LE>32IS .M2. A4 190^ MAINE! E D U C AT IONAL DEPT IMPROVE ME NT OF SCHOOL BU I LOl NGS and GROursiOS ..-.. - r \ ■J- .:■-■■■' $% Improvement of School Buildings and Grounds State of Maine Educational Department 1904 Copies of this pamphlet will be sent on application to W. W. Stetson, State Superintendent of Public Schools. Augusta, Maine. SEP21 m7 a of a .1 3 s IMPROVEMENT OF SCHOOL BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS. WHAT HAS BEEN DONE IN OTHER STATES. More than sixty years ago the well-known poet, Mrs. Lydia K. Sigourney, sounded the true note of progress in the improve- ment of the physical surroundings of the school in a paper read before a teachers' convention in Connecticut. Her words may be taken as an indication of the spirit that was even then begin- ning to manifest itself. She says, "I hope the time is coming when every isolated village schoolhouse shall be a temple on whose exterior the occupant may study the principles of sym- metry and of grace. Why need the structures where the young are initiated into those virtues which make life beautiful be divorced from taste or devoid of comfort ? Why should they not be erected in fine, airy situations, overshadowed with trees and embellished with shrubbery? Why should not the velvet turf attached to them be bordered with hedges, divided by gravel walks, tufted with flowers?" She further states that it is the testimony of teachers "That it is easier to enforce habits of neat- ness and order among objects whose taste and value make them worthy of care than amid that parsimony of apparatus whose very pitiful meanness operates as a temptation to waste and to destroy ;" and she adds the suggeston still appropriate, "Let the communities now so anxious to raise the standard of educa- tion venture the experiment of a more liberal adornment of the buildings devoted to it." During the last half century much has been done to improve our schools in the matters outlined in the above quotation. The State of Wisconsin has taken great interest in planting trees and in the protection of birds. Its Department of Public Instruction has issued an Arbor and Bird Day Annual since 1899. The vol- ume for 1903 contains excellent illustrations of school buildings and school grounds and indicates that the State has made great progress in this direction. One specially noteworthy article in this Annual gives an account of the improvements made within twenty years in the Dodgeville school grounds. Trees of attrac- tive foliage and form were sought miles away in the woods, care- fully taken up and reset in the school-yard. Hedges of arbor vitae were planted to screen the outbuildings. The grounds were graded and a handsome lawn secured. Each spring a coating of land plaster and ashes gave increased rapidity of growth and richness of coloring to the grass. Rustic baskets were made and flower beds planted ; iron vases were provided and all these, when filled with flowers, made the grounds bright with beauty and color. Clematis, moon-seed, wisteria, Virginia creeper, and climbing roses were planted near the walls of the school buildings, and to-day their foliage almost covers these spaces and enhances the beauty of the architecture. The school building is described as set well back from the road with a spacious, open area in front and playgrounds in the rear. A pansy bed is found in a shady corner, while clusters of foliage plants, a bed of cannas, one of geraniums, another of verbenas and a hedge of sweet peas make the enclosure a scene of great beauty. Rows of arbor vitae partially shut off the playground; climbing roses nearly reach the second story windows and cover one side of the buildings with their showy blossoms; Virginia creepers already overarch the main entrance and will soon cover the entire front of the building. The great interest the pupils have shown in this work from the beginning is one of its most charming features. In nearly every school the pupils can be enlisted in similar work and the moral results, the effect upon the spirit of the school, obtained by such co-operation, will more than repay the outlay of time and effort. The Arbor Day Annual of the State of New York for 1903 has an artcle suggesting improvements that should be made in rural school buildings and grounds. It says it is almost impos- sible to find a village that has not a creditable school building and that some of the recent buildings in the larger cities are THE BADLY ARRANGED SCHOOLROOM. Disorder, idleness, mischief, discomfort, ill-temper, disease — due to unfavorable physical conditions. THE WELL ARRANGED SCHOOLROOM. Good order and industrious habits fostered, comfort and health promoted by favorable physical conditions. veritables palaces ; while, with some notable exceptions, in the rural sections the school buildings are not materially better than they were forty years ago. The writer asks for at least an acre of land for each school lot ; that this be fenced and graded, and states that it is far better for the children to do most of the work of beautifying the grounds because in this way they will value the improvements more highly and will more carefully protect them. He suggests that the teacher make a sketch of the grounds, showing the size and location of the buildings and enlist some competent person in preparing a plan for planting and grouping flowers and trees and locating walks and drives. Much can be done with flowers at little cost. The neighbors will be glad to give phlox, iris and many other perennials. For covering an arbor or outbuilding, nothing is finer than clematis, with its beautiful clean foliage and its masses of white flowers. Honeysuckles will answer the same purpose. If roses are to be used, the crimson rambler will be found satisfactory. Of hardy bulbs, crocuses, tulips, peonies, irises are recommended; of annuals those should be selected which blossom while 'the school is in session, such as petunias, poppies, morning glories and nasturtiums. If the children take charge of this work, there will result added knowledge, increased enthusiasm and an ever growing love for the school. The wild flower garden of the Putnam school, Boston, was first planted in the spring of 1891 and, in the course of the first five years, 150 species of wild flowers were introduced. Among these were fourteen species of goldenrod, twenty of wild asters and other plants of field, forest and meadow, with twenty-eight species of ferns. To increase the beauty of the garden there were, added hardy chrysanthemums, rose bushes, ' phlox, sun- flowers, eleven kinds of iris, vines, etc. Most of the plants flourished in their new home, since care was taken to place them in conditions similar to those from which they were taken. They were used by the pupils in their elementary science lessons. The plants in bloom were described in written lessons and drawn with colored pencils or painted in water colors. Note- books were kept and into these were pasted characteristic parts of each plant studied ; these books, taken into the country during the summer vacations, enabled the pupils to identify growing flowers, or to discover new species to be studied on their return. After three wars' experience with the flower garden, a vacant lot near by was plowed and made into a vegetable garden. Girls as well as boys took part in planting and caring for the garden, developing skill and endurance in the work and in some cases they insisted upon doing all the labor themselves, including even the first spading of the ground. Among the vegetables raised were summer squashes, beets, carrots, parsnips, onions, tomatoes, radishes, lettuce, corn, bush beans, cabbages and tur- nips. Parents became interested in the work done by .the chil- dren and many home gardens of flowers and common vegetables were planted as the. result of this training. As was to be expected, the moral influence of this work upon the children has been most helpful. A sense of responsibility, the exercise of self-denial for the sake of future results, the training in industry and carefulness, these and other like con- siderations are to be added to the physical and intellectual bene- fits received. This experiment has proved that it is exceedingly helpful to school work for teachers and pupils to be bound together by common interests. In the State of Vermont the Department of Education has recognized the newly awakened interest in Nature study by issuing circulars upon such topics as "Nature Study and School Homes," "The