Hadow (1933)

Notes on the text
Preliminary pages Membership, Analysis, Preface, Introduction
Chapter 1 History of the development of infant education
Chapter 2 Physical development of children up to 7
Chapter 3 Mental development of children up to 7
Chapter 4 Age limits and organisation of the infant stage
Chapter 5 Medical supervision, education and training of under 5s
Chapter 6 Training and teaching of children in infant and nursery schools
Chapter 7 Staffing of infant and nursery schools, training of teachers
Chapter 8 Premises and equipment of infant and nursery schools
Chapter 9 Summary of principal conclusions and recommendations
Appendix I List of witnesses
Appendix II Anatomical and physiological characteristics of 2-7 year olds (Harris)
Appendix III Emotional development of children up to seven plus (Burt and Isaacs)
Appendix IV Notes on typical nursery schools and classes
Appendix V Manchester's student nurse scheme for 'helpers'
Appendix VI Practice in Europe and US
Index

London: HM Stationery Office

Appendix IV
[pages 252 - 264]

SHORT DESCRIPTIONS BY SUPERINTENDENTS, HEAD TEACHERS AND OTHERS OF TYPICAL NURSERY SCHOOLS; NURSERY CLASSES; BABY CLASSES

(A) NURSERY SCHOOLS
Bradford, Princeville Council Nursery School.
London, Deptford, The Rachel McMillan Council Nursery School.
London, Notting Hill Voluntary Nursery School.
Manchester, Collyhurst Voluntary Nursery School.
Sheffield, Denby Street Council Nursery School.

(B) NURSERY CLASSES FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 5 IN INFANT SCHOOLS AT LEICESTER AND MANCHESTER

(C) SHORT DESCRIPTIONS OF THE CLASSES FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 5 BY THE HEAD TEACHERS OF SIX INFANT SCHOOLS OF DIFFERENT TYPES
The class for children between the ages of 3 and 4 in a council school for infants in a large midland town.
The section for children aged 4 years in a council school for infants in a midland town.
The classes for children below the age of 5 in a council school for infants in a large industrial town in the north.
The class for children below the age of 5 in a council school for infants in a town on the south coast.
The group for children below the age of 5 in a small non-provided rural school in the south of England.
The group for children below the age of 5 in a small rural council school for infants in one of the southern counties.

(A) NURSERY SCHOOLS

BRADFORD, PRINCEVILLE NURSERY SCHOOL

This school was opened by the local education authority in 1920 as a detached nursery school on 'open air' lines. In 1930 the nursery school was amalgamated with the infant department (after special structural alterations had been made) in order to carry on the nursery school tradition through the infant department under one head teacher. The nursery school accommodates 104 children, and the infant department 200. The nursery school or section consists of three classrooms which can be completely opened on one side to admit the fresh air, and are shaded by a glass veranda. There is an ample playground, partly paved, and partly laid out in grass with flower beds. The reception room is large and well lighted and permits of complete scrutiny to detect cases of infectious disease. Shower baths and small water closets are provided. In the cloakroom each child has its own peg, together with a face cloth, comb and towel.

The school forms a combined nursery and infant department, and the connection between the two branches is close, both in organisation and in educational activity.

Meals. All children in the nursery section stay to dinner. The parents pay 2s. [10p] per week (or 3s. 6d. [17½p] for two children in the same family); this includes midday dinner, milk and fruit. In cases of need, the fees are reduced or wholly remitted.

At the age of five, the children technically belong to the infant section. They may, however, continue to have the full diet provided in the nursery section on payment of the same fee. Almost all the children who have been in the nursery section do this. The same arrangement is open to children entering the school at the age of five, but a number of parents do not wish their children to have the full nursery diet. The following choice is allowed them:

(i) 3½d. [1½p] per day for dinner alone.
(ii) 3½d. [1½p] per day for dinner and 1d. [½p] for milk.
(iii) 1d. [½p] for milk (no dinner).

