Beloit High School - Trojan Yearbook (Beloit, KS)

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LATIN. Latin has been and always will be the indispensable basis of the literary course in all high schools, and it is because the value of its study has beeen thoroughly proved. A few years ago one of the principal reasons for studying Latin in high schools seemed to be that of preparing students to en ter the universities and colleges of our country. This is nolonger true, since the requirements for entrance into these schools have been changed. Now it is possible to enter and get an A. B. degree without any knowledge of this subject. From this fact it would seem that the per cent. studying Latin might diminish, but sta- tistics for the last few years show anincrease of 20 per cent. taking FLORENCE MONTGOMERY, the Latin course in our high schools, which shows that this was not the real reason for studying Latin. Three-fourths of all the words of the English language are de- rived irom Latin. Then to be able to understand our own lan- guage -we must have some knowledge of Latin. Another impor- tant reason is, that through the Latin we get the only accurate knowledge of Roman history. The Beloit High School offers a four years' course in Latin. The first- year consists of the regular beginner's work, as offered in Smiley and Storke's Beginner's Latin Book. During the three years following, sixteen books of Latin are read, divided as follows: Four hooks of Caesar the second year, six of Cicero's Orations the third year, and the first six books of Vergil the fourth year. Prose composition is studied once a week through- out the three years, constituting a Very thorough high school Latin course. 1 DEPARTMENT OF' LA TIN.

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many other facts of geological interest which can be observed there to good advantage. The equipment for work in chemistry and physics is intended for the demonstration of principles and theories by actual experi- ments by the instructor, and by the students themselves wherever practicable. The work in botany emphasizes particularly the laboratory method of studying the subject. Each student plants seeds of various kinds of plants, studying the process of their germina- tion and growth, and the various phases of plant life are studied from the plants themselves. In the spring the text is laid aside almost entirely, and the work is devoted to studying t-he develop- ment, arrangement and structure of the various organs and parts of the plants as they appear. Each student is required to collect, mount, describe and classify a number of plants as a part of the permanent collection. The object of the course is to make the student familiar with plants instead of with a text-book. GERMAN. Two years' work is given in German. It is arranged to cor- respond with the work required and outlined for college prepara- tory work. The first year is taken up mainly with a thorough drill in the grammar and translations of easy exercises illustrating the various constructions. A reader is begun in the second term of the first year, and conversation based on the work is attempted t-o accustom the student to the spoken language. I11 the second year the grammar is reviewed, the reader finished, some short classics are read, and in the last term Schiller's masterpiece, Wilhelm Tell, is read. Throughout the work the students practice conversation and commit to memory many selections of poetry and patriotic songs. The time given to the study of German is not expected to make a student a master of the language, or even proficient in the use of it. If t-he student is able to understand the underlying principles of the language, appreciate some of the beauties of its literature, get a better insight and understanding of his own lan- guage through comparison, and can make himself, even imper- fectly, understood by the use of what German he has acquired,-we feel that the time is profitably spent.

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ENGLISH. The chief function of English is to develop the power of self- expression. Self-expression is the medium through which all knowledge is communicated,and through q which that invaluable something, indi- viduality, asserts itself. The English co u1'se in the Beloit High School comprises three full years of text book, classics and research work. Classes complete a text book and' six classics in a year, sometimes more.A An endeavor is made to select such literature as is adapted to theimmediate need of a class. A love for good literature means a love for nature, for humanity, and for Wholesome, helpful living. Tl1e reading habit, rightly formed, means the ability not only to read books, but to read life with an unfaltering trust in the opti- mistic idea that life, clean, busy, pur- poseful life, is worth while. The Freshman class this year have made a study of the typical novel, Silas MARY B- NELSON' Marner,J' thus gaining a' standard by which to judge all novels. It is dangerous to read at random, without some established method of criticism. The Old Greek Folk Storiesw make a good preparation for further lit-erary work because literature teems with allusions to mythological char- acters. Scott's Lady of the Lake, a narrative poem, makes a most interesting and profitable introduction to the study of poetry. g In addition to these, the Freshman class have studied the historical novel, Tale of Two Cities, outlined biographies of scientists, orators and philosophers, and completed The Great Stone Face, a model short story. They are an enterprising, in- dustrious class and have shown a marked improvement in origin- ality during the year. h DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH.