APRIL 20.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 1161

In all exercises of written composition suitable attention must be given to punctuation.

(i.) S3 and S4 (two years): Analysis into subject and predicate, synthesis to correspond, and variation of the form of very easy sentences; the recognition of nouns, pronouns, verbs, and of adjectives, adverbs, and of equivalent phrases by their functions in easy sentences. Correction of common errors of the spoken and the written language corresponding to this stage. Technical terms are to be used very sparingly.

(ii.) S5 and S6 (two years): Analysis of a general character, synthesis, and variation in the form of easy sentences. The recognition of the parts of speech and of equivalent phrases and clauses by their functions in easy sentences. The distinction between singular and plural, masculine and feminine, first, second, and third persons, past and present, present and future, active and passive, to be taught by their use in sentences. (Definitions are not to be required, nor, in general, abstract rules of grammar.) Further practice in the correction of errors corresponding to the above work.

(c.) Reading.—Three or more books, of which one may be the School Journal, one may be a book of standard selections in poetry and prose, and one at least shall be a continuous reader, to be read fluently and intelligently. In all cases the books read by the pupils of the third and fourth years (S5 and S6) shall be of greater difficulty than those used by pupils of the first and second years (S3 and S4). Where there are separate teachers for S3 and S4, at least one of the books used in S4 shall be of greater difficulty than the corresponding book used in S3; and similarly for S5 and S6.

Silent reading should form part of the work, especially in S5 and S6.

(d.) Writing.—First and second years (S3 and S4): Systematic instruction in the formation of letters and junctions, and of figures. Transcription of easy poetry or prose, including the use of the full stop, the comma, the notes of interrogation and exclamation, and the use of inverted commas.

Third and fourth years (S5 and S6): Systematic instruction with the aim of securing legible, neat, fluent, and ultimately rapid writing, with due regard to the junctions of letters and to spacing. More difficult transcription, including invoices and other commercial forms in common use, and easy tabulated matter; filling up printed forms.

(e.) Spelling.—Word-building continued, with special reference in S5 and S6 to the force of the commonest prefixes and affixes. Common homonyms.

(f.) Recitation.—150 to 200 lines of suitable standard poetry or prose.

(2.) Arithmetic.

(a.) First Year (S3).—The general analysis of numbers up to 1,000,000; notation and numeration of these numbers. The simple rules and their application to easy concrete examples of a familiar and practical character: the relative values of the mile, chain, yard, foot, and inch; of hours and minutes; of the day, week, and year; of the ton, hundredweight, pound, and ounce, and of the quarter and stone, to be known and applied to easy exercises, but no sum requiring a knowledge of measures of length, time, or weight to involve the use of more than two denominations. The compound rules as applied to money sums; multipliers and divisors in money sums not to exceed 99; multipliers, if over 12, to be reducible to factors not over 12; sums of money in the questions and answers not to exceed £1,000.

(b.) Second Year (S4).—The simple and compound rules applied to easy concrete examples relating to money, and to the following weights and measures: avoirdu pois weight, long measure (excluding poles or perches), square measure (excluding square poles or perches and roods), capacity (pint, quart, gallon, bushel, quarter), time. The methods of practice may be used in multiplication, but complicated examples thereon should not be set. Mensuration—to find the area of a square and of a rectangle with given sides, expressed in one denomination only (as in inches, or feet, or yards, but not in feet and inches, &c.). The meaning of proper fractions, with denominator not greater than 20, and of 0·1, 0·2, 0·3, and so on up to 0·9, to be known as applied to concrete examples in a simple manner. Easy tradesmen’s bills. Mental arithmetic and problems adapted to this stage of progress.

(c.) Third Year (S5).—The meaning of 0·01, 0·02, &c., of 0·11, 0·12, . . . 0·99, and of 0·001, 0·002, &c., to be known and applied to concrete examples in a simple manner; easy sums involving the expression of money and common weights and measures in decimal forms and the converse; multipliers and divisors in all cases to be integers. Very easy cases of vulgar fractions (excluding complex fractions).