This book examines the history and purpose of outdoor play areas. Chapter 1 of the book discusses the importance of play in children's lives and the role of playgrounds in the play process. The historical development and evolution of playgrounds is recounted in chapter 2, while chapter 3 reviews research on playgrounds, including research…

The school yard has been one of the least utilized of our educational resources. Surfaced with a view to his convenience and used mostly in accordance with his desires, it has practically belonged to the janitor. In the past 10 years the great play movement has burst upon us and has brought with it an illumination as to the educational value of…

Volume 1 begins with the Commissioner of Education's introduction. Chapters include: (1) the work of the Bureau of Education; (2) a list of the writings of William Torrey Harris; (3) education in Great Britain and Ireland for the year 1906-1907; (4) education in France; (5) education in Central Europe; (6) Educational Activity in Foochow, China;…

This book consists of brief biographies of people who have contributed to the field of leisure and recreation. The 26 pioneers chronicled span over two thousand years and cross many cultures. Some are theorists, others are practitioners, but all of them left their imprint on the leisure and recreation field. Arranged sequentially by dates, the…

In the past 10 years the play movement has illuminated the educational value of play. The old-time school yard, with its limited space and its restrictive traditions, is entirely unsuited to the new uses demanded by the new ideals, and there is going on everywhere a reconstruction of theory and practice to meet the new requirements. As in all…

The history of playground safety standards since the 1890s is reviewed and the lack of improvements in safety made since that time is demonstrated. The first formal effort to develop standards for playground apparatus was made by the National Recreation Association (NRA) in 1929. A major concern in this and a 1938 NRA report was the choice of safe…

The evolution of children's playgrounds in the United States from the late 1800s to the present is discussed. This evolution was influenced by the development of kindergartens, nursery schools, public schools, and public parks. Essential elements in the building of developmentally appropriate playgrounds are outlined. (BB)

Mount Joy Township is located in southeastern Pennsylvania, in Adams County. It is immediately adjacent to the historic battlefield and town of Gettysburg. Though irregular in shape, it averages about 5 miles from north to south and 41 miles from east to west, and contains approximately 36 square miles. The population of the township in 1910 was…

There are many people of middle age in America still who do not believe in play. They grew up without playgrounds themselves and they do not realize how greatly conditions have changed during the intervening years. When the author was a boy in southern Michigan the school session in his country community was only four months a year. Under these…

Girard College was founded and endowed by Stephen Girard, mariner and merchant, a native of France, who came to Philadelphia in 1776. After a long life of service to his adopted city, State, and country, he died in 1831, leaving the bulk of his estate in trust to the city of Philadelphia for the erection and maintenance of what is now known as…

The topics discussed in this bulletin are those that are significant of new developments in regard to the school-building problem. For example, although elementary and high school buildings are of equal importance, considerable space is given to the evolution of the elementary school building of the city school systems because it represents a…

In April, 1919, at the request of the Board of Education of Memphis, Tennessee, the United States Commissioner of Education submitted the conditions on which the Bureau of Education would make a survey of the public school system of that city. This study of the Memphis schools is intended to be a study of policies and practices; not of persons.…

Since the publication by the Bureau of Education of Bulletin (1910) No. 5, entitled "American Schoolhouses" much progress has been made in school architecture from every point of view. In this revised edition such changes and such additions have been made in the text as will, it is hoped, bring this progress to the attention of school…

This bulletin is the result of a personal study of a number of Danish elementary rural schools, made during the winter and spring of 1913. Sufficient time was spent in the different schools, in a study of their organization and administration, to insure accuracy of impression. These filed studies were later verified, so far as possible, in the…

In the last 8 or 10 years there has been unusual progress in the establishment of kindergartens in most of the cities and States, but still the kindergarten is a phase of school work less known than the work of the grades in the elementary schools. Many school officers and school architects lack information as to the character of rooms and…