Trees of Vermont," "School Sanitation." "The Study of Trees" and "The Study of Birds." The Rhode Island school report for 1901 contains a valuable article on the topic "School Gardens in Cities," treating of the work in Europe and the United States. The writer states that there are now over 100,000 school gardens in Europe, of which 5,000 are in Sweden, 30,000 in France and 10,000 have been made in the villages of Russia since the freeing of the serfs, in 1 86 1. They were introduced into Germany 80 years ago. In Belgium, since 1873, the law has required each school to have a garden to be used in connection with instruction in botany, horti- culture and agriculture. In France no plan for a school build- ing, to which the state contributes, has been accepted since 1887 IMPROPERLY ARRANGED ONE ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE. B — Bench, C — Chimney, D — Desks, d — Door, S — Stove, T— Teacher's Table, W— Window. W6 W6 PROPERLY ARRANGED ONE ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE. B C— Bookcase, C— Chimney, D— Desk, d— Door, P T— Primary Pupils' Table, S J— Stove Jacket, S— Stove, T T— Teacher's Table, W— Window, W bb— Wood Boxes, W B— Water Buckets. unless it made provision for a garden. In the United States the work is more recent, but a good beginning has been made in various parts of the country. The Hesperia movement of Michigan recognizes the need of a more intimate knowledge of the schools on the part of parents and other citizens. It seeks to meet this need through a series of meetings held in each county every year under the auspices of "Teachers' and Patrons' Associations." These meetings con- tinue for a number of days and the programs include papers and discussions of school interests from the standpoint of parents, teachers and school officials. In some counties of the State the Associations hold numerous local meetings with one general meeting during the year. The Associations, through their Executive Committees, prepare reading courses for their members. The Teachers' and Patrons' Associations aim to bring about school improvement by means of a general quickening of public interest in the schools. They do not themselves undertake to accomplish specific results. These results they leave to be wrought out by the individual members. The expenses of the meetings are provided for by the annual membership fee which, in most Associations, is fifty cents. A prominent factor in the success of the Hesperia movement has been the Grange in whose halls the meetings are usually held and whose officers and members have been prominent in pro- moting the Teachers' and Patrons' Associations. This movement has been of incalculable benefit to the schools of Michigan because of the broader knowledge of their work and the more intimate acquaintance with their needs that have "been gained by the people. Out of it have undoubtedly come many material improvements in the condition and surroundings of the Michigan schools. The Georgia scheme of model schools aims primarily to show the importance of manual training in the rural schools. The Federation of Women's Clubs of Georgia, appreciating the importance of manual training and domestic science, agreed to establish a model school in the county offering the greatest inducement. 10 ^ \J~FRB.Srt /l/R. ^ Foundation Plan FLOOR PLAN FOR ONE ROOM RURAL SCHOOLHOUSE. B C— Bookcase, B D T— Book and Dictionary Table, D— Doors, P P T— Primary Pupils' Table, S— Stove, S J— Stove Jacket, T D— Teacher's Desk, W — Windows, W B — Water Buckets, Arrows — Furnace Reg- isters. II The school was established at Danielsville and has now in attendance two hundred and fifty pupils. As a result of its establishment three other counties of the State have been led to found similar schools. Among the conditions that have to be met in establishing these schools are the following: — The school building and equipment shall be adequate, the surroundings neat and attrac- tive and the teaching force trained and efficient. These schools receive visits from citizens and teachers from other sections of the counties in which they are located and, as a result of these visits, the importance of better physical sur- roundings and trained teachers is seen. The lessons thus learned are helpful to all the schools of the State. Georgia is making heroic efforts to raise the grade of her public schools. The scheme of county model schools furnishes a visible example of correct school conditions and is proving a helpful agency in bringing the schools of the State to a com- mendable standard. VALUE 01? THIS WORK. As the general style of living improves, the school must keep pace with this march or cease to be one of the agencies in the world's progress. What was good enough for the fathers is not good enough for the children. The whole style of living has changed. The log house of the settler and the log school house for his children went appropriately together; but now, with our homes of comfort and beauty, corresponding changes must be made in our schoolrooms. In some cases these improvements have been made and the schools, with their equipment and sur- roundings, are in harmony with the other institutions of the community. In many instances, however, the schools have not received the attention they merit and it is evident the time has come for giving serious attention to their betterment. No one urges that we go back to stage coaches, to log cabins, to old- fashioned plows, to home-spun clothing, and no one should be content with former conditions for our schools, either in their appliances or methods. Mark Hopkins on one end of a log and the voungf Garfield on the other might illustrate, bv keen dis- 12 cussion, the central life of a university ; but no sane man would thereby argue that extensive buildings, spacious grounds and modern apparatus are not essential to the work the university must do today. What has been made to answer in the past will not do now ; everything must be adjusted to the demands of the present and of the near future. The needs of those who are to come after us must be taken into account, since many of the improvements to be made are intended to be permanent in their character. The extent of the grounds, the size of the school buildings, the trees and shrubs to be planted, these and many other things must be decided upon after taking into consideration the changed conditions which the passing years will bring. Every permanent improvement justi- fies a liberality of expenditure not warranted in any changes of a temporary nature. How often the mistake has been made of planning and building on too small a basis only to find that, in a few years, the growth of the community requires a complete reconstruction of the whole plant. The sanitary arrangements should be carefully adjusted at the start and should thereafter be kept in the best possible condition. An "abomination of desolation" is none too strong a term to describe the outbuildings of some of our schools in the past, if not in the present. In our city and village schools, where there is a water supply, the best modern plumbing should be used and should be frequently inspected. In every case the utmost care should be taken that, in this matter, there be no occasion for offense either from a sanitary or aesthetic point of view. Tasteful coloring of the walls and ceilings, appropriate pic- tures and other ornaments will give a cheerful, homelike ap- pearance to the room that will add to its attractiveness and strengthen the hold of the school upon the heart and mind of the pupils. If children could only enter the schoolroom with the zest and gladness with which they leave it ! And why not ? Is it not true that "In every period of life the acquisition of knowl- edge is one of the most pleasing employments of the human mind, but in youth there are reasons which make it productive of higher enjoyment?" Make the schoolroom as beautiful as our best homes ; let the kindly, cheerful spirit of the family be 13 brought into it ; let the school building have a proper setting of lawn and trees and shrubbery and flowers; let it have its ample playground and school garden and, perhaps, the creeping with snail-like pace to school will be more rare. By a strange para- dox the luxuries of life are sometimes more needful than the necessities : or perhaps a better statement would be that what some regard as luxuries in school furnishing are, from the right A PRACTICAL AND ECONOMICAL ONE ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE. Building plan. 26ft x 36ft outside measurement. point of view, absolute necessities. As every advance in civili- zation makes new demands for greater conveniences of living, so every improvement in educational methods demands addi- tional facilities. The school building should be attractive without as well as within, made so not by excess of ornamentation, but by sym- metry of form and simplicity of style. It would be difficult to estimate the influence for good of such a school home upon the 14 pupils and indeed upon the entire community. A true apprecia- tion of the work of the school, as manifested by such surround- ings, will tend to give it respect and dignity. The man of busi- ness who should model his store after the style of many of our school buildings would be doomed to failure from the start. In these days there are so many counter attractions, so many allure- ments to entice our children elsewhere, so many forms of amuse- ment, so many inducements to short cuts and brief courses of study, that whatever will tend to bind our young people more closely to school and to home has an untold value and usefulness. If home and school are to compete with these temptations, they must be fortified with every excellence they can possess. Such considerations give additional weight to the statement that "It is a poor type of school nowadays that has not a good play- ground attached." The question of school athletics has become an important one and, if our boys and young men are to participate in modern school games, there can surely be no place where they can do it more safely than on the school grounds, under the oversight of the school authorities. While the regular school work must never be neglected for these, they may be so regulated as to strengthen the bond of attachment for the school and to foster a school spirit that is most desirable. This spirit of loyalty to the school will find expression in a pride in the school grounds and in a readiness to assist in caring for them. Even before any of our states observed Arbor Day, in some schools a day in the early spring was devoted to an excursion to the woods for trees and shrubs and the planting of these upon the school grounds. As every feeling becomes intensified by expression, so the interest of citizens and pupils in the school will be heightened if some such opportunity is given for its mani- festation. By co-operation in this work a spirit of comradeship will be developed, binding together the school and its* neighbors in a spirit of good fellowship. It is better that the children share in the work, or even be entirely responsible for it, than that these things be paid for by the town. The co-operation of the teachers and scholars, the kindly feeling engendered, a love for the school and loyalty to it, a taste for the beautiful and an elevating and refining influence that will be felt throughout the community are 15 among- the results which give value to the work here suggested. The desire for improvement thus awakened will prove conta- gious and many a home will become a center of grace and cul- ture. The observance of the principles of neatness and order with- out the school building will have great influence upon the work within. Refinement, courtesv, accuracv will be more easilv at- ^^SSmif A PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF NO. 7. tained when the surrounding conditions are favorable. Envi- ronment is so potent a factor that its assistance is necessary to the best results. The changes taking place in methods of education, the addi- tions made to the number of subjects taught, the broader edu- cation now demanded for either business or professional life, the i6 strain and stress of modern school life with its tests, its exam- inations, its percentages, all these and other like considerations, demand that the school work be pursued under the most helpful, cheerful and healthful conditions possible. With the increased wealth of the country and the rapid development of its resources, there is no- good reason why every facility should not be given to secure the best possible training for the most important and valuable product of the age, the children. As school life is to play so large a part in shaping their character and destiny, it is not too much to ask for it the best attainable equipment and surroundings. Adequate and beautiful buildings, ample and attractive grounds and suitable appliances will be found to be the truest economy and the highest wisdom. One important result coming from extensive grounds for city schools will be found in the increased interest in Nature and in rural life. An appreciation of the charms of the country fos- tered by the study of birds and flowers, by school gardens, lawns and groves may save many a one from the allurements of city life. That farmer is wise who gives his children land for their own care and profit and, by papers, magazines, books and social opportunities, makes country life attractive. Improved forms of machinery have lessened the drudgery of the farm ; horses now do much of the work formerly done by the slower oxen or by hand labor ; rural free delivery brings the daily paper to the door and by giving the young people some definite share in the results of the labor of the farm we may help to retain them among the safer influences of rural life. CONDITIONS IN MAINE). The abolition of school districts, the employment of superin- tendents for city schools, the union of two or more smaller towns in a district for securing a trained superintendent, the consoli- dation of smaller schools and the free transportation of their pupils have done much towards that most to be desired end, the furnishing of "equal school privileges to all children of school age in the State." As so many of our schools are in rural localities it may be thought that any project for the improvement of school buildings and grounds would meet with little favor and result in slight benefit; but any one slightly acquainted with the facts can see at once the necessity of such action and realize its possibilities for good. The smallest as well as the largest school building in the State ought to be a thing of beauty. There is greater need of a finely modeled school edifice in a rural section than in a city. In the latter there are so many beautiful homes, churches and other buildings that additional examples are of less moment. A simi- lar principle applies to the parks and public gardens of the city. «<» FRONT VIEW OF NO. 7. These can never serve as substitutes for large open spaces around the school, nor can they be used as school gardens, but they may, perhaps, make the necessity for the latter less impera- tive. In a rural community where land is less expensive, where trees, wild flowers, ferns and shrubs are close at hand, there is no excuse for leaving the school lot desolate. The school garden may be less necessary where every family has a garden in its own home grounds, but it may be said that the school garden may, in competent hands, serve as a model that shall be of great benefit i8 to the whole neighborhood and so far as the wild flowers and ferns are concerned there is no danger that the school garden will suffer from any rivalship. Its mission of education is need- ed to open the eyes to the beautiful things that are close at hand and can be readily procured. The study of botany is immedi- ately practical to those who have the largest opportunity of observation. Even the oldest inhabitant may have little knowl- edge of the botanical treasures that are lurking near by in swamp and woods and meadow. If the children have their interest early awakened in the plants and birds about them it will give to life an added zest and charm. A well ordered, well kept school garden would not only give instruction in the best practical methods in horticulture, but would give an introduction to the plant life of the vicinity and, in many cases, would so open the eyes of the pupils and others influenced by them as to give a closer and happier relationship with Nature and a broader and more generous view of life. Improved methods and appliances in gardening would give an additional interest to life in the country. Why should not our children be taught to take something of that interest in Nature which so delights one in the writings of Thoreau or Emerson, of John Burroughs or of Bradford Torrey? To enrich the school life of the country boy with a wider knowledge of