Distractions by the teacher.—­Strange as it may seem, the teacher may himself be a distraction in the classroom.  Any striking mannerism, any peculiarity of manner or carriage, extreme types of dress, or any personal quality that attracts attention to itself is a distraction to the class.  One teacher may have a very loud or ill-modulated voice; another may speak too low to be heard without too much effort; another may fail to articulate clearly.  Whatever attracts attention to the speech itself draws attention away from the thought back of the speech and hinders the listener from giving his full powers to the lesson.

A distracting habit on the part of some teachers is to walk back and forth before the class, or to assume awkward postures in standing or sitting before the class, or nervously to finger a book or some object held in the hands.  All these may seem like small things, but success or failure often depends upon a conjunction of many small things, each of which in itself may seem unimportant.  It is often “the little foxes that spoil the vines.”

Avoiding physical distractions.—­In the church school, as in the public school, the physical conditions surrounding the recitation should be made as favorable as possible.  Not infrequently the children are placed for their lesson hour in seats that were intended for adults, and which are extremely uncomfortable for smaller persons.  The children’s feet do not touch the floor, and their backs can not secure a support; weariness, wriggling and unrest are sure to follow.  Sometimes the ventilation of the classroom is bad, and the foul air breathed on one Sunday is carefully shut in for use the next.  Basement rooms are not seldom damp, or they have a bad odor, or the lighting is unsatisfactory, or the walls are streaked, dim and uninviting.  If such things seem relatively unimportant, we must remember that the child’s spiritual life is closely tied up with the whole range of his experiences, and that such things as lack of oxygen in the classroom, tired legs whose feet can not touch the floor, eyes offended by unloveliness, or nostrils assailed by unpleasant odors may get in the way of the soul’s development.  Our churches should not rest satisfied until children in the church schools work under as hygienic and as pleasant conditions as obtain in the best of our public schools.

DANGER POINTS IN INSTRUCTION

It is a well-known law in pedagogy that negatives are not often inspiring, and that to hold before one his mistakes is not always the best way of helping him avoid them.  Along with the positive principles which show what we should do, however, it is well occasionally to note a few of the danger points most commonly met in the classroom.

Lack of definiteness.—­This may take the form of lack of definiteness of aim or purpose.  We may merely “hear” the recitation, or ask the stock questions furnished in the lesson helps, or allow the discussion to wander where it will, or permit aimless arguing or disputing on questions that cannot be decided and that in any case possess no real significance.