PNEU Preschool Programme
[1949?]
These are some pages from what looks like a book of very thin pages. It picks up at the top of page 5.
pg. 5
Making Nursery Toys, by Nancy Gatford (Moller 3/6).
NURSERY STAGE --up to 3 years
Little children should be out of doors in all possible weather, they should watch animals, birds, insects (see Home Education. Part II.). They should play in sand heaps. They should see pictures, sing nursery rhymes or old songs. First ideas of God and the child [illegible] are given.
See previous pages for books dealing specially with the training of little children.
We are much indebted to P.N.E.U. mothers for suggestions. One writes: --
"Children have a disconcerting way of preferring old cotton [illegible] to expensive and cleverly planned toys."
Discretion should be used as children vary much as to the age when different things appeal to them. They need chiefly variety and sympathy. They should learn to play alone with their toys, and from the first, games should be played with them at a regular [illegible]
STAGE I.
Rattles, especially musical ones. Bunches of bone pegs to play with and bite. A "Cow and Gate" rubber ring to hang a ribbon round Baby's neck, for biting on. A well scrubbed bone. A dog's rubber bone. Toys to float in the bath.
A baby loves a sheet of crackly paper put in the end of his cot or basket to kick at. He likes to suck at strings of coloured (fast colour) wooden beads, which can be pinned to the side of the cot or pram. A whirligig or windmill fastened out of reach.
STAGE II
Empty cotton reels threaded on a circle of string, or loose to drop one by one into a tin with a hole in its lid. A musical box, not too big for baby to grasp in one hand. A trumpet. A drum. A tambourine. A bright ball not too big to grasp. Reins with bells. Carboard books. An old tin and a wooden spoon. Empty boxes and oddments to put in them; carton rolls and something to drop through them. Pyramid of wooden rings. Small table and chairs. An animal on wheels. Toy garden roller. Bricks (solid). Nest of bricks. A tin of sea shells, not small ones. Large wooden beads to thread on a string.
pg. 6
"I give two or three fresh toys each day and keep the rest in a box. A baby soon gets bored with the same toys day after day -- besides he likes room left to crawl on his playpen floor."
Games.
Pat-a-cake. Rong-o'-roses. Ride a cock horse. Hide and seek (elementary).
Toys to pull along (this should be solidly made and low on the ground). Elementary jig-saw puzzle with 7 or 8 figures that can be taken out and replaced with a knob.
STAGE III
Toys (Boy and Girls).
Teddy Bear. Soft toy animals. Bricks. A "kiddicar" (better than a pedal cycle). Blunt scissors for cutting out trade catalogues. Big coloured wooden beads to thread. Hammer-peg toy. Wooden engine. Carts and animals to drag along. Soap bubble pipes. bucket and spade and watering can. Blackboard and chalks. A more advanced jig-saw. Bricks. Sandpit in darden. Wheelbarrow. Shallow bath of water out of doors.
Girls.
A rubber or other unbreakable doll dressed (not in white) exactly like the child herself. Press buttons or hooks are the easiest fasteners for little hands to manage. Dolls' pram. Dolls' tea-set, high chair and other furniture, not too heavy.
Boys
Minic Toys (all prices). "Picabrix", a graded wooden constructional toy.
PLAYROOM STAGE -- 3 to 5 years
Children under Five should be out-of-doors in all possible weathers. They shoud watch animals, birds, insects (see Home Education, Part II.). They should tell about all they see: play in sand heaps. There shoud be a moveable Time Table. Much activity, always for short periods, should be the rule, together with frequent rests, during which they should see pictures and hear tales, such as "Jack and the Bean-Stalk," "Cinderella," Biblestalks, pictures, verses. Children should have many Rondes, as "There came three dukes a-riding," "Here we come gathering nuts in May" (old games for choice, not Kindergarten songs and games.); in fact all dancing plays. Letters should be learnt --in alphabetical order, and sounded phonetically. First ideas of number are given, with some counting, say up to 20. Suggestions for occupations, say for a total of 45 minutes a day at four years old, follow.
pg. 7
Boys and Girls.
Skipping rope. See-saw. Tent in garden. Hoop. Football. Paint bo, drawing-books, crayons, paint books, Plasticine ; playwax is cleaner, but harder to use. Dominoes. Snap cards. Dolls and dolls' furniture, etc. Peg pictures. Picture making : pictures cut out and stick together. Any simple form of Lotto. A small attaché case. Engines. Motors. Acting clothes. Instruments for percussion band. Gardening tools. A dust-pan and brush. Mop and broom. Rolling pin and pastry cutter. Farmyard. Trains with detachable wagons. Morors. Bricks. Simple jig-saw puzzles: post-cards cut into four or more pieces with easy shapes.
