Evening star., 1940-12-03
DONOt Waste
Years
Time for Changing
Play Into Arts or
Work Habits
BY ANGELO PATRI.

am for healthy play for children
and recreation for youth, but I am
decidedly against idleness for both
groups. I meet many children and
young people in their late teens who
actually feel injured If they are
asked to do some worth while work
before going out to play. Young
men of 18 and 10 who attend pre-
paratory schools and colleges seem
to think that three months of vaca-
tion, nothing to do but swim and
hike and dance and drive are no
more than their due.
The waste OF time that ought to
be used for growth in skill. tech
niques, good habits of work and
play, is terrible for thoughtful peo-
pie to contemplate Thousands Of
our young people, those between II
and 81, are content to do as little
studying as possible and escape to
their sports and pastimes for as long
a time as possible every day.
Their terms of study are so short
that if they put in every available
moment at worthy work they still
would not be overworked. But in
stead of that they hail every holi-
day, every cut session with shouts
of joy and race off to their sports
The result is host of college grad
yates who are headed nowhere and
arrive at that place.
Parents and many interested peo-
pie have confused the term Chill
dren." Some do so deliberately for
reasons of their own. Most look
upon all youth and childhood as be-
ing time for indulgence, sympathy.
tenderness. Well that may be. All
young people need just those atti-
tudes, but they also need the other
misunderstanding.
To those who understand that
children leave childhood behind
them in the early teens and are
ready for the training and expert
ences of youth which involve effort
and work. this soft attitude is mad
dening. Young people over the age
of IS are not children in the sense
of being helpless, dependent, pur-
poseless infants. They have tastes,
habits, trends that must be har-
messed at the right time or they
never shall be.
Youths of 49, playing their days
away, are not going to be willing
workers, heads of business, leaders
of men. Their days for learning
techniques and skills and good
working habits are almost beyond
them. They should have turned the
play activity into work interests
during the years between Is and 10.
School is not the answer. 1t
might be if schools were equipped
with the machinery of work and
manned by teachers who under
stood the values of training for use
fulness. Few schools in this coun-
try are set that way and the con-
seuuent waste of youth is appalling.
Behind the schools failure is the
attitude of the parents who think
training for usefulness is a road to
OUEIcSSIUll. Dull olOCS 'AlVtoV oAAoiS Z
the blame for our waste of youth.
The school authorities and the
teachers must change the schools
for adolescents so that they actually
serve their needs. Childhood is the
time for play. Youth is the time for
changing play into skills, work
habits, a desire for service through
usefulness Stop thinking of all
young people as children and let
them grow up.
Mr.. Patri has prepared a leaflet
entitled. Trouble With Number
Tables" in which he explains an
easy way to help children Improve
in arithmetic. Send for it, ad-
dressing your request to Mr.. An
gelo Patri, Child Psychology De-
partment of this paper. Enclose
self-addressed, stamped (3-cent)
envelope.