LITTLE STORIES FOR LITTLE PEOPLE Writen for the Kindergarten-Prim. Mag. THE NIGHT THAT JESUS WAS BORN F. G. SANDERS, TORONTO, ONT. A long time ago, in a country far, far away from here, there lived a kind shepherd and his flock of sheep. One night it was very warm and the sheep slept in the field with the shepherd watching beside them. In the middle of the night a vrey bright light shone upon the sky. The shepherd was very much afraid; but he heard a voice say, "Fear not." Suddenly the sky was filled with angels. They sang, "Glory to God in the Highest; On Earth, Peace, Good-will Toward Men." Do you know why the shepherds sang? It was the night Jesus was born. זי THE SECRET We have a secret, just we three, -Little Flower Talks. THE WISHING TREE BY MRS. SOPHIE BRUCE, Hotel Unity, Portland, Maine Lulu was a pretty little girl. She had large blue eyes and curly, golden hair, and when she was dressed in white with blue ribbons she looked like a big doll. She was eight years old. One day Lulu had been very cross; the weather was warm. Now children, I will tell you a little secret. Lulu had a very bad temper. Some times she even threw her toys on the floor and broke them and stamped her feet. This warm day she was playing in the nursery with her doll's house, a great, big one with lots of dolls of all sizes in it. Her nurse came in the room and told her she must have her face and hands washed before she could go to dinner. Lulu just hated to have her face washed, so she flew in a temper and took her best doll and threw it on the floor, breaking its head into pieces. When she saw what she had done she threw herself on the floor by the side of her doll and cried and kicked her feet. Then she suddenly thought of a fairy story nurse had told her about the Wishing Tree that was in the woods not far from where she lived out in the country, near a great, big house. The story, nurse said, was a true one that about a mile away in the woods, near a small lake here was a very large tree, called the Wishing Tree, because every evening as soon as it commenced to grow dark the fairies were seen to come out of their hiding places and dance around the tree and the fairy godmother with her large wand would grant a wish to anyone who asked her. Lulu jumped up quickly. She had made up her mind she would go to the woods and see the fairy godmother and wish for a larger and prettier doll than the one she had broken. She crept softly down the stairs and out of the front door which was wide open, and ran as quickly as she could along the road leading to the woods. She turned and looked back to see if anyone was following her but saw no one. She soon came to the edge of the woods and looked through the big trees. She saw there was a narrow pathway. So she ran along chasing the butterflies, with their yellow and red, velvety wings. The woods were full of wild flowers of red and white and blue, and other colors. She picked an armful of them. There was a katydid singing in the trees. She would sing, "Katydid, she did, she did." Lulu went skipping along to where she thought the Wishing Tree would be. Yes, there was a big tree near a small lake. It surely must be the one. She sat down under it for by this time she was very tired. She suddenly heard a noise, and looking around saw a wolf running towards her. Oh, she screamed, what I would she do. She climbed up the tree as fast as she could and didn't stop until she reached the top. Then she looked down-horrors! there were a half dozen wolves there now and they were all looking up at her and barking. She was so frightened she nearly fell off the tree. Then how she wished she had minded her mother and father and not disobeyed them, for they had forbid her ever going near the woods alone. Then she heard music. She looked down again and Oh, joy, the wolves had disappeared and in their place the fairies were dancing round and round the tree. She saw the fairy godmother dressed in silver and white and a large silver wand in her hand. Lulu called out, "Oh, fairy godmother, please help me." And the good fairy looked up and saw poor little Lulu white and trembling, perched right on the top of the tree and the fairy godmother said, "What is it you wish, little girl; tell me and I will make it come true." Lulu said, "I wish I were home with my dear mamma and papa and then the fairy godmother waived her silver wand three times and mumbled some words, and then Lulu woke up and just like blankets for them, keeping in the heat of their bodies and not letting it escape. "But when summer comes, animals as well a people like to be cool. It is then that the farme takes his sheep down to a nice clean stream. Put ting on long rubber boots, he lifts the sheep into th water, washes their wool which during the winter has become very dirty. After being well scoured the animals are allowed to run about to dry in the sun. Later on a man with a pair of big shears come along, and cuts off the fleece or wool." "How queer the sheep must look," exclaimed