Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-14

the girls stepping AShtly ABOUT the room
and waving their arms gracefully to por-
tray the actions Of that insect. Again. the
life of the farmer is told by them. They
show how he plows the fields sows the
days work is done, the tired farmer, lays
himself down to rest (here the young ladies
and their teacher drop gracefully to the
floor and rest at full length)
All the games are not so boiSterous, how
ever. At long tables, entirely filling the
room, sit the girls, some cutting. some fold
ing pieces of colored paper. All sorts Of
objects are cut from the paper by these
deft fingers. They start with squares. cir
Giles, triangles and oblongs, FASTING them in
a book arranged for that purpose. Then
the designs become more difficult. and mo-
sale work. in colors to suit the pastors
taste is shown on the next pages; still one
step further, and objects Of life appear.
Not All Play.
Other girls fold papers into various
shapes, making Of a square of paper as
many shapes as, possible The result of
this work is also pasted in book.
The cutting is intended to teach form
and color, the folding to keep the fingers
flexible.
Blocks and straws and seeds furnish
other amusements. With blocks they rep
resent locomotive, at the same time learn
ing all they can Of its mechanism; they
build a stone wall, and inquire into the
materials used: they call attention to the
fact that block has six sides. eight corn
crs. twelve edges-things which we should
all be able to tell without moments
thought but regarding which we are apt
to be so deplorably ignorant. Thus the
play goes on, day after day. each pupil
breathing into her soul that sympathy with
child-life so essential to successful kinder
gartners. 49,
Learning to be Kindergarten, how
ever, is not all play. There is much hard
study necessary. OF perhaps two hundred
applicants each year, in one school, forty
are selected. To be a successful applicant
one must have either a high school or
college diploma; the candidate must have
studied geometry, algebra. botany, music
universal history-in short must have had
a thorough scientific training.
After entering, a pupil devotes one year
to study OF the system. She attends the
school in the morning. learning the kinder
garten occupations. She takes precisely
the same course as child, but completes
in one year what child does in three
Lectures are given in the afternoon Of
two days each week. The lectures are on
botany, zoology. psychology and other
branches of science. The girls take notes
paper. AS the girls grow in wisdom they
take turns at assisting in the Kindergarten
connected with the training school; and to-
ward the close of the term the more cour-
stitutes. in schools for poor children.
Starting a kinderxarten.
This is what the enterpristng head of a
new f1ourishing kindergarten school in New
York did when her father became involved
in financial difficultie and she was thrown
upon her own RESOURCES. The story is told
in her own words, and will be of especial
interest and value to young women plan
ming similar enterprises.
my father was seventy years old, and
out of positioMj had one younger sister
and no brothers, and I suddenly walked
up to the realization that 1 was the bread
winner of the family, had an educa ton.
and friend offered to join me in starting
private school, Il
my friend proposed to share expenses
and we went to work collecting pupils and
fixing up our quarters.
1--WE peddled our school from house to
house, so to speak; and we never had the
door shut in our faces. We also wrote let
tiers to our personal friends, and these
brought us some pupils. On one of our
errands we were 80 much attracted nv a
very pretty little boy that we spoke to him.
To our dismay, we looked UP and saw thai
his mother had been watching the inter-
view from window above u.s. We ex-
planned that we had a mania for children
and were fascinated by this one Of hers at
wound up by promising to send him to our
school.
'In this way we obtained many of our
pupils: and having enlisted a sufficient
number to start our school, we set about
fitting UP our rooms: Through the Kindness
of the chairman Of the board Of educ alton
we were able to get discount on all school
supplies.
1--WE first bought two large pieces of
q ,in1 ut for III