while one child reads aloud the singulars, one after the other. The child, who, in a given case, has the proper plural, reads his card in answer. Similarly, for masculine and feminine.

LOGICAL AND GRAMMATICAL AGREEMENT OF NOUNS AND ADJECTIVES

(For Italian Exclusively)

Another table exercise consists in arranging two groups of fifty cards, of which twenty-five are nouns (constituting the directing group), while the other twenty-five are adjectives. The nouns are put in a row and the child looks among the adjectives (which have been thoroughly shuffled) for those which are best suited to the different nouns. As he finds them he places them by the nouns with which they belong. Sometimes the nouns and adjectives placed together cause a great deal of merriment by the amusing contrasts that arise. The children try to put as many adjectives as possible with the same noun and develop in this way the most interesting combinations. Here are two groups which come prepared with the material:

_Nome_ _Aggettivo_ _Adjective_ _Noun_
contadina allegra happy peasant-girl
casa bella beautiful house
zia brava good aunt
mamma cara dear mother
professore alto tall professor
meastra magra thin (lean) teacher
lavandaia pulita neat washerwoman
marinaio robusto strong sailor
carrettiere abbronzato sunburnt wagon-driver
bambino buono good child
lavagnetta rettangolare square slate
foglio bianco white paper (sheet of)
panchetto basso low bench
prisma grosso thick prism
vaso largo broad vase
foglia verde green leaf
circolo perfetto perfect circle
pizzicagnolo grosso fat butcher
testa unta oily (dirty) head
gomma densa hard, dense rubber
fanciullo stizzito cross, angry child
figlio obbediente obedient son
pietra nera black rock, stone
latte bianco white milk
formaggio tenero soft, tender cheese
carne fresca fresh meat
vino rosso red wine
disegno grazioso pretty drawing
perla lucente shining pearl
vetro trasparente transparent glass
ragazzina impertinente impertinent lass
asino paziente patient donkey
gallina grassa fat hen
topo agile quick, nimble mouse
acqua limpida clear water
saponetta odorosa perfumed, fragrant soap
medico bravo good doctor
giardiniere bizzarro surly gardener
cane arrabbiato mad dog
manicotto morbido soft muff
gatto arruffato ruffled cat
colombo viaggiatore travelling (carrier) pigeon
uomo brontolone grumbling man
ragno pericoloso dangerous spider
serpente velenoso poisonous snake
medicina amara bitter medicine
nonna indulgente indulgent, kind grandmother
babbo severo strict father
vespa maligna cruel wasp
cassetto ordinato orderly box

For a class game with these lists, the nouns may be placed on one table and the adjectives on another. Moving as during the "silence" lesson, each child selects first a noun, and then an adjective. When the selections have all been made, the pairs are read one after the other amid general enthusiasm.

DESCRIPTIVE ADJECTIVES

COMMANDS (_Individual Lessons_)

The study of the adjective may furnish occasion for giving the child a knowledge of physical properties (of substances) so far unknown to him. For example, the teacher may present a piece of transparent glass; a piece of black glass (or any opaque screen); a sheet of white paper with an oil stain. The child will see that through the _transparent_ glass objects may be seen distinctly; that through the oil stain only the light is visible; that nothing at all can be seen through the _opaque_ screen. Or she may take a small glass funnel and put into it a piece of filter paper, then a sponge, then a piece of waterproof cloth. The child observes that the water passes through the filter paper, that the sponge absorbs water, and that the water clings to the surface of the waterproof. Or take two glass graduators and fill them with water to different heights. In the case of the graduator filled to the very top, the surface of the water is _convex_; in the other, it is _concave_.

The commands are printed on little slips of paper which are folded and all held together by an elastic band with a series of brown cards containing the adjectives used in the commands. Here is the material prepared:

--Fill one graduator with water to the point of
over-flowing, and another not so full. Notice the form
assumed by the surface of the water in each case and
apply the proper adjective: _convex_, _concave_.

--Take various objects such as filter paper, cloth, a
sponge, and see whether water can pass through them,
applying the adjectives: _permeable_, _impermeable_,
_porous_.

