PLANS, &C., OF A SCHOOL-HOUSE IN WASHINGTON DISTRICT, HARTFORD, CT. This house is calculated to accommodate at least one hundred children, divided into a lower and upper department. For the present, the basement is not fitted up, and the upper room is arranged for a school of at least sixty pupils, of the ordinary school age, and is recommended for country districts of that number of children. is 8 ft. 6 inches wide; the side aisles (C C) are 3 feet wide; the space in the rear (F) 4 feet wide, and the aisles between the desks (D D) each 2 feet 7 inches; each range of desks is 18 feet long by 4 feet wide. The entrance is in front into a lobby (A) one side of which (a) is appropriated to the girls and the other (b) to the boys, and each side is fitted up with shelves, (a a) and hooks for hats, and outer garments. Scrapers, (r r) mats, (tt) and a shelf (c) for pail, wash basin, towel, drinking cup, &c., are provided for the comfort and convenience of the children, and to enable the teacher to enforce habits of neatness, order and propriety. There are three windows on the north, and three on the south side, each with 32 lights of 12 by 8 inch glass. These windows are inserted nearly 4 feet from the floor, are hung (both upper and lower sash) with weights, and provided with Venetian blinds. There is an opening near the floor, and another near the top of the room, into a flue (i) which leads into the open air. These openings can be enlarged, diminished, or entirely closed, at the discretion of the teacher. The windows can also be conveniently lowered or raised, both at the top and the bottom. The room is warmed by a close wood stove, (S) the pipe from which is carried ten feet above the heads of the children into the smoke flue (h). The heat is regulated by a thermometer. There are three ranges of seats and desks, capable of accommodating, when completed, 18 scholars each. In the first range the back seat is 18 inches high, and the desk, (the front edge) 29 inches from the floor, and the front seat 11 inches, and the corresponding desk, 23 inches; in the second, the same proportion is observed, except that the whole range is 1 inch lower, and the third, one inch lower than the second; i. e. the back seat of the third range is 16 inches, and the corresponding desk, 27 inches, and the The platform (B) for the teacher, occupies the space between the doors which open into the school-room, and is 9 feet long, 4 feet 6 inches wide, and 9 inches high. On it is a desk, (Fig. 2) 4 feet long by 2 feet wide, supported by two (v v) hollow pedestals, which will accommodate the books, &c., of the teacher. The lid of the desk is a slope, but can be supported by slides in the box of the desk so as to be a level. From the platform the teacher can conduct the instruction of his classes, arranged around it, or on either side, or in the area, (L) in the rear of the school, and at the same time have the rest of the school under his supervision. Each desk is furnished with a slate of the best quality, and made strong by a band of iron over the corners fastened with screws. Behind the teacher, and in full view of the whole school, and accessible to the reciting classes, is a blackboard 9 feet long by 4 feet 6 inches wide, with a trough at the bottom to receive the chalk or crayon, a sponge or soft leather. Over the black-board, are the printed and written alphabet, arithmetical and geometrical figures, the pauses, &c., for copying or general exercise. Along the edge of the blackboard, the length of an inch, foot, yard, &c., are designated. Over the teacher's platform, on the ceiling, the cardinal points of the compass are to be painted. In a case (G) 4 feet wide, 15 inches deep, and 7 feet high, in the rear of the room, there is a terrestrial and celestial globe, an orrery, a set of geometrical solids, a set of alphabetical and drawing cards, arithmetical blocks, and a numerical frame, a model to illustrate cube root, a set of outline maps and historical charts, a movable stand to support maps, diagrams, movable blackboards, &c. On the western wall, on each side of the window, are the eastern and western hemispheres, each six feet in diameter. There are also maps of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and the United States, and Catherwood's plan of Jerusalem, together with maps illustrative of the history of the bible. An eight-day clock is also provided. The library case (E) is of the same size as the apparatus closet, and contains already nearly 400 volumes. Fig. 7. Fig. 6. The movable stand for blackboard (Fig 6) is like a painter's easel. a. Pins on which the board rests. which are braced by hook b. c. Hinge or joint to the supporting legs The primary department may be fitted up with a gallery, (Fig. 7) as is recommended by Mr. Wilderspin for infant schools, consisting of a series of seats, ascending from the floor. The first or lowest is 8 inches; each ascending, one being one inch higher than the next before it. The High School building is located on Parsonage street, away from the business part of the city. The lot is 227 ft. on the street, by 200 ft. deep, and is divided into two equal parts, one of which is appropriated to the boys, and the other to the girls. The building stands near the center of the lot, east and west, and 12 feet from the street. The entrances are on the side next to the street. A. Basement, 90 ft. by 50, and 9 ft. in the clear. B. Male De partment, 50 ft. by 47, and 12 ft. high in the clear, with two recitation rooms 25 ft. by 12. C. Female Department, same dimensions as Male Department. D. Attic arched, appropriated for calisthenic exercises. |