April 21 - National Kindergarten Day

Happy National Kindergarten Day! Each year on April 21, today honors the birthday of the man who started the first Kindergarten.  

German pedagogue Friedrich Wilhelm August Fröbel (April 21, 1782  – June 21, 1852) is credited with starting the very first 

Kindergarten in Germany in 1837. 

He laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities pertaining to modern education. He also recognized that children learn through play and experience.  

Fröbel was also a student Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer Johann Pestalozzi, who exemplified Romanticism in his approach. 

The first kindergarten (which means "garden for the children") was developed in Blankenburg, Germany, in 1837. The kindergarten later fostered Fröbel’s social experience for children, which would allow them to transition from home to school more smoothly. 

Eventually, the Prussian government banned Fröbel’s unorthodox methods. Despite this, the rest of the world was eager to accept Fröbel’s idea of kindergarten, including the United States. 

In 1856, Watertown, Wisconsin, opened the first kindergarten in America. Founded by German-born American Margarethe Meyer-Schurz, this kindergarten was a German-language class, as were many in this region.  

Kindergarten eventually found its way into private English speaking institutions across the country, but it wasn’t until 1873 that it became part of any public school system. 

HOW TO OBSERVE 

Say thank you to a kindergarten teacher in your area. If an elementary education career is a potential career choice, consider being a kindergarten teacher.  

Learn more about elementary education. If you’re a kindergarten teacher, share your experiences. Give a shout out to kindergarten teachers you know. Share your kindergarten memories using #NationalKindergartenDay on social media. 

HISTORY 

National Kindergarten Day honors the day Friedrich Wilhelm August Frobel was born on April 21, 1782. However, National Day Calendar® was unable to identify the founder of National Kindergarten Day. 

#NationalKindergartenDay 

@nichecinema 

April 21 - National Library Workers Day

Happy National Library Workers Day! Each year in April, this day recognizes the valuable contributions library staff make every day to their communities through their hard work and dedication. The observance takes place annually on the Tuesday of National Library Week. 

Libraries do so much more than house the books we borrow nearly any time of the day or night. (Yes, any time, day or night. Online reservation is highly popular.)  

Today as always, library workers are masters of research. They find the obscure quote (or partial misquote as the case may be) helping you to annotate your research paper correctly. When you’re on a job search, they offer internet access and computers so you can polish up your résumé as well. 

Often, libraries are the keepers of local history. The names of pioneers and settlers’ names are usually recorded in books and newspapers of the era. Many libraries across the country house those books, papers, and many other resources. 

Library workers champion our youth. They foster creativity and are a wealth of diverse opportunities for growth. Not only do they create projects and inspiration for our youth, but they also create them with enthusiasm! It can be quite infectious.  

Despite all libraries and their employees provide to their communities, their budgets and salaries continue to shrink. This day brings awareness to this continuing trend.  

Libraries and their employees continuously utilize the latest technologies to make information, books, and resources more accessible.  

Their knowledge and ability bring valuable tools directly to communities that might otherwise go without. They also serve every age group, many organizations, and entire communities. 

HOW TO OBSERVE 

Give a shout out to a library worker you know (but not too loud). Discovery all the resources your library offers.  

Support your library and its staff. When budget time comes for your city or state, do your part to support your library. Visit your local library, or it’s Use #NationalLibraryWorkersDay to post on social media. 

HISTORY 

The American Library Association sponsors National Library Workers Day, and it was first celebrated in 2004. It was started as a way to raise support for better benefits and salaries at a time when they had been stagnant for years.  

Every day, the observance continues to promote increased benefits and wages for the services provided by library workers. 

How can you recognize or acknowledge a library worker today? 

#NationalLibraryWorkersDay 

@librarycongress 

@AmericanLibraryAssociation 

@nichecinema 

DATES 

April 06, 2021 
April 05, 2022 
April 25, 2023 

April 21 - Anselmo Duarte

Happy Birthday, Anselmo Duarte! Born today in 1920 as Anselmo Duarte Bento, this Brazilian actor, screenwriter, producer and film director is known, among his credits, for his second feature as a filmmaker. 

  

This was for writing and directing the 1962 Brazilian black and white drama film 'O Pagador de Promessas' ('Keeper of Promises' or 'The Given Word'). The film was based off of Brazilian playwright Alfredo de Freitas Dias Gomes' eponymous play. 

  

The film follows Zé do Burro (Leonardo Villar), also known as Donkey Jack. He considers his donkey to be his best friend. 

However, when the beast of burden falls ill, Zé swears an oath that if his donkey recovers, he will carry a cross across the country and give his land to the poor. 

  

The film later won the Golden Palm at the 15th Cannes Film Festival in May of that same year, becoming, to date, the only Brazilian feature film to be so distinguished. 

It was also and still remains the first winner of the Cannes' Southern Hemisphere Golden Palm for best feature film, as well as being an important work of the Cinema Novo movement. 

  

In May 1971, Duarte was a member of the jury at the 24th Cannes Film Festival. 

  

Duarte had been active from 1947–1987. 

  

#borntoact 

#borntodirect 

@CinemaDoBrasil 

@BFI 

@MuseumModernArt 

@letterboxd