The principles given in books one and two, leading to the development of the child's faculties find their greatest usefulness in school work. They will apply to every part of the child's work and aid in solving any of his problems.
This is the demonstration ground and the time and efforts spent in the preceding games and exercises will manifest themselves in progress in school.
It is best for the child to make his own applications. You can, of course, suggest and aid, but he should make his own picture wherever possible. The one making the effort receives the reward—which is development. The child will recall the idea which he works out for himself more easily than those worked out for him, even though the latter may seem better.
The following pages will be given over to suggestive ideas as to how the principles may be applied to different lessons. Only a certain few concrete illustrations will be given, as the working out of the details would rob the child of the opportunity and development to be gained by doing the work himself.
Children always learn the alphabet by pictures. Alphabetical books and blocks are made this way. This is because the child learns easily and quickly by this method. What is true in the early years is true in the later ones as well. Do not allow him to get away from this principle of learning by pictures. Follow the plan of teaching every thing possible by sight. Go out of your way if necessary to show him the thing he is reading about.
The suggestions under "The Mind's Eye and The Story" in Book Two should be continued. When the child has learned to read have him pause and visually review what he has read, that is, to stop and see a mind's eye picture while the book is closed.
To Remember What You Read
The inability to remember what we read is without doubt a general failing and the greatest handicap to students.
Two of the objects to be gained by time spent in study are a thorough understanding of the subject matter and to so fix the thought in mind that it will be available for future use. It is well to realize that the scanning of the modern newspaper and careless or rapid reading causes many adults to forget what they read. We can so educate the physical eye that it can read an entire paragraph, or page while the brain is dormant and does not accept the impressions intended by the author. Often the physical action of turning the page awakens you to a realization of the fact that you have read the page but have absolutely no knowledge of its contents.
Eye and Brain Must Work Together
This habit of careless reading must be avoided and for successful study the child should be aided in forming the visualizing habit.
"Thought Leads to Knowledge"
We cannot gain knowledge merely by reading. The value of reading is in the thought that it stimulates in the mind. We exercise muscles to get strength. You must aid the child in exercising his mental muscles by thinking in order to get mental strength. It is not what he reads, but what he thinks concerning what he reads that becomes his, and contributes to his education. Reading which stimulates no thought is a waste of time.
The disappointment felt in the lack of progress after time spent in study is not that we forget, but that we do not really "GET." This lack can be largely avoided in the child's training if you are willing to help in forming right habits.
Visualization the Greatest Aid
The principle of visualization, as discussed in the first book, will prove of the greatest aid, because it is the natural method of using the mind.
To visualize the thought of the author will stimulate thinking, will increase the understanding of the subject matter, and at the same time make the strongest impression upon the brain and thus help him to remember.
The Mississippi Captain
An excellent illustration of the use and value of visualization in learning and remembering was given by an old captain of a Mississippi River steamer. "Do you know how I learned the river," he asked; "well I just lay in bed nights and made a picture in my mind of the river and the course I had to steer. Then I would go over the picture and see every detail of it and review it several times. I'd sail up and down that river several times each night, I'd see every landmark and every danger point on each trip. That's the way I learned it and I became a captain when I was younger than many men who had sailed the river longer than I had."
The Artist's Picture
When an artist seats himself before a new canvas he knows definitely what he is going to place upon it. He either has a model before him, or in his mind's eye sees a beautiful picture. He will give weeks, months, or even years of effort in order to place upon that canvas a picture equal in perfection and beauty to the one which he sees.
Notice that a mind's eye picture is often the starting point of the artist. He strives to place upon the canvas the reproduction of the idea which he sees in his mind. He finishes and exhibits his work; you look upon the picture with your physical eye and through its agency the result of the artist's effort becomes a picture-impression upon your brain. You see what he saw, and the longer you gaze at the painting and the greater amount of detail you perceive, the more vivid it becomes and the stronger the impression upon your mind, therefore, the more perfect the memory of the picture. This is true of your own mind's eye picture for memory purposes.
