No. 1. A School for 48 children of one sex, in 4 classes; with a class-room having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. No. 2. A School for 48 boys and girls, in 4 classes; with a class-room having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. No. 3. A School for 72 children of one sex, in classes; with a class-room having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. No. 4. A School for 72 boys and girls, in 4 classes; with a class-room having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. No. 5. A School for 120 children of one sex, in 5 classes; having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. with a class-room No. 6. A School for 168 children of one sex, in 7 classes, with a gallery; and with a class-room having a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. LOBBY No. 7. A School for 240 children of one sex, in 8 classes, and a gallery; with a class-room having also a gallery capable of containing two of the classes. No. 8. Infant Schools for 100 infants, with a gallery capable of accommodating 72 infants, and a group of benches and desks capable of accommodating 15 infants. ----T. 0 40'x20'. 12' HICH. ·14.0. 2 GALLERY GALLERY AND FURNITURE FOR INFANT AND PRIMARY SCHOOLS. The gallery, or a succession of seats rising one above the other, on which the children can be gathered at suitable times for simultaneous exercises, such as singing, lessons on real objects, pictures, simple operations of mental arithmetic, &c., has been found an economical arrangement, in respect to space and expense, in schools for a large number of very young children, variously modified; it is used in Great Britain, not only in infant and primary schools, but in national schools of the highest grade as to the age and proficiency of the pupils, for assembling the whole school for lectures, or for the collective teaching of large classes in writing, drawing, singing, and dictation. The common mode, of constructing benches without backs, and without regard to the size of the pupils, for six or eight young children, or even a larger number, has nothing to recommend it but economy, and not even that, when the waste of the teacher's time, in discipline caused by the children's discomfort, is considered. But the opposite extreme, of separate chairs for each child, especially if the chairs are set far apart for the purpose of preventing all communication and to secure quiet, is not therefore the best mode of seating a primary school. The social disposition of young children should be regarded, and their seats, whether the old fashioned form with the " new fangled back," or the neat chair with back and arms, should be contiguous, so that two can be seated near each other. Even the youngest pupils should be provided with a desk, or with some facility for using the slate in drawing and printing. In the absence of a desk for each child, a leaf with slates inserted, or painted black, should be hung low against the wall for the use of primary classes. PRIMARY SCHOOL BENCH. A movable bench for more than two pupils is an objectionable article of school furniture; but if introduced at all, the above cut represents a style of this article which combines economy and convenience. The back is inclined slightly from a perpendicular, and the seat is hollowed. The scholars are separated by a compartment, or box, A, which serves as a rest for the arm, and a place of deposit for books. GALLERY AND SAND DESK FOR PRIMARY AND INFANT SCHOOLS. For very small children a Gallery consisting of a succession of seats rising above each other, varying in height from seven to nine inches, and provided with a support for the back. This arrangement, in large schools, affords great facility for instruction in music and all simultaneous exercises. The Sand Desk having a trench (6) painted black, to contain a thin layer of sand, in which to trace letters and rude attempts at imitating forms, was originally much resorted to with the young classes, in schools educated on the Lancasterian or Mutual system. This style of desk is still used in the primary schools of the New York Public School Society, but very much improved by Mott's Cast Iron Scroll Stanchions and Revolving Pivot Chair. Every scholar is furnished with a slate, which is deposited in the opening a) in the top of the desk. |