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59
"Printing, bookbinding, leatherwork, brushmaking, staining
and polishing are taken by the boys, while the girls learn
hand-knitting, machine-knitting, leatherwork, raffia work
basketry, passe-partout work, and cardboard-modelling.
"All the children work at gardening and at clay-modelling,,
and all partially blind children learn to make pastel drawings
on large sheets of paper.
"The Braille children learn chair-caning, rush-seating, and
cane-weaving, in addition to any of the above forms of handwork
they are capable of practising.
"The Seniors learn all their lessons at the Myope Centre,
as they would be quite unable to join with the Seniors in the
ordinary school in lessons which entailed the use of text
books printed in ordinary type.
"The Juniors, in order that they may come into daily contact
with normal children of their own age and degree, attend
the adjacent elementary school for lessons in History, Geography
and Nature Study.
"At the Wood Street Infant and Junior Schools the
teachers show kindness to these visitors to their classes, and,
in fact, often undertake extra work that the blind and myopic
infants and juniors may, in spite of their handicap, benefit
to the fullest extent by receiving extra opportunities of close
examination of illustrations, and in the case of the blind
children, assistance in the handling of specimens provided by
the teachers.
"Since many of the children are suffering from progressive
myopia, 'there is always the danger of the retina becoming
detached, and blindness ensuing, if violent movements such
as jerking, lifting, bending, wrestling or falling are indulged
in.
"The avoidance of dislocation of the retina, with the necessary
amount of physical training, is secured by a special
adaptation of the Board of Education Drill Syllabus, by which
only the more rhythmic exercises are performed.
"To correct any tendency to spinal curvature, rowing
machine exercise is undertaken daily by the children, while
much running and walking practice has been achieved by
using the pathway to the school as a running track during
daily periods when other people were not walking on it.