Hints to Instructors
Practices in Observation.—Instructor can take the finger-marks of each girl. Lightly rub the thumb on blacklead or on paper that is blackened with pencil, then press the thumb on paper and examine with magnifying glass. Show that no two people’s prints are alike.
In Towns.—Practice your girls first in walking down a street to notice the different kinds of shops as they pass, and to remember them in their proper sequence at the end.
Then to notice and remember the names of the shops.
Then to notice and remember the contents of a shop window after two minutes’ gaze. Finally, to notice the contents of several shop windows in succession with half a minute at each. Give marks for the fullest list.
The Scouts must also notice prominent buildings as landmarks, and the number of turnings off the street they are using.
In the Country.—Take the patrol out for a walk and teach the girls to notice distant prominent features such as hills, church steeples, and so on; and as nearer landmarks such things as peculiar buildings, trees, rocks, gates, by-roads or paths, nature of fences, crops, different kinds of trees, birds, animals, tracks, people, vehicles, etc. Also any peculiar smells of plants, animals, manure, etc.; whether gates or doors were open or shut, whether any smoke from chimney, etc.
Send Scouts out in pairs.
It adds to the value of the practice if the instructor makes a certain number of small marks in the ground beforehand, or leaves buttons or matches, etc., for the girls to notice or to pick up and bring in (as a means of making them examine the ground close to them as well as distant objects.)