The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-02-17
K|NDERGARTENS FOR
 SOUTHERN STATES
Important Convention to Be
 Held In New Orleans
BEST TRAINING FOR CHILD
President craiehead of Tulane unI- versity Speaks Highly of comInu Meeting and the Good That
 Will Be Accomplished.

New Orleans, February 16-(speciaI1 me hlteehth annual convention of the international Kindergarten union. which Will be held here March sO-Aprfl ?. will at- tract many prominent Kindergarten vvo,.,. CTS from practically every civilized conn try in the world The plea of the union officials, of which Miss FanniebeIle Chr us or Brooklyn is the head, is to turn the annual conventions to the utmost educa- tional account, and with that end in view the nfteenth session will-be held in the southern states in order that superintend- ents Of education and school teachers generally may take advantage of the op- portunity toSacquire a working knowledpa of the most scientific child training vet da- veloped. The invitation to attend fine con- vention is broad and is intended to reach all teachers who care to avail themselves of it. All railroads have offered sne- cially low rates. and the various commit- tees have made provision for the com fort of reeord-brealzing attendance. The headquarters of these committees is at No. 6oe Commercial Place, New Orleans and the chairman of the executive com mttee is Hon. A. Trigg Moss.
 pr. Craigthead president of Tulane uni versity of New Orleans, an ardent be- liever in the far-reaching benefits derived from the modern kindergarten method of training the youngsters into wholesome paths and to become good and useful men ana women, discusses the coming conven- ton and the work of the union as fol- lows:
 "The International Kindergarten asso- citation, which will meet in New Or leans March 30 to April 4, should draw hither, not only thousands of teachers. but also men and women engaged in other pursuits who are interested in the traiu- ing and development of the coming gen eration. The kindergarten movement. which began in the old world, has found favoring atmosphere in the new. For many years St. Louis was the pioneer in the kindergarten movement, but now there are kindergartens in all the great cities of the United States.
 The kindergarten movement has re- formed the curriculum alike of school and university. That it has made childhood happier; that it has made elementary ed- ucation saner-all thoughtful critics ad- init. Whoever plants kindergarten is helping to reduce the cost of juvenile courts. Fifty years ago in this country nearly all university instruction was given by text books alone; the laboratory meth cd of instruction was almost unknown. President Eliot of Harvard attributes this change in educational methods to the in- f1uence of the kindergarten.
 The influence of the Kindergarten movement has been felt in other ways. Our Mothers clubs, our Cooperative clubs, vacation schools, play grounds-all have been greatly stimulated by the same influence. Education has become more practical-manual training and domestic science are taking their proper place in the curriculum of the school We no long CT think 1t the principal business of the educator to cram the mind. To train the hand as well as the head, the heart as well as the mind-that is today the work of the school teacher.
 ''In this great gathering of educators will be found many men and women of international reputation. A profound ed ucational awakening may now be wit messed in the south. It is to be hoped that this great convention will be source of inspiration and helpfulness to all grades of teachers"