The Children’s Century

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 185, 26 October 1927, Page 7

The Children’s Century

IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENT A Modern Nursery IF we can judge by the developments of the last 25 years the twentieth century shows every promise of going down to history as the children’s century. Never have the interests of the child been so much to the fore; in fact, it is being said that in some directions this cult of the child is being over emphasised, and that, if the present tendency for impressing upon parents their duty to their children continues, there will soon be need of “a pity the poor parents” campaign to make the children realise that they have a duty toward their parents.

ONE of the results of this deeper interest in and understanding of the child’s mind is the evolution of the modern nursery, which is a very different place from its predecessor of 30 years ago. The old-time nursery with its faded wallpaper and general air of tiredness was usually looked upon as a lumber room for the unwanted furniture of the rest of the house, but to-day the planning of the day nursery is a matter for the most careful attention and thought.

Environment is so important to the child that wherever possible a plea.sant play room should be set apart for the use of the young people. Even if a big room cannot be spared in a house where space is valuable, it will be found well worth while to give up one of the smaller rooms to the children. They love to have even a tiny room of their very own, and mother will find that the house will be much quieter and neater if the family have their own sanctum for their toys and their games. Most modern nurse Hes have a frieze of animals or nursery rhyme figures round the walls, and this should be put, not at the top, but at a height which does not necessitate the (children’s eyes being strained in their effort to look at it.

In one nursery this frieze takes a novel form. A narrow shelf a few inches wide runs round the room and has a groove cut in it just wide enough to enable wooden animals cut from thin three-ply wood to stand upright. The animals are painted as near their natural colours as possible and stuck in the. groove at regular intervals. In this way the monotony of an ordinary painted frieze is avoided as the figure can be changed from place to place; if the children are old enough to use a fretsaw they can make fascinating friezes of their own whenever they want a change.

A more directly useful varSHion of this type of frieze would be a broader shelf, on which the children’s toy animals and pictures could be placed. In any case, whether there is a painted frieze or not such a shelf for toys is extremely ,useful and adds greatly to the cheerful appearance of the room. The most satisfactory floor covering for the nursery is a good plain linoleum in a colour to tone with the walls. This should be glued down so that there is no danger of little feet being tripped up by any irregularity of the surface. Two or three bright washable rugs will take away from the rather bare effect of the linoleum.

When it comes to the furniture it should be remembered that the nursery must be a room where the child has a chance to play unhindered. The furniture should be light and easy to move so that, when games are in progress chairs and table can be relegated to one end of the room. An easy chair for nurse or mother and a few low, upright chairs are all that is necessary if a broad and comfortable window seat is provided. A toy cupboard, preferably built-in. is almost indispensable in any nursery. If the room is small, space may be saved by fitting a series of small cupboards or lockers beneath the windows, so that the cushioned tops form a long seat.

One delightful nursery has a seat below the window with ends formed by two dolls’ hpuses standing between three and four feet high. These are in reality toy cupboards fitted with shelves and their design is well in keping with the general scheme of the room.

The nursery pictures, of course, will be a matter for individual taste. Tiny folk love a brightly coloured print with some fascinating story attached, while the older children will learn to appreciate the best in art if they are made familiar with good reproductions of some of the world’s famous pictures.

The suggestions made here can most of them be carried out at quite a small cost, and it will be found that the bright effect produced and the pleasure the children will find in their nursery will be well worth the troif£>le taken.