Right position is very important. Both in standing and sitting the muscles should support the body so that the lungs may expand easily. To inhale and hold a deep breath is a silent and useful practice. It strengthens the walls of the thorax, develops the lungs, steadies the action of the heart, and consequently the voice.
The habit of bending the body over a desk or book, of sitting with the spine curved outward and the chest collapsed, of standing with the weight upon one foot, especially upon the heel, should be avoided. It is not enough to speak, but to speak well.
All articulations are made in the mouth, and the sound must reach the point where the letter is formed; the place of the letter in the mouth must be understood, and the quality of it.
The alphabet is best divided into four groups: (1) Vowels; (2) Explosive consonants; (3) Vibrative consonants; (4) Toneless letters.
Every word in English is complete in itself, and no letter must be omitted or joined to another. The omission or slurring of the small words constantly mars the sense; stress is not required, but distinct utterance. A small voice, if the articulation is distinct, will travel far, while a loud, ungoverned organ creates confusion of sound and cannot be understood; nor should the speaker maintain a fixed pitch, but allow the voice to pass through many gradations of sound, and endeavour to express the language naturally and musically.
DRAWING, PAINTING, Etc.
By Pauline M. Randerson,
National Silver and Bronze Medallist (Painting); Art Master’s Certificates, I., II. and III., Science and Art Department; Teacher-Artist’s Certificate, Royal Drawing Society; Drawing Teacher to the Princesses Marie and Victoria of Edinburgh, 1884; Art Mistress, Cheltenham Ladies’ College.
Mr. Ruskin says, “Accuracy and rapidity of perception ... are especially what masters and schools can teach”. Also, that “All qualities of execution are influenced by, and in a great degree dependent on, a far higher power than mere execution—knowledge of the truth”. With Fröbel’s teaching, and these thoughts in mind, we observe the first attempts of children at drawing. They draw from memory, and their drawings exhibit their knowledge of the things drawn. Natural drawing of children.In the first lessons we do not interfere with their own natural method, but we help them to further investigation by encouraging them to look again at the object, asking them questions about it, and drawing with them. We give exercises for the hand, wrist and arm, by running the pencil round cardboard shapes of simple geometric or ornamental forms; also by repeating straight and curved lines on squared paper. Brushwork.We foster their love of colour and train their inventive powers, by using the brush. If we take a brush and fill it with colour, we can (without any effort of drawing) produce two simple units or elements. If the point only touches the paper, we have a dot; if the side, we have a form determined by the size and shape of the brush. Simple designs.We use these elements on a network of squares (of sufficient size), and find them capable of producing the simplest possible designs. By adding short lines, both straight and curved, drawn with the point of the brush, we increase our power and variety. With the same elements we can approximately imitate some very easy natural forms, but as “it does not train the child to great accuracy,” we are very careful to choose such flowers, leaves, insects, etc., as these simple means can most nearly represent. Line drawing.We continue our practice in drawing lines on squares for two reasons, viz., it is an easy method (greatly used by designers) of drawing patterns, in which every variety of straight and curved lines may be used and placed in all conceivable positions, hence great facility of line drawing may be acquired, the influence of which will be felt in the writing exercises, and new combinations may be made by the children themselves; also, many simple drawings of objects may be done, with the advantage of being true in their proportions, before any actual training has been given in that particular. We do not allow the use of india-rubber in this practice.
Brushwork proper.Our next use of the brush is for real drawing; the matter for our designs being no longer mere accidental forms, but such as require actual drawing like those on Greek vases. The flexibility of the brush, and natural movement of the wrist, render it easy to produce these forms which are varied in shape and thickness by pressure. The network of squares may be abandoned in favour of filling spaces (such as the cardboard shapes previously mentioned) with ornamental arrangements.