oung child is, at the best, feeling his way in the
process of adjusting himself to new experiences. For this reason, the
first work for the teacher in any lesson is to ascertain whether the
pupils are in a proper attitude for the new knowledge, and, so far as is
necessary, prepare their minds through the recall of such knowledge as
is related to the new experiences to be presented. Although, therefore,
the step of preparation is not an essential part of the learning
process, since it constitutes for the pupil merely a review of knowledge
acquired through previous learning processes, it may be accepted as a
step in the teacher's method of controlling the learning process.

EXAMPLES OF PREPARATION

The following additional examples as to the mode and form of the step of
preparation may be considered by the student-teacher:

In a lesson in phonic reading in a primary class, the preparation should
consist of a review of those sounds and those words which the pupil
already knows that are to be used in the new lesson. In a nature study
lesson on "The Rabbit," in a Form II class, the preparation should
include a recall of any observations the pupils may have made regarding
the wild rabbit. They may have observed its timidity, its manner of
running, what it feeds upon, where it makes its home, its colour during
the winter and during the summer, the kind of tracks it makes in the
snow, etc. All these facts will be useful in interpreting the new
observations and in assisting the pupils to make new inferences. In a
lesson in a Form III class on "Ottawa as a Commercial Centre," the
preparation consists of a recall of the pupil's knowledge regarding the
position of the city; the adjacent rivers, the Ottawa, Gatineau,
Rideau, Lievre, Madawaska; the waterfalls of the Rideau and Chaudiere;
the forests to the north and west, with their immense supplies of pine,
spruce, and hemlock; and the fact that it is the Dominion capital. All
these facts are necessary in inferring the causes of the importance of
Ottawa. In a literature lesson in a Form III class on _The Charge of the
Light Brigade_, the preparation would involve a recall of some deed of
personal heroism with which the pupils are familiar, such as that of
John Maynard, Grace Darling, or any similar one nearer home. Recall how
such a deed is admired and praised, and the memory of the doer is
cherished and revered. Then the teacher should tell the story of
Balaklava with all the d