Mary "but I suppose the wool grows again. I know that Tommy's head looks funny when he gets a close crop, but it's not long till the hairs are sticking up again like bristles." "Well, now," continued mother, "the farmer sells looked around with wondering eyes, for she had fallen asleep on the nursery floor and dreamed it all. WHERE THE WOOL COMES FROM J. M. NIVEN, Toronto, Ont. Mary's mother was busy knitting, and as her ball of wool fell on the floor Pussy jumped from the little girl's lap and began to play with it. "What fun pussy is having," laughed Mary. "Yes, but she mustn't get my wool all tangled or I cannot knit. Wind up the wool, my dear, and you can give Miss Pussy your rubber ball to play with." "Mother, look at all the hairs Pussy has left on my dress," said Mary. "Yes, all animals lose the extra thickness of hair or fur as soon as winter is over. Their coats were the wool to a wool merchant who sends it on to a mill where it is cleaned, washed, and combed. Then a spinning machine twists it to make a thread strong enough for knitting." "But a sheep's coat is white, mother, and your wool is gray, how is that?" Oh, wool is dyed all colors. One can get any shade one wishes. It is put up in skeins, so many to a pound, tied up in bundles and is then ready to send to the stores. "When I was a little girl, Mary, I used to live with my grandmother. She had a spinning wheel in the kitchen, and in the long winter evenings when the work was all done, Grandmother used to sit at the wheel and spin her yarn from the wool that was once on the back of her own sheep. "I used to love to listen to the whirr of the wheel. "She used to make all her blankets, too, so she was a very clever old lady. But now-a-days the spinning wheel is seldom seen, except as a curiosity, for the big mills and factories do the work in so much less time. “Mother, daer, I think the sheep is a very useful animal for whatever would we do for wool for the soldiers' socks if there were not lots of sheep. I'd like to learn to knit. Won't you show me how, please? "Yes, there's a box in my room with some needles. If you bring them to me I'll set up some stitches for you. I learned to knit when I was just your age." The Johns Hopkins University announces the establishment of a new publication entitled "The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Education." This publication will include monographs presenting the results of investigations conducted at the University or elsewhere which, because of their importance, should appear as separate units and at once. The Studies in Education are edited by Professor Edward F. Buchner, with the cooperation of Dr. C. Macfie Campbell, and published by the Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, Maryland. "The Correlation of Abilities of High School Pupils," (100 pp.) by Dr. David Emrich Weglein, and "Experimental Study of Motor Abilities of Children in Primary Grades" (62 pp.) by Dr. Buford Jennette Johnson, are numbers 1 and 2, respectively, of the Studies and have just appeared. SUGGESTIONS FOR QUESTIONING For young children make all questions definite. Ask for one thing at a time, as two or more points at a time confuse the child. Arrange questions in a logical order. Vary questions so as to avoid monotony. Surprise the unattentive child with a question and include the dull child very often. Do not give questions that encourage guessing. While child is forming an answer to question, do not repeat question in a different form as it will only serve to confuse child. A question of the most value is one that develops the child's thinking powers. THE RAINBOW The sun went out to shine one day, How many corners do you see? Count, and change places with me. The child may at first be allowed to count number of faces, edges or corners, but later, when the game is played they must answer correctly from memory or go out of the game. 2. Game based on "The Toyman and the Maiden." The children choose a Toyman. He goes in the center of the circle and immitates any toy, as spinning top, blowing horn, bouncing ball, etc. The child he calls on to tell what toy he is playing with, must guess or go out of the game. If they cannot guess by his motions he may describe the toy. All sing to the Chorus of "Jingle Bells." See the toys, see the toys, on the Christmas tree See the pretty little toys as they wait for you and me, See the toys, see the toys, pretty as can be, Oh, who will come and name the toys, Upon the Chrstmas tree The Fool's Cap. The children are seated in a circle and choose one child to skip inside and wear a Fool's Cap. He may play tricks and laugh. They must neither laugh nor smile at him. As soon as a child does he changes places with him. The Child wearing the Fool's Cap says, Do not smile or laugh at me, Or a Fool's Cap fool you'll be, Ha, ha, ha, laugh and strike your knee, The children are allowed to strike their knees, but in so doing, some one is sure to laugh, and the game is played in a lively manner. |