This book is included in the New World Order section.
Preface THIS LITTLE BOOK is the outgrowth of a series of efforts not only to supply pupils and parents with the information necessary to an intelligent understanding of some of our great national needs, but also to make clear to them that real service and patriotism mean unselfishness, sacrifices freely made, and deeds actually done at home in civilian life as well as at the front in the death-struggle for Democracy. Early in this school year an attempt was made in the Des Moines Public Schools to accomplish these ends by supplying teachers with Government pamphlets and lesson plans. This method, however, proved unsatisfactory because of the constant difficulty encountered in securing and distributing the pamphlets, the confusion resulting from the inclusion in them of a large amount of technical subject matter, and in addition to these, one of the most important of all reasons, viz., the failure to send into the home a book sufficiently attractive, interesting, and helpful that it would stir parents as well as pupils to action. This, then, is the keynote of the book: A recognition of one's personal obligation to his country which ends in action. The great world crisis has brought to the consciousness of educators with greater force than ever before the principle that courses of study should not be fixed by tradition, but that school curricula must be sensitive to and determined by the most important needs of the present and future social order. This book is therefore based upon the conviction that the traditional activities of the school must yield to the new and more vital demands by giving up part of the time formerly allotted to them. The author recommends that a daily period of not less than 25 minutes in the grades and an equivalent amount of time each week in the high school be set aside as a Service Period, in which the activities suggested in this book may be discussed, planned, and, wherever possible, performed in the classroom. Those which cannot be done in the classroom should be followed up by the teachers, who after all are the most influential and therefore the most responsible agents for the development of good citizenship. Such a period, holding as it should a definite place on the regular program of the school, and designed for the purpose of causing pupils to think and work intelligently and unselfishly for others will do much to develop among them a clear conception of the rapidly increasing interdependence of modern society. It will be more effective than any other period in bringing the boys and girls of today the adult citizens of tomorrow into a full realization of the fact, that their destinies are unavoidably bound up with the fortunes of their fellows; that their future happiness is as dependent upon the happiness Of others as upon their own individual achievements. The result will be a real conservation of resources, a stronger nation-wide morale, and the development of an unwavering determination to stand together and fight for Democracy to the end. As stated above, the book has been prepared for the purpose of informing and influencing parents as well as pupils. It should, therefore, be used in as many grades as possible. In Des Moines each pupil from the kindergarten through the high school received a copy. In the lowest grades, where it can not be studied, teachers have a series of lessons on the content of the book, direct the children's attention to some of the pictures while discussing certain points, ask the pupils to insert a book mark at a particular page, and request them to have their parents read up to that place in the evening. In addition to this procedure there are, of course, many other exercises in the form of dramatizations, dialogues, songs, etc., that add much enthusiasm as well as seriousness. In the intermediate and upper grades, and in the high school the pupils eagerly study the book as a text; bring into the class discussion their own interpretations and experiences and information gleaned from available reference material ; make and compare the various records suggested; write patriotic compositions and plays; carry into the home and into general practice the suggestions in the book, etc. In all grades the pupils are daily doing Red Cross work; buying Thrift Stamps and War Savings Stamps; discussing conservation, gardening, the value of economy, and the evil of waste. Aside from the exercises definitely arranged for, the material on every page furnishes the basis for valuable discussion which may be so handled as to secure practical action among the pupils. For example the statement on page 18 "Breadstuffs are wasted by careless storing of cereals (insects destroy flour and meal)" will suggest such questions as these: What kind of flour or meal have you ever seen destroyed by careless storing? Where was it stored? What destroyed it? How might it have been saved? etc. Again, on page 33 the question is asked, "How many teaspoonfuls of sugar do you think you eat each day?" Extend this by asking several pupils individually to tell for each meal in the day how many teaspoonfuls they generally use. Ask them to estimate the amount used in pie, cake, jelly, ice cream, candy, etc., that they eat and add this to the total amount which they put in cereals, cocoa, coffee or tea, fruit, etc. Another illustration of these numerous opportunities is found on page 98 where reference is made to the lack of patriotism shown in purchasing luxuries and spending lavishly on clothing. All through this section on Thrift, as elsewhere in the book, the teacher should capitalize the opportunity to impress the value of the simple life, the dignity of honest labor, and the evil of extravagance and idleness. The author is deeply grateful for the generous help received from many people and organizations, He is especially indebted to the Committee on Public Information, the American Red Cross, the United States Food Administration, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the War Savings Committee for pictures and material; to the American Red cross for pictures used in Part V; to Laura Moulton, Gertrude Murphy, Emma Bradley, Clara Funston, Anna Stohlgren, Frances Umpleby, and Laura Mathews, elementary school principals in Des Moines, Iowa, for the preparation and criticism of much of the material on food conservation ; to Dr. E. G. Cooley, Director Junior Red Cross for the Central Division, for his helpful suggestions; to L. P. Benezet. Superintendent of Schools. Evansville, Indiana, for the preparation of the section on the Junior Red Cross ; and *o Mr. Seth Shepard, Country Life Director. Cook County, Illinois, for material furnished for the section on the Home Garden. J. W. STUDEBAKER, March. 1918. Table of Contents PREFACE A Catechism of Service A Call from the U. S. Food Administration PART ONE - Food Conservation A. Why the World Is Short of Food B. Foods Most Needed by Our Allies Wheat Meats - Fats - Milk Sugar General Directions on Food Conservation Conservation Becipes A. The Balanced Diet B. Wheat Saving Recipes C. Meat Saving Becipes D. Sugar Saving Becipes E. Special Becipes for Vegetables F. Food for Children PART TWO - The Home Garden PART THREE - Saving Fuel PART FOUR - Thrift Why We Must Practice Thrift The War-Savings Plan PART FIVE - The Junior Bed Cross PART SIX - What Is Democracy? Bibliography of Bulletins for Further Study or Reference Index
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