The more detail you see in your memory pictures and the longer you continue to visualize them, the stronger their impression.
The Author Is an Artist
In a similar manner an author sits down with his paper and ink. He sees in his mind a picture which he strives to paint. He endeavors by his mastery of words to induce you to see what he sees. He also is an artist, his canvas is your brain, and if he succeeds it is there he must impress a picture. The words on the printed page and the function of your eye are simply agencies through which he must work.
Words are vehicles of thought and they are the author's colors; their function is to reproduce objects and conditions; by their use the author conveys to your brain the impressions of size, color, form, arrangement and every detail of his thought. A very few words will create a wonderful picture, which would require hours for the artist to paint.
When you look at the artist's painting your brain sees a picture. The writer, however, is using a code requiring translation by the reader. Words do not form pictures, they are merely agencies by the use of which you can guide your mind's eye in the formation of a real mental impression. The author succeeds in his effort just in proportion as you succeed in forming a picture of what he is describing. When you rob the canvas of your brain of the impression the author strives to place there, by letting your eyes pass over the words so rapidly that your mind's eye forms no picture, then the author has failed. The mere reading of words makes no lasting impression upon the mind, but the forming of visual pictures does. You remember best those books which have consciously or unconsciously formed picture impressions on your brain. What you can now recall of what you have read is largely the recollection of these pictures.
Keep this illustration and these facts in mind in helping your children. Urge them to properly use the visual faculties and train their mind's eye to work with the physical eye.
Must Read Slowly
Words are vehicles of thought and are used by the author to convey pictures to the mind, but at first the mind's eye is unable to picture the thought as rapidly as the physical eye can read. The first essential to remembering what you are reading is to read slowly, hesitating occasionally, to be sure that a picture is being formed.
The Dead Line
Never read more than a single paragraph without stopping to test your understanding of what you have read. At the end of each paragraph there should be a dead line; in fact there is a dead line and he who reads carelessly and quickly beyond this line need not expect to remember. Put your finger between the pages, close the book, and review the thought of the paragraph. Now make a definite effort to visualize the picture in the author's mind. It is true that some passages make an easier mind's eye picture than others, but all will make one which can be used to help in formulating a definite understanding of the author's thought.
You cannot visualize a thing which you do not understand. The aim of your study is to comprehend the author. To visualize the thought of the paragraph will test your understanding. Making of a definite picture will increase your knowledge of the essentials. Form the habit of visualizing what you read. Do not be handicapped by doubt. Make an effort to formulate the main facts of the paragraph into an expression of your own. If you are by yourself, where you can do so, state your thought audibly, not in the words of the author, but express the thought and the facts accurately in your own words.
No knowledge is yours until you can tell it to some one else.
Use this test and tell it to some one, or if no one is handy tell it to yourself, but do it audibly. This forces a definite expression which can only come from a definite understanding. Parents should question their children and encourage them in telling what they are reading and studying about. The audible expression demands definite knowledge.
The Student's Review Sheet
If the child is reading something which he will wish to review, as in studying a lesson, a good plan to follow is to have a pad of paper by the side of the book. After reading the paragraph write down upon the pad the expressions and thoughts which the paragraph conveys to you. This is an excellent plan in all cases where the audible expression is not practicable. After the lesson has been gone over in this manner, preserve the review sheets containing the synopsis of the paragraph. Then for review, before the examination, a quick reading of these written expressions of thoughts, which the chapter contains, will eliminate the necessity of a further reading of the entire text.
Apply These Methods
For a test read the following from "Brain and Personality" by W. Hanna Thompson. Follow the idea just suggested. Make a test, read slowly, form a mind's eye picture, think about it, and then tell the thought as nearly as possible to some one. All this may take some time and effort at first but the use of these ideas will quickly form the mental habit. Once reading a lesson in this manner will give better results than many careless repetitions.