Educational activity. The children are grouped according to age, though there is no rigidity. Children of different ages frequently play together and a child may join in the activities of a different age group if he wishes. In general, however, children about the same age like to be together and to use the apparatus provided for them. The activities of the various groups are planned as follows:

Two year old group. These have large apparatus, rag books and toys, e.g. woolly animals and big bricks. They delight in playing on the 'jungle gym' and the chute, and apart from learning to wash and dress themselves, they spend most of the time in free play. All these activities help them to control their bodies.

Three year old group. The apparatus is somewhat more complicated than that for children of the age of two. It includes sense training apparatus (for colour and shape) which also helps in finger manipulation. Picture books are provided instead of rag books, and the children learn to take care of them.

The activities are more ordered, though not formal. They include, for instance, gardening and the arrangement of flowers. Sometimes the children will plan a washing day or some other domestic occupation with which they are familiar.

Four and five year old group (the 'transition class'). This group forms the transition between the nursery and infant sections, and in order that there may be no line of demarcation between them, the activities are very diverse. Much free choice is allowed and the domestic activities of the preceding group are continued. The children regularly clean the bathroom, and wash their own furniture.

The toys and apparatus provided are related to those supplied for the group of children of the age of three, but as the children develop, they are given occupations involving simple number, Paper cutting, clay work, etc, with the calculations required, lay the foundations for more formal work. Later in the year, apparatus boxes are provided for each child, containing simple number and reading apparatus. During the summer term, the children over five are given some definite instruction in the elements of reading, number and printing. After this, the children pass into the infant section proper. Although the work is necessarily more ordered and some class instruction is given, nursery methods and regime are to a large extent continued in the infant section. The children are left as free as possible and much of the work is on individual lines.

The head teacher has prepared schemes for the coordinated work of the whole school, and all the staff in course of time will have taken classes or groups in both sections. This is a matter of great importance, as the idea informing the whole work and activity of the school is the unity of a child's development between the ages of two and seven.

All the staff take part too in the mothers' club which holds weekly meetings in the evening. About 60 or 70 women are usually present.

LONDON, DEPTFORD, RACHEL MCMILLAN NURSERY SCHOOL

The Rachel McMillan Nursery School which is now the largest nursery school in England was started in 1911 as a small voluntary enterprise in the garden of Evelyn House, Deptford, where the premises were lent rent free to form a night camp for children over eight years of age while little children were received in the day time. This was the nucleus of the nursery school. In 1914 the 'camp' was moved to a shelter on the Stowage site. This site had originally been acquired by the London County Council for a new elementary school, but there had been a decrease in the child population of the district and they had agreed to allow Miss Margaret McMillan the temporary use of the site at a nominal rent.

The 'camp' was used during the war by the children of munition workers and a government grant of 7d. [3p] a day was paid to Miss McMillan for each child. The creche for the munition workers' children was in reality an open-air nursery school.

In 1917 Mr HAL Fisher, the President of the Board of Education, opened new buildings erected on the Stowage site.

In 1919 the Council entered into an agreement with Miss McMillan giving her the use of the Stowage site for five years, with the proviso that then, or at her death if it occurred before, the site and the buildings she had erected should pass to the Council. In 1924 and subsequent years this agreement was renewed. The nursery school was recognised by the Board of Education in 1919 and grant by the Council was first paid in 1920. In 1921 HM Queen Mary opened new buildings erected by the Council, with accommodation for 100 children, on another part of the site. From then until Miss McMillan's death in 1931 the school consisted of two parts, one maintained by the Council and the other, which had been provided by Miss McMillan, aided by grant from the Council. These two parts were conducted as one organisation under one superintendent.

In 1924 Miss McMillan provided additional places in premises (since demolished) in Wellington Street, and in 1927 a new shelter was built by her on the Stowage site. The accommodation of the school had then become 260 places, i.e. 160 in the voluntary part and 100 places in the Council's part.

In 1931, on Miss McMillan's death, all the premises of the voluntary school passed to the Council under the agreement previously referred to and the school has been wholly maintained by the Council since then.

In 1932 the temporary premises in Wellington Street were required for the purposes of a housing scheme and a new shelter was built on the Stowage site. The total accommodation of the school, 260 places, remained unchanged.

