Part 2 (1/2)

BOX VILLAGE

The child is to be pitied who has not at soet into and furnished by his own efforts But a ”village” of such houses offers a greatly enlarged field of play opportunity and has been the basis of Miss Mary Rankin's experiround[B]

In addition to its more obvious possibilities for constructive and manual development, Miss Rankin's experiestiveness, for the village provides a civic experience fairly comprehensive and free from the artificiality that is apt to characterize attempts to introduce civic content into school and play procedure

[Footnote B: See ”Teachers College Playground,” Bulletin No 4, Bureau of Educational Experiments]

[Illustration: Of interest to carpenters]

[Illustration: A boo pretend piano]

INDOOR EQUIPMENT

The requisites for indoor equipment are these:

A Suitable Floor--The natural place for a little child to play is the floor and it is therefore the sine qua non of the play laboratory

Places to Keep Things--A maximum of convenience to facilitate habits of order

Tables and Chairs--For use as occasion demands, to supplement the floor, not to take the place of it

Blocks and Toys--For initial play material

The Carpenter's Bench--With tools and lumber for the manufacture of supplementary toys

A supply of Art and Craft materials--For the same purpose

[Illustration: The Indoor Laboratory]

THE INDOOR LABORATORY

The _floor_ should receive first consideration in planning the indoor laboratory It should be as spacious as circumstances will perhts and dampness

A well-kept hardwood floor is the best that can be provided

Individual light rugs or felt er children to sit on in cold weather if any doubt exists as to the adequacy of heating facilities (see cut, p 32)

Battleshi+p linoleuood substitute for a hardwood finish It comes in solid colors and can be kept immaculate

Deck canvas stretched over a layer of carpet felt and painted , especially well adapted to the needs of very little children, as it has some of the softness of a carpet and yet can be scrubbed and mopped

Second only in importance is the supply of _lockers_, _shelves_, _boxes_ and _drawers_ for the disposal of the great number and variety of small articles that make up the ”tools and appliances” of the laboratory The cut on page 24 shows a particularly successful arrangement for facilities of this kind