other knowledge. Such are the "three R's," reading, (w)riting, and
(a)rithmetic, to which we may add spelling. Without a good foundation
in these, all other knowledge will be up-hill work, if not wholly
impossible.

_b. Drill must be upon correct models, and with alert interest and
attention._--Mere repetition is not enough to secure skill. What
teacher has not been driven to her wits' ends to prevent the
successive lines in the copy book from growing steadily worse as they
increase in number from the copy on down the page! Surely drill with
such a result would be long in arriving at skill. Such practice is not
only wholly wasted, but actually results in establishing false models
and careless habits in the pupil's mind. Each line must be written
with correct models in mind, and with the effort to make it better
than any preceding one, if skill is to be the outcome.

Much of the value of drill is often lost through lack of interest and
attention. The child lazily sing-songing the multiplication table may
learn to say it as he would a verse of poetry, and yet not know the
separate combinations when he needs them in problems. What he needs is
drill upon the different combinations hit-and-miss, and in simple
problems, rapidly and many times over, with sufficient variety and
spice, so that his interest and attention are always alert. A certain
boy persisted in saying "have went" instead of "have gone." Finally
his teacher said, "Johnny, you may stay to-night after school and
write 'have gone' on the blackboard one hundred times. Then you will
not miss it again."

Johnny stayed after school and wrote "have gone" one hundred times as
the teacher had directed. When he had completed his task the teacher