The Tupelo journal., 1908-03-13
kindergarten Notes.

fMEalH N#ZH
The kindergarten aims to reach the
thoughts of che child through his affec-
tons and sympathies. It excites this
be defined as an organized sequence Of
experience through which the child
grows into acknowledge, clear OBJ
servatlon and conscious grasp Of the
whole circle Of his relationships.
1t was Goethe, / believe, who said
that music should be the center and
starting point of education, Every
mother seems to realize this, for she
sings to her tiniest baby.
The method Of the kindergarten cir,
cles around the songs and games. The
characteristic feature of these songs
and games is that they express the
same idea in words, melodies and mo-
tion; appealing thus to the thought,
feeling and activity of the child.
But, while sharing this one common
feature, the games fall into distinct
classes. Thus we have the pure move
ment games which emphasize the gym
nastic element. Games adapted to de-
velop and strengthen the senses, games
that stimulate thought by piquing cur
iosity. and the repres entative games
| whose aim is to make the caild, in the
truest sense, a partaker of the life of
Nature and of Man.
Troebel, the originator of kindergar-
ten, says that when a child begins to
initiate, he begins to undertand. Let
him represent the flying of birds and
he partially enters into the life of birds.
Let him, in song or game, initiate the
activities of the farmer or blacksmith
and his eyes open to the meaning of
their work. Let him reflect in his play
the varied aspects Of life and his mind
will begin to grapple with their signi-
f~icance. 1t naturally follows, then,
that the more varied the reflections OF
life in his plays, the wider will be the
reach of the child's awakened interests
and sympathies.
A child lives in its play, and if it be
intelligent, well-directed play, he can
get nothing but good out of it. If a
Child is left mostly to itself, to play in
the street, in the yard or even in the
house, if there be no wise guiding
hand, the depravity that is in all
child rem, more or less, is sure to show
up. But healthy, harmless play can
keep this in subsection till the child is
old enough to have a consciousness of
right. Educate the good cells in a
child's brain. and the bad cells will at
least grow smaller for want of action.
| saw it stated that a mayor in a neigh
boring state said, "Build more kinder
gartens add there will be fewer jails."
An exchange says: The Methodist
churches of Memphis are gradually
forming a chain of kindergartens in
that city. The last one to be founded
is being taught in a Sunday school
room of the Pennsylvania church, with
Misses Webb and Hackney in charge.
At the first roll call there were fifteen
responses, Now there is not a vacant
chair. and some pupils had to be turued
away. 1t was the Baptist churches in
Birmingham that first took up the
kindergarten there. Now other church
es are helping, and they are making
this beautiful work a wonderfuls success.
The churches obtain a building, equip it
in full. and pay the teachers same
amount of salary that the free schools
receive"
'.Dr. Dyer, Superintendent of Schools
in Cincinnati recently made au address
in that city, his topic being THE Pub
lie School Kindergarten as a Factor in
! Civic Betterment." 1t was a mastery
plea for the Introduction of the kinder
garten into the public school system,
based on his observation of the great
influence the kindergarten is exerting,
in ~regenerating and improving local
conditions. M. LILY JOHNSON.