so quickly and another is still hard. Do not hasten to tell if no one knows. It is an important and interesting experiment. For hand work, draw snow balls on gray paper with white chalk. Cut them out. Draw snow-men, etc. Tuesday. A snow story, as, "How a snow-ball disappeared." One of the most charming little stories is told by Miss Lindsay of a little boy who placed a snow ball near the fire to keep for mother, and then fell asleep. His surprise follows when he wakes up. These nature stories are instructive and arrest thought. Things that are very simple to us are unknown oftener than we realize to the little ones. We learn the marvels of nature afresh as we watch the wondering eyes. Wednesday. Catching snow flakes. Did you ever catch a snow flake on your coat or on your muff? Try to catch one. It is like a pretty star sometimes. Here is a picture of some snow-stars. The stars are very bright in the sky this month. It is dark when you go to bed now. Every night I want you to see if you can find a bright star looking down at you. I will ask you if you find one. Song. Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are. Draw snow scenes. Rebuild the village. Play snow games. Let the children twirl about to represent falling flakes. Thursday. Snow-birds. Five little chicadees. When did some birds fly away? Where did they go? Why? Shall we look at our bird pictures today and think of them so far away? When will they come back? Let me see how man birds you remember. (Every kindergartner should have a collection of bird pictures and a few nests.) Show them occasionally even during the winter. If any birds remain near, be sure to sprinkle crumbs for them on snowy days. Why? Friday. Review and choosing day as explained. FOURTH WEEK. Jan. 21-25. The Light Bird. Monday. Home experiences. Toward the end of January, the days begin to show that they are growing longer. Speak of this when arranging calendar. It is a nice lesson in nature observation. Talk about it, and when out on the playground, or on a walk, observe how high the sun is at noon. Refer to rising and setting. Introduce the light-bird. The sun sends us this pretty light-bird. Let us see if the sun will send us some pretty colors. Play ball games, reviewing color. Draw bands of color with brush or crayon. Re-read the story of the light-bird in Mother play. Tuesday. Story of a star. Dickens story of the brother and sister who looked for a star every night and called "good-night, little star," is very touching and will help comfort a child who may lose a dear one. Play with the light-bird. Cross two triangles to make stars. Draw the moon as a crescent and lead children to watch for it. Cut the crescent moon from paper. Sing. Twinkle, twinkle-Lonely Moon. These or similar songs will be found in all good song books. Wednesday. The blacksmith. We must come back to earth, for we cannot soar on high nor too long with children. Is there a point of connection with our light bird and stars, even in so plebian an occupation as the blacksmith? Yes, indeed there are the sparks! The "anvil chorus" drew its inspiration from the "cling-clang" of the blacksmith's shop. So ever in one way or another, honest work is uplifting. Visit a blacksmith's shop or have a good picture. Have pictures of horses. Draw horse shoes, cut them out. Represent a shop in a box. Thursday. Teach a song of the blacksmith. Make black paper chains and teach the word link. Several new words are added to the child's vocabulary as he sings of this important trade. In rhythms. Walk, walk. Gallop, gallop. Play pony games. Finish and play with the boxes representing the shop. Friday. Review day, with much to arouse the children to free action. They are nearing promotion day in some public kindergartens. Let the last days in kindergarten lead on to the new class. Visit it if possible and sing with them so that the transition will not be too abrupt. FIFTH WEEK. January 28-31, The Window. Monday. Talks of home and street experiences, also of possible experiences in the new class. Children love to tell what big brother or big sister does in school. Let them show how quiet and well-behaved they mean to be. Review the calendar, dwelling more upon numbers. Who can find 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. Who can find the word Monday? A few may be able to do this and even knowing one word helps the primary teacher. Let the children fold windows and count the parts. Count the panes of glass in our school windows. Count them at home. Build with blocks by dictation, using number freely. Tuesday. Story of the window as suggested in Mother Play. Talk of the pretty colored glass in church windows. Why do we keep our windows open? Look out of this window and tell me what you see. Do you remember what I asked you to look for at night? Draw a window. Draw a shade and the cord, etc. Children sometimes make curtains for the doll's house. Why do we like to