"In some fishes, such as the carp, when the ganglia, which corresponds to the cerebral hemispheres (brain) are experimentally removed, they do not seem to mind it at all, for even then there is little, if anything, to distinguish them from perfectly normal animals. They maintain their natural attitude and use their tails and fins in swimming with the same vigor and precision as before. They not only see, but are able to find their food. If worms are thrown into the water where they are swimming they immediately pounce upon them. If a piece of string similar in size to a worm is thrown in, they are able to detect the difference and they drop it after having seized it. They even, to some extent, distinguish colors for when some red and some white wafers are thrown into the water the fish almost invariably select the red in preference to the white.
"It is much the same with a frog. If care be taken to keep the frogs alive after the removal of their cerebral lobes until they are quite recovered from the injury, brainless frogs will behave just like full brained frogs under like circumstances. They will crawl under stones, or bury themselves in the earth at beginning of winter, and after the period of hibernation is over, they will come out and diligently catch flies which are buzzing about in the vessels in which they are kept."
Longfellow's Picture "Evangeline"
Use this wonderful picture of Longfellow's. Let each word perform its intended function and each sentence form a complete picture.
"Firmly builded with rafters of oak, the house of the farmerStood on the side of a hill commanding the sea; and a shadySycamore stood by the door, with a woodbine wreathing around it.Rudely carved was the porch, with seats beneath; and a foot-pathLed through the orchard wide, and disappeared in the meadow.Under the sycamore tree were hives overhung by a pent-house,Such as a traveler sees in regions remote by the road side,Built o'er a box for the poor, or the blessed image of Mary.Far down, on the slope of the hill, was the well with its moss-grownBucket, fastened with iron, and near it a trough for the horses."
Read again the first three lines, have the child describe the picture. An artist would spend hours to paint this picture, yet we with our wonderful mental faculties can see it in an instant. Add to this picture, and when finished have the child give a prose description of it. Other examples for younger children are given in the Second Book on The Memory.
Application of Visualization Limitless
By clear visualizations you can carry any amount of detail in your memory. This faculty can be applied to all kinds of information and study. All ideas do not suggest simple pictures, some are more difficult to visualize than others. Some pictures are inspired by a single word, some may be the result of a paragraph or even pages of description.
Helps for Learning Verbatim
To learn prose or poetry should not be difficult for children who have been trained in visualization. In some schools they will be urged to use the fallacious method of repetition, some of it is always necessary, of course, but most of it can be eliminated by the use of visualization and the additional helps following.
It is the parents' duty to see to it that the child uses the methods suggested in these books in all his school work. Help him at home to apply them to his lessons so as to get results. At school he will, of course, have to follow the teacher's instructions, and can silently add the aids that you have given him.
Alliteration and Alphabetical Sequence
These are two guides for the mind which are often wonderfully helpful although sometimes they do not apply, but use them where possible. Notice the Alphabetical Sequence and the Repetitions in the following example of the first verse of Walter D. Wintel's "Thinking":
"Thinking"
If you think you are beaten, you are;If you think you dare not, you don't.If you'd like to win, but think you can't,It's almost a cinch you won't.
Notice that the first two lines are half repeated, also that each line begins with "If" except the last one which changes to "It's."
In the first lines you have an example of reversed Alphabetical Sequence in the "b" of beaten preceding the "a" of are, b-a instead of a-b.
Alphabetical repetition occurs as a guide in the second line in the "d" of "dare" and "don't". Again in the next lines of the "w" of "win" and "won't."
Note the alphabetical arrangement of the guide letters of each line. Write in front of each line its guide letter; first line "b" of "beaten", second "d" of "dare"; third "w" of "win", fourth the "won" of "won't", these can be used as guide letters, and if noted will help.
Take your pencil and mark the verse as suggested and use the words and letters as guides, go over it a couple of times noting these helps and you will be able to say it word for word.
Do the same with the other verses; if practical have the child learn this poem. See that he gets its true lesson:
"Thinking"
If you think you are beaten, you are;If you think you dare not, you don't.If you'd like to win, but think you can't,It's almost a cinch you won't.If you think you'll lose, you're lost;For out in the world we findSuccess begins with a fellow's will;It's all in the state of mind.If you think you're outclassed, you are;You've got to think high to rise;You've got to be sure of yourself beforeYou can ever win a prize.Life's battles don't always goTo the stronger or faster man;But soon or late the man who winsIs the one who thinks he can.
