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unanimous opinion was expressed that these special teachers should
continue the work in the extended form suggested by the Board of
Education, since they are not only specially fitted for imparting
this form of instruction but are particularly interested in it.
"At present it is not possible for all the children at the appropriate
age to receive instruction in domestic subjects, but when
the newT centre is opened the whole of their needs will be met.
It is not necessary to teach infant care in the ordinary classes in
schools since all the girls reaching a suitable age will be dealt with
at the Domestic Subjects Centres where infant care will form an
advanced course of housecraft. By centralising the instruction in
the Teachers of Domestic Subjects, overlapping will be avoided
and the nature of the instruction will be more readily made to
correspond with that given by the Health Visitors to the parents
at the Child Welfare Centre. It is proposed that these special
teachers will visit the Welfare Centre to make themselves familiar
with the actual work done there so as to secure complete similarity
of the instruction given to both parents and children. In addition,
towards the end of their course of instruction, the girls can be brought
to the Welfare Centre to see what goes on there. A visit of this
character will impress on their minds the importance of infant
care and will remind them where to seek advice should they require
it in the future.
"For teaching infant care at the Domestic Subjects Centres
very little apparatus will be required. In the first place each
Centre should possess a full-size life-like doll for the girls to learn
to handle and dress, and in the second place each should have
suitable sets of baby's and children's clothing. The Head-teachers,
appreciating a useful means of instruction in sewing, have offered
to have the latter made in school by the girls themselves from
patterns supplied from the Child Welfare Centre so that the cost
would simply be a small annual allowance for material. When the
clothing gets the worse for wear by use and washing at the Domestic
Subjects Centres they can be handed over to the Child Welfare
Centre for distribution to necessitous mothers.
"At the conference the Head-teachers showed a very real
interest in the subject and gave every indication of an earnest desire