Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1879-04-18
LOCAL PREJUDICE AND THE LIGHT
OF ESS-IGNORANCE AND
PHILOSOPHY.

II there are people in the world who need
10 be taught it is the parents who send their
children to school A great many of this
class Of persons, if not majority of them,
in the United States, especially, are about as
serious q hinderance to the advadcement Of
public education as those who do not send
their children to school at all. This seems to
Do rather sweeping assertion. Maybe it Is
Let US See. Take Carson for example; and
Iss Us instance the experiment now being
made to introduce the Froebel method of
teaching in our public school. Some people
do not want their children to attend the Kin
dergarten school in which Froebel's method
i employed. Whyl "Well, because our
little boy has got q nice start in learning to
read and he begins to spell irst-rate. They
do not teach these things in the Kindergarten,
you know, and if send our little fellow
there he will have to lose all of this" And
again eve are SO anxious to have our little
girl taught to read as early as possible; and,
you know, if we send her to the Kindergarten
school she will lose so much valuable time
and be kept back so long" Now, as opposed
TO these objections, fippantly and super
totally urged, wond it not be a wholesome
thing for parents to inform themselves, if
they are ignorant OF the fact, and then devote
q moment or two to the reflection that the
system which they put out of countenance
with few rash words has been devised,
wrought upon and perfected by profound
iptellects who have made child culture the
one pursuit and aim of earnest life time
Ii is q principle of study, elaborated practi-
cally by Froebel in his kindergarten method
of teaching, that information acquired and
intellectual growth attained are more or less
fixed and valuable in direct ratio as instruction
is natural and pleasing to the intelligence.
Froebels mode recommends itself above all
others for it's simplicity and the interest 1t
excites in the minds of children 1t conducts
them rather by hints and suggestions, merely,
than by dctation or pursuasion, along truly
philosophical and fowery paths which lead to
truth. kindergarten, garden for children.
It's origin, as indicated by the name thus
analysed, suggests the agreeable picture OF
tutor, devoted to his charge, calling the atten-
ton of little children to the phenomena of
nature and exciting them to original enqulr
and 70 the independent use of their faculties
OF observation and expression But a school
room supplied with the proper apparatus may |
crafty the fancy and satisfy the imagination
Of little girls and boys, and may be made |
into busy little world for them if supplied |
with the proper adornments and apparatus. |
Now, suppose that child is started on the |
road to the requirement of intellectual power |
in this way; suppose it is taught Tor rather !
it learns) to think, to analyze, to concentrate |
the faculties, that is, suppose its mind has
taken root in this invigorating soil of philoso-
ply, how long will the process of learning to
read delay it in its advance, presuming, of
course, that this study of reading also is
taught inteiligentlyl Why, children properly
and thoroughly started in kindergarten
schools, experience establishes, have always
been conspicuous in their after course for
vigor of intelligence and intellectual grasp
So mnch by way of argument for the result
obtained. But test the application of the
principles laid down by Froebel by comparison
With the routine drudgery of ding dong reel
tations and the conclusion arrived at is the
same. To compare the common method for
little children with the system under discus
sion will furnish material for another article
1t an early day. The subject is not unim-
pOrtant.