The Child under Eight | Page 4

family, of the nation and of humanity;
an institution for the self-instruction, self-education and self-cultivation
of mankind, as well as for all-sided development of the individual
through play, through creative self-activity and spontaneous
self-instruction."
A second definition is given in Froebel's reply to a proposal that he
should establish "my system of education--education by
development"--in London, Paris or the United States:
"We also need establishments for training quite young children in their
first stage of educational development, where their training and
instruction shall be based upon their own free action or spontaneity
acting under proper rules, these rules not being arbitrarily decreed, but
such as must arise by logical necessity from the child's mental and
bodily nature, regarding him as a member of the great human family;
such rules as are, in fact, discovered by the actual observation of
children when associated together in companies. These establishments
bear the name of Kindergartens."
Unfortunately there are but few pictures of Froebel's own Kindergarten,
but there seems to have been little formality in its earliest development.

An oft-told story is that of Madame von Marenholz in 1847 going to
watch the proceedings of "an old fool," as the villagers called him, who
played games with the village children. A less well-known account is
given by Col. von Arnswald, again a Keilhau boy, who visited
Blankenberg in 1839, when Froebel had just opened his first
Kindergarten.
"Arriving at the place, I found my Middendorf[3] seated by the pump
in the market-place, surrounded by a crowd of little children. Going
near them I saw that he was engaged in mending the jacket of a boy. By
his side sat a little girl busy with thread and needle upon another piece
of clothing; one boy had his feet in a bucket of water washing them
carefully; other girls and boys were standing round attentively looking
upon the strange pictures of real life before them, and waiting for
something to turn up to interest them personally. Our meeting was of
the most cordial kind, but Middendorf did not interrupt the business in
which he was engaged. 'Come, children,' he cried, 'let us go into the
garden!' and with loud cries of joy the little folk with willing feet
followed the splendid-looking, tall man, running all round him.
[Footnote 3: One of Froebel's most devoted helpers.]
"The garden was not a garden, however, but a barn, with a small room
and an entrance hall. In the entrance Middendorf welcomed the
children and played a round game with them, ending with the flight of
the little ones into the room, where each of them sat down in his place
on the bench and took his box of building blocks. For half an hour they
were all busy with their blocks, and then came 'Come, children, let us
play "spring and spring."' And when the game was finished they went
away full of joy and life, every one giving his little hand for a grateful
good-bye."
Here in this earliest of Free Kindergartens are certain essentials.
Washing and mending, the alternation of constructive play with active
exercise, rhythmic game and song, and last but not least human
kindliness and courtesy. The shelter was but a barn, but there are things
more important than premises.

Froebel died too soon to see his ideals realised, but he had sown the
seed in the heart of at least one woman with brain to grasp and will to
execute. As early as 1873 the Froebelians had established something
more than the equivalent of the Montessori Children's Houses under the
name of Free Kindergartens or People's Kindergartens. It will bring this
out more clearly if, without referring here to any modern experiments
in America, in England and Scotland, or in the Dominions, we quote
the description of an actual People's Kindergarten or Nursery School as
it was established nearly fifty years ago.
The moving spirit of this institution was Henrietta Schroder, Froebel's
own grand-niece, trained by him, and of whom he said that she, more
than any other, had most truly understood his views.
The whole institution was called the Pestalozzi-Froebel House. The
Prussian edict, which abolished the Kindergarten almost before it had
started, was now rescinded, and our own Princess Royal[4] gave warm
support to this new institution. The description here quoted was
actually written in 1887, when the institution had been in existence for
fourteen years:
[Footnote 4: The Crown Princess of Prussia, afterwards the Empress
Frederick.]
"The purpose of the National Kindergarten is to provide the necessary
and natural help which poor mothers require, who have to leave their
children to themselves.
"The establishment contains:--
"(1) The Kindergarten proper, a National Kindergarten with four
classes for children from 2-1/2 to 6 years old.
"(2) The Transition Class, only held in the morning for