Poetry Easier Than Prose
To quote poetry is usually easier than to quote prose because in the former you have the added helps of rhyme and rhythm. See the pictures painted by Robert Loveman in the following verses; note the repetition, alliteration and the help of the rhyme and see how easily you can learn a few verses of this poem:
"April Rain"
It isn't raining rain for me,It's raining daffodils;In every dimpled drop I seeWild flowers on distant hills.The clouds of gray engulf the dayAnd overwhelm the town;It isn't raining rain to me—It's raining roses down.It isn't raining rain to me,But fields of clover bloomWhen any buccaneering beeMay find a bed and room.A health unto the happy,A fig for him who frets;It isn't raining rain to me,It's raining violets.
See a man in the rain who points out the fact that it isn't raining rain, "but daffodils". See the daffodils. See big "dimpled drops" and paint upon them the "wild flowers on distant hills."
Repeat the picture a couple of times and then say the verse. Do the same with the other verses. Do not learn this by repetition. Be true to the method, make a picture and see it each time you review.
If a single word is omitted or substituted, put special auditory emphasis on it, speak it louder than the other words of the line, and you will have no trouble with it after that.
Bridging the Gaps
The greatest difficulty which is experienced in memorizing poetry is to get from the end of one line to the beginning of the other, or from one verse to the other. In prose, when you start a paragraph it is not difficult to follow through to the end, because all of its sentences are associated in thought. But the new paragraph begins with a new thought and there is no association between the old thought and the new one, consequently there is a gap between thoughts across which the mind does not easily travel.
The natural tendency of the mind is to follow thoughts which are associated in their ideas. One thought leads to a second which is suggested by its close relationship to the first. By retracing the processes you can discover the connecting thought, or bridge, over which the mind naturally travels in order to connect two unrelated thoughts.
In memorizing, when coming to the end of a thought, form a bridge which will connect it and the following thought and thus guide the mind to the next line or paragraph. This is a most helpful principle in memorizing either poetry or prose. If you seek for it you can find some similarity or contrast, a visual association, or some sequence, or repetition, which can be used as the necessary bridge, or connecting link between the two lines or paragraphs.
Always connect the last thought, the last word, or phrase of the line, sentence or paragraph with the first word in the succeeding thought. The process is much shorter and simpler than its explanation, as you will learn by practice. Try this plan once or twice and it will be well nigh impossible for you to memorize without it.
Examples of Bridging the Gap
From "The Buccaneer" by R. H. Dana the last line of the second verse, and the first line of the third verse are easily connected by one word, Sand, thus—
"And silver waves go noiseless up the beach."
(Sand)
"And inland rests the green, warm dell;"
The last word "beach" naturally suggests sand, drop the s and you have the first word of the next verse, "and", also the "beach", sand, and "inland" suggest a natural sequence. Sand here becomes a bridge of thought over which your mind will easily travel. It is not always easy to find one word for a bridge, but a visual picture, a thought, a word, or repeated letter can be found to aid you.
The poem "Things Divine" by Jean Brooks Burke is used by students of elocution as ideal for practice because of the difficulty which it presents. The thoughts cover a wide range with apparently no relation one with the other. Often two thoughts are expressed in one line, and to get them all well fixed in mind so as to repeat them makes the poem difficult, to say the least, yet you, who know how to apply your memory intelligently, may learn it with comparative ease. Read slowly and note the visual pictures and then go back and "bridge" them together. This is an excellent example of a difficult poem to practice upon. It will be an opportunity to use all of the principles given in this chapter.
