RELIGIOUS EDUCATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21010, 26 April 1930, Page 5

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION.

By Ampuus. Ideals make life, not fame nor gold; And love sings low with fragrant breath; All else but soul and love grow old; But soul and love bewilder death! Give love to life; give love to man. Give love to truth’s eternal call; The hasting world may go its span. But soul and love shall vanquish all! JUNIOR DEPARTMENT.

SCHOLARS’ ACTIVITIES. , Unless a graded department is kept alive by the occasional introduction of new features and new developments, it cannot hope to flourish. Nothing becomes so dull as a routine that never changes or alters. The leader should begin by challenging his teachers at the preparation class to suggest new features. It is far better that some of these improvements .should come from the teachers themselves than he put upon them, so to speak, by the leader from above. To begin with, I would strongly recommend the introduction of the large-type “hymn sheets,” in place of the hymn books now in use. The physiological fact that the scholars are all standing with heads erect, looking, up at a sheet, produces far better singing than bending or lounging over hymn books,, with children of this age. The sheets also enable the leader, to make the hymns more intelligible by questioning the children in regard to them; “Why are we singing this particularhymn now? What lines in this hymn remind you of the story? ” and such questions cannot fail to arouse interest and make the singing more valuable. .As a.result of experiment since the beginning, of this year, I can testify to the value of increasing the opportunities for expression work in a graded department. With the new year, we doubled the time allowed for- expression work in our session, and the result has been a much better attendance and a rekindling of enthusiasm among both teachers and scholars; while we have secured an extra 15 minutes for expression work, without prolonging the session beyong 65 minutes. Three' o’clock to 3.20 is devoted to wori ship, this period including either an introductory talk, or a Bible reading, but ; not both. Fifteen minutes are allowed for

the teachers’ story, and 30 minutes for expression work, and the closing hymn. After about 15 minutes for expression work, the scholars have devoted the remainder of the period tp co-operative work in making a model of a Palestine home, and this has proved of great interest and value. During the past week or two, when the models have been nearing completion, there has been a most workmanlike activity seen in all classes. [A steady procession of inquiring children from the different classes has been examining the made-up model in the centre of the hall, 'to xhake sure that they were working on the right line. We are quite certain that the children will clearly understand in future the peculiar background of the Eastern home-life. The expression work proper, which has preceded the modelmaking, has included the making up of a special book by each scholar on the life of Christ, The amount of original work done in this way varies of course with the scholars; some have taken it very seriously, and all have made some sort of record that has helped them to understand and appreciate the subject. _ One of the features of expression and handwork of this sort is the extreme unwillingness of the children to leave. Sunday school and to go home. In point of fact some have worked “overtime" to complete their expression work! Altogether the experiment has been well worth while, and we are planning to continue it in some form with a new set of lessons. In another junior department a large amount of activity has been introduced through, the supplemental talk.. In this

case, the talks on a set of missionary lessons were worked out on self-teaching lines. The full story of this experiment cannot he told in detail here, but the following outline should prove the worth of the experiment. The lessons were on John Williams in the South Seas, and the teachers were put in . charge of little tables containing pictures, maps, curios, etc., illustrating South Sea life. The ehil-

■ dren were allowed to go from .table to table looking at the objects provided, and the teacher in charge was prepared to answer questions and talk about the subject. The method can be .adapted to other subjects with, a little ingenuity. In the samo department, a little earlier, the children came a quarter of an hour be-

fore the usual time in order to make ' models in anticipation of the lesson. Let no one hold back from making experiments in handwork and expression work along this line, on the ground that it spoils the atmosphere for worship, or that it is out of place in a Sunday, school. It is surely far better that the children should be occupied, interested, and kept busy—in a way that helps to make .the Bible and its characters real and living, than be bored by listening with more or loss (chiefly less) attention to an address, of a recapitulation of the lesson by teacher or superintendent. . There is nothing necessarily evil, or out of place in the Sunday school in handwork -that is directly related to the Bible or a missionary lesson. Since God. has .implanted in children a desire to do things for themselves, and a sense of pleasure 1 and mastery in constructional work, we do well to make use of . this for the highest ; tnt * B ' —E. E. Hayes. MY RELIGIOUS EDUCATION LIBRARY. “THE UNFOLDING. LIFE.” By A. A. Lamoeeaox. This book should be in the library of all religious educators. It is not a new book, but the number of copies that have been published gives abundant proof oi its Value. It is valuable, not only to teachers' and leaders, but to parents and all who have charge of young, life. As I the late Marion Lawrence, the great Buni day school expert, says in his introduction, the book is well-named, well-timed, and ; well-written.. Teachers are seeking now no never before fo understand the soil in ; which the living seed of God’s Word is to be cast. Nothing can be more import- ; ant than this. ‘ The author deals largely with the everyday problems of the aver- ' age home and Sunday school, thus rendering the highest service to the great

of ordinary teachers and mothers. As the author says in her foreword, “The greatest thing in the world is a human life., The greatest work m the world is the helpful touch upon that life. ... In dealing with things, the vessel marred can he set aside or fashioned anew, but a life is for eternity. The faulty work cannot be undone; the mistakes can never be wholly rectified, for life never yields up .what is given it. ... It is with the earnest desire to help some parent or teacher in the divine work of soul culture that this volume is offered.” The book aims at interpreting our knowledge of child study or psychology with reference to religious training. It deals first of all with some fundamental principles of development, such as the nature of life, the relation of nurture to the unfolding of the possibilities of life, the work of nurture, the crises of life, and-the way to make use of these, and finally that most important principle that “ development is from within, out, through what is absorbed, not from without, in. through external , application without absorption." The chapter closes with thse words, “God gives life to parents and teachers to 1 fashion. Will hands clumsy and uu-

skilled miss the perfect beauty, or the touch of master workmanship bring forth a likeness to . the Christ? ” The succeeding chapters are an attempt to assist in this great work. Sirs Lamoreaux deals in detail with the various periods of life, infancy and early childhood, childhood, the junior age, early, middle and late adolescence. Each of these in turn receives adequate attention, and practical advice is given on the best way to nurture and train the good qualities in the developing life, so that God's great purpose for the life may be fulfilled. The book is written in a simple, yet fascinating style, which can be understood by all Its price, too, is not prohibitive, as is the case with many books which might be perused with profit by religious educators. and is well within the limits of the purse of every teacher. No teacher or leader should be without it.