The school is of the 'village' type consisting of six open air shelters standing in a large garden. The shelters are self-contained, having separate cloakrooms, bathrooms and sanitation; each shelter accommodates 35 to 50 children. The garden is specially designed to meet the needs of young children. It makes an attractive playground with its slide, 'jungle gym', and its little paths and steps to tempt adventurous toddlers. There is an aviary and a dove cot. Rabbits and guinea pigs are kept as pets and the children greatly enjoy feeding them.

The school is staffed by qualified teachers with special nursery school experience, aided by students from the adjoining nursery school training college, who gain useful insight into nursery school management whilst giving service which enables the nursery school to be conducted at a reasonably low cost.

The nursery school opens at 7.30 am to admit special cases and most of the children arrive between 8 am and 9 am. They make their way to their own shelters with a mother or an elder sister who has brought them, and after greeting their teacher go straight to the bathroom for their morning toilet. Breakfast is served at 9 o'clock. The morning is spent in handwork occupations or in play either in the garden or in the shelter if weather is inclement. Between 11.30 am and 12 noon the children sit down to a two course dinner, after which they are ready for their midday sleep. The afternoon's activities consist of free play, music and games. Tea is served at 4 o'clock and between 5 and 5.30 pm the parents arrive to take their children home.

A weekly charge of 1s. 8d. [8½p] is made to those parents who can afford to pay this sum. This covers the cost of the raw food. Necessitous cases are carefully considered and reductions are made to meet the needs of individual parents.

The school is visited once a week by one of the London County Council doctors, and a Council nurse attends daily for an hour. The treatment recommended by the doctor is carried out at the Margaret McMillan Treatment Centre, Reginald Square, Deptford. Breathing exercises, massage and sunlight treatment are given where necessary. The physical condition of the children rapidly improves under favourable hygienic surroundings.

One of the nursery school shelters is reserved for delicate children who require special treatment and diet. (1)

There is a flourishing mothers' club in connection with the school. This club meets weekly and is of inestimable value as a link between home and school.

Adjoining the nursery school is the Rachel McMillan Training College where 100 students are now in resident training for nursery school teachers. Their work brings them into close touch with the social problems of the day and they have ample opportunities of observing the physical and mental development of the children in the school.

LONDON, NOTTING HILL VOLUNTARY NURSERY SCHOOL

This is one of the pioneer nursery schools conducted by a committee in connection with the Froebel Educational Institute. It was established in 1908 as the Michaelis Free Kindergarten, but changed its name to the Notting Hill Nursery School in 1915. The premises, which accommodate 80 children, consist of a three-storeyed house with a garden at the back. The staff consists of the superintendent, a trained assistant, two uncertificated assistants, a probationer, and voluntary helpers. An open-air shelter for children who are specially delicate has been erected in the garden, and proves of much value. A midday dinner is provided at a charge of 1s. 3d. [6p] per week, but where parents are unable to afford this sum the dinners are provided free of charge for limited periods.

An attempt was made to trace the subsequent school careers of all the children who had left the Notting Hill Nursery School within the last five years. It was found that they had all held their own in school studies and pursuits. The educational tests that were given them indicated that they were at least up to the average in their school work. Although they entered the elementary school at the age of five with no formal knowledge of reading and number, they soon overtook those children who had had an earlier training in these subjects. The verdict of the teachers concerned was that the nursery school children were alert and eager to learn, and that they were well behaved and equipped with habits which made for progress and happiness in the school.

One of the special features of the school is a well arranged course of instruction in the care of young children for pupils from the senior class of a neighbouring public elementary school for girls. The girls attend the nursery school for one morning a week during the last three terms of their school life. They spend their time in giving one month in assisting with children between the ages of two and three, one month with those aged three to four years, and one month in the shelter for specially delicate children. A weekly lecture of half an hour is given by the superintendent of the nursery school on various points in nursery school training. The girls keep a diary of the work done and are given a written test at the end of the term. They have practice in supervision of the hygiene of children, bathing, handkerchief drill, etc. and are present at the daily examination of the children by the school nurse, when they learn to recognise the obvious symptoms of incipient disease. Special attention is given to the diet of young children. Visits are paid to the nursery school kitchen, and lessons are given on the choice of dinners and the cost of food. The housewifery scheme of the girls' school is correlated to include instruction in suitable patterns of clothing, and clothes are made in school for the nursery school children. During the period at the nursery school girls are afforded opportunities for practice in playing games with the children, in telling them stories, and in making simple apparatus.

