Improvement From Conscious Effort
The child may be normal in all his senses and able to gain an average success in life without much conscious effort given to improving them. It will require very little effort, however, to greatly develop the capacity of the different senses and thus increase the success which he will gain, and greatly reduce the effort necessary to attain it. While effort and use develop, neglect causes disintegration.
The fact that the eye, for example, needs development is illustrated by the limited usefulness of this organ in infants. Professor Compayre tells us that babies see only objects in front of them, not to the right or to the left, and only objects that are at short range.
Your present capacity in the use of this sense organ, and the accuracy with which you use it, is the result of the development of past years. Conscious effort upon the part of your children will lead them to more rapid development, and to the possibility of far greater power and usefulness.
The value of this improvement is apparent to you, but not to the child. The benefits to be derived will be largely dependent upon your leadership and encouragement in making the effort. While the children are seeking amusement, see that they combine it with these games and exercises which will accomplish some improvement that will be permanent and valuable to them later on.