FREE KINDERGARTENS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21021, 9 May 1930, Page 13

FREE KINDERGARTENS.

ANNUAL MEETING OF ASSOCIATION. The annual meeting of the Dunedin Free Kindergarten Association was held in the City Council Chambers yesterday afternoon, the Mayor (Mr R. S. Black) presiding over a good attendance of members. In opening the meeting the Mayor stated that tremendous possibilities lay in the years of child life and it was the duty of the older people in the community to help to develop those possibilities. The movements organised fbr the welfare of the children in the present day were excellent and the wonder was that such movements had not been instituted before. He thanked all those who had done such excellent service towards the welfare of child-life, and made special refenence_ to the work of _ the president (Mrs Phillips), and the secretary (Miss E. M. Calder) whose activities were responsible for a great deal of the success achieved by the association. In moving the adoption of the annual report the president of the association (Mrs D. Phillips) stated that’ it was most satisfactory to note the progress of the kindergarten work, which had been well maintained throughout the year A perusal of the reports showed each school to have .strengthened its position. The local committees in the various districts had willingly contributed their quota towards raising the necessary funds for the care of their respective schools, and they were to be congratulated upon their success. The Fathers’ and Mothers’ Clubs had also been of great assistance. The mothers, in particular, were a real part of the kindergartens. They assembled every month at the Mothers’ Club meetings, where there was often a speaker, such as a nurse, who would give simple hints on diet suitable to the pre-school child, or talks on- the benefits which accrued from fresh air and sunshine, as well as general health principles. In this way the duties of mental and physical fitness were stressed, so that in later life the child would have the opportunity of making itself more useful in the world, and better able to serve others. Thus, one of the aims of kindergarten was carried into the homes of the children. Very often the fathers were interested, too, and would volunteer to help with the gardens, and many minor repairs to the schools. It was a splendid example of what “ getting together ” could do. The thanks of the association were due to the principal, Miss Dutton, the directors and assistants, who, in spite of the changes and difficulties of the year, had rendered whole-hearted service to the cause. Through' the sympathy and influence of Professor Strong, of Otago University, the directors of the MerrillPalmer Home-making and Nursery Training _ School, Detroit, granted ,the association one of their scholarships, which included free tuition, also board while in residence at the school, and an allowance towards travelling expenses. A number of private donations, and an anonymous gift of £IOO, enabled the association to send Miss Emily Macdonald (director of Kelsey-Yaralla) to Detroit, where she was now taking a post-gradu-ate course in kindergarten work. The association was very grateful to the authorities of the Merrill-Palmer School, and to the local donors, for the Splendid opportunity given to one -of its kindergarteners. The latest benefaction was one of £4OO from the trustees of the Dunedin Savings Bank. The association was most thankful indeed for such further practical recognition of its work. It was intended that this sum, together with the Government subsidy of £1 for £l, would be devoted towards the purchase Tr-i1 rect -* on °*. a ne . w kindergarten at St. Hilda, in which district the association had been struggling on for so long in most unsuitable surroundings. It had been said that the seventeenth century discovered man, the nineteenth woman, and the twentieth the child. In this latter, the kindergarten played an important part. It sought to place children in an amosphere of sympathy and Tij- i where through play, their childish activities and latent senses were developed. In these days of hustle and restlessness, there was a danger of children into manhood too soon, ihe kindergarten stood to prevent this, Ret childhood ripen in children,” was the doctrine* preacned by Rousseau, and Jater, -the great Froebel sounded a note w hen in a concluding section of the Education of Man "he wrote: “ God does not cram in or ingraft. He develops the smallest and most imperfect thing in continually ascending stages, and in accordance with eternal laws grounded in and developing from the thing’s own self.” Moreover, as Froebel pointed out, a boy was a boy, not because he had reached a certain age. but because he had lived through his infancy faithfully to the requirements of his soul, mind, and body. It was therefore for them to see that these God-giyen privileges of childhood were maintained, and that when successive stages of youth and manhood were i viehed, there would be one continuous development, each stage, depending on all •™? a A , a r, £ one before. Nothing was more pitiful • than to see a child brought for* ward, before its time. Even the little girl playing with her doll, and the boy Hying his kite, were using their childish powers laid down by Nature, for the ideal_ development of their mental and physical progress at this particular stage Ihc Dunedin Free Kindergarten Association had now completed its fortieth year. Within a generation it had grown to its present gratifying proportions, and this had been pqsible because a few people realised that **the tiniest bits of opinion sown in the minds of children afterwards issue forth _to the world and become public opinion, for nations are gathered out of nurseries. and _ they , who hold the leading strings of children. may exercise , cv ? n greater power than they who hold the reins of government.” The motion was seconded by Dr Ada Paterson, director of school hygiene, who stated that the kindergarten movement was in reality a recognition of the neccs-. sity of prevention and cure of the results of malnutrition. The majority of children were normal at birth, but it was only by proper nurture that their full possibilities were assured, and in this respect pre-natal and ante-natal treatment were most important. In the early stages of a child’s life the mental and nervous systems were equally as delicate and complex as the' physical body, and required very careful treatment. They were very proud of their low infant mortality in the Dominion, for statistics showed that in the years 1894-98' the death rate amongst children of one. to five years was 68 per 10,000. In the period 1924-28 that mortality rate had fallen to 38 per 10,000. Amongst children of from five to ten years of age the death rate of 22 in 10,000 in 1894-98 had fallen to 15 per 10,000 in 1924-28, showing that the decrease in the infantile mortality had been accompanied by a > fall in the death rate of older children. In this respect the Plunket Society was to be congratulated on the excellent work it was doing in giving instruction with regard to the correct upbringing of children. In an examination of 25,000 children taken recently 25 per cent, were found to be without defect, 15 per cent, were suffering from deformed trunks and chests, due to faulty nutrition, 20 per cent, had unhealthy tonsils, and only G. 3 per cent, possessed healthy teeth. The value of the work of the school dental clinics could be gained from the fact that in a school of 200 pupils in a northern centre, 28 per cent had noteworthy body defects, 20 per out. had dental defects, 28 per cent, possessed perfect teeth, and 8.5 per cent, were suffering from malnutrition. In the older children the incidence of dental defects was not so high as in children of early years, but with th e improvement and enlargement o'f the kindergarten system, the instruction in cleanliness and, care of the teeth would mean the prevention of a great deal of dental trouble at an early stage. One side of the work of prevention was to try and interest people in the case of delicate children who, through malnutrition or other causes, might develop tubercular trouble. Many of these children could be dealt with most satisfactorily in their own homes, but in other cases it would be more desirable if the children were removed to pleasant and healthy surroundings. An attempt was being made to organise a system of permanent health camps throughout the Dominion, and the site of one of these camps had already been secured in Wellington. At the present moment no buildings had been erected through lack of funds, but it was hoped that some money from the Chr : stnins Sea] anti-tubercular campaign might be secured for this purpose. Dr Paterson concluded by expressing her sincere admiration of the work of the kindergarten Council and the teachers in the Dominion, and stated that she felt assured that the organisation would soon achieve great extension.— (Applause.) _ The adoption of the report was carried.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS. The following office-bearers were elected for the ensuing year:—President, Mrs D. Phillips; vice-presidents—Mesdames R. A. Ewing, W. Evans, H. W. Bundle, and J- R, Glendining; secretary and treasurer, Miss E. M. Calder; lion, auditor, Mr H. Brasch. Votes of thanks to Dr Paterson for her inspiring address, to the Mayor for presiding over the meeting, and to the City Council for the use of the room were moved by Mrs Ewing and carried by acclamation, and the meeting closed with the singing of the National'Anthem.