Alameda High School - Acorn Yearbook (Alameda, CA)

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Experimenting in Household Chemistry

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Manual Training N ANUAL Training provides an experience not obtainable in other A» school subjects. Pupils are taught the name of every tool and the names of their principal parts, the manipulation of material with ease and economy, and to carry on necessary conversation on craftsmanship in proper technical terms. The art of modeling and turning is acquired; joinery is taught; and lastly, the pupil learns the classification and properties of the common woods. The Alameda High Manual Training Shop is modern and well equipped. The shop can accommodate twenty students per period of forty-five minutes. The building is well lighted and ventilated. In summer, with the windows open, the shop is a shaded work-house; while in winter the room is kept warm at no cost by the burning of refuse. Fourteen workbenches of hard Wisconsin maple are each fully equipped with useful tools consisting of a rapid acting vise and bench stop, a hammer, mallet, tack, sack, chisel, try square, rule, bench brush, spoke shave, block plane, and jack plane. Tools for general use are located around the shop in their respective places. The machinery, which consists of a band saw, a double arbor combination circular saw, and six lathes, is propelled by an electric-driven motor. These machines are great savers of work and time and are used constantly. The lathe is a tool which every student learns to use with skill. At first the novice turns out simple pattern exercises, but with practice he becomes experienced and more proficient. He is given a piece of mill lumber and told to square it to certain dimensions. Upon finishing this work, the pupil is allowed to design and make any article which he desires. Usually the first attempts are small articles such as stools, tabourets, and boxes. Soon the craftsmen take up the construction of larger and more elaborate pieces, such as tables, desks, chests, chairs, and many fine speci- mens of each have been made. The course in Manual Training is popular, as is evident from the num- ber enrolled in the four periods in which it is taught. Too much credit cannot be given to Mr. Phelps, the instructor, for his capability, his genial earnestness, and for his practical results. Taken as a whole, the course is intended to add to general human usefulness as well as to the dividends of a future employer. —Clyde Lamborn.

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Household Chemistry H SEHOLD Chemistry is a science necessary in the proper manage- ment of our homes, and is therefore of particular interest to women. Its theories deal with the preparation and different ingredients of food and with those necessary implements and utensils with which our homes are supplied. In the preparation of our food, the chemistry of digestion and nutrition are of far more importance than the satisfaction of taste. The work done in the laboratory and the knowledge gained from research and experiments enable the future house-keeper to prepare food according to a balanced ration which will furnish such sustenance for the body as nature requires. Household Chemistry also teaches the composition of different utensils required about the home, and the knowledge of the effect of acids and cleansing compositions necessary for their proper care. The principal subjects of study are fuels and their management, food adulterants, balanced ration to secure a just proportion of fats, carbo- hydrates, and protein, the chemistry of digestion and nutrition, and the effects of food on the system. The pupils notice the action and ingredients of such materials as flour, baking powder, and lye. Knowledge of ventila- tion, sanitation, and the disposal of waste are important details in every household and these are among the problems which this course endeavors to simplify. Some of the important experiments which the class perform during the year are the tests of the action of acids and alkalies upon fats, starch and protein, also upon cotton and silk, and upon the materials used in the manufacturing of kitchen utensils, tests of soaps. and tests of the adulterants found in common foodstuffs. —Carol Higby.