--Take a piece of clear glass, a sheet of black paper,
a sheet of oiled paper; look at the light through
them, applying the adjectives: _transparent_,
_opaque_, _translucent_.

Object lessens demonstrating comparative weights may also be given by putting successively into a glass of water, oil, alcohol colored with aniline, a piece of cork, a little leaden ball (to be dropped). Then the command would be:

--Compare the weights of water and of colored alcohol;
water and oil; water and cork; and water and lead.
Then tell which is _heavier_ and which is _lighter_
than the other.

As an answer the child should give a little written exercise something like the following: _Water is heavier than oil_, etc. The children actually perform these little experiments, learning to handle graduators, funnels, filters, etc., and to pour the last drops of water very carefully so as to obtain the concave and convex surfaces. They acquire a very delicate touch in pouring the colored alcohol and oil on the water. Thus they take the first step into the field of practical science.

To continue the study of adjectives of quality, there is a series of commands relating to the comparative and superlative. An example of the comparative crept into these experiments on weight. Here are additional commands where the little slip and the brown cards are kept together.

--Take the blue stairs or any other objects and put
with each object the proper adjectives from the
following list: _thick_, _thin_, _thickest_ (Ital.
grossissimo), _thinnest_ (Ital. finissimo).

--Take the eight tablets of the color you like best,
arrange them according to shades and apply the proper
adjectives of quality from the following: _light_,
_lightest_, _dark_, _darkest_.

--Take the series of circles in the plane insets, and
pick out the circles which correspond to these
adjectives: _large_, _small_, _intermediate_.

--Take the cloths or other objects adapted to these
adjectives: _smooth_, _smoothest_, _rough_,
_roughest_, _soft_, _softest_.

--Take the cubes of the pink tower or any other
objects adapted to these adjectives: _large_,
_largest_, _small_, _smallest_.

--Grade a number of objects according to weight so as
to fit these adjectives to them: _heavy_, _heaviest_,
_light_, _lightest_.

ADJECTIVES OF QUANTITY

COMMANDS (_Individual Lessons_)

Just as above, the slip is tied with the series of brown cards by an elastic band. Thus a group is formed. In our material the following three groups are available:

--Take the counters and make little piles which
correspond in quantity to these adjectives: _one_,
_two_, _three_, _four_, _five_, _six_, etc.

--Take the beads and make little piles of them to fit
these adjectives: _few_, _none_, _many_, _some_.

--Decide first of all on some definite number of beads
(two) and then make other little piles to fit these
adjectives: _double_, _triple_, _quadruple_,
_quintuple_, _sextuple_, _tenfold_, _half_, _equal_.

ORDINALS

(_Individual Commands_)

--Build the blue stair and on each step place the
proper adjective from the following: _first_,
_second_, _third_, _fourth_, _fifth_, _sixth_,
_seventh_, _eighth_, _ninth_, _tenth_.

--Place the following adjectives on the different
drawers of the cabinet, beginning with the top drawer:
_first_, _second_, _third_, _fourth_, _fifth_.

--Differentiate between the drawers of the cabinet by
the following adjectives, beginning with the lowest:
_first_, _second_, _third_, _fourth_, _fifth_.

DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES

(_Class Lessons_)

As occasion may offer, the teacher may assemble a group of children and give them a few simple explanations on the meaning of certain words: _questo_, "this" (near us); _cotesto_, "that" (near you); _quello_, "that" (over there away from both of us). (Note: English lacks the demonstrative of the second person.)

Then she can distribute these commands which require collective actions of the class:--

--Gather in _that_ (codesto) corner of the room near
you; then all of you come over to _this_ (questo)
corner near me; then all of you run over to that
(_quello_) corner over there.

--Choose one of your school-mates and tell him to put
a box on _this_ (questo) table; a small plate on
_that_ (quello) table over there.

--Tell one of your companions, pointing at the place,
to put a green bead in _this_ (questo) vase; a blue
one in _that_ (codesto) vase; a white one in _that_
(quello) vase over there.

