The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1876-02-12
kLNDERG4RTENS.
Their Scope and tses-4n IHfercsfing Dis
course by Prof.. T.. ". U"Ic.

Their Scope and Ises-4n Infrrcsfipg Dis
course by Prof.. T.. ". U"Ic.
The popular mind has q strange and
erroneous idea that the kindergarten is a
school. 1t is high time that the public
is informed of the nature of the kinder
garten, and the kind of education which
is given to children who attend them
The name of kindergarten means litcr-J
ally child's garden or childrcn's garden.
But garten in German does not mean the
same thing as garden in English, The
name garten in the German Language
means placcfer recreation. 1t need not
be a flower garden (bloomengarten), nor
need it have trees, shrubs, or grass. If
only it is place of resort where there is
anu sement, enjoyment, OF recreation of
n harmless nature, such place is
"gartep."
The idea Of school implies tasks
lessons and compulsory teaching. The
kindergarten is not a school in that sense.
The very idea of an infant school is hor-
ribly gfotesquc! The old theory that
the intellectual powers Of an infant-a
child under seven years of age-shall be
taxed to learn lessons, is utterly at va
rance with all correct ideas of infantile
life Admitting that there have been
children who read Latin and Greek be-
fore seven, or were mathematical prod
igics at six, we can only say that all
such are intellectual monsters, cs,rre-
spending to those physical monstrosities
which sometimes are born among u.s.
During the years from three to seven.
the purely intellectual life of the child
should lie dormant It's activities should
be rcpressed rather than excited. During
these years the education should consist
in physical culture. and the cultivation
of the pcrceptive faculties. While rules
of general morality may be instilled, all
sectarian religious teachings should be
sedulOusly avoided.
The true purpose of the kindergarten
is thus BRIEFLY described by Frabcl
himself: "To take the oversight of
children before they are ready for school
life or exert an influence over their whole
being in correspondence with nature;
to strengthen their bodily powers; to
make them thoroughly acquainted with
the world of nature and of man; to
guide their heart and soul in the right
direction, and lead them to the origin of
all life, and to union with Him."
1t will be observed that there is no
mention in this of reading, writing,
arithmetic, geography, history, or of
rules, precepts, etc.-not word about
books, or even of instruction in the ordi-
nary sense But it means that the child
gains activity of the body, mind, heart,
perceptive faculties.
After the age of three the child had
better be given up to the kindergarten
teacher What kind of person. should
kindergartener be? Dismiss from
your imagination everything reminding
you of a pedagogue of either sex, and
imagine gel tie, pleasant, happy-faced
woman. She must not only be woman,
but she must have mothers instincts
and feeling. Her pupils are her children
for tine time, and she must feel toward
them as such.
How many hours day will she have
charge of these little ones: Not more
than three. How does this accord with
those terrible infant schools where the
little creatures were Care they ever nOw?)
obliged to sit six long, weary hours with
only one hour of respite? Happily.
those days of inhuman torture are nearly
over, not only for little children, but for
children of larger growth, even into the
teens.
What do they do in these kindergar-
tens? The children are not taught any
lesson, except in so far as answering ques-
lions 90. Nor should we ever try to
teach child of tender years any intel
lectual process. Do you remember the
time when you were called up to stand
by the side of the teacher and repeat,
parrot-like, the A, b, G, etc? Have
you not dim recollection that you
wondered why you should repeat the
names of those meaningless figures on
the page? There is none of this kind of
teaehing in the kindergarten; yet every
child who has been an attendant a few
months knows the whole alphabet. 1t
learned the letters because it was curl
Gus to know the names of the figures on
its laythings. Aye, that is the secret
of the whole matter. a child under
seven wears will learn all of anything it
plays with, if you only answer its ques-