The Leavenworth echo. [volume] (Leavenworth, Wash.) 1904-current, 1919-07-25
CHILD'S EVERYDAY EDUCATION
BY KATHERINE REERE.
(Author Of "KInderaarten AetIvItIes.

(Autnor OF "Nlnuergarten ActlVltiess')
In one of her interesting and illumi-
mating articles published by the Out
look Elizabeth Childs quotes at length
from a book by Gayley called 'Idols
Of Education" in which the trials of
the college with uneducated high
school students, of the high school
with uneducated grammar pupils, and
of the grammar school with unedu-
Gated children from the homes are con-
vincingly set forth; the conclusion be-
ing that many a child arrives In the
kindergarten "a badly damaged arti-
cIe."
photographers know this to be true.
When the new group comes In In Sep
TENDER its members can at once be
roughly classified into two divisions,
the trained and the unframed. The
former are the teachers delight, the
latter her problem. The former can be
led onward and upward by means of
a normal and joyous activity without
friction or loss of time. The latter
must be worked over, wept over, ex-
perimented with, disciplined and led as
far along the road as their unfortunate
variety of handlcaps will permit.
The Mothers Viewpoint.
Now what has happened at home to
two such little creatures equally en-
dowed at birth? What is the reason
for this unhappy difference? The an
swer is In the fact that the mother of
the one child from the first intimation
of its existence has consciously or sub
consciously reasoned with herself in
some such way as this: "This little
new life will come to me possessed of
a growing body, and expanding mind,
a developing soul. During the first
years his growth will be so rapid and
SO vigorous that what he learns will
set the tendencies for his whole flu
education In the first five years than
In the twenty which follow, and this
education will be an everyday educa-
ton. During all his waking hours he
will be learning, observing, absorbing.
Everything he sees, everything he
II / want him to be strong, alert, wise
and good must begin at the beginning
and carry on; l must learn from the
best authorities how to care for his
precious body; l must take counsel
with experts in child training for the
sake Of his opening mind; 1 must talk
to him, walk with him, play with him,
read to him; must provide for him
place in which to play as well as to
eat and sleep; l must see that he has
playmates; / must teach him to play
alone, to entertain himself; he must
learn to love to work, first by helping
me and later by having set tasks;
must know where he is and what he Is
doing all the time and we two must
be loving, sympathetic. intimate
friends"
And that other mother-what does
she say to herself consciously or sub
consciously? Let us be honest and
face the facts, for judging by her re-
suits 1t Is something like this: ut is
lovely to have this darling baby and
I am just going TO enjoy him in my
own way; I don't believe these people
who make such a fuss about training
children get on better than those of us
who don't bother about all this mod
ern hlghbrow stuff A mother knows
best what to do for her own child. OF
course / will take good care of his
body for / want him to be well, but for
the first few years l am going to let
him be a happy little animal. I don't
like to play with children anyway,
and reading to them is a bore. Be-
sides, am too busy. He can just play
around as other children do and when
the time comes, go to the kindergarten
and to school and be taught there.
While he is at home and my baby am
going to do Just as l want with him.
Being my child, he will Of course come
out all right in the end"
Danger in Neglect.
Now sometimes he does, but In spite
Of home influences rather than because
Of them. Thanks to his teachers, his
companions and the sharp lessons Of
experience he often manages to grow
up fairly decent man. But, oh, what
he has missed And alas for the pow
ers of mind and soul which never I'M
folded, for the spiritual development
unpossessed which might have been
his!
On the other hand, often he doesn't,
and in view of this fact how does any
mother dare to take chances? For
from the ranks of the so-called, and
well-called, spoiled children come the
fretful, fractions, screaming, unhappy
babies; the shy, self-conscious and I'M
controlled kindergarten children; the
irresponsible scatter-brains of the pub
lie school whose school life is one long
series of adjustments between parents
and teachers; those high school stu
dents who arrive in college with no
powers of work or concentration the
girl who is boy crazy" the boy who
goes wrong. From this class are re-
cruited those children who, as every
teacher knows, have perverted
ideas of the facts of life and bad
physical habits. those youths and
maidens whose lives are blighted on
the threshold; those cases of Adde'S
cents which furnish newspaper articles