The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1893-09-19

the children never tire Of it. The best
way to have one made is in shape Ike
the tray of buffers table. 1t can be
put upon a standard, a low table, or
made to fasten on the porch wall with
leg which folds under when the table
is not in use. It is very convenient to
have one of the sides on hinges 20 that
it can be let down and the sand cleaned
out once in while. Fill the box with
lake sand.
Children will play at q sand table,
sometimes for hours at time, Simply
piling the sand up, letting it throuen
their fingers, building forts and max
ing wells.
With the sand let them build an i'm
aginary country, with it's bills, noun.
tains, rivers, valleys and lakea II
they are old enough to have a knowl
edge of geography. let them make some
state in outline, with its chain OF
mountains and it's principal rivers:
Make soma little squares of wood and
have them placed where the towns
should be, with which the children are
familiar. Let them print the names OF
the towns and cities on slips of paper
and paste these On the wooden squares
OF the places they are meant to repre-
sent.
It is great fun to make a journey to
grandpa's, especially If he lives in the
country, on the sand table. Smooth
ing out some Of the sand the children
can make Mr.. Jones' great pasture.
Of course the pasture must have COWS
snd horses in it. Now Is the time when
The old Noah's Ark can be brought
into play, as the animals may be safely
driven into Mr.. Jones' pasture lot.
Then there is the little creek which
you cross just before You get to
grandpa's, and over this a little plank
must be placed.
A little boy with whom I like to play
because everything is SO ttreaP' to him,
likes to make the way to school, with
it's many houses and pretty dooryards
and flower beds. Clover heads and
sprigs of timothy often represent
many fine lawn.
Blue clay costs 20 little that I Won
der people do not buy it oftener for
their children. Out of clay may be
modelled all sorts of easy things. But
do not let them simply play with it.
Have them make something. It is as
bad for children to dabble as for grown
people.
With very little trouble they can be
taught to make cubes with the CLAY,
and very nice smooth, round marbles.
II there is grown person to play with
them, let the children build clay
birds nest and fill it with eggs. The
older person, who has more skillful
fingers, can construct the mother bird
who is to sit on the eggs. While
the modelling is going on you can talk
about the ways and manner of building
Of the bird you are making. Remem-
Der that children are sharp little crit.
les, and you must not call your bird
an oriole If the children are modelling
the nest Of q robin, for some day the
children Will learn what very odd nest
the orioIe builds. I wish all mothers
knew how Interesting natural history
may be made to little children. But
in telling them natHral history stories,
yo1 should be very truthful and honest
in your storytelling if you wish to be
forever believed.
The little fellow of whom I have told
you before loves to get up ''caterpiller
parties" He goes all about the porch
and searches under the woodbine leaves
till he gathers q goodly number of
woody friends together and then be
treats them TO nasturtium leaves. ]
am glad to say that he treats them so
respectfully that they all crawl away
home, unhurt.
DO not say sitter you have spent q
long, hot afternoon amusing the chill
t!ren that your time has been thrown
sway. You will learn more about your
children in playing with them in one
afternoon than you will in an entire
week while attending to their bodily
wants. You may discover thst johnny
is selfish and wants the best corner
of the sand-bo1, that Katie is untidy
and unsystematic by the way she works
in the clay, and that little Rob has a
most startling Imagination.
The child who has q summer home
with blessed, babbling brook to play
by will not need all this care through
the hot days; but wherever you are,
whatever your circumstances, spend
some of the play hours with the chill
dren. Some of the fathers, I am sure,
would not grow old 80 fast If they
would play more with the children.
It is not enough to give them good care
only while they are sleeping and being
dressed and fed. They are well worth
studying carefully.