Arrange the children in groups in three different places in the room, and then give this command:

--Let _that_ (quello) group over there take the place of _this_ (questo) group. Let _that_ (codesto) group break up, the children going back to their tables.

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES

(_Class Lessons_)

In like manner the teacher explains the meaning of the words _my_, _your_, _his_, _her_, etc. She may do this with a simple gesture. Here are the commands:

--Point out various objects saying: This is _my_
slate; that is _your_ slate; that (over there) is
_her_ slate.

--Point at the different seats, saying: That (over
there) is _his_ place, that is _your_ place, and this
is _my_ place.

--Pass around the little baskets, saying: This is _my_
basket. Whose is that other basket? Is it _your_
basket? And this one? Ah, this one is _his_ basket.

--Let us take a turn around the room and then return
to _our_ seats. _You_ go to _your_ seat and _they_
will go to _their_ seats. Then we will divide up our
things. Let us put _our_ things here and _their_
things there. We will go to _your_ seats and you go to
_their_ seats. Meanwhile they will get up and then
come over here to take _our_ places.

[Signora Montessori does not differentiate between the possessive _adjective_ and the possessive _pronoun_; perhaps because there is in Italian no characteristic pronominal form. Strictly speaking the Italian predicate form _mio_ (e.g., _Questo libra è mio_) is adjectival, while the form _il mio_ (i.e., with the definite article) is pronominal (e.g., _Questo è il mio_). English has, however, the pronominal possessives: _mine_, _yours_ (thine), _his_, _hers_, _ours_, _yours_, _theirs_, used also as predicate adjectives. The above exercise should therefore he repeated later under the subject of pronouns in a slightly different form.--TR.]

VI

VERBS

When I gave the first grammar lessons to defective children I put special emphasis on nouns and verbs. The noun (= object), and the verb (= action) were distinguished with the greatest clearness, much as we distinguish matter from energy, chemistry from physics. _Condition_ and _motion_, as potential and kinetic energy, are both expressed by verbs. Whereas formerly the child took the objects in his hands and studied their name and attributes, here he must _perform_ actions. In the execution of actions he must necessarily receive some help, for he is not always capable of interpreting the word with the precise action which corresponds to it. On the contrary, the study of the verb is necessary to initiate him into a series of "object lessons" upon the different actions he must perform. The teacher therefore must give individual lessons teaching the child to interpret the verb.

ANALYSES

In the usual manner we present a box which has four compartments, for the article, the noun, the adjective, and the verb. The sections are designated by the usual title cards: tan, black, brown, and red. In the compartment at the back of the box there are six slips for each exercise, and for every written word there is a card, except for such words as are repeated in successive sentences. For example: if the following sentences are written on the cards:

Close the door!
Lock the door!

on the corresponding cards will be found the words:

Lock }
Close } the door.

And so the child after he has composed his first sentence needs to change only one card (_lock_ for _close_) for the second sentence. This brings out the force of the verb, showing that one sentence may be changed into another by indicating an entirely different action. The child performs the action and then on his table he builds the sentences with the cards. In the series we have prepared, the verbs are either synonyms or antonyms. Here is the material:

