exposition of the teaching of some man or book. Some, too, that aim directly at the formulation of a moral or spiritual truth, develop it by interpretation of a single instance rather than by generalization from many. Jesus often used a single story to bring out the truth. Ideals, in fact, are never mere inductions. They must appeal to that which is within one.

It is thus impossible to lay out a general scheme that will fit all lessons. The plan must vary with the aim and the material. At least three parts, however, every lesson should have preparation, presentation and conclusion.

5. Preparation. A great deal depends upon the way that you begin a lesson. And it is no easy task to begin rightly. There must be more than an introduction; there must be a real preparation for what is to follow. The aim of this first part is threefold: (1) to bring up within the pupil's mind such ideas as he may already possess concerning the theme to be treated; (2) to arouse his interest and give him a motive to seek further knowledge; (3) to set a definite subject for the work of the day.

(1) You must begin with the pupil's own ideas. This follows from the principle of apperception. The pupil will understand the lesson in terms drawn from his own experience. You cannot help that. It is the only way that he can understand at all. It is your business, then, to call up within his mind such items of his previous knowledge as may enable him rightly to comprehend it.

It does not matter where these ideas may have come from, provided they are his own and are really to the point. You must not introduce new material here. You may revive his memories of former lessons, or call up things he has read, or remind him of concrete experiences that he has had. In any case the one great question is-Is this idea one that will really help him to understand the lesson as he ought to understand it? Some introductions arouse interest enough, but not in the point of the lesson; they call up vivid ideas, but such as distract the pupil's attention and distort his final comprehension of the truth. They are introductions, but in no sense preparations.

(2) You must arouse the pupil's interest. You must make him want to know the truth you are going to teach. The preparation "should show the need of the new material from the pupil's standpoint.”*

You must take account, therefore, not only of the pupil's previous

*Bagley: "The Educative Process," p. 291. The simple plan which we are now discussing makes preparation include what Bagley calls the sub-step "statement of the aim."

ideas, but of his attitude toward them. You must bring up such as have life in them and worth in his eyes. By tactful remark or pointed question you will show him their incompleteness. You will awaken within him a sense of need. You will make him conscious of a gap in his knowledge, and get him to feel that it is worth filling up.

This is what Du Bois has so finely called "finding the point of contact." The preparation must succeed in bringing together the pupil's interests on the one hand and the point of the lesson on the other. It fails if it deals with either alone. There are introductions which work up logically enough to the truth of the lesson, but do not direct toward it the pupil's active interest; just as there are others which awaken interest, but in something else than the lesson point. If the pupils are interested enough in what they have been learning and the lessons have historical or logical continuity, the ideal preparation may be a brief review. But more often you must set out from some concrete experience. And there are times, be it admitted, when all rules fail; and you will be driven to use anything to get the attention of the class.

(3) You must set a definite subject for the lesson. This is the conclusion of the preparation and the transition to presentation. It gives form to the pupil's sense of need, and direction to his interest. It centers attention upon the thing to be learned.

The subject of the lesson is not the same as the aim. "When we face the child who has wandered from the point, it seems easier to ask, 'What are we talking about?' than to ask, 'What is the aim of our talk?'"† Moreover, the aim that we have formulated for ourselves may not appeal to the pupil immediately or at all. The subject must be stated from his standpoint, not from ours. It should be brief and attractive. It should be worth remembering, and serve as a clue for the subsequent recall of the lesson. It should, therefore, whenever possible, contain both a proper name and the lesson event or a characterization. "Abraham willing to offer Isaac," "Joseph's kindness to his brothers," "Joshua's battle against five kings," "Jeremiah, the man who suffered to save his city"—are examples taken at random from the International Graded Lessons. Such titles set up an association between the lesson story and the name, so that each is bound to bring up the other.

The method of the preparation, with reference to its first two aims, should be that of questions and answers. It must enlist the pupil's

* Du Bois :: "The Point of Contact in Teaching." The phrase "point of contact" was used by Herbart himself.

* Brown: "How to Plan a Lesson," p. 27.

activity, bring out his ideas and arouse his interest. Sometimes a good story may come in well; but it should not be used alone or with mere comment by the teacher. The subject should be stated, however, by the teacher-for the obvious reason that the pupil cannot be expected to formulate a subject for lesson material that he has not yet gotten.

The whole part should be brief and to the point. Many teachers take entirely too long. They dull the edge of the pupil's interest before they reach the presentation. It is always easy to wander from the point when questions are asked; and especially easy when the pupils do not know what the questions are leading up to, as is the case

here.

If your method of conducting the class involves the giving of assignments, the greater part of the preparation must come on the Sunday preceding the discussion of the lesson. It may include, too, a brief blocking out of the course that the presentation will take, that each pupil may understand just what he is to do, and the relation of his assignment to the whole.