MANCHESTER, COLLYHURST NURSERY SCHOOL

This school is conducted as one of the activities of the Collyhurst Guild of Social Service. Two army huts were purchased at a cost of £60 each and set up on a plot of land adjoining the recreation rooms of the Guild. A veranda and wide concrete path were added, with space for stretcher beds. The aspect is sunny and the school provides an inexpensive shelter on open air lines. There are two large nursery classrooms with trench windows, affording accommodation for 45 children in all. The staff room is used for massage three times weekly, and also as a room for observing cases where illness is suspected. The rest of the premises include a lavatory room with movable basins, small water closets, and a cloakroom filled with pegs, small seats and boot racks for each child. Little chairs, tables, and stretcher beds are provided, and one of the nursery classrooms has blackboard material round the walls. There is a sand pit in the garden. One special feature of this school is the type of children selected for admission. The district is very poor and preference is given to debilitated children suffering from rickets. Children are selected from the Collyhurst Infant Welfare Centre.

The medical adviser pays a fortnightly visit. A wholetime nurse masseuse is employed, and good results are obtained in cases of rickets by the combination of massage and artificial sunlight treatment.

A midday meal and tea is provided at a charge to parents varying from 9d. [4p] to 1s. 6d. [7½p] per week. These contributions are made up to a little more than 2s. [10p] per week from a Mothers' Free Fund and a charitable fund.

The children's activities find an outlet in singing, games, nature work, individual occupations, and free play. Any child who may be unable to walk is provided with a small trolley in which he can learn to move himself, so that his independence is not curtailed through his disability, which, in some cases, may be only temporary.

SHEFFIELD, DENBY STREET NURSERY SCHOOL

This school which was opened by the local education authority in 1928, affords accommodation for 170 children. The premises consist of two shelters each containing three classrooms which are fully 'open air' in type. Each classroom holds about 35 children. The classrooms open on to a veranda and can be closed by folding doors. There is ample playground space, partly laid out in grass and partly in asphalt. Other accommodation includes kitchen, larders, staff sitting rooms, lavatories and cloakrooms (with pipes screened by wire for drying clothes).

The staff consists of a superintendent, three trained assistant teachers and three probationers, who are secondary school girls intending to enter the teaching profession. Other helpers include two students from the training college who attend for certain periods each week, and two elementary school girls in the last term of school life who attend for 2½ days weekly in order to obtain some insight into the care and management of young children. One of the assistant school medical officers undertakes routine medical inspection, and special visits are paid, as required, either for new cases, or for children who need to be kept under observation. A school nurse pays daily visits. The children are passed under review for cleanliness or infectious disease, and simple minor ailments receive attention. The school clinics are available for the special inspection and treatment of children from this school. Weights are taken twice a month by the school nurse. Three meals are provided, breakfast, dinner and tea. A charge of 2s. [10p] per week is made in respect of the meals, but where parents are unable to pay the whole or part of this amount the charge may be remitted. The following medical observations illustrate the benefits derived from attendance at a nursery school of this type:

(i) All the children show a steady increase in height and weight.
(ii) Children who have attended for a year have a well nourished appearance and intelligent bearing.
(lii) Appetite improves; difficult children become more normal.
(iv) Cases of rickets or bone deformity and minor ailments such as otorrhoea and impetigo respond quickly to treatment.
(v) Comparatively few cases of infectious disease occur among the children.

The daily programme is planned with a view to satisfying the main needs of little children and providing opportunities for all round development. Special attention is devoted to the formation of good habits during the fixed periods for eating, sleeping, and personal hygiene. Free activities, for which a generous supply of suitable apparatus and toys is provided, are taken out of doors whenever possible.