SERIES A

--Close the door
Lock the door

--Tie a knot
Untie a knot

--Spread your beads
Collect your beads

--Fold the paper
Unfold the paper

--Open the book
Shut the book

--Speak a word
Whisper a word

SERIES B

--Raise your hands
Lower your hands

--Toss the ball
Throw the ball

--Show your right hand
Hide your right hand

--Touch the velvet
Feel the velvet

--Write a short word
Erase a short word

--Draw a circle
Fill a circle

SERIES C

--Bring a chair
Drag a chair

--Lace a frame
Unlace a frame

--Raise your head
Bow your head

--Fill a glass
Empty a glass

--Arrange the brown cards
Mix the brown cards

--Roll the white handkerchief
Twist the white handkerchief

SERIES D

--Embrace your nearest schoolmate
Kiss your nearest schoolmate

--Gather your prisms
Separate your prisms

--Borrow a black pencil
Lend a black pencil

--Cover your face
Uncover your face

--Lift the red counter
Drop the red counter

--Smooth the white paper
Crumple the white paper

SERIES E

--Clench your two hands
Open your two hands

--Spread the large carpet
Fold the large carpet

--Bend your left arm
Straighten your left arm

--Rub the table
Scratch the table

--Pour the water
Spill the water

--Comb your hair
Part your hair

PERMUTATIONS

The teacher should have in mind the grammatical rules for the position of the verb in the sentence, to give the child a clear idea of its normal location before the direct object: "first the verb, then the object upon which it acts."

Example:

Smooth the white paper.

The verb should, for the first permutation, be transferred to the end:

the white paper smooth.

Or, if you wish,

Arrange the brown cards.
the brown cards arrange.

When the verb is taken away entirely the action vanishes:

Lift } the red counter.
Drop }
the red counter.

Making all possible permutations, the child sees that only one order of words is capable of bringing a meaning out of the confusion:

Roll the white handkerchief.
the white handkerchief roll.
white the handkerchief roll.
white roll handkerchief the.

LESSONS AND COMMANDS ON THE VERB

The children take considerable delight in our verb lessons which develop through interpretations of actions. We use packs of red cards, tied with an elastic, each pack containing ten cards. The child executes the actions indicated on each card, one after the other. He may afterward copy the cards--an exercise specially attractive to very young children.

Examples:

--walk, sing, jump, dance, bow, sit, sleep, wake,
pray, sigh.

--write, erase, weep, laugh, hide, draw, read, speak,
listen, run.

--arrange, clean, dust, sweep, button, lace, tie,
hook, greet, brush.

--comb, wash, wipe, embrace, kiss, smile, yawn, scowl,
stare, breathe.

These are fairly common words, representing actions more or less familiar to the pupils. But this exercise is only an introduction to the real verb-lessons. For these the teacher selects, as subject for a lesson, a series of synonymous verbs. Their shades of meaning are taught to the children by translating them into action, the teacher executing the action herself. She then distributes around the class commands making use of the verbs in question. There may be several copies of a given command if the pupils are very numerous. The child reads by himself the card he has received, executing the action from memory of what he has seen the teacher do. We have tested experimentally the Italian material (_i.e._, the verbs in parentheses), as follows:

Subject:

lay, throw, toss, hurl (posare, gettare, lanciare,
scagliare).

Commands:--

--Take a counter and _lay_ it on the floor. Pick it up
again and _throw_ it on the floor.

--Roll your handkerchief into a ball. _Toss_ it into
the air. Pick it up again and _hurl_ it against the
wall.

--_Lay_ your handkerchief carefully, very carefully,
on the floor. Pick it up again and _throw_ it on the
floor. Make a ball of it and _hurl_ it across the
room. Pick it up and _toss_ it into the air.

Subject:

lie, crouch, sit, rise (sollevare, alzare, levare).

Commands:--

--Go to the sofa and _lie_ with your face to the wall.
Now _rise_, go to your table and _sit_ with head
erect.

--_Rise_ from your chair and _crouch_ behind the
table, as though you were playing hide-and-seek.
_Rise_ and go back to the sofa.

Subject:

open, close, lock, unlock (aprire, spalancare,
chiudere, socchiudere, serrare, disserrare).

Commands:--

--Go to a window and _open_ it a little; wait a moment
and then _close_ it again. _Open_ the window as wide
as you can and _close_ it immediately.

--Go to the door and _open_ it wide. Then _close_ the
door gently. If the key is in the key-hole _lock_ the
door; but before you go away, _unlock_ it again, so
that everything is left just as you found it.

Subject:

breathe, inhale, exhale (respirare, sospirare,
inspirare, espirare).

Commands:--

--Go to the window, open it, and _inhale_ and _exhale_
the fresh air five times. Then after a moment _inhale_
once and hold your breath as long as you can. When you
can hold your breath no longer, _exhale_ as slowly as
you can.

--Take a hand mirror and _breathe_ upon the glass.
What happens?