The Things Divine
These are the things I hold divine;A trusting child's hand laid in mine,Rich brown earth and wind-tossed trees,The taste of grapes and the drone of bees,A rhythmic gallop, long June days,A rose-hedged lane and lover's lays,The welcome smile on neighbors' faces,Cool, wide hills and open places,Breeze-blown fields of silver rye,Fresh spring showers and scent of box,The soft pale tint of the garden flox,Lilacs blooming, a drowsy noon,A flight of geese and an autumn moon,Rolling meadows and storm-washed heights,A fountain murmur on summer nights,A dappled fawn in the forest hush,Simple words and the song of a thrush,Rose-red dawns and a mate to shareWith comrade soul my gypsy fare,A waiting fire when the twilight ends,A gallant heart and the voice of friends.
To link the second line with the first, think of the natural association of thought between the words "Divine" and "trusting." Form the definite visual picture of the "trusting child's hand laid in mine."
Your thought will quickly pass to the duplex meaning of the word "mine." It means possession, my own, and also a mine in the earth. When we start a mine the first thing to come out is "rich brown earth" and that is the next thought. Let the word "mine" of the second line suggest the picture of the opening to the mine and the pile of "rich brown earth" beside it.
Behind a pile of rich brown earth, see the "wind-tossed trees", the next thought. Hanging on the "trees" see huge bunches of grapes, you pick and taste one, this is the next thought, "the taste of grapes." Around the grapes flies a swarm of bees, hear their "drone," the next thought, "the drone of bees." Let the drone of the bees suggest to you a rhythm and this will bridge your mind over to the thought of a "rhythmic gallop"; the answer to the question, "When do you like to gallop?" suggests "Long June days" the next thought.
June is the time of roses, suggesting "A rose-hedged lane"—the natural place for "lovers' lays." You can easily construct a "bridge" which will bind all the independent thoughts together. Visualize each thought, and watch for alliteration and alphabetical repetition.
Remembering What You Hear
It is also important that the child be trained to remember what he hears. Ear impressions are comparatively light and easily lost. If these ear impressions are quickly transferred into mind's eye pictures they will be far more lasting.
Instructions, lectures, sermons, talks, can all be pictures in the mind, just as you picture what you read. The act of visualization will concentrate the attention and prolong it, so that the memory of what is said will be greatly increased. The visual impressions will also be much stronger than the auditory ones.
The attempt to visualize the thought of the speaker is the best method of directing your attention to his subject.
Use the Hitching Post
When listening to instructions, or a lecture, in which there are different points which you wish to carry away and later recall accurately, use the Hitching Post idea. Run over a series of words so as to be sure that they will come readily when wanted. When a point is made which you wish to remember, transfer the thought into a quick visual impression, and Hitch it to the first object of your list. When a second important point is made, make a visual impression with the next object. Make your picture strong by exaggeration and motion, and be sure that you photograph each one.
In this manner you can file away any number of points. As soon as the lecture is over review the pictures, see each clearly a second time. If you have trouble recalling one make the picture stronger so that you will recall it more easily next time. Review the entire list of points visualized with the different Hitching Posts. If you wish to fix them in mind review them several times in the next few days, so that you make a permanent impression of them.
Transfer to Note-Book
A great many prefer the idea of transferring these points into a classified note book, where they are available for use at any future time.
One student tells of having written fifteen pages of notes from four talks which he heard at a convention, and that some of these notes were not transferred from his mind to the note-book for at least ten days after the talks were heard.
Form the habit of letting the lecturer make you SEE what he describes. The visual impression which you make will increase your understanding of anything you hear or read, and at the same time very materially assist you in remembering it.
Taking Instructions
When a person is giving you instructions about the things which he would like to have you do, follow the same plan. Simply transfer the words of the speaker into an exaggerated moving picture and the impression will stay with you. Another student told me this experience: "My employer often used to say to me, after having given some instruction, 'Do you see?' I realize now that the reason that I made so many mistakes was because I did not SEE. Now I make it a point to SEE the things he asks me to do and my reply, 'Yes, I see,' has a very different meaning. The results are also different."
Mastering Difficult Lists
In the child's studies there are often lists of different kinds which need to be committed to memory and which present considerable difficulty to say nothing of the time required. Following are aids and illustrations which will show how these lists can be mastered with comparatively small effort and little time.