have shades and curtains? Wednesday. Opening windows at night. Fresh air. Why? A simple health talk. See what the children BIBLE STORY FOR BEGINNERS. When Jesus was a boy. Picture to be obtained from W. A. Wilde Co. Boston. The Carpenter's Shop at Nazareth. Secure one for each child if possible. (1c each.) Where do you live, Eddie? And you, Annie? And you Willie? Who can tell me where Jesus lived when he was a little boy, like you? "In Bethlehem," O, no, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but when he was three or four years old, his father and mother moved to Nazareth. Have any of you ever moved from one house to another? Who has moved from one city (or village) to another? Tell me about it. Nazareth was a village, not a big city. Who went there? Do you remember the father's name? We learned it at Christmas. Who can find Joseph in this picture? Who was the mother? (Review). Now in Nazareth Joseph had a carpenter's shop in his house. Here is a picture of it. Tell me what you see. Who is this little boy? "Jesus." Yes, it is Jesus. What is Jesus doing?" "He is helping his father." Why did Joseph work? What did he make? How does your father work? Do you ever help him? If you cannot help now, perhaps you will help when you are a big boy. Now you can help mother. I am sure Jesus helped his mother, too. There were hills near Nazareth. Sometimes after the work was done, Jesus and Mary and Joseph went up a little way on a hill and sat down under the trees to rest. Joseph talked to his little boy about God. He said, "God is your good Father in heaven who makes these trees grow, "Where do I get wood to make houses and chairs and tables?" "I wonder if Jesus knew. Do you?" Jesus loved to hear about his Father in heaven. He loved to hear about the trees. He loved to play and help in the carpenter's shop. Dr. Caroline Hedger gave a lecture entitled "Americanizing Our Foreign Population," at Adelphi College Hall, Brooklyn, N. Y., recently. The lecture was given under the joint auspices of the Adelphi Normal and the Brooklyn Free Kindergarten Society. The kindergarten children of New York have been busy for a long time making gifts for the little refugees of devastated France. Many cases of filled Christmas stockings were shipped. INTERNATIONAL DAILY VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL ASSOCIATION Dr. Jennie B. Merrill, New York. This association has centers in the United States, East, West, North and South. Recently superintendents from a number of these cities met in N. Y. C. at 90 Bible House for their annual conference. Canada sent three superintendents. Written reports reached Dr. Boville, the International Director, from Shanghai and from Tokio in time for the conference and added much interest to the sessions. A reception was tendered one evening to Chinese students and missionaries on furlough, by Mrs. Jesse. Merrick Smith, formerly Miss Mable McKinney of the Brooklyn Free Kindergarten Association, in view of enlisting their interest in furthering this work on their return to China. Children in these schools, not only heard 30 Bible stories during the summer, but they made many toys and useful articles. They brought their pennies as offerings to help other children have vacation Bible Schools next year. From the 402 schools, 130,000 pennies were received. This amount will be doubled by the Board of Directors, of which Mr. Russel Colgate is president. Mr. Colgate also offered the Association $10,000 in Liberty bonds if they would work to secure $15,000 more by February 1. This is a war measure for kindergartners to aid. It is plainly a child welfare movement. FIFTEENTH GENERAL CONVENTION OF THE R. E. A. "Community Organization" will be the theme of the Fifteenth Annual Convention of the Religious Education Association to be held at Atlantic City on March 4-6, 1918. The convention program responds to current interests in the attention paid to the problems of world relationships and organization. The fundamental relations of religion and of education to the "neighboring" of nations; the education of the young for a religious type of patriotism, and the immediate work to be done in wartimes, these are the leading topics of the evening sessions. The day sessions are devoted to the problems of organizing community life on a basis of religious education. Some important studies have been undertaken which will furnish a basis for the discussion in these sessions. All the meetings of the convention are open to any persons interested. The meetings will be held and headquarters maintained at The Breakers, Atlantic City. A Kindergarten has been established in the Day Nursery at Chelsea, Mass., with Miss Gordon, a senior at Miss Neal's School, Boston, in charge. The parents of the Laurel Hill School, Providence, R. I., have petitioned for the establishment of a kindergarten there. MOTHERS' DEPARTMENT TRAINING LITTLE CHILDREN (V) Suggestions for