trees and flowers, of birds and other animals would be of great prac- tical value to him in whatever circumstances his subsequent life might be spent. Interest in such objects is a source of perennial pleasure. One cherishes in memory special occasions of suc- cesses or surprises in finding rare flowers or unusual numbers of more common ones and enjoys again their beauty as Words- worth so quaintly expresses it in his poem on "The Daffodils." "I gazed and gazed, but little thought What wealth that show to me had brought. For oft when on my couch I lie, In vacant or in pensive mood. They flash upon that inward eye Which is the bliss of solitude ; And then my heart with pleasure fills And dances with the daffodils." That education is practical which enables us to make all Nature tributary to our aesthetic enjoyment and mental and 19 moral growth. It is as important to learn the vegetable produc- tions of one's own town as it is to know -that tea is grown in The blackboard plan. Suggestions for the planting of a corner school-yard. China or coffee in Brazil. Such knowledge sometimes has immediate practical value. Persons are often severely poisoned by handling plants poisonous to the touch of those who are sensitive to their influence. Better school buildings, furnishings, grounds, are important factors in the general progress of the State. The schools must furnish the best material surrounding and finest intellectual stimulus if the}' are to fulfil the constantly increasing demands laid upon them. 20 HOW TO INTEREST PUPILS IN THIS WORK. Our whole system of education exists, primarily, for the bene- fit of the children and, unless they are interested and have a share in everything connected with the school, they will reap but little advantage from what is done. They must be consulted and induced to co-operate from the beginning. The best help is that which teaches self-help. We must appeal to the desire to be of service. Nothing pleases a child more than to have the teacher ask for some trifling assistance which he can easily render. A wise teacher will attach her pupils to her by making them her assistants in various matters of school detail. Just as in a well regulated home children may be made to share in its work and held responsible for such matters as are within their ability, so both within and without the school they will be glad to co- operate in making changes and improvements. A special task may be assigned to a particular group in such a way that the assignment will be regarded as an honor and will indeed be con- sidered a reward for faithfulness in school work. Some one of the group may be chosen leader and it will be found that a feel- ing of responsibility, a sense of usefulness, a joy in service may be developed that will have great value in many ways. If a spirit of emulation should arise, even this feeling may be utilized if care be taken that it does not degenerate into a spirit of unwholesome rivalry. In some cases a particular day, May Day, for example, may be devoted to work upon the grounds, or to excursions to neigh- boring woods for trees, shrubs, flowering plants and ferns. If friends outside the school are asked to share in the excursion, the trip may result in enlisting the community in the work. It is a great gain when the pupils come to feel that the school is their school, and that they are responsible for making it what it ought to be. The results obtained by united effort in improving exterior conditions and interior arrangements will tend to more hearty co-operation in raising the work of the schoolroom itself to its highest standard. Sympathetic relations between teacher and scholars have great value, but good order, gained by kindly feeling, or with its accompaniment, cannot be too highly prized. That teacher is wise who permits her pupils to do helpful acts even when she could more easily do them herself, because the 21 greater the interest and share taken by the pupils in beautifying the grounds and rooms, the greater will be the value of these improvements to the school. The common or nursery type of planting. The proper or pictorial type of planting. By tact the pupils may be led to do much for the development of a school spirit which will be of the utmost value. Committees may be appointed for special work, as a committee on bulbs for spring planting, on roses, wild or cultivated, on climbing plants, on wild flowers, on ferns, on the mowing of the lawn, or any one of the many things that need to be done. Where there are regular courses and classes with graduation, the senior class may wish to do something to connect their names permanently with the school. A picture may be pur- chased, or a bust, or medallion, or clock ; or a tree may be planted, or a flowering shrub, or some climbing plant and, if the custom be continued, in a few years valuable results will follow. Often the teacher will find it as needful to check and regulate as to awaken and foster the zeal of the pupils. The foregoing suggestions, if faithfully followed, will prove to be of great value in their influence on the school. HOW TO AWAKEN AN INTEREST ON THE PART OE THE COM- MUNITY. This is a problem that may prove to be more difficult of solu- lution ; but as this co-operation is of vital importance to the suc- cess of the enterprise, it must be gained at whatever cost. On general principles it would seem best to proceed along the line of least resistance and consult first the person most likely to favor the movement. In splitting wood it is sometimes better to rive off pieces from the sides of the stick, where they cleave off easily, and leave the central knot to the last, unsplit if need be ; in other cases strike first at the central difficulty and the rest is easy. It may be well to enlist first those who are the acknowledged lead- ers in the community while at the same time a special effort should be made to conciliate those who are likely to oppose the work. If a majority of the citizens can be reached and made to feel the importance of the enterprise, that its success is necessary to bring the town into line with the general progress of the times, it ought not to be difficult to gain their support and thus bring the whole neighborhood into sympathy with the work. Want of interest in most cases grows out of lack of accurate knowledge and, if the facts in the case are stated clearly, patiently waiting until they be fully understood, most people will be found willing to provide for their children what they are convinced is needful for their good. It is natural for persons to desire to be con- sulted in relation to matters towards which they are expected to contribute. There must be no taxation without representation. The way in which the first steps are taken may make, or mar, the 23 work attempted. So long as it is true that, in any place, men have provided, relatively, more comfortable buildings for the housing uf their dumb animals than for the schooling of their children, so long there will be, not only occasion, but urgent necessity for wisely directed missionary effort. When sufficient interest shall have been developed a public meeting may be called and conditions and needs clearly outlined. The facts will speak for themselves, but there will be need of This illustrates the school grounds after some years' growth, the grounds being originally laid out after plan shown in No. I. patience. The erection of a new building to replace the inade- quate one that disgraces the town, the addition of land to the too meagre lot, the fencing of the grounds and their proper grading and planting, suitahle furniture and equipment within, all these must usually come as a result of much discussion and of patient waiting. The general interests of the community demand that these things he furnished and all good citizens will be ready, when convinced of their need, to hear their part of the expense. Parents are best reachd and most interested in many of these matters through their children. The school and the home are so closely connected that hints, suggestions and talks given in the school will bring the subject into discussion at home. A definite 24 plan for the improvement of the school grounds will be likely to find approval and the needed assistance will be readily secured. The home surroundings will probably show the effects of the same spirit. Results far wider than those directly sought will be likely to follow. Pride in the school grounds and helpful- ness in improving them will readily