By ASHLEE GRAHAM – During periods 3-5, there are kids in the halls of IHS that are a little shorter than usual. These are the kids that participate in the yearly IHS preschool.
Junior Maura Nutter says, “I’m excited to take this class because I’ve heard a lot of great things about it. It’s good for people who want to work with young kids in the future.”
Every year, IHS has a preschool class offered to grades 10-12 called Child Development. In this class, students receive a hands-on learning experience, all while running their very own preschool. This elective course is taught by Mrs. Brady, and is extremely effective for anyone going into a profession involving young children, or even for those who plan on having their own children someday.
Junior Chase Cunningham states, “I think that this elective is very beneficial because it allows students that are going into education the opportunity to get prior experience, and help them get ahead in their career.”
Child Development is a semester course and has two different structures. In the beginning of the course, students learn about the development of children and how they think and grow. The second part of the course is developing lesson plans for preschool where the kids come in and these students are now their teachers.
This year there are eleven preschoolers: Addie, Ava, Molly, Emmett, Bennett, Miles, Max, Liam, Phillip, Decklen, and Otto.
Along with all of these perks, the class is extremely fun. Students can bond with the kids and be a very impactful part of their early learning careers. Sophomore Lola Van Leer says, “I love this class because I have the opportunity to work with preschoolers; this age for them is really cute.
As beneficial as this class is for the high schoolers, it’s even more beneficial for the preschoolers. With the layout of the class that focused on math & science, handwriting, arts & crafts, and lessons, these children learn a lot about listening to teachers and many other skills they will need when they move on to Kindergarten.
This course also helps the children ”branch out,” as they have never been around a lot of other kids in a social setting. Through the preschool, the kids can make a lot of new friends that will help them as they transition into kindergarten.
[Photo by Marianne Brady]
Photo Caption: “Seniors Halle Angello and Jordan Raible teach the preschoolers yoga during circle time.”
