Lynn Turner, age 12, of Burlington, Vt., for her question:
WHEN DID WE HAVE THE FIRST KINDERGARTEN?
Kindergarten is the school grade that precedes first grade. Most children in kindergarten are five year olds. A German educator named Friedrich Froebel, who started his first kindergarten in 1837, made up the school's name from two German words that mean "children's garden."
Before Froebel established his kindergarten, Robert Owen had established infant schools at New Lanark, Scotland, and in New Harmony, Indiana. Owen's idea was to take children almost from the cradle and train them in good habits.
One of Froebel's pupils, a teacher named Mrs. Carl Schurz, established the first kindergarten fn the United States in 1856 at Watertown, Wisc. It was a German speaking school for the children of German immigrants.
A teacher named Elizabeth Peabody started a kindergarten in Boston in 1860 for English speaking children. And the first public kindergarten appeared in the St. Louis school system in 1873. The first public kindergarten in Canada was established in Ontario in 1871.
During the late 1800s, many American educators felt that Froebel's methods did not provide enough useful training for children. As a result, American kindergartens began to teach simple handwork skills that would prepare children for work.
There were only about 50 kindergartens in the United States in 1880, but enrollment increased rapidly. By 1890, most large American cities had kindergartens with an enrollment of about 30,000 children.
Small towns and rural areas were quick to join the movement. By 1900, about 210,000 went to kindergartens.
The first kindergartens chiefly served children of underprivileged homes. Teaching in kindergartens was regarded as charity work. Even the early public school kindergartens were privately supported by charities.
Early kindergartens in the United States were aimed at providing good experiences for children often as young as 3. They also tried to improve home conditions. The teacher spent almost half her time helping familiies in much the same manner as the social worker does today.
During the early 1900s, kindergartens increased rapidly in number. Teacher training schools gave increased attention to the preparation of kindergarten teachers.
Today many kindergartens offer only half a day of school, with one group of children going in the morning and another in the afternoon. Many teachers believe 5 year olds would benefit greatly from a full day. Also, many educators believe that 4 year olds are ready for kindergarten.
Today some school boards also hire male teachers for kindergartens. Also, some schools hire specially trained adults called teacher aides to help kindergarten teachers.