The training affords opportunities for mental development and social intercourse, good use being made of sense training apparatus, educative toys and organised games. Due regard is also given to the importance of the development of language, and by means of picture books, talks, nursery rhymes and jingles, stories, dramatisation and the observation of life in the garden, sympathy and imagination are stimulated, interests are widened and the foundations are laid for the cultivation of clear, correct speech.

Considerable time is given to music, which consists of the singing of nursery rhymes and songs, musical games, a percussion band and simple rhythmic work. Other activities include drawing with various materials, clay modelling, paper tearing and constructive work with bricks and boxes.

(B) NURSERY CLASSES IN INFANT SCHOOLS

NURSERY CLASSES IN COUNCIL SCHOOLS FOR INFANTS AT LEICESTER

The local education authority for Leicester has converted a considerable number of the classes for children below the age of five in council schools for infants into nursery classes. Nursery classes have now been organised in 18 infant schools in the area and there are now (Sept. 1933) in all 24 such classes. Each class contains, as a rule, about 30 children, and is in charge of a certificated teacher, who is assisted by a 'nurse student'. The classes are accommodated in adapted classrooms which in most cases were originally designed for 50 children. Structural alterations have been carried out to afford special facilities for social and physical training. Provision has, where possible, been made for smaller indoor water closets, and for lavatories with hot and cold water, hand basins, sinks and draining boards. French windows have been constructed in many of the nursery classrooms to afford free egress to the playground, and new doorways have been made to give easy access to the offices. A hotplate, well out of reach of the children, has been placed in the special cloakroom provided. The rooms are decorated in cheerful colours, with suitable pictures and friezes. They are furnished with small folding tables and chairs, folding stretcher beds, long low cupboards, and low wall blackboards. Each child is provided with an overall, a pillow, a blanket, a sheet, a towel, a tooth brush, and a comb. Suitable equipment, including toys of various kinds, has been provided and a considerable part of the apparatus for training children to appreciate differences in size, shape, texture, temperature, etc. is made by the teachers themselves.

All the children have mid-morning lunch, consisting of hot milk, bread, biscuits, apples, etc. The charge for this is 1d. [½p] per day, and there is no difficulty about payment. In case the parents were unable to pay, the lunch would be provided free.

The following description of a typical nursery class at one of the infant schools in Leicester may be of interest. The school in question is situated in one of the poorest parts of Leicester. The building is modern, with internal sanitation and hot water, so that no structural alterations were required to ensure the necessary conditions for children of nursery school age. Adjacent to the school is a site purchased for a nursery school; owing to the national need for economy, the local education authority was unable to erect the school. However, this site was levelled and laid out for the use of the children in the nursery classes, with gardens and a large sand pit. Part of the ground was asphalted so as to provide a dry, firm surface for small tables, chairs and beds. When the weather is propitious, the two nursery classes live out of doors; the children carry out their own folding tables and chairs, beds, toys and apparatus, and bring them back into school at the end of the day.

Each of the two nursery classes has 30 children on the roll; in the lower class, 20 children are three years old and 10 are four; in the upper class, the children have all attained the age of four. Many children come from homes where three or four houses are built round a court and sanitation is very poor. In school they are trained in habits of personal cleanliness. Some of them never take their meals at a table at home and never see a table cloth. As the parents themselves express it, they 'live one up and one down' and there is little chance of training in habits of good living when the whole family works, cooks, eats and sleeps in two rooms. In spite of these home conditions no child in the nurseries ever thinks of coming to school without a handkerchief or a piece of rag as its equivalent; the overalls are carefully washed at home and the parents take a keen interest in all the school activities. When the new playground was first opened for the nurseries, many parents crowded round the gates to watch the children at play. The head mistress is always assured of the loyal cooperation of the parents in any schemes for the children's welfare.

