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WHERE WE LIVE
A HOME GEOGRAPHY
GENERAL EDITION
by
EMILIE V. JACOBS
Supervising Principal of the Richardson L. Wright School,
Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA, 1913, 1914
CHRISTOPHER SOWER COMPANY
124 North Eighteenth Street
CONTENTS
Page
Foreword 5
Introduction 7
PART ONE
I. Our School 11
II. The Streets and Roads 17
III. The Buildings 22
IV. The Town as a Whole 31
V. The People 36
VI. Industries and Occupations 42
VII. Animals and Plants 46
VIII. Transportation and Communication 50
IX. Physiography of the Neighborhood 54
X. Direction 66
PART TWO
I. The Earth as a Whole 73
II. The Seasons 79
III. The Zones 82
IV. North America 93
V. Countries of North America 100
VI. Trips 105
MAPS
I. The Western Hemisphere 74-75
II. The Eastern Hemisphere 74-75
III. The World 82
IV. Surface Map of North America 96
V. North America 100
FOREWORD
Once upon a time as four blind men sat by the roadside they heard the
tramp of an elephant's feet, and said one to another, "Here comes an
elephant; now we shall know what he is like." The first blind man put
out his hand and touched the elephant's broad side. The second took hold
of a leg. The third grasped a tusk, and the fourth clutched the animal's
tail.
"Now do you know what an elephant looks like?" asked a friend.
"Yes," cried the first. "The elephant is broad and flat like a barn
door."
"What!" exclaimed the second. "The elephant is big and round like the
trunk of a tree."
"Not so!" cried the third. "The elephant is hard and smooth like a
polished stone."
"What are you all talking about?" cried the fourth. "The elephant is
just like a piece of rope."
Much so-called teaching of geography leads to just such incomplete and
fantastic ideas about geographical concepts. Very many children have
only vague, incomplete and incorrect conceptions of the things they see.
Like these physically and mentally blind men we are too often satisfied
with mere wordy descriptions of subjects when we might study the subject
at first hand if we would.
This little book is intended to prevent the giving of information by
description, but to suggest ways of directing attention to those things
which lie within reach of the child's senses, things which he might pass
by, things which are needed now to stimulate an intelligent interest in
his surroundings, things which are needed later for an appreciation and
enjoyment of his study of the larger facts and concepts of geography. If
the larger geographical concepts are to have accuracy and richness for
the child he must have his attention directed to his surroundings. The
trite expression "from the known to the unknown" is good pedagogy, but
there must be a "known" on which to build.
The book is based upon the author's actual experience in the class-room
studying the children at their geography tasks. It has been her
experience that the efforts of the teachers to build broad geographical
concepts were of no avail because the pupils did not have accurate
intimate knowledge of the necessary home geography upon which to build.
To correct this defect she set about collecting and classifying the
necessary material. With the use of this material she not only found
that the class teachers had much less difficulty in presenting the study
of the earth as a whole, but that an interest beyond all expectation was
apparent in the children.
The following pages are valuable more on account of the things they
suggest than for any geographical facts which they incidentally present.
The book is not a text-book on geography; it is a compendium of
suggestion on the study of the subject. It makes little effort to
present facts, but rather it tells how to gather, classify and study
facts. It is intended to be used with children during the age when they
especially delight in the making of collections, and is intended to turn
to a definite use this childish instinct.
Map study is based entirely upon the child's experiences as he makes
plans of his schoolroom, schoolhouse, streets and city. The suggestions
regarding the study of things foreign to the child are based entirely
upon his experience in the study of the types with which he has become
familiar in his study of his surroundings.
Milton C. Cooper,
Superintendent of District Nine, Philadelphia.
INTRODUCTION
Geographical knowledge should progress from the known to the unknown,
from the familiar to the unfamiliar. The world is the home of mankind.
We can best understand the larger world by a preliminary consideration
of our own small intimate home. We therefore begin to study geography
with an account of the child's immediate environment. The school stands
for the common home of the class. From the school we gradually widen out
our teaching to include the immediate neighborhood with its buildings,
and finally the whole town or community.
We study the various types of people whom we meet every day, and the
industries in which they engage in their efforts to obtain the three
main necessities of human life,--food, clothing and shelter. The animals
and plants sharing the world with man and contributing to his sustenance
next focus our attention.
The home neighborhood has its physiographical features distinguishing it
from other places and influencing the life of its inhabitants. The land
and water divisions in the immediate environment are studied as types,
while those not closely related to our home are reserved for
consideration as each one occurs in its local geographical place in the
course of study.
We must know something of direction in order to conveniently locate the
streets, buildings and physiographical features near our home. Finally,
we will try to realize the great size of the earth, of which our home is
but a small portion, by a consideration of the relationship of our
community to the rest of the world and to some of this world's great
diversities.