Mothers Issued by the United States Bureau of Education and the National Kindergarten Association Children Learn More in First Six Years Than Students During Four Years' College Course The Child's Education Should be Systematized and as Carefully Guided as the Student's By Mrs. Louise Guldlin Simenson We all know the quotation, "Give me the first seven years of the child's life and you may have the rest." The author of this statement knew that he could in the first seven years make an impression which all subsequent influences would be unable to eradicate. Some scientists are now asserting that the first three years of a child's life are the most important, that during this time impressions are received and stored in the subconscious mind which later determine the trend of character. If we would stop to consider how much a child learns during the first six years of its life, we would find that it amounts to more than is acquired by a student during a four years' college course. Froebel saw that even though the child's school life begins at six, he is really learning during all the previous years in a more or less haphazard manner, depending on what his particular surroundings might be. Therefore, Froebel devoted his time to the study of the little child and the instinctive methods of training used by the mother. In this connection Elizabeth Harrison says: "Froebel learned from the mother everything which he afterward embodied in his teachings, but his philosophical insight showed him the reason for all the mother's instinctive play and he in turn discloses the reason to her. He offers to each mother the collective wisdom of many. His penetration into childnature and its needs enabled him to select what was typical and universally valuable from meaningless sing-sing which the mothers also used. With the aid of his wife and some friends he collected many of the plays in use in his own country and published them with explanatory pictures and music in a book called "Mother Play." ("Mottoes and Commentaries of Froebel's Mother Play," translated by Susan E. Blow; published by D. Appleton and Co.; $1.60 each.) Susan Blow says in her translation of the "Mother Play" that the place of places to use this book is the home. William T. Harris, former Commissioner of Education, says in his preface to Miss Blow's translation, "There is no philosophy for the young woman compared to the philosophy of Froebel;" and Hon. P. P. Claxton, Commissioner of Education, writes in his article on "The Real Share of the Home in the Education of Children," "Among the means of education in these years of childhood are also to be counted song, and story, and play. Every mother should know how and what to sing to children, what stories to tell and how to tell them; how to make the most of the child's desire for play. In this spontaneous activity of the child, Froebel and his followers find the most valuable means of education." Froebel saw that the mothers of his day were too busy with other things to pay any attention to his ideas, and he concluded that it would take three generations before the world would appreciate what he had to give it. The three generations have now elapsed during which time his wonderful ideas have been appreciated by a mere handful of earnest men and women. But the time has come when our young motherhood will want and demand these ideas too, and will receive them. Froebel's Songs and Games for Mothers to Sing and Play with Their Children, One of the Finest Collections in the World They Help to Nurture and Guide Activities with Definite Ends in View By Mrs. Louise Guldlin Simenson Every young mother should memorize a few of the songs and finger plays and study the explanations, mottoes and pictures in Froebel's "Mother Play" so that she may begin to use them in her home long before the kindergarten age. I have used them and find that they teach the virtues which later it is so hard to instil, for as Froebel says, "Mother, you can now do with a touch as light as a feather what you cannot later accomplish with the pressure of a hundredweight." I have also found that the songs and plays fill the child's heart with joy and contentment, entertain him immensely, and supply his imagination with wholesome food. If the mother has memorized some of the songs, she can sing or croon them while busy about her household tasks and in this way can often direct her child's thoughts and play, with definite aims in view. Her walks or rides with the children may also be made occasions for such play. To illustrate how Froebel's philosophy helps the mother to train her child, let us consider first the Pat-a-cake play. You smile and say, "Why all mothers play pat-a-cake with their babies; that is nothing new." Yes, mothers have played pat-a-cake for ages and ages, but if they want to know why they play it, let them turn to Froebel, who points out that the reason the little game is so widely known