develop into an interest in school work. A dainty bit of shrubbery. how to secure; the enlargement of the grounds. The size of the school lot depends upon the conception of what the school is to be. If it is to be a mere place for assigning and hearing lessons, a comparatively small area will be sufficient. But with an enlarged idea of the mission of the school as the cen- ter of a many sided busy life of study and recreation, of social and moral influences, of the learning of many things quite as important as a knowledge of books, larger grounds are impera- tively demanded. It has been said that the school grounds are the theatre where elementary problems of society and citizenship are worked out through the independent action of the child at 25 play. Play is too important an element in child growth to be hampered even for the purpose of preserving beautiful lawns and artistic flower beds. Ample playgrounds are essential to that vigorous health with- out which the mind cannot be alert and vigorous in its grasp of truth. Suitable spaces must separate the school from any SKETCH OF PLANTING Plan No. I. possible source of disturbance or contamination, physical or moral. If pure air is to be secured ; if there are to be trees and shrubbery and flowers and walks ; if the birds are to be wel- comed ; if all the surroundings are to be beautiful and healthful and uplifting, then larger grounds are needed. An acre will serve, but three or five acres would be much better. It is an 26 important question how this enlarged conception and its fulT realization can be secured. The friends of the movement must have a clear conviction of the necessity for additional grounds and then must do missionary work to convince all persons con- cerned that the proposed plans are reasonable and practicable. •mmv A border planting of trees. r i CL-. Trees enough in the center, but the place needs a background. When the citizens are aroused to a sense of the necessity o£ doing something the means for accomplishing the desired object will usually be found. Sometimes it will come by gifts from, some person of wealth, sometimes by solicited subscriptions,, sometimes by appropriations voted by the town. 27 The larger the city an 1 the more compact its population, the greater the necessity for ample areas about the school buildings. Most unfortunate arc the city children whose school lot is so small that the steps from the school doors lead directly to the brick pavements of the street and the rear court is a tiny space shut in by iron fences. The school may become an annoyance to its neighbors if it b-> placed too near them. It should be so retired that it will not be disturbed by the distractions of the street, or by any noisy voca- tion that may be carried on near by ; it should also be so secluded that the shouting of the children at their sports will not be a source of disturbance even to their nearest neighbors. The joyous clamor of the school grounds is an essential part of the school life and must not be prohibited by command or sur- roundings. A row of willows makes the place attractive. HOW TO LAY OUT THE GROUNDS. This will depend upon the size of the lot and how much is to be contained in it. If provision is to be made upon the school lot for athletic playgrounds then the}" should be well removed from the school building and laid out according to the estab- lished rules given in the manuals on the respective games. These should not usurp the place of the general playground, which should be placed well back from the street, but nearer to the school building:. 28 The school building itself should stand at least ioo ft. from the street line and, if possible, at about the same distance from the nearer side of the lot. Elm trees, or trees of a similar growth, may be placed at inter- vals along the street front in a single row so far apart that their A picture of which a schoolhouse is the central figure. An attractive schoolhouse and grounds. branches will never meet, but no low growing trees or shrubbery should obscure the view of the building from the street. If there be one front, main entrance, there may be one wide straight walk from the street to the front door ; but usually it would be prefer- -'•) able to have two winding paths meeting at the front door thus leaving the space in front to be occupied by a well kept lawn. The paths may begin near the outer limits of the lot describing graceful curves across the grounds and bordered by low shrubs or flowering bushes such as roses, weigelias, or hardy hydran- geas. The inner sides of the walks next to the front of the lawn may be lined by narrow beds of low flowering shrubs or hardy School grounds. From a photograph. The same grounds beautified, perennials, or these beds may be planted with hardy bulbs for early flowering-, with annuals planted among them for later blooming. A few beds of showy flowers may be placed on either or both sides of the buildings, but the wild flower garden and the vegetable garden would better be placed farther back. The entire lot, except the street line on the front or on two sides, if the lot is a corner one, may properly be surrounded by an irregular, some- what compact and varied mass of trees and, shrubbery of differ- 30 A five years' growth. 3i ent sizes and styles of growth, comprising maples, chestnuts, birches, ashes, cherries, walnuts, oaks, spruces, firs, hemlocks, larches, willows and even alders and hazels, if the conditions are favorable. The idea is not to show the beauty of a single tree, but to border the grounds by varied groups and masses in such a way as to make a fitting frame work to enclose the picture which the buildings and more open grounds around it are to form. A neat fence may be placed around the whole, if local conditions render it necessary. Even then the more completely the fence is ' hidden from within the lot, by its screen of variegated hedgerow, the better. It should not be necessary, in any well conducted community, to fence the street line. There should be no trees so near the school- houses as to shade any considerable portion of the building or to conceal any part of the picture which the entire school premises are to form. What would answer well enough for nursery or orchard planting is entirely out of place on school grounds and, however else the trees may be set, they must not be made to stand in straight lines. In setting trees, a better effect will be secured if they are crowded more closely together than they can stand later ; then if some of the trees should fail to establish themselves, they will be less missed. They must be remorselessly cut out and thinned to the desired distance as soon as they begin to encroach upon one another. If lack of a water system for the town compels the use of out- houses, then these may be screened by well arranged clusters of arbor vitse, spruce or fir and a compact, broad line of these trees may soon replace the high fences or screens which are at first necessary. Nothing should be tolerated on the school grounds which would be objectionable on the best regulated home grounds in the community. All the influences surrounding our children should be as refining and elevating as possible. HOW TO GRADE THE GROUNDS. It would be better not to grade the grounds, than to reduce them to that dead level which many persons seem to think the normal condition for the school lot. The fields and courts for the athletic games should be nearly or quite level. In other 32 parts, as the lawns and gardens, there may be some considerable differences of elevation. The proper drainage of every part is most essential. The school building must be located in an airy, dry, slightly elevated position with good drainage in every direc- tion. No part of the lot should be so low as to receive the washings from adjoining property. Such considerations are the more important in places where there is no regular system of sewerage. The building should stand well above the street level so that the surface of the front part of the lot may slope grad- ually to the street and still be sufficiently elevated not to be injuri- ously affected by any probable raising of the grade of the road in front of the grounds. The schoolhouse should be so placed as to have a gradual slope on the other three sides of the lot. The grade of the lot must be decided upon before the walls of the cellar are laid and certain parts may be lowered and others raised, as may be needed, at any time before the building is occupied. The