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For the next eight weeks, a younger generation of children will grace the halls of East Peoria Community High School as a group of high school students try their hand at teaching.
On Tuesday, the school’s vocational child care class began welcoming children ages 3 to 5 to attend a free preschool at its Children’s Learning Center.
Teacher Jo Moore is overseeing the group of 12 female teachers-in-the-making as they run the center.
“It’s just like your typical preschool,” Moore said. “Their course curriculum covers all the subject matter.”
Focus is placed on small and large motor skills, social and emotional activities, cognitive thinking skills and language.
The center has been a part of the high school’s curriculum for more than 30 years. This is Moore’s second year heading the center and teaching the class.
“A lot of people can’t afford daycare,” she said. “This is free. It gives parents a chance to expose their child to developmental activities that they might not have time to do at home. And the kids love to work with the teenagers.”
She added that the program is not limited to East Peoria residents. Any child in the age group is welcome.
The preschool students participate in activities that focus on arts and crafts, science, English, math and social studies.
In preparation for creating their own preschool, the high school students visited six area preschools including Rogy’s and Tazewell County Head Start to observe and interview teachers and get ideas of how to run the program.
Students also filled out job applications and interviewed for various positions at the preschool. The students work together to run the center, but also have individual roles such as marketing director, nutrition specialist and director of curriculum and instruction.
Shelby Withrow said she is excited to try out a career in teaching.
“As a teacher, you influence children for their entire life,” Withrow said. “You teach them how to be good people, to be respectful. You teach them their way of learning and how to handle themselves in the real world.”
Each student in the class developed a lesson plan to teach during the program.
Withrow’s fall-themed lesson plan includes a turkey handprint art project, a math lesson where the children estimate the number of pieces of candy or popcorn in various sized jars and the chance for each child to explain their favorite things to do with their family and friends during the fall.
The preschoolers will follow a set schedule each day with 5-to-10-minute blocks of time for each activity.
Moore said there are still openings in the class. For more information or to register a child, call Moore at the high school at 698-7556, or send an e-mail to moorejo@ep309.org.
For the next eight weeks, a younger generation of children will grace the halls of East Peoria Community High School as a group of high school students try their hand at teaching.
On Tuesday, the school’s vocational child care class began welcoming children ages 3 to 5 to attend a free preschool at its Children’s Learning Center.
Teacher Jo Moore is overseeing the group of 12 female teachers-in-the-making as they run the center.
“It’s just like your typical preschool,” Moore said. “Their course curriculum covers all the subject matter.”
Focus is placed on small and large motor skills, social and emotional activities, cognitive thinking skills and language.
The center has been a part of the high school’s curriculum for more than 30 years. This is Moore’s second year heading the center and teaching the class.
“A lot of people can’t afford daycare,” she said. “This is free. It gives parents a chance to expose their child to developmental activities that they might not have time to do at home. And the kids love to work with the teenagers.”
She added that the program is not limited to East Peoria residents. Any child in the age group is welcome.
The preschool students participate in activities that focus on arts and crafts, science, English, math and social studies.
In preparation for creating their own preschool, the high school students visited six area preschools including Rogy’s and Tazewell County Head Start to observe and interview teachers and get ideas of how to run the program.
Students also filled out job applications and interviewed for various positions at the preschool. The students work together to run the center, but also have individual roles such as marketing director, nutrition specialist and director of curriculum and instruction.
Shelby Withrow said she is excited to try out a career in teaching.
“As a teacher, you influence children for their entire life,” Withrow said. “You teach them how to be good people, to be respectful. You teach them their way of learning and how to handle themselves in the real world.”
Each student in the class developed a lesson plan to teach during the program.
Withrow’s fall-themed lesson plan includes a turkey handprint art project, a math lesson where the children estimate the number of pieces of candy or popcorn in various sized jars and the chance for each child to explain their favorite things to do with their family and friends during the fall.
The preschoolers will follow a set schedule each day with 5-to-10-minute blocks of time for each activity.
Moore said there are still openings in the class. For more information or to register a child, call Moore at the high school at 698-7556, or send an e-mail to moorejo@ep309.org.
