Enter into the wonderful world of insects and animals with lovely stories!♥♥♥ The stories aim to give illustrations of some of the varied means of self-protection employed by animals, their methods of home-building and of caring for their young, the transformations they undergo, the adaptability to their surroundings as shown by their coverings, and the tools with which the various animals are provided. These lessons attempt to present natural science to the youngest readers who are from the ages of 4+. Some of the lessons are easy enough for the first reader pupils, while others are better adapted to children of a higher grade. The forces of nature are personified and each object of nature studied is placed in its proper relation to its environment, thus making a story that is enjoyable not only to small children but to those "grown-up." From the book: "...Children, did you ever think how much your mothers do for you? They give you good things to eat, clothes to wear, and help to make a pleasant home for you. Let us look at some of the very "little people" about us. See how these little mothers take care of their little ones. Here is a picture of a little mother..." "...Do you see me? See my four beautiful wings! See my big bright eyes! Some little children call me a snake feeder. That is not my name. I have nothing to do with snakes. I am a Dragon Fly. I am a dragon to little insects..." This version is a reproduction of a valuable and classic book published in 1895 that from the collections of Standford University Libraries. Some of the reviews: "The Spirit of Observation is the best of Professors." "The child who is endowed with the spirit of observation learns for himself a multitude of things which forever escape minds that are indifferent and incapable of observing." "Properly presented, no lessons are so interesting and attractive to children as those which deal with living plants and animals; and none are more effective in the cultivation of habits of exact observation, accurate comparison, and sound reasoning." "It has been well said that teachers can in no better way train the perceptive faculties of the child than by teaching him to observe carefully the operations of Nature, but such observations should be intelligently guided under the direction of a skillful teacher. The French official program purposely insists on the very elementary character of the instruction given in the physical and natural sciences in the common school. The child at first studies those things that delight his senses, such as flowers and the pleasanter forms of vegetable life, animals, the most attractive minerals, and the most common forms of insect life."