basement walls should rise at least three and one-half feet above the grade of the earth outside. The windows in these walls should be large enough to keep the basement well lighted and thoroughly ventilated. The condition of this room is very important and any neglect at this point is dangerous to the health of the entire school. No school can be either safe or successful that is not provided with pure air and pure water. The water must come from a spring or carefully guarded well. LOCATION OF DRIVES AND WALKS. If the lot be comparatively small, the only road needed is one leading to the rear of the building for the conveyance of the fuel supply. The same road may also be used for admission of pupils to the rear or side entrance and it would preferably enter the grounds from some other roadway than the one in front of the school. But if the lot be as large as has been previously sug- gested, a winding road may be made from the street in front of the grounds to the side entrances or to short paths leading to the front entrance. These drives may wind through different parts of the grounds as desired and they should be bordered by flower beds, flowering shrubs and the smaller trees. These roads 33 will be so little used that they may serve as walks as well as drives ; but narrower, curving footpaths may be added for reach- ing the flower garden, the wild flowers, the vegetable garden or play grounds. If the drives enter the grounds at two places from the road in front, then one of these entrances may be used, exclusively, for entering the school premises and the other for leaving them and in that case the drives need not be as wide as if there were to be frequent passing of one carriage by another. The line between the paths and the drives on the one side and the lawn and turf on the other should be made clear-cut and should be kept so. They should be slightly rounded, well graveled and properly cared for. If the school grounds are made as beautiful as they ought to be, parents and friends of the pupils and even strangers will be glad to inspect them and all such visits should be welcomed as tending to give new interest in" their proper care. Attractive and convenient grounds will stimulate pupils to take greater pride and interest in their school. PLANTING TREES, FLOWERS AND SHRUBS. Whoever plants a tree, in a proper position, becomes thereby a public benefactor. More than seventy years ago a man who had just built a house in one of our Maine villages went into the woods and found a small elm tree that divided near the ground into two trunks. He carried the tree to his home, separated the two with an axe and planted one on either side of the space before the house. Now they are magnificent trees, almost unrivaled in their symmetrical beauty. The trees remain, a liv- ing monument to the prevision of him who planted them. A long look ahead is what every one must take who would plant trees correctly. He must see, not the small tree he is setting, but the tree that is to be, long after he is gone. With ordinary means for transporting, small trees should be selected rather than larger ones. For elms and maples, eight or ten feet high is about the right size. These establish themselves more quickly than larger trees, are less injured by removal and are more likely to live. The extra work needed to remove and replant, correctly, the trees chosen, will be more than repaid by 3 34 the increased probability of their living and the greater rapidity of growth. A space about five or six feet in diameter should be carefully spaded to the depth of at least two feet. The soil should then be thoroughly broken and, unless already very rich, should be mixed with good loam and with fine manure. For the actual setting out of the trees doubtless no better directions could be suggested than those given by the Forestry Division of the Agricultural Department at Washington. "Planting is best done by two or three persons. A, who manipulates the tree, is the planter and is responsible for the results. B and C do the spading under his direction. A places the tree in a hole to ascertain whether this is the proper size ; a broad stick laid across the hole aids in judging- the depth. Trees should not be set deeper than they were before except in loose, poor soil. More trees are killed by too deep planting than the reverse." As an illustration of this point it may be stated that trees are frequently killed, without removal, by raising the grade so that the soil is raised about their trunks a few inches higher than before. Valuable trees are frequently destroyed in this way. "If the root system is developed sidewise, but not cen- trally, as is often the case, a hill is raised in the hole to fill out the hollow space in the root system and the earth of the hill is patted down with the spade." "When the hole is in proper order, A holds the tree perpen- dicularly in the middle of the hole, with the side bearing the full- est branches towards the south or the southeast, for better protec- tion of the shaft against the sun. B and C spread the roots into a natural position and then fill in the soil, using the good surface soil first, — small spadefuls deliberately thrown over the roots in all directions, — while A, by a slight shaking and pumping up and down of the stem, aids the earth in settling around the rootlets, which should also be aided by hand and fingers filling in every crevice. A, while setting the tree, must exercise care to keep it in proper position and perpendicular, until the soil is packed so as to keep the tree in place. Then B and C rapidly fill the hole, A treading the soil firmly down after a sufficient quantity is filled in, finishing off a little above the general level to allow for set- tling and, finally, placing stones or any mulching around the stem." "Do not use water while planting unless it is very care- fully applied with a 'rose' after the soil is filled in and packed 35 around the fibrous roots. It is not uncommon to see water poured in the hole while it is being filled up. This practice does harm rather than good, for it washes the fine soil away from close contact with the roots, leaving- empty spaces between the roots, or even leaving, as the water dries and the earth hardens, the little rootlets in the midst of hollows like the inside of pipe- stems. In such a case they cannot touch the earth which gives them nutriment and they die. More trees are killed by too much water in transplanting than by too little. Water after the trans- planting is useful, and should be applied during the hot season, the late afternoon or evening being chosen for its application." Great care is also necessary in taking up the trees and protect- ing them until they are reset. If the tree is small and is to be moved but a short distance, it may be well to take up a ball of earth and allow it to remain on the roots ; but this would be an exception to the general rule. It might answer for a small pine or other evergreen, not more than, three or four feet high, and some vey excellent results are secured in this way. Ordinarily it is better to remove the original soil, taking great care to pre- serve as many of the smaller roots as possible and to protect these carefully from drying by exposure to sun or wind. It is not best to lop off the branches or cut the top off squarely, according to a too common custom, until what is left resembles a beanpole. A plant breathes through its leaves and, if it is to live and thrive, it must have a chance to develop a large amount of leaf surface. The loss of root surface, which will be slight if proper care is used, may be balanced by a judicious thinning out of the branches. Small branches may be cut off close to the trunk without harm. If no stump or projecting knot is left, the tree will soon cover the wound with new bark and decay will not penetrate to the heart of the tree. The same rule is to be followed in all pruning, namely, cut off the branch or limb as close to the parent branch or trunk as possible. After the tree has been well set it may be mulched with straw, spent tan bark, meadow hay or lawn clippings. The tree must not be used as a hitching post. If a drouth should occur before the trees are well established and the leaves show signs of withering, the surface soil should be loosened, enriched with fresh loam or fertilizer and then water given as needed. Fresh food will be necessary as well as water. Deciduous trees may be transplanted in the 36 early spring before