Subject:

hang, attach (appendere, affiggere, sospendere).

Commands:--

--_Hang_ one of your best drawings on a hook in the
room.

--_Attach_ the drawing you like best with two pins to
the wall near the door.

Subject:

cover, wrap, tie, undo (avvolgere, involgere,
svolgere).

Commands:--

--Take a book, a string and a large piece of cloth.
Lay the book on your table and _cover_ it with the
cloth.

--Take the cloth and _wrap_ it around the book so that
the book cannot be seen.

--_Tie_ a string around the cloth so that the book
will not fall out.

--_Undo_ the bundle, and return each object to the
place where you found it.

Subject:

turn, invert, revolve, whirl, reverse (volgere,
capovolgere, rovesciare).

Commands:--

--_Turn_ a picture toward one of your school-mates so
that he can see it clearly.

--_Invert_ the picture, so that it will be upside
down.

--_Reverse_ the picture so that the back only can be
seen by your school-mate.

--_Revolve_ the seat of the piano-stool as rapidly as
you can.

--Stand with your back to the window and _turn_ slowly
on your heel till you face the window. _Whirl_ on your
heel completely around till you again face the window.

Subject:

breathe, blow, puff, pant (sbuffare, soffiare,
alitare).

Commands:--

--Tear a large piece of paper into tiny bits on your
table. _Blow_ steadily upon the table till the pieces
of paper are all on the floor.

--Pick up the pieces of paper and place them on the
table. _Puff_ three times upon them and see if they
all fall to the floor. Gather up the pieces and throw
them into the waste-basket.

--_Breathe_ softly upon the back of your hand. What do
you feel?

--_Blow_ upon the back of your hand. What do you feel?

--_Puff_ upon the back of your band. What do you feel?

--_Pant_ noisily as though you had been running a long
way.

Subject:

murmur, mutter, whisper, speak, grumble (mormorare,
sussurrare, brontolare).

Commands:--

--Ask one of your school-mates to listen carefully to
what you say; then _murmur_ a short sentence as though
you were speaking to yourself.

--_Mutter_ the same words in a louder voice and see
whether he understands.

--_Whisper_ the same words in the ear of one of two
children. Then ask the other whether he has heard.

--_Grumble_ the same words and watch how the two
children look at you.

--_Speak_ the same words aloud and as distinctly as
you can. Do the children understand?

Subject:

touch, rub, graze (toccare, tastare, palpare,
sfiorare).

Commands:--

--Go to your table and with your eyes shut _touch_ it
as though to recognize it.

--_Rub_ the table with the tips of your fingers,
bearing down as hard as you can. What do you feel?

--_Graze_ the table with the tips of your fingers,
trying not to touch it.

Subject:

spread, sprinkle, collect, scatter (spargere,
spruzzare, aspergere).

Commands:--

--Take a box full of beads and _spread_ them evenly
around the center of your table. Then _collect_ them
in a pile in the center of the table.

--Take a handful of the beads and _scatter_ them over
the table. Return all the beads to the box.

--Take a glass of water and _sprinkle_ two or three
handfuls on a plant in the room.

Subject:

walk, stagger, march (barcollare, dondolare,
erigersi).

Commands:--

--_Walk_ naturally to the end of the room farthest
from your table.

--_March_ back to your seat as though you were keeping
time to music.

--_Stagger_ across the room as though you were very
dizzy.

Subject:

take, seize, catch (acchiappare, acciuffare,
afferrare).

Commands:--

--Walk to the cabinet and _take_ a box of counters in
your hands.

--Run to the sofa, _seize_ the sofa-pillow, and run
around the room with it, holding it in your arms.

--Roll your handkerchief into a ball, toss it into the
air and try to _catch_ it before it falls to the
floor.

LESSONS WITH EXPERIMENTS

The function of the verb can be still more interestingly emphasized by suggesting actions designed to increase the child's knowledge in the direction of elementary science. Here the teacher, instead of executing simple movements, performs experiments, which on the same day or on succeeding days the child can imitate guided by the directions in the commands.