is because "Simple mother wit never fails to link the initial activities of the child with the everyday life about him." He also says, "The bread or, better still, the little cake which the child likes so well, he receives from his mother; the mother in turn receives it from the baker. So far, so good. We have found two links in the great chain of life and service. Let us beware, however, of making the child feel that these links complete the chain. The baker can bake no cake if the miller grinds no meal; the miller can grind no meal if the farmer brings him no grain; the farmer can bring him no grain if his field yields no crop; the field can yield no crop, if the forces of nature fail to work together to produce it; the forces of nature could not conspire together were it not for the all-wise and beneficent Power who incites them to their predetermined ends." It is because we mothers have felt perhaps dimly and unconsciously the lesson which the Pat-a-cake play teaches of dependence on one another, and the gratitude each owes to all, that we have played this little game from ancient times. I start to play pat-a-cake with my baby when he is six months old. It affords him great satisfaction to exercise his arms and to direct his movements so that both little dimpled hands meet together. When he is about 18 months or 2 years old, I begin to show him the picture of pat-a-cake found in Froebel's "Mother Play." Through this means, I gradually and easily lead him to see that "For his bread he owes thanks not only to his mother, to the baker, the miller, the farmer, but also and most of all to the Heavenly Father, who thru the instrumentalities of dew and rain, sunshine and darkness, winter and summer, causes the earth to bring forth the grain." It is only after having studied the picture thoroughly and read the chapter on Pat-a-cake in the "Mottoes and Commentaries" and committed to memory the verses and tune in the "Songs and Music" of Froebel's "Mother Play" that I am ready to teach pat-a-cake to my baby, and as I have shown, I do not teach it all at once, but refer to it again and again, perhaps when we are out working in the garden on a sunny day, or in the house watching the rain. When my child is old enough to be interested in such things, we go into a bakery shop and, to the astonishment of the baker, ask if we may see his ovens. We often pass a mill and I tell my child that this is the place where the farmer brings his grain. Thus the lesson of pat-a-cake goes on for a long time after it is first played in babyhood. It teaches us to be ever thankful and baby learns to say: “Thank you, dear mamma;" "Thank you, dear baker;" ;""Thank you, dear God." There are many other songs and games in Froebel's "Mother Play" which I give to my children long before the kindergarten age. In all of these they take the greatest delight. I begin early to sing the songs and play the finger games which nourish the instinct of love for the members of the family and affection for animals. The Family Mother Song for Teaching Affection This is the mother so busy at home, This is the baby, all dimpled and sweet; -Emilie Poulsson. The active child of four or five instinctively desires to measure himself against children of his own age, and if deprived of the opportunity to do this, loses much of what is necessary for his highest and best development. Through contact with each other, children learn to wait their turn, and to be considerate in many other ways. Moreover the child wants to make things, and although the mother can play little songs and games with him while carrying on her household tasks, she cannot always take the time necessary to direct and assist the child in manual occupations. This is one reason why the kindergarten fills a great need. Association with playmates, and work with various materials and tools, songs and games are all provided in the kindergarten. It was because of the study of Froebelian methods and their successful application to the child below four, and because I realized how impossible it was for me, a busy mother, to meet the growing needs of my children, that I wanted a kindergarten in our town, not only for my own little ones, but for all the boys and girls. A number of mothers and fathers became interested in my project; we petitioned our Board of Education and a kindergarten was soon established. It was a success from the very start. IT'S THE BETTER WAY, TOO. "One dollar spent in right formation is better than a hundred spent for reformation later." That argument, one of many advanced by the Congress of Mothers, has been influential in creating a widespread public sentiment for the best type of kindergarten training. It has resulted in much successful kindergarten legislation. Bet let us not stop with the kindergarten. Let us continue spending dollars to save hundreds all during the formative period of our children's lives. It is cheaper to spend dollars on neighborhood social centers, playgrounds, recreation spots, reading rooms, school gymnasiums and swimming tanks than hundreds of dollars on reform schools, reformation farms, jails, penitentiaries and gallows. Also, it is a much better way!