the leaf buds have opened ; evergreen trees may be planted later. For many parts of the school grounds shrubs are more appro- priate than trees and may be placed nearer the school build- ing. In some cases, as where the basement wall extends well above the ground, they may soften the hard, angular lines be- tween the house and the ground and thus form masses of foliage about the base of the building. The hardy hydrangeas, spireas, syringas, lilacs, viburnums and elders are among the shrubs that may be used for this purpose. A hedge of common wild roses would be attractive when in bloom and not unpleasing when not in flower. Fortunately we have many shrubs that well deserve a place in the school yard. The hobble-bush is beautiful in blos- som and in its foliage; the high cranberry and its sterile form, the snowball, the elders, willows, dogwood, sumac, witch-hazel, thorn apple, mountain ash and others may also be used. The sides of the school lot not lying along the street should be lined with an irregular mass of trees and shrubs that should more nearly resemble the broken edges of our native woods than the prim straight line in which trees are often set. If the schoolhouse is of brick or stone, then the bare walls may be broken into smaller spaces by ivy, clematis and wood- bine. If the building be of wood, the vines may be supported on trellises. Vines are not so appropriate for a wooden building, on account of the painting required by such buildings, but, by the use of proper care, the trellis may be placed far enough from the wall to permit of painting without destroying the plant. There are endless varieties of flowers which may be used to add beauty and charm to the school lot. In many cases these can be obtained with but slight cost from the homes and gardens of the neighborhood. Others may be purchased at small ex- pense. Bulbs of crocuses, tulips and hyacinths, planted in the fall for spring blooming, are easily cared for and are very effec- tive. Many hardy bulbs once planted will continue to afford an abundance of flowers for several years. Lilies, peonies, irises and similar plants continue from year to year with little care. Many hardy perennials give like results. Constant care is nec- essary for the greatest measure of success, but little care is repaid by rewards well worth the having. When the soil has been properly prepared by digging, pulverizing and enriching, then 37 asters, petunias, poppies, phlox, verbenas and, for climbers, sweet peas, mottling glories, nasturtiums and many others may be planted and cared for with confident hope of success. I f seeds are purchased from responsible dealers the directions on the packages may be safely followed. It will generally be found more satisfactory to have many varieties and large num- bers of some special flowers as dahlias, tulips, lilies and gerani- ums, rather than to introduce a great number of different species or novelties. Twenty varieties of the dahlia would make a beau- tiful hedge or a large bed. The same might be said of tulips, lilies, hyacinths, petunias, verbenas, so far as their adding effec- tiveness to each other is concerned. Many varieties of sweet peas may be put together and each enhance the beauty of the other ; the same is true of nasturtiums and many other plants. The planting of wild flowers and ferns must not be forgotten. As our forests are felled and the land cleared, and cultivated, many of our wild flowers become rarer and will soon be extermi- nated unless care is taken to perpetuate them. The secret of success in such effort lies in closely studying the natural condi- tions and carefully reproducing them. Plants often respond to cultivation with increased size and beauty. The spring beauty, Dutchman's breeches, hepatica, anemone, bloodroot, partridge vine, violet, adder's tongue, columbine, swamp pink, aster, gold- enrod, ferns and other wild plants, if carefully transplanted, will be a source of great benefit and pleasure. They are often the most interesting where they are least known. LOCATION AND PREPARATION OF PLAYGROUNDS. Playgrounds are an absolute necessity. This necessity is felt more to-day than ever before and is destined to grow stronger each year. In all our cities and villages the day has passed when pupils may safely use the street as a playground. Play is as essential a part of the child's life and as useful to him as is study or any form of work. It would be difficult to find any part of the day that does as much for the mental, moral and physical welfare of the child as the time spent upon the playground. The additional strength given by exercise is only one part of the benefit received. The playground is a little world with its own problems and interest. On this arena tact, management, leader- ship, quickness of thought and action and many other qualities 38 come into use. Here also lessons are learned and acquaintances formed that will not soon be forgotten. The teachers should have a watchful care over these sports, by sharing in them, or by general oversight, as circumstances in each case may dictate. Playgrounds may be divided into two- classes — those for ordi- nary play and plays which the children may extemporize for the occasion and those arranged for sports under the general name of "athletics." For the first class there should be two or more plots, near the schoolhouse itself, to be used at recess and for short periods before or after school. They should be large enough to accommodate two or more different games at the same time. The place selected should be plowed, leveled, underdrained and, if necessary, overlaid with coarse, followed by finer gravel and well rolled. A slight slope will carry off the water and there should be no depressions where water may stand, or clayey places to become muddy. The fields designed for athletics may be farther away and, for their size and plotting, hand books of the several games should be consulted. The place these games shall occupy in school life, how they shall be regulated, whether match games shall be allowed between different schools, are among the most important questions of our present educational system. It may at least be said that all such games should be permitted only under proper supervision and regulation by the school authorities. They should be so conducted as to be un- tainted by any suspicion of professionalism or unfairness. This result may be more easily secured on grounds that are under school control and for this and other obvious reasons it is desir- able that the school lot be large enough to include such grounds. LOCATION AND USE OF SCHOOL GARDENS. The area chosen for the school garden must, of necessity, vary with the size and shape of the lot. If the width of the lot is suf- ficient to permit, the flower beds may be placed near the front on the outer side of the drives which enter and leave the grounds on each side of the front lawn. They may extend back as far as the playground which may reach across the lot in the rear of the building, being divided from the other spaces by a hedge or screen as before stated. In the rear of the playgrounds may be placed the vegetable garden and, back of that, the wild flowers, 39 ending with ferns, shrubberv and trees. The order on each side of the lot from the street to the rear would then be, beds of flowers, playground, vegetable garden, wild flowers, ferns, shrubbery and trees. Somewhere among these shrubs and trees may be damp places where the mossy soil would be fitted for some of our more delicate flowers like the calypas and the cypri- pcdiums. From side to side across the front, back of its line of elms, the order would be, trees and shrubbery, flower beds, drive, low shrubs, walk, lawn, walk, low shrubs, drive, flower beds, shrubbery and trees. In city and country alike, the school garden has possibilities of great usefulness. The knowledge of plants gained in it may ( asily lead to the study of plants in other gardens, fields, woods, or river banks, and many a subject for story, description, or essay may thus be gathered. The best language lesson is one in which the pupil has something definite to say and is taught to say it correctly. It is hard enough for older people to evolve out of their inner consciousness ideas for expression and it is little short of cruelty to expect these results of children. The work of the school garden, a walk in the neighborhood, an informal talk about topics of common interest arising in connection therewith, may be followed by a