NATIONAL KINDERGARTEN DAY
The very first kindergarten was started in Germany, in 1837 by Friedrich Froebel. National Kindergarten Day annually celebrates and honors Froebel on April 21, the date of his birth.
Friedrich Wilhelm August Frobel (April 21, 1782 - June 21, 1852), a German teacher and a student of Pestalozzi, laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities. He created the concept of the “kindergarten” and also coined the word “kindergarten” now used in German and English. He also developed the educational toys known as Froebel Gifts which included geometric building blocks and pattern activity blocks.
Friedrich Frobel created a play and activity institute as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school.
”His goal was that children should be taken care of and
nourished in “children’s gardens” like plants in a garden.”
nourished in “children’s gardens” like plants in a garden.”
Frobel’s thought was to recognize the importance of the activities of the child in learning. He introduced the concept of “free work” into his methods and established the “game” as the typical form that life took in childhood and also the game’s educational worth. In his first kindergarten, the activities consisted of singing, dancing, gardening and self-directed play with the Froebel Gifts.
- Watertown, Wisconsin had the first United States kindergarten in 1856 – Opened by a student of Frobel’s, it was conducted in German.
- Boston, Massachusetts held the first English-language kindergarten in 1860. Poppenhusen Institute is still in existence today.
- College Point, NY was home to the first free kindergarten in 1870.
- St. Louis, Missouri is where the first publicly financed kindergarten in the United States was established in 1873.
Today, most states in the United States offer free kindergarten to children ages five and six however do not make it mandatory while other state require all five-year old’s to enroll. The states vary within their school districts on providing half day or full day kindergarten options. Kindergarten is a fun and memorable time in the “social experience of the transition from home to school”.
NATIONAL KINDERGARTEN DAY HISTORY
Our research was unable to find the creator of National Kindergarten Day, an “unofficial” national holiday.
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NATIONAL CHOCOLATE COVERED CASHEWS DAY
National Chocolate Covered Cashews Day is celebrated each year on April 21. A bowl of these delicious nuts, covered in chocolate will definitely not last very long. They are a well-known favorite during the holidays but can be enjoyed anytime throughout the year.
The cashew is a tree from the tree family, Anacardiaceae. It’s English name comes from the Portuguese name for the fruit of the cashew tree “caju”. This tree is originally native to Northeastern Brazil however it is now widely grown in tropical climates for it’s cashew fruit and nuts.
The cashew nut is a very popular snack with a rich flavor. The nut is often eaten roasted, on it’s own, lightly salted, sugared, or covered in chocolate as we are celebrating it today.
The shell of the cashew nut is toxic, which is why the cashew is shelled before it is sold to consumers
You can buy chocolate covered cashews by the pound or you can make them yourself.
Enjoy the following “tried and true” homemade Chocolate Covered Cashews recipe:
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