6. Presentation. The presentation of new material is the body of the lesson. In general, it should occupy at least two-thirds of the time. We need not discuss it here in detail. The preceding chapter and the three succeeding deal directly with methods of presentation.

(1) The presentation varies, of course, with the general methods of conducting the class discussed in the last chapter. In case of any method involving home study by the pupils, a part of the presentation comes from the text-book and from their use of the Bible. Each pupil may nave his share, then, in the class presentation.

(2) Present the essential facts first. Go over the whole lesson quickly, touching on the big things. Get the facts clearly and in perspective.

(3) You are then ready for the discussion—working over the facts, inquiring into their relations and implications, clearing up obscure points, hearing reports from pupils, organizing their results, and all the time working steadily toward a fuller comprehension of the main point.

(4) You will use whatever illustrative material you need to hold the pupil's interest and to help him understand—object-teaching, manual work, correlation with previous lessons or with the work of the public schools, stories, pictures, blackboard, stereoscope, and the like. We shall discuss these in succeeding chapters. Just one caution here. Remember the carpenter's rule reported by Dr. W. M.

Laylor: "We must never construct ornament, but only ornament construction.” *

7. Conclusion. Intellectually, the conclusion is the final step in the organization of the lesson material; practically, it brings home an obligation.

(1) The discussion should end with a definite summing up of results. The pupil should be led to look back over the lesson and to formulate its essential point in a compact statement. It should be an answer to the question with which you began your own study: "Just what did the writer himself mean to say?" If you have taught as you should, the pupil's conclusion will be his statement, in his own way, of the same thought that you chose as the aim of the lesson.

(2) When the lesson is one of a series, the conclusion should formu late its bearing upon what went before and what is to come. The point of the lesson may be in itself comparatively unimportant, yet essential to the development of a greater truth. It may be that the only good of a certain lesson is to supply a link of historical connection; yet if it really succeeds in helping to make the history of the Hebrew people clear and coherent, its service is as real as that of one which deals directly with some great spiritual insight.

(3) These two elements of the conclusion are intellectual; they deal with the organization of ideas. But our aim is practical as well. God's truth touches the conscience. It brings us face to face with ideals.

Sometimes the practical conclusion should be definitely and explicitly stated; sometimes not. To know when is one of the teacher's most serious problems. There is need here of tact and good sense as well as of consecration. We shall take up this problem when we come to the chapter upon the spiritual goal of our work. Enough now to say that there are two reasons why a teacher may make a mistake who insists upon bringing home in so many words the practical bearing of each lesson: (a) because indirect suggestion is often more potent than direct suggestion; (b) because in the mind of the pupil such a statement of obligation may substitute our own authority for that of God's Word. We shall discuss these reasons later. The practical aim of our work dare never be forgotten; it is a question simply of method.

(4) The pupil should make the conclusion for himself. It should be his own. It so means more, both to you and to him, than if you present a conclusion for his acceptance. Of course, you will often have to correct a wrong impression and help to reconstruct a poor statement ;

*Hervey: "Picture-Work," p. 30.

but the right of summing up results belongs to the pupil. Indeed, he only can sum up the real results, for they are within him.

8. Finally, we must remember that no plan is sacred. Our plans must be adaptable. They must fit the material. You will not teach history in the same way as poetry or even as biography; neither will you present the soul-stirring sermons of the prophets as you would the worldly wisdom of a collection of proverbs. You cannot apply the same plan to letters such as those of Paul and to a dramatic dialogue like the book of Job. They must fit the pupil. What may be an excellent form for a junior lesson would fall flat with senior pupils. They must be fitted to the exigencies of the occasion. The discussion will take many an unexpected turn. Some of these will reveal real needs. No class can have life that is held too rigidly to a prearranged scheme.

QUESTIONS

1. What conditions must the teacher's study fulfill if he is to get the real meaning of the lesson? Give reasons for each of them.

2. Why should the teacher choose a single aim for each lesson? 3. "Not every lesson need aim directly at the formulation of some moral or spiritual truth." Why?

4. Why must the teacher lay out his lesson plan beforehand? Why is it not enough, without this, to study the lesson thoroughly?

5. Explain the steps of the Herbartian plan.

6. Why is the Herbartian plan not applicable to every Sunday school lesson ?

7. Explain clearly what you understand by an inductive lesson. 8. What three parts must every lesson have?

9. What is the threefold aim of the part of preparation? Give a reason for each aim.

10. Discuss the method of the part of preparation, with respect to each of its three aims.

11. Why should the essential facts of the whole lesson be presented first, and the detailed discussion follow?

12. What should the conclusion accomplish, intellectually and practically? Why should the pupil draw the conclusion for himself?