Friedrich Wilhelm Froebel: Unity and Creativity

Friedrich Wilhelm Froebel (1782-1852), the son of a clergyman, was born in Oberweissbach, Thuringia, Germany. He was educated at Jena following an apprenticeship in forestry. Later he worked with an architect before teaching. He visited Pestalozzi\u27s school at Yverdon in 1805 and again in 1808. He opened his first school in 1816. In 1826 The Education of Man was published; it is considered to be his most important work. Froebel first used the name “kindergarten” for his school in 1840. The author of this article, Lawrence J. Sorohan, is a former member of the faculty of the University of Dayton. Currently he is teaching at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro