Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1918-03-21
Article Walks and Talks Afford
Opportunities for Teaching Facts
at First Hand and in Inter
esting Ways
Bv MRS. BERTHA EMELIN

FROM ABOUT Lne age OIL ., anu ca
tending indefinitely through child
hood years, there is no more valuable
aid for the mother who desires to
promote the well-being of her chill
dren than walks and talks. 1t is
usually most difficult for the home
keeping mother to find sufficient leis-
ure-or rather, uninterrupted leisure
Ito concentrate on work or playwith
her children. We are all only too
familiar with the interruptions of the
butcher, the baker, the telephone,
the friendly neighbor, which break
in repeatedly until one gives up in
despair But when you leave your
home and it's distractions behind you,
you begin to realize that you have
found way in which you, can say
with Froebel, "Come, let us live with
rour children"
These walks and talks can be use
full both to the city mother and the
country mother, though it viii be
easily seen that the country mother
has the advantage in this respect
The city mother will have to substi-
tute, for the suggestions below, the
city parks, the river or lake front,
visits to the large factories, museums
and historic points of interest. You
can make the walks as long or as
short as your leisure permits; you
can plan them for every day or every
other day, morning or afternoon; and.
after months trial you will begin
to realize their value for yourself as
much as for the children. The blue
sky and the great outdoors will take
you away from the pettiness of the
thousand and one trifes that con-
tinually intrude themselves upon your
attention while you remain within
four walls, and they will be equally
uplifting in taking the little ones
away-especially is this true in small
towns--from the petty small-talk that
emanates from the porches and the
front stoops an passes along the side
walks from house to house and from
child to child.
1t is well for you to DECIDE upon
your destination before you call the
children with Lets go to the pond
todayv-or "This is a great day for
the woods" A playmate or two taken
o1o,,,r 1oooeio1o1Iv, (opJ f,.oor,,oY+1xy if
you have but one child) will lend adj
ditional zest t othe walks and viii en-
large your opportunities of getting
better acquainted, not only with the
playmates, but with your own chill
dren in relation to their playmates.
In the case Of very young children,
places very near home will serve as
well as the more distant goals which
are usually more attractive to the
other children. The pond or the
stream under the bridge, or the
waterfront, the breach, or the rocky
boulders that can be scaled, or the
Woodstock them out in your
vicinity. Try every road and see
where it leads to. The adjoining town,
if it be within two or three miles
/, makes splendid objective point with
older children, and trolley ride will
bring you back should time or fatigue
make it necessary.
Try to forget all your grown-uI
dignity on these walks Especially i.
it be country road) and have a!
much fun and laughter as the chill
dren are ready for. Wear only stou
shoes and "roughing" clothes. Some
times permit the children to TAX
skates, or bicycle, or velocipede,
wagon or jaunting cart, or asled,
hoop, or horse reins. All these vii
provide additional attractions whe
the children seem loath to leave thei
: street play.
These walks will develop your chi
! dren physically fully as much as an
systematic exercises, and the variet
. Of stunts" that will be initiated alon
. the road will astound you. In SON
q of them you may join; others wi
q teach you to have control of yot
9 nerves, while the children deyelc
4 strength and independence thereb
So far as the physical activities al
concerned, you need suggest very Ii
tie; the children will initiate as mut
as there are time and energy fo
n. There will be walking forward al
backward, sometimes with eyes shr
sometimes on stone walks and
bitches; there will be running, ski
;. ping, hopping, jumping from differe
heights, whistling and singing, gam
- of follow master" racing, stone thro'
ing and stick-throwing into ponds a
trees, and tree-climbing.
- That the "walks and talks" are
great mental stimulus is readily a
parent, when one reflects for m
ar ment upon the opportunities for as