The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-09-23
CHILDREN
NOT NORMAL,
SHE SAYS
Expert Also FroWns on
Precocity As Thing to
Be Discouraged
INTERNATIONAL. NEWS REL

NEW YORK, Sept. 23.-Laziness
in junior, whose principal purpose
in life is to avoid work, demands
study and not spanking. so believes
Miss Anna B. Pratt. director Of the
White Williams Foundation.
Miss Pratt recently returned from
three European conferences devoted
to the study of child life. They
pressed home upon her the con.
clusion that If spanking is used for
laziness, 1t should be only an ad.
Junct to the cure. for lazineSs re-
quires deeper study.
Laziness almost always has a
cause. she believes. It is frequently
the nervous systems defense,
PrecOctOuSne9s Dangerous.
Precoctousness In children, more
over, should be discouraged. Pre-.
cocious children" she declares, "Gre
frequently mediocre and even sub.
normal when they attain their ma
jority."
The Third English. speaking Con.
ference on Infant Welfare, which
she attended in London, was ad.
dressed by Sir Maurice Craig. a
noted English neurologist. It was
Doctor Craig's idea, Miss Pratt said,
that in everything indicated In A
child there is a meaning to be
sought.
Immediately after the English.
speaking conference the director Of
me 1oundation attended the Inter.
Iidtlonal conference for the Protec.
IIoh OF children, which met in Paris.
1nere she was the official repre-.
sentative OF the American section
OF the international Association for
the promotion of Child Welfare.
european countries are not do.
ing the practical work in child vel.
rare tnat we are doing in Philadel.
pnia IN our social work In the
pubic Schools" said Miss Pratt
On the other hand, the League OF
Nations has set certain standards
IN child welfare work for all OF the
countries, and they are far IN ad.
vance OF some of the work of MANY
OF the states in this country.
AT the English-speakink confer
ence 1t was brought out that men.
tai hygiene in children is as ;nnnor
tant 70 the nation as physical by
gene. Children vary, though, and
there Is no standard, no average
cniid. References to the average
child are purely hypothetical. Al
one time a child is strong and nj
another time 1t is weak. Much
depends upon the influence of the
body on the mind. For the ,nflu
ence Of the body on the mind /.
quite as important as the influence
OF the mind on the body.
SLEEP IMPORTANT.
Nothing for a child is 40 impor
tant as sleep. II a child is not sleep
ing 1t Is time to stop teaching him
ana lind the cause of thu defective
sleep. The repreased child is les.
likely to sleep. The person whit
says child must learn to do Iias
no imagination or understanding O.
a child.
IF a child had its attention on 1
subject and then loses it, 1t is a sur,
sign of fatigue. Often when I
teacher reports a child inattentiv,
at the end of a term 1t mean
fatigue has set in. LazineSe almos
always has a cause. Laziness, a,
Sir Maurice said, is the nervOu
systems defense against too mucl
work.
"Stabilizing the mind of a chill,
IL more important than puttinl
information into ito head. Know
edge does not bring success In life
What most 10 needed is organize
intelligence. Disorganized informa
ton is useless. Early brilliancy 4
a child Is bad. When h boy q
the age Of eleven graduates iron
college his judgment has not KEEP
pace with his knowledge. Childrei
who make q success Of life usual
start out with mediocre mental bt
lglnnings.
ut would seem better not to pu