NURSERY CLASSES IN INFANT SCHOOLS AT MANCHESTER

The 60 nursery classes established up to the present in infant schools in Manchester each contain, as a rule, 25 children. In large schools there may be two such classes. Children are usually admitted to the nursery classes at the age of three, but the head teacher has discretion to admit them at the age of two in special circumstances. Most of the children admitted spend two years, from the age of three to that of five, in the nursery class before entering the ordinary infant department. The head teachers of the infant schools and departments, and the teachers in charge of the nursery classes have full freedom to experiment and develop an appropriate technique of training and teaching. The broad aims of the nursery classes are to secure the proper physical, mental and social development of young children below the age of five. Most of these classes are in charge of a trained certificated teacher who works under the supervision of the head teacher of the infant school. The mistress in charge of the class has, as a rule, either received special training for nursery work, or has shown herself specially suited for dealing with young children. When the class contains more than 25 children, the teacher in charge is assisted by a student nurse (see Appendix V). The most suitable classroom in the older type of infant school building is usually allocated to the nursery class, and in one instance two convenient rooms adjacent to the school are hired for the purpose.

Since 1927 definite nursery accommodation has been included in nearly all new infant schools in such a manner as to form a compact section or a wing, apart from and yet in touch with the school as a whole.

This section includes extra large classrooms which open out on to a veranda, separate cloakroom, office and lavatory accommodation, an enclosed playground and in most cases a garden. In these new schools - 19 in number - 10 of the specially planned nursery wings or units are being used at present for nursery class work while the remaining 9, which have had to be taken over as a temporary measure to meet accommodation needs in new housing areas, will revert to their original purpose as soon as conditions will allow.

Light tables and chairs, cupboards, stretcher beds, and utensils for washing are provided in each nursery class. The personal equipment for the children includes plates, mugs, overalls, towels, tooth brushes, etc. and the educational material supplied comprises toys, picture books, and apparatus for sensory training. Children in the nursery class have hot milk with the lunch they bring from home in the middle of the mornings. In some instances the lunch from home is discouraged and rusks and biscuits are provided instead. The sum paid for this light refreshment is 4d. or 5d. [2p] a week. Should the parents at any time be unable to pay, the children receive the lunch and the cost is met out of a school fund collected by the staff. Cod liver oil in the morning and malt in the afternoon may be supplied, with the approval of the school medical officer, at a further charge of 2d. [1p] a week.

The children are medically examined after admission to the nursery classes, and are examined by the school doctor annually till they attain the age of five. The school nurse visits the class at least five times a year, and the school medical officer or the nurse is available, whenever required, to deal with special cases. Children who suffer from any physical defect receive appropriate treatment at the nearest clinic. The children spend as much time as possible in the open air.

The following description of a typical nursery class in Manchester may be of interest. This particular nursery class contains 25 children and forms part of an infant school affording accommodation for 260 children, but with an average attendance of only 110. The school is situated in one of the poorest areas of Manchester. The nursery room, which was originally a fair sized babies' room, is bright and cheerful, well heated and has sufficient floor space to accommodate 25-30 children. It lacks however some of the amenities provided in new infant schools; for instance, the nursery class has no special playground and garden. Part of the playground, however, has been reserved for the sole use of this class, and in fine weather the children spend a large part of the day out of doors.

Part of the main cloakroom in the school has been specially railed off for the use of children in the nursery class. The children's habits are closely supervised by the teacher, with a view to the formation of good habits. Special office accommodation is provided in the school buildings at a short distance from the nursery room. The equipment for washing consists of a specially constructed wash table fitted with six bowls and grooves to hold soap trays. The children's towels are hung on a frame fixed to the wall in one corner of the room. Special care has been exercised to make the arrangements for the mid-morning lunch, which affords such a valuable opportunity for habit training, as attractive as possible. The small tables are covered with brightly coloured cloths and vases of flowers. Cups and plates are provided for each child. After the mid-morning lunch the children themselves clear the tables, wash the dishes and tidy the room. For individual occupations there is an ample choice of playthings, manufactured and home made, which are, for the most part, varied pieces of apparatus for sense training, e.g. colour sorting boxes, sound boxes, apparatus for training in touch, jigsaw puzzles, large and small bricks. For play out of doors, larger toys are provided, such as carts, wheelbarrows, hoops, dolls perambulators, and the like. The children sleep for about one hour every afternoon either in the classroom or, when climatic conditions are favourable, in the playground.

