The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1876-03-25


fruit, in regard to fts color. The chill
dren stand in ring, and the small vender
trots round with the basket Of fruit, hold
Ing up first the red balls and singing,
GWho will buy my apples ripe" the 9TH
ers, each holding hand, sing In reply
that they will buy, and the apple is put
into the hand Of some eager buyer, who
Immediately holds it up that all may see,
and then hides it in his pocket. When
) the orange, lemon, ETC., have all been CIV
en- out, comes little exertion OF memory.
Some ono must gather up the hidden
/. fruit, and, unless he has paid attention,
he cannot tell where each Of the six is
) the ring OF important little faces trying
hard to keep il their knowledge, though
a hand will sometimes stray to that bulg.
ing pocket betraying It's owner.
The second gilt comprises three things !:
A wooden ball, cube aud a cylinder, the
last being known TO the children as the
roller. With the introduction Of these
wooden objects arises probably anoth-
err talk as 10 wood and trees, what wood
is used for, etc. The ball is shown them
first; its connection with the other balls,
in its size and form, drawn out from them;
and its difference, in color and in its be-
ing made OF wood instead OF worsted.
This law Of contrasts and their connec-
tons is followed throughout all the gifts.
An endeavor being thus made to make
each fresh impression clean in itself, yet,
by connecting 1t with previous ones, to
make il also lasting, We can see, in our
selves, in studying history, for instance,
how hard it is to remember many
isolated facts, but only arrange
them connectedly, and we can easily
remember them all. After the wooden
ball, there comes the cube. Here the
child finds the cube and ball alike in
both being made OF wood but different in
shape. The cube has corners instead OF be-
ing round; then he finds il has sides, six OF
them, and edges, which he will also count
when he can attain that far-of number
twelve. The ball and cube having been
contrasted, comes the connection between
them, the cylinder. That is also made OF
wood, and the child finds that it will roll
like the ball or stand still on side like
the cube, etc. May not these clear,
simple impressions be Of use to the child,
aiterward, when he comes to study geom-
e,ery? apart from their present use Of
leading him to look at things with an eye
that sees, to know Just what it 10 that
stands in front Of him and Just how it
looks, and not stumble through life like
Mrs. Barbauld's boy with no eyes, who
saw yet did not see.
Leaving solids in the seventh gift, we
come to surfaces. This gift is divided
into seven parts, and most Of these are
not used at all until the child is quite
advanced. The first set consists Of eight
little squares; with these, instead Of max.
ing solid forms as he did with the cubes,
the child finds he can represent the same
thing on a Fat surface, making pictures
Of them, as it were. Later in the course
he will come to triangles, right.angled,
equilateral, isosceles, ETC., though he does
not hear these names for them. After
this embodied surface, comes the embod-
led line, in bits OF wood. With these he
does various things, always being direct.
ed but not shown, that lie may have to ex-
ert his own mind, and any inventions or
suggestions OF his being encouraged. He
is shown sticks OF different lengths, and
endeavors TO name their number Of
inches, perhaps tries 10 make lines Of the
same length on the blackboard, so train
ing the eye. He lays one "from up to
down." a. he calls perpendicularly, on
his table, another from right to left; then,
combining the two, he makes right an
gle or corner, as he calls it at first, and
so on. The sticks are also useful in his
learning arithmetic. In them he has
tangible things to add and subtract be-
fore he knows anything OF written nun.
bers, and by their aid he discovers the
multiplication table himself. How many
children understand that multiplication
is only shortened statement Of addition?
So the child proceeds from the thing to
the symbol OF it, from the concrete 10 the
abstract, instead OF having results and
distractions given to him before he has
had any chance TO go through the pro-
cess and reach, or partially reach, the
result himself, or OF understanding the
concrete thing before coming to its alb
straction.
The same outlined forms he makes
with his sticks, he aiterward draws on his
slate, and this drawing advances finally
to curved lines. 1t Is done on states
marked off in squares, and is one OF the
most useful occupations. In the first
place, the child learns to handle his pen
Gil and to make firm, clear strokes with it,
which, when he comes to write atterward,
soon sends him ahead OF less practical
beginners. Then the perception Of ex-
actness and OF all the combinations he
makes, being according to certain law,
cannot but aid his mental development.
These solids, surfaces, lines, etc, have
been given together here that their Sc
uuencc may be seen, but they extend over
some time in the kindergarten, and all
this time the child is at work on other
work "a we'll. Each day only very lit
tie real work is given, and that is alter
mated with play, exercise and singing.
The last the children are quite fond Of,
though this is not particularly artistic,
at first, and they learn the new
songs eagerly, trying who Of all
can repeat them first, though they
are encouraged more to help and
teach, than to rival each other. These
small men and women educate each 9TH
er-each measures himself with the rest
unconsciously, and has few severer or more
inst critics than his fellows. "Why,
Mamie" l heard one Of them softly say,
only yesterday, to child who had just
accepted some kindness from third
without thanks, "you have forgotten what
to say" The sewing, which is done with
worsted on perforated cards, Is one OF
their fayorite occupations. Here the
colors appear again, also the lines with
their combinations into angles, squares,
etc. One charm OF the sewing Is, that it
is done for somebody else, and each card
when finished is taken TO some one at
home. won't my mamma be surprised
when tell her l made it mySelf% says
one, the little fingers busily drawing the
needle in and out meanwhile. ayes"
returns the other, with the air Of having
overcome immeasurable obstacles, "and
won't mine, when she sees am going on
blues?-corners, too"
There is other work the children do,
but it is needless to mention more, il all
this has shown at all that kindergarten
is not a place where children are merely
amused. lit has not made this clear, it
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