HOW TO MANAGE BOYS

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Jun 20, 1906

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 32, No. 24.

HOW TO MANAGE BOYS.

A young teacher who has had great success with a class of little “ragamuffins” in the worst quarter of a large city, was asked at a school teachers' meeting to tell something of the method by which she had transformed the lawless street urchins into respectable little citizens in so many cases.

“I haven't any method, really,” said the young woman modestly. “It is only that I try to make the boys like me, and I say ‘don't’ just as seldom as I possibly can in my work with them. They had learned to lie, steal, and fight; but truth, honesty, and courtesy were unknown terms.

“So I began by telling them a story every morning about some boy who had done a brave, honest, or kind thing, and held him up for their admiration. And after a while I asked them to ‘save up’ good things they had seen or done to tell at these morning talks. Their eagerness about it and pride when I was pleased with their little incidents showed me they were being helped.

“There was just one boy who seemed to me hopeless. He was apparently indifferent to everything, sat for weeks, during the morning talks, with a stolid expression, and never contributed anything to the conversation. I had begun to feel really discouraged about him, when one morning he raised his hand as soon as it was time for the talk to begin.

“‘Well, Jim, what is it you have to tell us?’ I asked encouragingly.

“‘Man's hat blew off as I was comin' to school. I ran an' picked it up for him,’ he jerked out, in evident embarrassment at finding all eyes fastened on him.

“‘And what did the man say?’ I asked, hoping that a ‘thank you’ had rewarded his first attempt in the right direction.

“‘You young scamp, you'd have made off with that if I hadn't kept my eye on you!’ said the boy in the same jerky fashion.

“‘And what did you do then?’ I asked, in fear and trembling.

“‘Didn't do nothin' but jest come along to school,’ said the boy soberly. ‘I reckon he didn't know no better; prob'ly he hadn't had no sech teachin' as I've got,’ and he lapsed into silence with an air of perfect satisfaction.

“I think he had a pretty severe rebuff, but he has told a great many pleasant things since that day, so you see he was not disheartened.

“Some people would say, I know, that I ought to tell them how bad stealing and lying and fighting are; and yet as long as they will listen to me while I say, ‘Do be honest, do be truthful, do be kind,’ I shall not keep the other things before their minds.”

The young teacher sat down as modestly as she had risen. It was unanimously voted that whatever might be said for other methods, hers—which she did not even call a method—had commended itself.—Selected.