[Space is too limited to print this contest in full, but enough has been given to show how it was carried out. The Nature-Study Club of Indiana engaged in the contest, which was gotten up by one of its leaders, “to afford some amusement for the members while they were enjoying the beauties of nature. It was given under a large, spreading beech, and during the time the members were racking their brains to find the proper name of each feathered creature listed, the calls and notes of many of the birds could be heard all around, seemingly trying to assist the members to recall their names. The trip was a most successful one from a nature-study point of view, as the club traversed beautiful streams, lowlands and hills, and found a variety of trees and plants and many beautiful birds.”
The approximate age of those taking part in the contest was about thirteen (ten to sixteen years). A prize was offered, and a little girl aged twelve who had thirteen correct answers out of the twenty-one puzzles given, won it.
This form of diversion in connection with bird-study has considerable to commend it as an occasional method to use to stimulate interest and start competition.—A. H. W.]
III. METHOD OF STUDY
Miss Mc—— has read your interesting letter to her class. And as I am one of the twenty-eight, or twenty-nine girls in her class I have decided to write, and give you an idea of what we are doing. I think that we (that is the class) are all interested in the Audubon Society for the protection of birds. On April 7 the class had their picture taken to send to you. On Friday afternoon we always try to read at least one of the leaflets of the lives of the birds. Each girl reads a paragraph, and as we read the teacher explains it to us. This summer we are going to have some bird-houses in the playgrounds of the school.
I live out in the suburbs of the city, and generally there are a great many birds that come to our door in the morning. Hoping to hear from your Society quite often; I remain one of the interested pupils.—Isabel Acorn.
Miss Mc—— read your letter to the class the other day, and we were very much interested in it. I like the Society, and every Friday in school we read a leaflet. The birds often come into the yard in summer, and we scatter crumbs.
We are making bird-boxes, and when the leaves come on the trees we are going to have shelves put up and put crumbs on them. It is nice to paint pictures of the birds and read about them.