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FIRST STEPS IN MENTAL GROWTH

as well as those of his body. No doubt every properly constituted parent is interested in such important events as the appearance of the first tooth; he will ask when the stubby, mere appendage-like legs will catch up with the long body; and he will be curious to know when the ludicrous asymmetrical performances of the two eyes will disappear, and many more similar things pertaining to the physical development of the child. And he will be interested in the rise and development of such psychophysical processes as standing alone, learning the "bye bye" salutation, the beginnings of speech and the like. He will have reason also to watch the more mental processes like fear, anger, imitation, memory. And I cannot but think that thus to study the child will result in better methods of training than to follow the lead of blind instinct or unreflecting rule-of-thumb methods. Moreover, I have no sympathy with the superstition that the desire to understand is at war with the normal growth of parental affection and tender regard, any more than I believe that the desire to know nature's ways in the physical world interferes with one's æsthetic appreciation and delight in the wonders of earth and sky.

What interest can a teacher have in the ways of infancy? One may say, "I see the ground for the interest which a parent might have in a study of infant activities, but what is the profit for teachers, who (excepting those in the kindergartens) are concerned with children well past