(C) DESCRIPTIONS OF CLASSES FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF FIVE BY THE HEAD TEACHERS OF SIX INFANT SCHOOLS OF DIFFERENT TYPES

THE CLASS FOR CHILDREN BETWEEN THE AGES OF THREE AND FOUR IN A COUNCIL SCHOOL FOR INFANTS IN A LARGE MIDLAND TOWN

There are two classes for children under the age of five in this school. The classes contain from 30 to 45 children at various periods of the year. The baby class for children between the ages of three and four is self-contained and apart from the rest of the school. It is in charge of a certificated teacher with special qualifications. The school buildings are modern, and the room assigned to the baby class is larger than other classrooms in the school. It opens into a wide corridor and has a veranda. The offices are immediately opposite the classroom, and are approached by a covered way. The cloakroom and lavatory adjoin the nursery room, and there is easy access from them to the school hall, which is used by the children below the age of five for music, rhythmic exercises and games. The furniture in the nursery room is made of light tubular steel. Each small table is used by two children, and small single chairs are provided. The floor space in the centre of the room is kept clear of furniture and on it straw mats are laid for children who wish to use them for various activities. Ample apparatus, consisting of toys and other material, has been provided. Refreshment is provided in the middle of the morning at a charge of 3d. [1p] per week. This sum is provided out of a school fund where parents are unable to afford the charge. The children take their midday meal at home, and on their return to the school in the afternoon they sleep for at least three quarters of an hour on low hammock beds made of canvas slipped over tubular steel frames. In fine weather they sleep on the terrace in front of the school. The programme of activities for the afternoon after the rest period comprises free play, the telling of stories, and music. The children receive careful training in the development of the senses, muscular coordination, speech, rhythmics, and social behaviour. The school doctor attends twice a week, and the school nurse is in attendance every day at a clinic attached to the school.

THE SECTION FOR CHILDREN AGED FOUR YEARS IN A COUNCIL SCHOOL FOR INFANTS IN A MIDLAND TOWN

This infant school has 228 scholars on the roll between the ages of four and seven. The section for children below the age of five is attached to the school, but has its separate routine. There are 26 children aged four years in the section in charge of an uncertificated teacher. No formal work in the 3Rs is attempted. There is complete freedom of speech and movement, and there is a very happy atmosphere in the section. The furniture consists of small folding tables, each designed to accommodate six children, with separate chairs. There are toys for free play, and apparatus for sense training. The teacher in charge sings and plays well herself, and gives daily musical training. There is a separate cloakroom and lavatory (with hot water) for children below the age of five and they learn to wash and dry their hands with their own towels which are supplied by the parents and washed at school. The children not only set out every morning their own lunch tables for milk and biscuits (which are paid for by the parents), but they help the whole school by setting out trays of cups for 120 other children above the age of five to have milk at 'break' time; furthermore, with the help of three older scholars they wash up the plates and cups and replace them on the appropriate racks. The children under the age of five enjoy the 'breaks' with the whole school, and take part in all interclass dancing, singing, games and poetry competitions. Children who spend some time in this class, even if it be only one term, are settled and self-reliant. Moreover their parents are less fussy than those of children admitted at the age of five. There are several wooden-framed canvas portable beds for special cases and for emergencies. The parents of these tiny children are allowed to fetch them every day from the classroom. Thus the teacher knows each mother, and there is the utmost goodwill between all concerned.

THE CLASSES FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF FIVE IN A COUNCIL SCHOOL FOR INFANTS IN A LARGE INDUSTRIAL TOWN IN THE NORTH

This school, which has about 360 children on the books, is situated in a crowded quarter of a large industrial town. Many of the mothers work in clothing factories. For many years the school has had two classes for children between the ages of three and five. Each contains from 40 to 50 children and is in charge of a certificated teacher. From time to time certain nursery amenities have been provided for these classes, in so far as the premises and equipment would permit. The school contains nine classrooms, which open into a central hall.

A light meal of milk and biscuits is taken during the morning. A charge of 1d. [½p] a day is made for this, but no charge is made to those parents who cannot afford to pay.

Beds have recently been provided, but owing to the size of the classes, it is not possible to allow more than 60 per cent of the children to use them. It is not possible to arrange for children to sleep out of doors, as the playground has to be used for drill and games by a large number of older infants. Jumping planks, and large toys of various kinds have been provided for outdoor use, and a sand pit and several flower beds have been laid out in the concreted playground.

