Have you ever wondered why you started school in a class with a German name where building blocks, music, and play were more important than learning to read? The idea of a "child's garden" was created by Friedrich Froebel, a German educator, around 1850. His vision was of a special place in which small children were removed from parental influences, to learn to enjoy learning through playful activities. Froebel was labeled an agent of the socialist movement, and he was banned as a revolutionary by the Prussian government of Germany. Some inventors are not honored at home.