 |
||||
  
 
 |
Children from low-income families get a Head Start in clean, friendly environment By
Sally H.N. Wright
Some sit at a craft table, carefully cutting and pasting bits of colored paper into collages and other creations. Some make towers from wooden blocks, others watch goldfish swim in a fish tank. A few others play with plastic turtles and sand in a table made to hold a few inches of sand, water or other interesting material. Two kids frown and purse their lips as they practice writing their names at a quieter table. The bulletin board above the table is decorated with a banner that announces "We can write our names!" in brightly-colored letters. Many attempts at name writing are posted beneath the banner. Outside the building, new playground equipment shines in the sun in the fenced yard, as if cheerfully anticipating recess. Two teachers supervise the activities and collect hugs from their students periodically. There is nothing make-shift about the building, the equipment or the teachers. Everything gleams, and except for the items being used, everything is in its place, neatly stored in plastic containers or cubby holes. A ritzy, high-end preschool for children of wealthy doctors? Hardly. It's Head Start, a federally funded preschool program designed especially for children from low-income families. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Bear River Head Start, which serves children and families in Box Elder County, is one of 1,513 Head Start preschools across the nation. The program is free to qualifying families, but parents must meet federal poverty guidelines and provide consecutive pay stubs and other documents to show proof of low-income status. According to Heather Robison and LaVina Petersen, teachers at Head Start in Brigham City, curriculum includes fundamental academic skills to help the children prepare to enter kindergarten, as well as even more rudimentary life skills. Children eat two meals at school, and both are served "family-style," said Petersen. Food is in large bowls and students pass around the dishes to serve themselves something to eat. "It helps the kids learn patience and manners, especially if they don't eat that way at home," she said. "Sometimes it's messy," said Robison, "but I know they need it." Eating this way also gives the children a sense of control, Robison said. "When you're four, you don't have a lot of control. The kids just have to have one of everything on their plate, but they don't have to eat anything. It's so funny when they put just one pea on their plate. It's really funny when they forget what they hate and eat it anyway." All courses, including dessert, are served simultaneously, which Robison says is a great idea. "It teaches them that food is not a reward or a punishment-it never is at Head Start," she said. "We do not bribe them with treats or dessert. When school first started, they would all eat their dessert first. Now, sometimes they don't eat it at all." Hand washing takes place before all meals, and everyone brushes their teeth after meals. Each child has her own toothbrush, and toothpaste is doled out in dollops on the undersides of paper cups. Water drips off chins and toothpaste foams out of little mouths onto the floor as the students talk about preventing tooth decay. "Miss Heather, remember when you were a pirate at Halloween and you had decay?" a blond girl named Melissa asks as she wipes her mouth. "Pirates don't have toothbrushes." Anger management is another part of Head Start curriculum. Both teachers call out, "OK, friends, please come sit down!" when they need the students' attention. Petersen and Robison never scold or nag, and sentencing kids to "time out" is the last resort; they say they know better strategies to get the kids to mind. Robison routinely distracts rowdy kids by suggesting more appropriate behavior, and all the kids know the proper formula for expressing feelings without hitting. "Justin, I get mad when you take my blocks. Please, can we share?" says one child, gritting his teeth as he fixes his own problem. The Department of Health and Human Services web site indicates most Head Start preschools have at least two teachers per class, as well as family advocates and other counseling services for families. Teachers and advocates visit every family at least twice during the school year, a practice Robison and Petersen say is time-consuming but worthwhile. "These are high-quality people who just need someone to hold their
hand, and that's where we come in," said Robison. "This is more than
a job. We are there to love these kids and show them the way to succeed." |
Archived Months:
September
1998 |
||