[Illegible]
Doll's cot and bed clothes. Rubber dolls that can be bathed Dolls' clothes of al sorts. Miniature clothes rack, pegs, line and iron.
Games
As before, only more boisterous. Hunt the thimble. Blind Man's Buff. Hide and Seek. Horses. Houses. Dolls' tea parties, etc.
OCCUPATIONS.
Pictures to talk about
Picture Books: large pold pictures with few details: books with cardboad leaves. Illustrated Nursery Rhymes, Fairy Tales, Animal Stories.
New Testament Pictures (Lutterworth Press, 1 1/2d. each).
Bible stories in connection with pictures. Discretion must be used both as to subject and presentation.
Jesus Our Friend, The Good News, People of the Bible (Old Testament stories), by Bertha Krall (Carwal Publications, 5/- each). Pictures, stories, poems and things to do.
The Star of the King and other Bible Picture Books, by Mary Entwistle and Elsie Anna Wood (S.C.M. 2/- each).
Wild Animals at Home, large coloured pictures (Philip & Tacey, 1/10 1&frac;2 each).
Children Overseas post card series: 1. Other Children, 2. India. 3. China, 4. Africa, 5. Friendly Beasts, 6. Japan (All out of print).
pg. 10
New Testament Pictures (Lutterworth Press, 1 1/2 d. each).
Shaw's Wall Pictures illustrating Old and New Testament Stories (see catalogue, price 2d., from McDougall's Educational Supply Co., Ltd., 80-82, Great Junction Street, Edinburgh).
Zoo Man Favourites, by D. Seth-Smith (Littlebury 20/6).
Wild Animals at Home, Animals that Help Us, Feathered Friends of Field and Forest, Feathered Friends of Streams and Shore, by E. Helme.
Shaw's Child Life in Other Lands Wall Pictures, 20x50 (see catalogue as above).
(b) Stories to be read.
1. Bible Stories.
The Life of Jesus of Nazareth, in the Gospel words, with ninety illustrations, by W. Hole.
The Gospel Story and Those who Wrote It, by J. H. Crowley (out of print); for teacher's own use.
Stories Jesus Heard, by B. Krall (Carwal Publications 3/6).
2. Tales of Saints and Good Men.
In God's Garden, by Amy Steedman.
Stories of Favorite Saints, by B. Krall (Carwal Publications 3/6).
3. Fairy Stories, legends, animal stories.
English Fairy Tales collected by J. Jacobs (Muller 10/6).
The Little Black Hen, an Irish Fairy Story, by Eileen O'Faolain (O.U.P., 6/.).
Rusty Fox goes to the Banquet, by Margaret Ross (Museum Press, 8/6).
The Grey Rabbit Books, by Alison Uttley (Collins 3/6 each).
Little Toot, Pictures and Story of a Tug, and Loopy, an Aeroplane, by Hardie Gramatky (Dent 6/. each).
The Story of Benjamin Scarecrow, by Joy Parker (Heinemann, 8/6).
Lucy and the Little Red Horse, and other stories by Gwendy Caroe (de la More Press 7/6).
Towelina. A Doll you can make yourself (Foulsham 6/.).
A Little Silk Apron, The Mole's House Warming, The Flickerdick by Dorothy Richards (Wills and Hepworth 2/6 each).
The Story of Timothy Twitter, and The Story of Mr. Prettimouse, by M. Alleyne (Warne, 3/6) each.
Winnie the Pooh and others in the same series, by A. A. Milne.
The Baker Books, by Margaret and Mary Baker.
40 Goodnight Tales, and other by Rose Fyleman.
Old Deccan Days: Hindoo Fairy Legends, by Mary Frere.
Rama: A Little Boy of India by W. Hemmens (Carey Press 2/6).
Teddy Tells You. (The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents 1/.).
Stories from History, Geography, and Natural History.
Far Round the World and Round the World, short stories and pictures, by Mary Entwistle (out of print).
A Nursery History of England (Nelson, 12/6), with a large number of coloured pictures; or The Foundations of History, Pictures and stories of our Land, by R. Wilson (Nelson, 2/9).
Piers Plowman Histories, Junior Book I. (Philip, 2/2), Pictures and Stories of World History.
Stories of Great People (O.U.P. 3/6).