Subject:

stir, mix, beat, flavor (mescolare, emulsionare,
stemperare).

Commands:--

--Take a bowl half full of water and drop into it a
half cup of flour; _stir_ with a spoon until the
mixture is thick.

--Place a table-spoonful of vinegar and a
table-spoonful of olive-oil in a clean bowl; _beat_
them together until an emulsion is formed.

--Place a tea-spoonful of chocolate and a tea-spoonful
of sugar in a cup and _mix_ them thoroughly. What
color was the chocolate? What color was the sugar?
What color is the mixture?

--Take a little milk in a cup and taste of it; add a
drop of vanilla extract. Then taste of the milk again.
Do you taste the vanilla? In the same way _flavor_ a
glass of water with the vanilla. _Flavor_ another
glass of water with vinegar.

Subject:

dissolve, saturate, be in suspension (sciogliere, fare
la sospensiona, saturare).

Commands:--

--Place a spoonful of sugar in a glass of warm water
and _dissolve_ the sugar by stirring with a spoon. Is
the water still clear?

--_Saturate_ the water with sugar by continuing to add
sugar and stirring till you can see the sugar at the
bottom of the glass. Allow the water to rest a moment.
Is the water still clear?

--Mix a spoonful of starch in the water. The water
becomes white, since the starch does not _dissolve_
but remains _in suspension_ in the water.

Subject:

strain, filter (decantare, filtrare).

Commands:--

--Take the glass containing the water saturated with
sugar and the one with the starch in suspension, and
allow the starch and sugar to settle for some time,
until the water is clear. Taste the water in each
glass, and then _strain_ each glass of water
separately.

--_Filter_ the water saturated with sugar and the
water with the suspended starch. Then taste of each.

By the time all these commands have been executed, the child will have developed a keen desire to go on, becoming so interested in the meaning of verbs as not to require further commands to stimulate his study of these words. The most frequent question now is "How many verbs are there in the language?" "Are there more in other languages?" etc. To satisfy this new curiosity of the children we have dictionaries of synonyms and antonyms, and word-charts. But meantime they have been building their own dictionaries. One by one they begin to own copy books (rubrics) with illuminated letters of the alphabet. Under the proper letter the child copies his words as fast as he learns them. We are still experimenting on the question of the exact amount of information that may successfully be offered to elementary school children of various ages and stages of development, with the word material required for the notions of natural history, physics and chemistry they may be expected to acquire. We can say, at this moment, simply that each experiment involves the use of a certain number of new words (nouns, adjectives and verbs), which are copied into the word-books (rubrics) as fast as they occur.

VII

PREPOSITIONS

ANALYSES

Here also the first exercise is to compose sentences analyzed with the colored cards. This grammar box has five compartments, each with a small title card of the color corresponding to the different parts of speech, red for the verb, black for the noun, brown for the adjective, tan for the article and _violet_ for the _preposition_. In the compartment at the rear of the box are six cards with printed sentences. The colored cards do not correspond exactly to the number of words used in the sentences because the words of one sentence which are repeated in the next are not duplicated in the cards. In this case it is the change in preposition only which alters the meaning of the sentence. Here are the series of sentences, some of which the teacher may have used already in previous lessons (commands).

SERIES A

(Prepositions of space relations)

--Take the box _with_ the colored beads. (con, senza,
insieme con). Take the box _without_ the colored
beads. Take the box _together_ with the colored beads.

--Place the prism _under_ the cylinder. (sotto a,
sopra a). Place the prism _upon_ the cylinder.

--Lay the pen _in front of_ the ink-well. (avanti a,
dietro a, a lato di). Lay the pen _behind_ the
ink-well. Lay the pen _beside_ the ink-well.

--Put the green bead _into_ the box. (in, dentro). Put
the green bead _inside_ the box.

--Arrange a few beads _between_ the red counters. (in
mezzo a, tra). Arrange a few beads _among_ the red
counters.

--Set one chair _opposite_ another chair. (dirimpetto
a, accanto a). Set one chair _next_ to another chair.

