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Show KINjERCARTEN. A Visit Made to the School Yesterday. The Interesting- Exercises Gone Throug-h With .Every Day to Properly Train the Minds of the Children. A Dispatch reporter paid a visit yes-.erday yes-.erday to the Central school house", in nier to be initiated into the mysteries I the kindergarten which is being con-ucted con-ucted there under the direction of hs" Finch, assisted by Miss Mary Lyman Ly-man ard Miss Annie Brown. The kindergarten kin-dergarten school is held up stairs in tl"e 1 ro lHU'iii room, and upon entering ne attention is at once riveted on the rest end of the room, where two long tables are set, around which are seated a number of children. The tables are Wenty inches high, and the chairs are .welve inches high. The tables are livided into twelve large squares, and ach square is subdivided into small -quares. The tables are the design of Professor Cluff, and everything is made m a manner that attracts the eye of the .-hiid. Tlie lesson consists of a Series of gifts, the first of which is the three primary colors, red, yellow and ,uio. I-r.-m iiie.-ie, iiie eye oi the child s trained in color, and after a few le -ons it soon becomes able to distin-;iiish distin-;iiish the difference ar.d even blind cola's. col-a's. Alter the colors the gifts ir.-i ar-anged ar-anged in a progressive manner and . msdsts of cylinders. . spheres, cubes and blocks. The cubes are divided into halves, quarters and eighths, ami with these they learn to build different forms. I'here are in all twenty gifts which will take a cLild through a course that w ilt n.uilc it togiasp the rudiments of an English education. After the above uenlioned gifts the others consist ot ,'aper-folding which can be done in such a variety of ways that it would amuse, instruct and even puzzle older heads. Miss Finch took a piece ot paper four nches square and folded it, in order to S..0W the rep. rter how it could be done, md made it into some of the prettiest flowers and designs imaginable. After the folding there is weaving and braiding, braid-ing, all in different colors, and in fact il would take a book to begin to give a small account of the furnishings of the kindergarten. 'I lie object of the school is to train the child's mind. Any one knows that a child is in constant netivitv and if this activity can be directed "into improper im-proper channel it will lie ihe means nf developing the child's mind so that it can easih learn lessons from books. Prof. Cluff says lhat a child who attends at-tends the kindergarten is just two years in advance of a child who d not. there are twenty-two children now enrolled, anil Miss Finch and her assistants as-sistants are kept very busy. All physical physi-cal exercises are conducted to music, and this teaches the child to a- a system in all things they do.. -s and marches are part of the f' ft. p:titv and i.lavfnlpes . tl -l.j property directed, woTm?. TUM i.ieimtf-of i.ieimtf-of developing the mind in a way w lrch no other method could reach. Since Froebel's time the kindergartenhas been greatly improved and it is now in the highest stage that has ever been reached. Professor Cluff last winter got up a dance in order to raise the money re quired to iurnisn lite scnuoi, inu ne has succeeded in establishing a place where the children ot Provo from the age of 3 vears to 7 years can obtain a fine education, an ed'vation which lays Ihe foundation on which their future greatness can be i-uilt, a foundation which will not crumble. Professor Cluff has established the first kindergarten in Utah, and it will undoubtedly be the means of inducing others to start, especially when the success oi this one becomes known. Some of the teachers attending the summer school also take theoretical lessons in the kindergarten. Miss Finch devoting a part of the afternoon to them. A class of married ladies was also organized in order that they might j learn the methods of the kindergarten and then teach their children at home. This branch should receive the attention atten-tion of every mother in this city, as" they can organize a class at home, making the fireside attractive for the children. Prof. Cluff is very anxious that every mother should attend this school, and has placed the rates low enough to be within the reach of all. the ctianre is $1.00 a wee-. Each mother i allowed to take one child with her. The ices for children are placed at fifty cents .a week, which is certainly low enough to be within the reach of all. In order that a good idea may be had of the school a person must visit the school and see the children at play, otherwise only a faint idea can be conveyed. con-veyed. This "is the only kindergarten in the territory, but when next summer rolls around others will be started, and l'r.f. Cluff will have the pleasure of seeing the frail shrub which he has planted blossom blos-som and bear fruit. There are numbers of pupil- applying apply-ing for entrance, but the facilities are not stic-h as will enable a larger class to be taken at the present. The tact should impress itself upon parents that the kindergarten is introduced for the express purpose of turning their children's activity into channels which will develop the mind instead of allowimr that activity to go ban-hazard in its play. Another feature of the schools is" the fact that it w ill also teach the child a way of doins everything every-thing with svstem and order. Parents should visit the school, by all means. |