Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-05-22
Wy First Visit to q k;rd..,.,.


d 'eacher IN one of the public kinder
sartens there and desiring to know all
l could of her situation and work
went one bright sunshiny morn;np :,
'he corner of Stagg and Leonard
streets to an old German Presbvteria,
church. where in the basement is o.
tablished kindergarten. which ;s =,
annex to public school No. 40. ON
Manager street. Through different
channels l had heard Of this school
and sometimes letters would come tb,,
hardly had patience with, so little
the teacher spoke of herself. and so
much of the Eva's. and Freida.s. and
fachaefs' and Ruths. and Adolph's.
and Hyman's, and Roberts, and Abra-
| nun Solomon's, and Sans, and Reu
pens that to me had scarcely a
secondary interest. The day was opti-
| ihistic. The car dropped us in dis
| trict not half as "slummy" as 7
| looked for. 1t has to be kent in mind
| that these children are not fortunes
| favored ones; they are largely of Ger
| man parentage with some Irish. and
jews and Italians. and come from
MONIES that often have hardly the bare
| necessities OF life. 1t is part of the
teachers work. when the register is
snort OF the required number to visit
| the homes of the parents of children
| from four to six years of age to en-
| courage and interest them, in placing
| their children in the kindergarten The
parents are usually responsive to the
| apparent good in store for their fami-
lies.
But to go on; we We're early, but
found some of the children quietly
| waiting outside of the court for the
! gate to be opened. We soon gained
admission to the clean, sun-lighted
| room. There were blackboards with
drawings. and pictures and specimens
of the clIildren's work on the walls
and about the room; but the twenty
five or more little green painted chairs
arranged in large circle in the GEN.
| ter of the room, with the wide White
mark around Them won not only my
attention but my heart; and then and
there 1 drove the old impaticncc into
| the corner cavity of that organ and
/
"sat down on the lid and smiled"
What did those chairs mean to me?
| l looked back into the misty past and
thought OF Froebel. 1 dwelt for
moment on the present and thought of
| Jacob Riis and others who had battled
| with him for light and air and privi-
| leges such as these suggested. And
| the future, what of that? Here is the
| beginning of the revelation. But sc on
| came trooping in the children. all care
| free and with sunshine on their faces.
| The little boys instantly DOTTED their
| caps with their good morning" to the
| teacher, took off their Overcoats and
| hung them up like men who had busl-
ness on hand. Two little Jews, stout,
ruddy boys with dark hair and eyes,
| attracted my attention. for the older
! one had such a watchful, motherly
| care of the little brother to whom the
| kiudorCarten was evidently u new
| place. Some day they may be the
bone and sinew of the nation! The
| little girls outnumbered the boys; they,
| with the boys were comfortably
| clothed and all evidenced more neat
| ness and home care than had eX-
| pccted to see The teacher III the
| room, while she is really the power
| behind the throne. has most loyal
| subjects. Her discipline, if such
| word is allowed in the vocabulary OF
kindergarten. is only saying. "Johh-
| ME" or "Frieda" in soft tone ana
| putting Il finger to her lip.
| There are no real books in evidence
nic;urcbooks and scrapbooks compose
| tod MA
aquarium delight the children and are
almost objects of worship. AT nine
In'clock a piano in the adjoining room
called the children TO their chairs alter
a simple prayer there was a good morn
ing song in which the visitor was very
sweetly remembered. There were songs
Of snrinr time and nature in which all
participated They are encouraged TO
lien stories of their home life. to the
Kindergarten of what they have OBJ
| snrved on their wav to school and to
| talk about some nature specimen or pic
| ture she may show them. She tells
them stories that will tend to cultivate
the imagination and arouse their curl
Iositv. Then comes the physical excr-
c;scs. The green chairs were placed
around the tables and the floor thus
| cleared Tor naTtHlils. Shlplhhf' o'''
other activities all made rythmical by
music.
| About twenty minutes were given to
these exercises then tn" children went
to the tables and each child had what
lin kindergarten parlanca is called "a
gift" this morning they each bad tn"
same number of squire and triangular
wooden blocks with which they might
make some original design. AS
moved my big chair up to the table on'
of the youngest lttl" girls a Jew porn
lin Russia, asked if sh" COULD not SIT pe-
side me all of the time? 1t was inter
estinc to see the constructive ability OF
these children. Soma formed figures
ard objects in solid phalanx Sonic
lnadc houses some animals and one NJ
| Ito fellow showed 50 much talent in TINS
line that I told him he would make an
artist. I heard from his mother. the next
day for it pleased her that her owl.
Inspirations for her fivc-year-old had
been so seconded.
| +l,;c ,op,oc nbout the happlcSt