The Educator (Volume 45) - IAMPETH

A Lesson on Slant and Alignment
From the San Francisco Public Schools Monthly Bulletin
Demonstration Lesson given by MISS THYRZA WALTERS. Grattan Elementary School
Welcome by Miss Mary Reene, Principal
It is a very great pleasure to again
bi' with the probationary teachers
anil to greet some of my old friends
as well. The purpose of today's lesson
is to demonstrate how slant
and alignment can be accomplished
through correct position with particular
emphasis on correct position of
body, paper and pen. The lesson will
last fifteen minutes. There are
thirty-eight pupils in this 4A grade.
Every child is present. No one has
been excused, for we are endeavoring
to show how left-handed children, new
children, and children lacking perfect
bodily coordination are handled in a
classroom. The writing products will
consequently vary to a marked degree.
This lesson is on the technique of
writing, and any lesson dealing with
the mechanics of a subject and the
handling of tools has to be more or
less definite and consequently formal.
As soon as the proper habits have
been established this formality is
abandoned.
As the lesson progresses, the class
will be grouped according to accomplishment.
The first two rows have
been promoted twice: first from the
"position group" to the "slant group,"
and then to the "form group." The
second two rows compose the "slant
group" and have been promoted from
the "position group." The middle
rows are the "position group" and
are woiking to be promoted before
the end of the term.
I wish you to know that we do
not aspire in this grade to perfection
of form. We do hope for lightness
of line, freedom of movement, and
correct writing habits. I think no
teacher is so apt to get discouraged
as is the fourth grade teacher. She
appears to get so little result from
the energy expended. I think you
will agree when viewing the papers
after the lesson and seeing their exhibit
of writing in the upper hallway,
that these little people have attained
slant, lightness of line, swing and
freedom.
Here in the front of the room is a
little puppet show that has evolved
from a unit on Aquatic Life. The
wi'iting chart in that room follows
out the unit, the varying depths of
the ocean representing degrees of attainment
on the Ayres Scale with
each child in the room represented
by his favorite fish. These ai'e movable
and are moved to show progress.
You are cordially invited to visit all
of the classrooms. I would also call
your attention to the charts in all of
the rooms showing the monthly rating
on the Ayres Chart. These charts
have been very helpful to us and I
hope prove suggestive to you.
I am now going to turn the meeting
over to Miss Walters, my very
excellent and enthusiastic fourth
grade teacher.
Miss Walters: What shall be our
aim today, girls and boys ?
Aeriel: We want to work to hold
our pens correctly.
I-ouis: We need form.
Any teacher can acquire a
fair degree of proficiency
in his own handwriting,
and learn enough about the
mechanics of handwriting
in order that he may direct
a pupil to change from
careless work to the kind
that is neat, legible, and ex-
ecuted at a sufficient rate of
speed. Careless writing
from a teacher is as much
a confession of poor preparation
as is slovenly
grammar or poor pronunciation,
and as unbecoming
and unprofessional.
Francis: We need to write straight
across the paper.
John: We need to push and pull
our papers as we write across the
page.
Eleanor: We must try not to go
down hill.
Helen: We need more slant.
Miss Walters: We need all of these
things—but today we are going to
work for alignment only. If we have
correct position, it is easy to get slant
and alignment. We must have good
position. Think of your feet. Bend
your body slightly forward. Place
the arms properly on the desk. Place
pens in correct position. It will tell
you how to place your paper to attain
alignment. Keep your hands in
correct position. Put the paper on
the desk. Imagine a line extending
from the inkwell to the opposite corner
of the desk. If you place your
paper correctly you will be able to
15
write straight across the paper. We
have a special drill to help us keep
our paper in a parallel position.
(Teacher indicates shifting of the
paper on the blackboard.) It is 1, 2,
a, 4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push; 1, 2, 3,
4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push. Thus we are
able to write straight across the
paper. Sometimes this happens. (In
the shifting, the teacher turns the
paper so that it is no longer parallel
with the diagonal line of the desk.)
What happened to my line, Caroline ?
Caroline: You went down hill.
Miss Walters: Who can tell me
why I went down hill ?
Ruth: You had too much slant to
ycuir iiaper.
Miss Walters: Sometimes this happens
(In the shifting, teacher turns
the paper so that it is no longer
l)arallel with the diagonal line of the
desk.) 1, 2, 3, 4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push.
What happened to that line.
Dorothy : You went up hill.
Miss Walters: Can you tell me
why I went up hill ?
Dorothy Ann: You did not have
enough slant.
.Miss Walters: If we know what
causes the trouble we can avoid it.
Place the paper parallel with the imaginary
line about one and one-half
inches from your ink well. We will
now have the dry pen exercises.
Verna please count.
Verna: 1, 2, 3, 4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4,
push; 1, 2, 3, 4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push.
( Children use dry pen drill following
instructions on shifting.)
Miss Walters: Fine! Dip your
pens in the ink. We will just make
a line from left to right and see that
this line goes straight across the
paper. All count.
All: 1, 2, 3, 4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push;
1, 2, 3,'"4, pull; 1, 2, 3, 4, push. (The
teacher passes up and down the aisles
noting accomplishment and making
needed comments such as "Light
lines" "Watch your pen.")
Miss Walters: Let us stop and look
at our papers. Who went dowm hill?
Mary: I did.
Miss Walters: Why?
Mary : My paper had too much
slant.
Miss Walters: Who went up hill?
Burnett: My paper did not have
enough slant.
Miss Walters: Let us put a little
check on the imperfect lines and try
again. One more line. All count.
Miss Walters: Now, we will stop.
This is a lovely paper (holds up a