Round the Globe:The Foundations of Geography, Book I., by B. G. Hardingham (Nelson, 2/8).
Creatures Great and Small by Aileen Henderson (Carwal 4/.).
In the Wilderness (Wills and Hepworth, 2/6).
Verses to hear and to learn.
Old Rhymes.
A Child's Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson (Dent, 3/.).
We Come A'Piping, Book I., by R. Fyleman (Blackwell, 1/4).
Very Young Verses, by A. A. Milne (Methuen) 2/.).
Hymns to sing and to learn. Prayers.
Songs of Praise for Little Children (Oxford, 2/9).
Good and Gay, a picture book of Prayer and Praise, by Mary Osborn (S.P.C.K., 2/6).
All Our Friends: A World Picture Book of Prayers, by P. L. Garlick (C.M.S., 4/6).
My Own Picture Prayer Book (S.C.M. 3/.). A book to take to Church.
Songs. Rhythmic Games.
Traditional Songs. Singing Games.
Birds and Beasts, An album of songs with music, by Percy M. Young (E. J. Arnold 2/6).
The Playway to Rhythmics, by A. W. I. Chitty (Paxton, 2/6).
Reading and Writing.
The Beacon Readers: New Approach, Picture Book (1/.); New Introductory Book (1/2), with Work Book (7d). See Home Education, pp 214--222. New Word Building Box (Philip and Tacey 1/8).
Writing and Writing Patterns, by Marion Richardson (U.L.P., Book I. (1/5). Hinged Cards, sets A and B (6d. each).
Letter and Reading Games (for classes), by Jane Spencer (Macmillan, 2/6).
Number.
Grant's Practical Arithmetic for Infants (Grant, 2/6). Very clear teaching directions.
Number, by Mrs. I. Stephens (P.N.E.U. Office, 4d.).
[illegible; Five Hundred?] Games and Pastimes, by E. V. Lucas.
Boxes of Bricks: plain wood or stone.
Simple Jig-saw Puzzles. "New Treasure" Plywood Puzzles. Grade II. (20 pieces); Grade III. (40 pieces) (Philip & Tacey 2/1 1/2 each).
(i) Pictures to chalk and paint.
Pictures in bold outline and with no shading should be chosen.
Coloured (a) crayons, (b) chalks (P.N.E.U., 11d. a box). Brushes. Jars of primary colours (P.N.E.U., 1/3 each); large, free paintings on sheets of newspapers which may be whitewashed if desired. Woolworth's and other shops sell books with large outline drawings suitable for filling with flat washes.
Little children are apt to mix up all the colours in a painbox. At first it may be better to get tubes of watercolour paint in the primary colours, and one good brush and squeeze out about a quarter of an inch of each colour on to a large dinner plate. Then the child can make rainbows without spoiling the main supply. Thick chalks are easier to use.
(j) Simple Crafts; materials, tools.
101 Things for Little Folks to do (Batsford 7/6).
Cutting out and pasting:--Old catalogues, Christmas Cards, wallpaper samples, pictures. Cut-out figures, etc., pasted on to thin cardboard, coloured paper shapes on to white or brown paper, to make patterns and pictures. Simple scrapbooks with folded sheets of brown paper. Shadow silhouettes cut out in paper and coloured.
Paper-tearing:--in any suitable gummed or ungummed paper. Torn newspaper silhouettes of boats, teddy-bears, etc., can be pasted on newspaper and coloured.
Sewing cards:--can be made by tracing figures from nursery rhyme books on to post cards, painting them and piercing holes for the threads. Woolworth's coloured cottons and various mending threads and wools can be used.
Modelling:--Aloplast. Plasticine.
Coloured beads, blunt scissors, large needles, coarse cottons and wool, coarse canvas. Raffia for weaving in and out on canvas or for covering cardboard shapes. Dishcloth cotton is unrationed. Woolworth's and other shops sell scraps useful for toy-making. Carpenter's tools. Simple match-box boys.
Bowl or bath indoors and small pond outdoors, for sailing boats and rafts. This produces ingenuity in the matter of voyages and the invention of cork boats with paper sails, plasticine passengers.
Children should be allowed to "help" in house and garden. They can employ themselves beside a grown-up. The can help clear away and set places for a meal. They can have their own garden plot to dig in and should help in looking after animals.
[A "Box Holdall," for keeping each child's materials tidy, is obtainable from the P.N.E.U. Office, 2/.].
Ambleside, Summer 1949 [year isn't completely legible]