Head Start

The smell of breakfast cooking, laughter of lots of kids, and the look on the teachers’ faces like: “another crazy day with lots of crazy kids.” That is what it is for me every time I walk into Lewis Clark Early Childhood Program. Most kids want toys, games, and outrageous things to that nature, not me. One thing that I wish that I had as a child was a head start in my education. I struggled all through elementary school, and was often made fun of because of the special classes I had to take. Luckily, I pulled through, and graduated from high school with a 3.9 GPA. Struggling through school is one thing that I would never wish upon any child. I am thankful to have been able to put my children in the Lewis Clark Early Childhood Program, a preschool for lower-class families. I think that if I would have been able to be in a program like LCECP, maybe I would have had a better elementary experience.
Lewis Clark Early Childhood Program is also called Head Start, which I think describes exactly what the program is all about; giving a child a head start in their education. There are many different centers around the room; art projects on the wall, an ABC, 1,2,3 mat on the floor, and fun things from a kitchen center to dress-up. In the Head Start program, the curriculum is specialized to each child. A three year old child is going to be learning different things, and at a different pace than a five year old child. If there are children with special needs, they have great state workers that help those children with their needs. When there are children in the program that will be attending kindergarten the next year, the teachers focus on preparing the children for that. Things such as the beginning fundamentals of reading and math, to social interaction. In the classroom there are many stations; art, motor skills, library, creative play, and many more.
The program offers many different activities to the children. The facility has an on-sight playground where the children play year round. The children also get to do fun things such as sledding during the winter, walks around the neighborhood, or even a fieldtrip to the local University dairies where the children can have a great learning experience. Another great event that happen in class is Library Betty who comes once a month to read to the children. She also gives all the children a free book each time she visits. The children also get visits from policemen, and firemen to help the children learn what they do and to not be afraid of them. They also get visits from different community members like dentists to teach them about oral hygiene. It is great for the children because it teaches them some important facts that they will use the rest of their lives.
Children say that one thing they love about school is lunchtime. It might be gross, but the meal might be great; and the best part is, dessert can be eaten first; every kids’ dream. The meals prepared at LCECP are great. The cook really knows what kids like to eat, but get all the nutrition that a child needs. Breakfast and lunch are both provided; and range from muffins to pancakes with eggs, and chef salad to homemade macaroni and cheese. They do take special care of any child that needs anything special in their diet; such as a food allergy or just a picky kid.
There are a few cons to this program, but can be changed into pros with faness. When taking a family such as mine; both parents full time students with jobs, two other children in the public school and one in preschool; transportation can become a huge issue. And this is one accommodation that LCECP does not offer to its students. But what the program does offer is three different time slots that are available for each child. Morning class is 8:30 to 12:00; Midday is from 10:30 to 2:00, and afternoon class if from 12:30 to 4:00. So you can pick a time slot that works with your schedule because there is no provided transportation. We choose the morning class so that we can all be in school at the same time. But if you have to work or have class at another time, you have the choice of what class slot you would like your child to attend. Another thing that the school does not do is holiday celebrations. That means no birthday, Christmas, Halloween, or any other holiday that is celebrated. I think that is okay. I think it is fun to have Christmas recitals, and cupcakes on your birthday, but I guess that can all wait until they are in the public school system. What the school does allow is birthday invites sent out (which the public school system does not allow), and that the students can give gifts of fun things to the other students in the class, just not as a celebration.
One of my favorite aspects to this school (on a parent’s perspective) is that it is free of charge. The program is donation based, so that lower-class children can get as good of an early education as a child being raised in a mid to upper-class level. Although this is what it is based for, children of upper classes are not necessarily turned away. The children of the lower-income class are accepted first, and if there is availability in the classrooms, then the children in the upper classes are then accepted. In the city of Moscow, if you take your child to a daycare based preschool (for a half day), you would be charged around $450 to $600 per month. And if you take them to a private preschool you would pay around $700 to $1000 per month. So there are definite perks to the Lewis Clark Early Childhood Program.
Programs like Head Start are vital to families like mine. I am a students, I have a large family, and I am bery busy, and I need a great place to take my children; firstly for a great early education, secondly is a place they love, and thirdly a place I can afford. I believe that giving a head start in their education can ultimately boost their entire education, from primary school to graduate school. As I leave with my children from the Lewis Clark Early Childhood Program classroom, I look at the relief of another day over on the teachers’ faces, the smell of a room that held a bunch of crazy kids, but most of all, the knowledge that my kids are getting that all important head start.