THE CLASS FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF FIVE IN A COUNCIL SCHOOL FOR INFANTS IN A TOWN ON THE SOUTH COAST

The babies' class at this school has been remodelled on the lines of a nursery class. The average number of pupils in the class for children below the age of five is 40, and the class is in charge of an uncertificated teacher who is interested in young children and has had many years' experience in dealing with them. The nursery room is separated from the rest of the school building and is easily accessible to the playground. It is furnished with collapsible tables and small chairs. Low cupboards have been fixed to the walls for the purpose of storing sensory apparatus, toys, blankets, utensils, etc. The beds are stored in a curtained recess. The school is within easy distance of two public parks and a large common. Full advantage is taken of these open spaces and whenever the weather is suitable the children are taken for a morning walk to one of the parks. In fine weather the whole day may be spent in the park or on the common. In less settled weather the children rest on stretcher beds in the classroom or in the playground. The children have milk with rusk or biscuit in school during the morning. Small basins, towels, water jugs, pails, etc. have been provided and special attention is paid to personal hygiene. Large toys and a sand tray are available for use in the playground. Each child is encouraged to do things for himself, and is given adequate time to this end. He is taught to replace articles that he has used and to perform various services and acts of courtesy to other children.

THE GROUP FOR CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF FIVE IN A SMALL NON-PROVIDED RURAL SCHOOL IN THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND

This school, which was erected in 1844, consists of one large room divided by a movable wooden partition. The larger part of the room, measuring 30 feet by 18 feet [9m by 5.5m], is used by children below the age of six. A small cloakroom containing a sink is attached to the school building, and an oil stove for heating milk has been provided by the managers. The children below the age of six are divided into two groups, one of which is a nursery group of some 15 children below the age of five. The portion of the room allocated to this nursery group has been furnished with small tables and chairs, together with a piano, a gramophone, a sand tray, dolls houses, boxes of bricks, and various other toys, many of which have been given by parents. Hot or cold milk is provided for all children who remain at school for dinner. Beds, blankets and pillows are provided for the younger children, and they sleep for at least an hour at the beginning of the afternoon session. The presence of the nursery group does not disturb the other group consisting of children between the ages of five and six, and little difficulty is experienced in taking a collective lesson with the two groups. A garden has been constructed in the small asphalt playground containing a bird table, and a bird bath. The chief aims of the training given to the nursery group are the development of self-expression, musical training, and the encouragement of an interest in nature by means of the school garden.

THE GROUP OF CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF FIVE IN A SMALL RURAL COUNCIL SCHOOL FOR INFANTS IN ONE OF THE SOUTHERN COUNTIES

Children below the age of five are admitted to this small council school for infants, which has about 45 pupils in all. The staff consists of a certificated head mistress who has taken a nursery course, and one uncertificated assistant. The baby class contains some children above the age of five, as well as those below that age. The school building consists of two rooms, and children above and below the age of five use the same offices, cloakroom and playground. There is a public field adjacent to the school premises in which the head teacher has constructed a sand pit and small rockery gardens. A shelter with a wooden floor and adjustable sides has been erected in the field. All the children spend much time in the open air. Small tables and chairs have been provided for the children in the baby class, together with toys of various sizes; much use is made of natural playthings such as shells, fir cones, chestnuts, and the like.

Milk and biscuits are provided for the children during the morning session and a midday dinner can be obtained at the school for a small payment. Children under the age of five, and those above that age who require it, sleep for an hour or more in the afternoon. The beds, which are devised by the head teacher, are made of hessian stretched on a wooden frame with four legs. Much of the equipment and other amenities provided in this school have been obtained through voluntary effort, and the parents take a very considerable interest in the school.

Footnote

(1) The extension of nursery school methods and environment to children above the age of five is the subject of an interesting experiment now being made at Deptford. The Margaret McMillan 'Camp School' is designed to retain delicate children until the age of seven or even eleven years, when they will be drafted to appropriate schools. The school is not eligible for grant. It has accommodation for 100 children.