The Lafayette gazette. [volume] (Lafayette, La.) 1893-1921, 1899-09-02
The KinderRarten.

Editor Gazette-Permit in view of the
opening of kindergarten in town, to
offer a few expressions, designed to en-
Phasize the importance of this system an
educational factor. President Harper of
Chicago University, said in recent ad-
dress: s*The beginning of real university
work is in the kindergarten, thereby><~o or
three Yeas work being saved to each
student
The little child enters the world an in
voluntary Investigators bundle of energies
constantly impelling him to act. This i'm
polling force is blind and may as easily be-
come destructive as creative. What is to
determine which it shall be? The child is
too much left to the mercy of his unframed
energies, which we seem to think will be
divinely directed, instead of by our own
wit and larger experience, made helpful and
educative.
There is no human being eager, thirsty,
so earnestly and divinely alive the child,
and the question may we'll be asked: How
long, will it be before the hunger of other
senses, than that of taste. shall be recognized
and command our compassionate INTEREST,"
~ SO early an age, as three or four years,
the child is making his beginnings, in
SClCuSC, "dtuCildtlCS, LE9luluS,
physical culture, music art, literature and
religion. This is startling statement, but
all conscientious investigators of the kinder
garten will agree to it. Josiah Royce has
truly said: ssScience has the element of
noble play about it, and one plays with
steam, silk amber glass, with kites that one
flies beneath the thunder clouds, with frogs
legs and acids. The play is mere express
sion of curiosity, that former centuries
might have called idle. But the result of
this play rec reates an industrial world.''
In the true kindergarten the child is en-
couraged in his natural interest to observe
plants and how they grow, the protection,
distribution and uses of different seeds and
fruits; the foods, homes and habits aofi ans
imals, the sources and Of sand, clay,
stones, metals and minerals; the moon, sun,
stars, and clouds; the effects of rain, FROST
wind, etc. As soon as he clearly observes
any of the facts. they expressed and
tested in the form of play. This is simple,
truly, but is it not worthy to be called the
beginning of science?
1t has been found that the children with
kindergarten training much quicker of
perception, that they have greater regard
for truthfulness, and the rights of others
and are more susceptible to school influ-
ences. When we know how open to truth
the child is. and how much harder he is to
reach, mentally, morally and physically each
succeeding year of his life, how can we let
pass these most important years of his life?
How easy to map out the channel for the
tiny stream and how impossible to guide or
control the swollen river! We know this
is SO and yet we wait, until the child is past
his most impressionable age we begin to
educate him; and then wonder why his
mind is SO sluggish, his morals loose, and
his physical nature already dwarfed by bad
habits. Juvenal said: 'sThe man, the
character is made al SEVEN. What he Is
then will he be always in. spite of thous-
and teachers you may give him after the
formation period has passed.
A LOVER CHILDREN