New year brings new faces to school

On Monday morning, the Sweetwater County Child Developmental Center was bustling with students eager to learn.

Jennifer Rendell's four-year-old and five-year-old class was no different. Students were busy coloring, playing with toys or building towers out of blocks, while Rendell worked one-on-one with a student.

Rendell and her assistants were busy teaching the students about sticking with a routine. Each day, when the students arrive, they are asked to hang their backpack up, grab their lanyard with their name on it and go to one of the tables and work on the designated activity, which varies from day to day.

For example, one day they will make something out of Play Doh; and the next day they are cutting lines with a scissors. All of these activities are designed to keep them busy while other students arrive.

"They are settling in really well," she said.

It did not take her students long to know what the sound of the chimes meant, which is to pick up toys. It only took the students a few seconds to react to the sound; and then they were busy putting toys away, picking up blocks or making sure all the crayons were in the right boxes.

Like many other classes, these students really seemed to enjoy snack time and recess.

This week, Rendell will set aside time to assess where each child is at so she will have a better idea of where they will fit in the classroom. She said all students receive one-on-one attention before they are sent to a small group or large group task.

She likes to have the students work and then play, however most of the time that form of play is based on what they are learning.

The kids just might not know it because play time is so fun.

Rendell said she does have two returning students, but the rest of her class is new. She said she just cannot believe how eager those new faces are; and how ready they are to learn. "They pick things up so quickly," Rendell said. "They want to be apart of everything."

All of the kids in her morning class will venture off to kindergarten next year, which makes Rendell a little sad even though the school year was just starting.

Before the students leave, they are reminded to pick up their folder and put it into their backpack.