SERIES B

(Space relations continued)

--Lay the counter _inside_ the box. (dentro, fuori,
di). Lay the counter _outside_ the box.

--Place a chair _on this side of_ the door. (di là da,
di qua da, oltre). Place a chair _on that side of_ the
door. Place a chair _beyond_ the door.

--Stand _in front of_ the blackboard. (di fronte a, di
fianco a). Stand _to one side of_ the blackboard.
Stand _to the other side of_ the blackboard.

--Arrange the chairs _along_ the wall. (lungo,
contro). Arrange the chairs _against_ the wall.

--Place the blue cone _near_ the pink cube. (vicino a,
accosto a). Place the blue cone _against_ the pink
cube.

SERIES C

(Possession, material, use, purpose)

[NOTE:--Such relationships are expressed in English preferably by adjectives: _cloth of cotton_ = _cotton cloth_; or by the possessive inflection with _-s_: _the drawing of George = George's drawing_. In Italian they are expressed by the prepositions _di_, _per_, _da_, etc.: _stoffa di cotone_ "cotton cloth," _piattino di vetro_ "glass saucer." For Signora Montessori's simple exercise we suggest for English the following definitions (TR.)].

--Cotton cloth is cloth _of_ cotton. Woollen cloth is
cloth _of_ wool. Silk cloth is cloth _of_ silk.

--The iron triangle is a triangle _of_ iron. The
wooden triangle is a triangle _of_ wood.

--The glass saucer is a saucer _of_ glass. The china
saucer is a saucer _of_ china.

--A shoe-brush is a brush _for_ shoes. A clothes-brush
is a brush _for_ clothes.

--George's hat is the hat _of_ George; George's hat
belongs _to_ George. Mary's hat is the hat _of_ Mary;
Mary's hat belongs _to_ Mary.

--A drinking-cup is a cup _for_ drinking. A copy-book
is a book _for_ copying.

SERIES D

(Direction and source of motion)

--Turn _from_ the right _to_ the left. (da ... a, a ... da)
Turn _from_ the left _to_ the right.

--Draw a line _from_ the bottom of the paper _to_ the top.
Draw a line _from_ the top of the paper _to_ the bottom.

--Go _from_ your seat _to_ the cabinet.
Go _from_ the cabinet _to_ your seat.

--Change the pen _from_ your right hand _to_ your left hand.
Change the pen _from_ your left hand _to_ your right hand.

PERMUTATIONS

The child has built the first sentences on each of the slips with his cards, and he has reproduced the others by changing simply the preposition cards. In this way he has seen how the position of objects relative to each other is determined wholly and only by the use of the preposition. The preposition, therefore, determines the _relation of words_, the relation of a _noun_ to some other word, here to another _noun_ or to a _verb_. In the phrase,

Set one chair opposite another chair,

if we take away the preposition, leaving,

Set one chair another chair,

the relation that formerly existed between the words _chair_ and _another chair_ is lost. The teacher must not forget the rules for the position of the preposition. The preposition must always precede its object and no other word can come between it and the word or words it controls.

Here are some examples of sentences in the above exercises from which the preposition has been taken away by the teacher:

Go from your seat the cabinet.

Place a chair the door.

Lay the counter the box.

Place the prism the cylinder.

The china saucer is made china.

To give the child an idea of the normal position of prepositions a series of permutations may be made leaving the preposition and its object in their normal positions. In this case some meaning is still left to the sentence:

Stretch a string from the door to the window.

From the door to the window stretch a string.

Stretch from the door a string to the window.

From the door to the window a string stretch.

From the door stretch to the window a string.

But the child will recognize that the right sentence is the simplest and the clearest:

Stretch a string from the door to the window.

On the other hand if we separate the preposition from its object or invert their normal position, the meaning is entirely lost:

Stretch a string the door from the window to.

Stretch a string from the door window to the.

String from the stretch door to the a window.

And likewise with these other sentences:

Run from the wash-stand to the table.

Run wash-stand table (_definition of motion lacking_).

Run wash-stand from the table to the.