written exercise that will be full of life and interest. Given something to say, the pupil will find some way to say it. The writings of Bradford Torrey, John Burroughs and many others will show how close may be the connection between clear- ness of observation and beauty of style. If children have at hand materials for observation, they can be the more readily taught how to put this material into correct language. An observing teacher will find on the school grounds many objects to be made use of in his school work. In one school in our State, having groups of trees upon its grounds, a teacher had just described to his pupils the habits of the butcher bird in kill- ing small birds and impaling them upon thorns when, looking from the window, he saw the tragedy enacted under his eyes at the very moment and was able at once to direct the attention of the class to the practical illustration of his teaching. Another teacher recalls with interest, after the lapse of more than twenty- five years, an essay written by a young man in which he gave a definite account of wdiat he had learned bv careful observation of 40 the habits of the chickadees in the trees near his home. What one sees clearly he can express the more vividly. Excellent material for lessons in drawing- with pencil or in colors may be found in the plants and flowers of the school gar- den. A branch from a wild rose bush, with buds and flowers and leaves, will form a much more attractive subject for draw- ing and color work than any object which lacks the charm of living reality. The advantages to be gained from lessons in practical gardening should also not be overlooked. Planting seeds in boxes and watching the various stages in plant develop- ment, now almost universally employed in our best schools in lessons on plants, may profitably be extended to out-of-door work. Such subjects as the best preparation of the soil for different seeds, the care of the young plants, the transplanting of seedlings, the space required for each, how to protect them from insects or other dangers, the cultivation needed at different stages of growth, hoeing, weeding, how to gather the results in the fall and the best methods of storing them for the winter can best be taught in the way indicated above. From all these exer- cises there will come a practical education and manual training that will be of great value, to say nothing of the reward in health and pleasure. If hotbeds and a greenhouse are added, then instruction may cover a larger portion of the year and be enhanced in value. The closer relations between teacher and pupil and between the school and community, resulting from such a course, would be of value not easily estimated. Imagine the pleasure with which a farmer or practical gardener would watch the growing interest in real things manifested by the children. Only good would come if drafts were made upon the experience of such persons for assistance in this work. The exercises of Memorial Day might be rendered more impressive by gifts of flowers from the school gardens and, if the sick room of a pupil or a friend of the school was cheered by the same kindly remembrance, the act would bring a double blessing. The relation of the trees and shrubs of the school yard to the birds is an interesting subject of study. Trees will attract the birds and, if they are welcomed and protected, their presence will be a constant pleasure. Unfortunately the English sparrows have usurped the places of our native birds to some extent in our 41 village and city streets. The protection of birds secured by- recent legislation and by the renewed interest in the study of them, has already borne good fruit. That thirty-five different species were seen in one morning before school within half a mile of one of our high schools is an illustration of what we may expect where birds are kindly treated. The new science of forestry is vital to the interests of our country. It is seeking to solve some of the most important economic problems and some of its elementary principles may be illustrated by the trees upon the school grounds. The trees will also speak to teachers and pupils in a many-voiced and most interesting language. The rustling of the leaves, the sighing of the wind through the branches, the hush that precedes the storm, or the roar that accompanies it, each has its music and charm. If the school grounds are to be made "vacation centers," according to recent methods, then there is all the more reason for making them beautiful. The value of the refining, elevating influence of the beautiful is beyond estimate. IMPROVEMENT OF THE EXTERIOR OF SCHOOL BUILDINGS. That the school buildings should be kept well painted might go without saying, were it not that the rule is disregarded in too many instances. If the house is tasteful in design, painting may be the only thing needed. A house should certainly be painted when necessary, since paint nearly or quite pays for itself in the protection it gives to the woodwork. Indeed it is almost an axiom that paint costs nothing. The improvement in appear- ance is therefore a matter of slight expense. The school house should compare favorably in attractiveness with the better class of dwelling houses in its vicinity. In some cases additions, adding greatly to the appearance of the buildings, may be made at small cost. A cupola containing a bell would pay for itself in the time gained by increased punc- tuality of attendance ; so that in this case also, the improvement in appearance would be so much gained. There are so many kinds of time in some communities that the ringing of the bell at regular periods would be of great service to the neighborhood as well as helpful in carrying out the school program. The question of properly lighting the rooms is an important one in any school. Two or three windows may be grouped 42 together, new windows may be inserted where needed, a change may be made in the paneling, or small panes may be replaced by larger ones. The roof may need shingling and the shingling may be ex- tended half way down the sides with good effect ; the entire shingling to be stained some tint harmonizing with the color of the clapboards below. The projection of the roof at the gables or the eaves may be extended to produce the best effect. Dormer windows may be inserted in the roof to light a hall for storage or other purposes. A neat vane, with indicators for the four cardinal points of the compass, may be added to the cupola. The entire building may need to be raised and a new foundation placed under it. A few vines and climbing plants may be used to soften the stiffness of the exterior and groups of low shrubs planned to break the hard lines between the wall and the ground. It would be money wasted to attempt to repair a building hopelessly antiquated and too small for its purpose and in such case a new building is the only remedy. This necessity will give opportunity for change of location, if that be best, so that the new house may be built on more suitable grounds and each add beauty to the other. One mistake, often made, should be guarded against. Do not build a two-room building of two stories, unless the rooms are much larger than usual; but build a one-story house with the foundation wall showing at least three feet above ground. Two rooms on one floor, with halls and cloak rooms between, are much better than a building with one room above the other. The two outer doors may be under one portico, if desired, and a covered driveway might well be added for use in stormy weather. DECORATING THE WALLS AND CEILING OE THE SCHOOLROOM. The wainscoting of the walls should extend from the floor to the lower part of the windows and of the blackboards and this wainscoting and the finish of the doors and windows and the doors themselves should be of yellow birch, oak, hard pine, q"«lj*i» , T" Section. o > Figure C. 7o 7i 72 Floor Plan of Longfellow School House. Coombs, Gibbs and Wilkinson, Architects, Lewiston, Me. 73 74 Floor Plan of Garfield School Building — two rooms. Coombs, Gibbs and Wilkinson, Architects, Lewiston, Me. 75 aiit«.w i »MaaiK> OODDDDODQ DDDDD DDDD DDDDDDDDD DDDD DDDDD DDDDDDD DDDDDDD Li □ □ □ D □ □ a d □ a □ □ a □ □ □ □ □ □ □ tzi o a n anno □. □ □ □ a □ □ p □ □ □ b □ □ □ □ a a a a a □ [J D D D D D DODDDD □DDDDD □□DDDD □DDDDD DDDDDD □DDDDD □DDDDD Floor Plan of Garfield School Building — three rooms. Coombs, Gibbs and Wilkinson, Architects, Lewiston, Me. 7 6 77 \ 78 $5 "B"^ "01 ~ ? 79 \ 8o -,«;->• ' . '