Previous Preparation.
In the first place, in the preparation of our lesson on Columbus, as, in fact, in the preparation of any lesson, the teacher must have definitely in mind just what preliminary instruction has been given. Let us assume, then, that the soil has been prepared,—that the class is already familiar with the ideas of the size and shape of the earth which were current in the 15th century; with the parts of the world that were known; with the general geographical situation of the chief nations of Europe; with the nature of the trade with the Far East; and, still more important, with the causes of the activity of the time in the direction of finding new trade routes to the Orient. These basic ideas should have become firmly fixed and their interrelations clearly brought out before we introduce our Columbus “type-lesson.”
What are the essential features of the Columbus lesson, the emphasis of which will entitle it to be considered a “type-lesson”? Or, to re-phrase our query, what are the “type-elements” of the story of Columbus?