National Kindergarten Day is celebrated annually on April 21st. 

This day honors Friedrich Wilhelm August Frobel (April 21, 1782  – June 21, 1852) who is credited for starting the very first Kindergarten in Germany in 1837. 

Frobel was a German teacher and a student of Pestalozzi who laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities.  He created the concept of the “kindergarten” through play and activity institute as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school. 

His goal was that children should be taken care of and nourished in “children’s gardens” like plants in a garden. 

Today, most states in the United States offer free kindergarten to children ages five and six.  Kindergarten is a fun and memorable time in the “social experience of the transition from home to school.”