Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-04-29
THE GROWTH OF The KINDERGARTEN.
By Frederic ]. Haskin.

| From every part Of the United States
as well as from several other countries,
thousands of men and women interest
ed in education are gathered in Des
Moines for the annual convention Of the
| International kindergarten UniQn to be
held In that city this week. Few cities
| in the country have developed a higher
standard Of kindergarten work than Des
Moines in connection with it's public
school system SO that the visitors will
| find many things to observe from the
| work done regularly in the city aside
| from the new features to be brought out
| in the convention program.
The growth of interest in kindergarten
| work in the United States has been un-
paralleled during the past ten years
Up until 1890 the kindergartens of the
| country had been chiefly under private
or philanthropic auspices. The church
es. the Women's Christian Temperance
Unions, womens clubs and other organ
| izations established and supported them
wherever possible, but the decade be-
tween 1890 and 1900 is recognized by
Ikindergartners as the puclic school dec
ade. as it was during this period that
| the adoption of the kindergarten as
part of the public school work became
generally accepted. Previous to this time
the adoption of the kindergarten in the
school system of a city was sufficiently
infreQuent to excite comment. Now there
are kindergarten departments in con-
nectiOn with the public school systems of
all the larger cities. and every normal
| school in the country recognizes the
value of kindergarten work as a branch
of the training of teachers. and most of
them supply the proper courses of in
struction. While there is room for i'm
provement in this last particular. the
Ito f>n
coming now almost sufficient for the de-
| mand throughout the country.
The kindergarten movement in this
country. like most other educational de-
velopments, made desultory sort OF
progress at first because of the individual
rights of the several states to make their
own educational regulations. This pre-
vented the establishment of a definite
standard of requirement and method. Ex-
periments were made in different sections
| OF the country by individual workers un-
der various conditions. An all-around de-
velopment of the kindergarten ideals
could only be secured by q comparison
of the results OF these experiments, and
this is now being furnished through
the medium of the kindergarten Union.
The kindergarten Is still in state Of
revolution. but it is probable that the final
result will be a coordinate unity between
the kindergarten and the primary school,
both of which will be grounded in the
pedagogic principles of the immortal
Froebel
The International kindergarten Union
is one of the outgrowths of the National
E u C ational
international Union Asso citation.
Spreads knowledge. a. n s.r,.a as a. =
that organization. but it soon became evil
dent that separate organization for
kindergarten work was needed. so the
union sprang into existence. At first it
did not hold separate conventions, but
met with affiliated organizations such as
the Educational Association, the National
Council of Women, the Congress OF
Mothers and other organizations inter-
ested in child welfare. Its first meeting,
as a separate organization, was held in
the Teachers College of New York In
February, 1896. Since then it has met
regularly every year and its increase in
membership and enthusiasm has made it
the third organization for educational
purposes In the country. The aims of the
International kindergarten Union, as
given In its first plan of organization, are
as follows: To gather and disseminate
the knowledge of the kindergarten move
ment throughout the world; to bring into
ten interests of the world; to promote the
establishments of kindergartens, and to
raise the standard of professional train
Ing for kfndergartners.
While the present convention of the
| union is expected to surpass all others
plans are already being made for the con-
Vention next year, to which an invita-
ton has already been extended by the
washington Chamber of Commerce, the
board Of education and the Kinder
garten Association of the District of CO.
lumbia. One feature of this will be q
| mammoth play festival, to be held out
doors in one OF the public parks, which
will be participated in by more than a
thousand children from the public schools
of the National Capital.
1t is not generally known that the
United States really owes its kinder
gartens largely to it's German-American
citizens. The whole kindergarten move
ment in Wisconsin may be traced directly
to the efforts Of the German English
Academy of Milwaukee. and the same is
true of Detroit and Louisville. The first
kindergarten in the country was opened
In the house OF Mrs. Carl Schurz, in
Watertown. Wis. Miss Elizabeth Pea
body. who Is commonly credited with
being the founder of kindergarten work
in the United States, received her inspira-
ton from Mrs. Schurz and opened the
kindergarten connected with her name
in Boston, in 1860. Miss Peabody was
q relative of Horace Mann and was
therefore closely In touch with educa-
tional matters. and also in a position to
give substantial aid to q new educational
movement.
Many changes are being made in the
plans of work adOpted in the kinder