August Gottleib Spangenberg's
Something of Bodily Care for Children
"Spangenberg's literary efforts were not as ambitious as those of Zinzendorf, but the volume which he published at Barby in 1792 under the title Etwas von der Pflege des Leibes fur Kinder is educationally significant as an early textbook of physiology and hygiene and for its pedagogical doctrine of the harmonious development and simultaneous growth of the child's physical, mental and spiritual faculties. His plan for meticulous bodily care stems from the typically Moravian premise that the human body is the image, the temple and the property of God. Cleanliness of body and mind, propriety in dress and demeanor, moderation and balance in diet, proper and sufficient physical exercise, adequate sleep and mental relaxation, moral integrity, diligence in learning, and faith in God are the child's obligations to himself and to his Maker, the implementation thereof being the responsibility of the home and school." pp. 299-300.
Source: Haller, Mabel. Early Moravian Education in Pennsylvania: a dissertation in education. Nazareth, PA: Moravian Historical Society, 1953.
Something of Bodily Care
for Children