-Minneapolis News. Brigham City. With a schedule of thirteen meetings arranged for and the programs all fixed in advance the Brigham City Kindergarten club is now fully organized and ready for the season's work. The additional programs are for January 3, January 17, February 7, February 21, March 7, March 31, April 4 and April 18, May 2 and May 16. There will be a final meeting in addition to the thirteen now arranged for, but the date is to be later.-Salt Lake City Herald. PROGRESS IN KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION DURING THE YEAR Growth of Kindergartens: The number of public school kindergartens continues to increase at an encouragingly steady rate. No census was taken for 1916-17, but reports received by the Bureau of Education for the school year ending June 30, 1916, show that there are public school kindergartens in 1,228 cities, a gain of 123. The total number of kindergartens, public and other than public, for the same year (1916) was 10,015 and the number of children enrolled 509,112. The most marked increase in enrollment is found in eleven states, California, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota. California holds a leading position in this respect with a record of 94 additional kindergartens in 26 cities and towns. A kindergarten in every elementary school is the aim towards which many cities are working. In Chicago, the Board of Education has sanctioned the establishment of a kindergarten in every school provided the attendance justifies such action. Similar sanction has enabled Buffalo and Kansas City to achieve satisfying results. Cities and towns reporting a kindergarten in every elementary school are listed as follows: The excellent mandatory-on-petition law has yiel ed such good results during the past four years California that friends of the kindergarten, assiste by the National Kindergarten Association, have bee stimulated to secure the passage of a similar law other states. Their efforts have been successful Maine, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington, and Texa In Maine, the superintending school committees ar required, upon the filing of a petition coming fro the parents or guardians of 30 or more children be tween 4 and 6 years of age living within a mile c a public elementary school, to maintain a kindergar ten as a part of the common school course, unles otherwise instructed by the city or town. The kit dergarten may be discontinued if the daily averag attendance falls below 15 children. In this respe to kindergarten teachers, the law provides that person shall be allowed to teach in any kindergarten who has not completed at least a two-years' course in training and received a certificate or diploma from a recognized kindergarten training school approved by the State superintendent of schools. In Oregon the peculiar provision of the kindergarten bill is that the establishment of kindergartens is confined to the city of Portland, the law stipulating that not more than 5 and not less than 3 kindergartens must be installed during the year. The law in Tennessee is a permissive one; that is, cities and towns may etablish kindergartens but must support them by means of local taxation. In Washington the enactment provides that the kindergarten shall be a part of the school system and be supported just as the primary and upper grades are supported. The Texas law is similar to that of Maine. A noteworthy feature of the campaign was the hearty support give to the measure by the officers of the State Depar ment of Education. Emphasis also was placed upon adequate provisions for well-trained kindergarten teachers. New Kindergarten Training Schools: Closely connected with the legislative successes Texas, and California, is the announcement of the opening of two new kindergarten training schoo The College of Industrial Arts, Denton, Texas, is or ganizing a department of kindergarten education with Miss Mabel Osgood, formerly of the Milwauke State Normal School, in charge. Miss Grace Fulme is opening a school in Los Angeles, Cal. Children's classes in kindergarten and primary work are a nounced, and a department of kindergarten and prẻ mary education for young women. Emphasis is placed upon open air work. A two-year kindergarten training course was organized in 1916 in the State Normal School at Tempe, Ariz., and a training class under the direction of Laura Fisher was oper ed in Boston, the same year. The Kindergarten-Primary department of the I School of Education of Chicago University, the National Kindergarten College of Chicago, the Chicag Kindergarten Institute, and the Boston Norma School are laying stress upon the preparation of |