Fix in Mind by Initialing
Take the initial letter of each of the words which you wish to remember and use these as the first letter of simple words which will combine into an expression which has a meaning. This is very helpful, and is sometimes called "initialing." We have all learned the sentence:
E G B D F
Every Good Boy Deserves Food,
in order to remember the names of the lines of the treble clef; the letters of the word F A C E are the spaces. In a similar way the lines of the bass clef can be remembered by the following:
G B D F A
Good Bees Deserve Faithful Attention,
and the spaces by:
A C E G
All Can Eat Goose.
These are simple examples of a principle which can with a little ingenuity and imagination be applied to any list to be learned.
Elevated Stations
The following illustration shows how a student learned the stations on the Northwestern elevated road in Chicago, and will give you a further example of the use of this principle:
I can see Chicago's Oak, divided between Schiller and
Kinzie, Chicago, Oak, Division, Schiller
Sedgewick for luring a bee to Halstead's willow
Sedgewick, Larrabee, Halstead willow,
center, Webster, Fullerton, writes Diversey that
Center, Webster, Fullerton, Wrightwood, Diversey,
Wellington Belmont is the clerk to add three days'
Wellington, Belmont Clark, Addison
grace to Sheridan's bill for Wilson.
Grace, to Sheridan, Buena, Wilson.
Here only the principal words of the story are used as the names to be remembered. The story simplifies the work of preparing and learning.
Learning the Presidents
A further plan is the following combination of the Reminder Picture and the Visual Story used to learn the names of the Presidents of the United States in the order of their term of service. Go over the following Story Picture, visualize it clearly and then from the picture repeat the capitalized words in their order. When you can say the list readily, either forward or backward, go over it again slowly, seeing the object and speaking the name of the President for which it is a reminder.
The Picture
See some WASHING hanging on a line. See ADAM looking wonderingly at the washing. Then see Little JEFF, of "Mutt and Jeff", come up behind Adam. Jeff turns away, and falls over a MAT. Under it see some MONEY. Pick up the money and you find an AD. Take the ad and paste on a SHACK. See a moving VAN back up to the shack, and when the driver jumps down from his seat you recognize HARRY (a friend of yours by that name). Harry takes off his TIE and hangs it on a POLE, the pole falls over and hits the TAILOR who runs up on a FILL, from which he sees a PIER extending into the water. On the pier is a BIG CANNON from behind which jumps a LYNX and almost catches JOHN, who runs away, and climbs on a piece of GRANITE. On the other side of the granite is a pile of HAY, and rolling off the hay is a GARFISH. There stands an ARTIST with a CLEAVER in his hand, which he throws at HARRIS (a friend by that name). Harris picks some CLOVER, and pins it on his MACKINTOSH, and it turns into a large red ROSE. In the rose he finds some TAFFY, which he throws into a WILLOW.
From this story the capitalized words are reminders for the names of the Presidents, as follows:
Do this for practice and see how easily you can learn the names of the Presidents in their proper order and say them backwards and forwards.
Studying Anatomy
Initialing has been used by medical students with splendid results and has reduced the labor of learning to a minimum. The branches of the external carrotid arteries can be remembered by the following sentence:
| Some | Try | Large | Feats, | Others | Prefer |
| Superior | Thyroid, | Lingual, | Facial, | Occipital, | Pharyngeal, |
| A | Simple | Task | In | Memory. | |
| Auricular, | Superficial, | Temporal, | Internal | Maxillary. |
For practice make a sentence of your own from the initials of the twelve pair of Cranial Nerves, which are Olefactory, Optic, Motor Oculi, Pathetic, Trifacial, Abducent, Facial, Auditory, Glosso-Pharyngeal, Pneumogastric, Spinal Accessory, Hypoglossal. For example, Oh! Out Motoring Papa Took A Friend and Got Paul Some Heather. Others can be made, but the one which the child makes for himself he will remember easiest.