As geography is a study of cause and effect, the early lessons should be
mainly oral. Later, in order to obtain a broad knowledge of geographical
data, not one but many books should be read. This little book aims to
serve as a bridge between the oral lesson and the descriptive text-book.
The presentation of many questions leads the pupil to think out cause
and effect, and to connect his present knowledge with the realm of the
unknown. Special care has been exercised to present facts only when
facts are absolutely necessary, and only after allowing the pupil the
opportunity to first exercise his own reasoning faculties in obtaining
the information.
The excursion is an essential part of every geography course, and every
effort should be made to use this effective means of teaching.
Four types of valuable exercises may be suggested in the use of this
book:
1. The pupils may read the questions orally and give the answers orally.
2. They may read the questions silently, answering them orally.
3. They may read the questions orally and write the answers.
4. Finally, they may silently read the questions and write the answers.
All definitions have been carefully avoided as tending to hamper the
free acquisition of ideas.
PART I
TOPICS
1. Our School.
2. The Streets and Roads.
3. The Buildings.
4. The Town as a Whole.
5. The People.
6. Industries and Occupations.
7. Animals and Plants.
8. Transportation and Communication
9. Physiography of the Neighborhood
10. Direction.
PART II
1. The Earth as a Whole.
2. The Seasons.
3. The Zones.
4. North America.
5. Countries of North America.
6. Trips.
PART ONE
[Illustration: THE CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON.]
WHERE WE LIVE--A HOME GEOGRAPHY
CHAPTER I
OUR SCHOOL
1
What is the name of our school?
Where have you seen this name?
[Illustration: A TOWN SCHOOL.]
Why was this name given to our school?
On what street or road does our school stand?
How long have you been attending this school?
See how much you have noticed as you came here each day. Tell what you
can remember of the different parts of the building which can be seen
from the street or road. Describe each of these parts:
Walls Roof
Windows Chimneys
Doors Fire-escape
2
As you look at the school from the outside what materials do you see
that the builders have used? Where have they needed stone, slate, glass,
tin, iron, steel, wood?
Now let us think of the garden and playground. Tell about the different
parts and the materials that have been used in making them.
What great numbers of workmen were needed before a school like ours
could be built! Who procured the stone and the slate? Whose work was
needed to obtain the iron, the steel and the tin? Who made the glass?
Which workmen shall we thank for the wood?
Can you think how the bare lot looked before the school was built? Many
men with shovels and pick-axes dug out the foundation, and numbers of
horses and wagons were needed to carry out the earth. Then came the
builders. How were so many materials brought here?
3
1. We will go outdoors together and look at the school building.
2. We will stand north of the school, south, east and west of it. Notice
the position of the parts, their number, shape, size and color.
3. As we stand at each side, see whether there are any parts which you
never noticed before or any parts which we forgot to mention yesterday.
4
[Illustration]
Look at this drawing of a school building and grounds. It is called a
plan. Before any school or church or home is built a plan must be drawn.
This is to show the workmen what to do. See how much of the ground is
used for the building. Find the garden. What are in the garden? Which is
larger, the garden or the playground? What shape is the playground? How
many doors are there to the building? In how many ways can you get into
the playground?
Try to draw a plan of your school building and yard, showing the gates,
the flagpole, the drinking fountain or pump, and any other parts you
think of. Show which door you use most.
_Note to the Teacher._--The pupils should draw the plan upon paper
while the teacher draws it upon the blackboard. Infinite care should
be exercised to invest every line with its full meaning. Upon the
proper interpretation of this first plan will depend much of the
pupil's future ability to correctly read a map as the representation
of a reality.
5
THE INSIDE OF THE SCHOOL
As you walk from the school door to your room what do you see? Tell all
that you have noticed in the corridors, on the staircases, in the
cloak-rooms and the class-rooms.
6
We will go on a little excursion through the school today, walking along
all of the corridors and upon all of the staircases. Look especially to
see anything that you never saw before, and notice anything that you
forgot to mention in yesterday's description.
7
Answer the following questions:
1. How many stories high is our school?
2. How many class-rooms are on each floor?
3. How many other rooms are on each floor?
4. How many staircases does our school have?
5. What materials have been used in building the staircases?
6. What can be seen in the corridor nearest your room?
7. By how many doorways can the children leave the building?
8. How is your school heated and ventilated?
8
Describe everything that you can see in your class-room.
9
[Illustration: PLAN OF SCHOOL ROOM]
Look at this plan of a school-room. See if you can draw a plan of _your_
school-room.
10
Make a list of all the materials that have been used in building the
inside of your school. Remember all of the following parts:
Floors Windows Corridor furnishings
Ceilings Doors Class-room furnishings
Walls Staircases
Now write a list of the kinds of workmen who gathered together these
materials. Name as many of the kinds of workmen as you can think of who
were engaged on the inside work of the building.
11
Write a letter to anyone whom you know who has never seen our school.
Tell all about our building and the good workmen by whom it was planned
and built.