From early morning to almost suppertime, boys and girls attending Fort McCoy’s Child Development Center are having fun and learning new things from the center staff.
The Child Development Center, or CDC, opens at 6:30 a.m. weekdays, and children and parents start trickling in soon after. Parents accompany their children to their assigned classrooms (all named after storybooks), sign them in, help them remove their coats, and stow any supplies before they head out. It’s free play until breakfast time, and the kids are able to choose from a small number of activities.
But before they can eat, the boys and girls in Rainbow Fish, a class of 3- to 5-year-old students, have to put away their toys and games. A special helper from the class helps a teacher clean the tables so they can have their breakfast. And another teacher helps get the children’s appetite up as they burn some energy with movement circle time. On March 17, Miss Janessa Spieker led the Rainbow Fish classroom through several dances and exercise videos set to music until breakfast was ready for them.
The children usually serve themselves under the watchful eyes of the CDC teachers and are encouraged to at least try everything available to them at every meal. They’re also encouraged to try to do things for themselves before asking for help, such as opening a packet of crackers or peeling a banana section. Second helpings are available for especially hungry students. While the kids do not have a choice of meal, the menu rotates daily.
After the children are full and happy, it’s circle time again. This time, the children go over the day’s lesson, which are based on a weekly theme. This week’s theme was “signs,” and Miss Janessa led the group in a lesson about the various types of signs they see in their daily lives and what they mean.
“When you go home from school every day, what types of signs do you see?” Miss Janessa asked.
“A stop sign” was the most popular answer. “The train sign,” meaning a railroad crossing sign, was another answer given.
“Do you see speed limit signs?” Miss Janessa asked. “They have numbers on them and tell your parents how fast they can go.”
Children also identified types of signs shown in Miss Janessa’s book. Afterward, Miss Janessa and Miss Kim Flock decided to take Rainbow Fish on a walk through the CDC and search for what signs they could find inside the school, too.
“The CDC curriculum is based on Teaching Strategies-Creative Curriculum and focuses on five developmental areas — social/emotional, cognitive, physical, literacy and language development,” CDC Facility Director Ann Boegler said. The CDC is also accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and certified by the Department of Defense. “Daily routine for children is very important in the developmental process of learning through repetition.”
Back from their walk, the children scattered to their favorite play areas. There’s a choice for everyone: dress-up, dolls and toy animals, games, building blocks, books, and a writing center. There’s even a small station with tablets, though the kids are limited to a set time for this activity and were asked to play educational games.
“Child and Youth Services believes and research has shown that play-based learning is beneficial to the development of all young children. Play-based learning encourages imagination and improves language skills in an environment that is low pressure,” Boegler said. “It fosters social skills, encourages cognitive development and improves motor skills as they are beginning to understand the world around them.”
Only four are allowed in one area at a time, and it’s first come, first served. The children put name tags on signs for each area and take them with them when they decide to switch. If an area is full, the student is asked to make another choice until one of their friends leaves. And there’s even one private little house meant for one student, in case someone needs some alone time away from his or her friends.
The CDC teachers trade places throughout the classroom, playing with students, preparing essential supplies, and completing necessary paperwork. They remind the children of rules they may have forgotten about.
“Did you remember to wash your hands?” Miss Kim asked a student returning from the restroom when she hadn’t heard the water running. “Did you make plenty of bubbles while you washed them?”
The kids are encouraged to put away toys as they go if another student doesn’t want to take over that toy. It makes cleanup time easier. And everyone’s eager for cleanup to go quickly because the next activity is recess!
It was still fairly cold the morning of March 17, so the children had to put on their coats, gloves, hats, and boots to go outside. While the snow was gone, it was still muddy, and the boots kept the mud off their shoes. The children lined up individually and were accounted for as they went outside to make sure no one was left in the classroom. Recess is with several other classrooms, and the teachers let one another know if a student asks to go inside and use the bathroom so that everyone knows where everyone is.
On March 17, since the ice and snow had finally melted, it was time to break out the bikes for the first time this year. The children were excited to get the chance to ride again, and everyone wanted a chance. To make everything fair, the teachers limited the bike sessions to 10 minutes so that everyone could ride.
Back inside, after the jackets and boots were off, it was time for a reading session and a chance to calm down while lunch was prepared by Miss Kim.
Lunch that day was tuna salad with crackers, broccoli, bananas, and milk. The tuna salad wasn’t especially popular, but everyone was encouraged to at least try it. The bananas, however, disappeared quickly, and the teachers cut up the leftovers to make sure everyone who wanted one could have a second helping of banana.
“Did you try your tuna?” Miss Kim asked a student who wanted a second helping of banana. “You need to eat some of your tuna before I can give you any more banana.”
After lunch, it’s time for a nap. The children have their own blankets and assigned cots and are encouraged to lie there quietly even they aren’t sleepy. Most nodded off quickly once they were still and quiet, regaining energy for afternoon playtime.
Naptime is about two hours and is followed by snack time. After snack is more recess. Children who didn’t get to ride bikes during morning recess were given the first turns during the afternoon, and the time limits continued.
Even after everyone had a chance to ride bikes, the children were asked to keep swapping to keep things fair. The other children played with balls, climbed jungle gyms, used the slides, and swung on the swings, getting active and keeping warm.
As they and the day grew warmer, they were allowed to take off their gloves and hats and stow them by their classroom doors so they wouldn’t get lost.
Back inside, it was time for free choice play again. The teachers explained games, read books to students, and helped sort out minor disputes over the toys. The Rainbow Fish students kept themselves happy and occupied until one by one, their parents arrived to pick them up and take them home.
“Communicating daily with each parent about their child is essential in building strong, long-lasting relationships," CDC Assistant Director Angie Kast said."
A typical day at the CDC, like this one in the Rainbow Fish room, is filled with fun, learning, and friendship for the children who attend and the staff members who work there. And the students in Rainbow Fish all agreed that it’s a great place to spend their days.
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