The Watertown Historical Society is starting a project to expand the first kindergarten in the country. This is a schoolhouse with one room that dates back to 1856 and has been recognized for its historical significance by the Library of Congress. The site is behind the historic Octagon House in the city.
This expansion will add an interactive classroom to the space. The classroom will be connected to the original building by means of a breezeway and will enable children to engage with the same types of learning tools and toys that were used by the kindergarten students in the United States. Banner printing is often used at such sites to inform residents of such upcoming projects.
Vice president of the Watertown Historical Society, Jim Brockler, said that using those tools and toys that were first used in the 1850s and making them work in the 2020s makes the space more interactive and appropriate.
The German educator, Friedrich Froebel, pioneered the model for kindergarten and believed that children learned best through hands-on play and activities that includes sorting games, building blocks, and music. A German immigrant and educator, Margarethe Schurz, brought Froebel’s methods to Watertown, and established the first kindergarten in the United States, which has left an importance legacy on education in this country.
This fall is when construction is set to begin on the interactive classroom.
