The end of August can be a bittersweet time for students, teachers and parents alike.
Students prepare to say their good-byes to a summer of freedom and no homework. But those who were elected for student government start early to prepare events for the coming school year, working with school staff to welcome students and map out their ideas and plans.
Both new and experienced teachers attend orientations, sit through training sessions and organize lesson plans for the upcoming year. Puyallup and Sumner school districts combined have more than 100 new teachers starting the 2007-08 school year.
Some adults face separation anxiety with their young children, forced to accept the reality of letting their little ones venture in a world outside of home, whether it is preschool, kindergarten or daycare.
Behind the scenes, it takes effort and work from all three groups to transition into a school year smoothly.
Students prepare for year of ‘change’
The halls of Bonney Lake High School will fill with students for the third year this September. Only a few months ago, the school hosted its first-ever graduation ceremony.
Student government at the school celebrates this third year with a few changes — the school will have its first male president, and has also added a cabinet of senior students to provide more voices to their student body.
Associated Student Body members, class officers and the new senior cabinet gathered last week at the school for a student check-in. They helped all grade levels get schedules, books and photographs done before the first day of school.
They then spent a night at the school, getting to know one another and planning events and assemblies for the rest of the year, including the first-day freshman assembly, the homecoming dance and other projects.
This year’s group has a sense of ownership, said ASB advisor Josh Gaydos. They want their voices heard and want to be very student-centered.
“That’s the vibe I’m getting from these guys,” Gaydos said.
ASB President Nick Booher, a senior, said he’s excited to bring back the “Panther of the Month” award and work on making the school’s recycling system more efficient.
Booher and other officers hope to follow through with all of their ideas instead of letting them trickle away as in past years. Getting together and becoming united is a step in the right direction, he said.
“It definitely is challenging, I have to say,” Booher said. “I’m so glad we had this retreat.”
Public Relations Officer Casey Knowles, another senior, said she has high hopes for this year’s student government.
“We’re a group that wants change,” Knowles said.
Teachers learn about diversity, prepare to be flexible
For a week, new teachers and staff in the Sumner School District attended an orientation and training, focusing on basics about professional attire, codes of conduct, curriculum, technology and diversity.
“It’s been very effective,” said John McDonald, a new teacher who will be teaching automotive technology at Sumner High School this year.
It takes a lot of work to prepare for a new school year, said McDonald, who previously taught at Lake Washington High School in Kirkland.
“I try to be relaxed about it,” he said.
McDonald said he would advise first-time teachers to make friends with as many administrators and other teachers as possible and keep an upbeat attitude.
Another new teacher, Cindie Winder, starts her first year teaching preschool at Crestwood Elementary this year. Her class focuses on autistic children, so she’s preparing her room to fit their needs, she said.
Autistic children are sensitive to sensory stimuli, so Winder is planning to have less fluorescent lighting and add curtains to make the classroom seem more like a home, she said.
“Each kid is different,” Winder said.
To help teachers deal with difficult situations involving inappropriate or offensive language, part of the new staff orientation focused on brainstorming strategies with fellow teachers.
Sumner High School teachers Kimmie Marton and Jon Nelson led the seminar, titled “Diversity in Sumner: Strategies for Success,” which posed hypothetical scenarios to teachers.
One scenario asked teachers what they would do if they overheard a student saying the words “gay” or “retarded” inappropriately. Another posed this situation: What should a teacher do if student says, “If you don’t speak English, you should go back to your own country”?
Teachers’ suggestions included approaching the student with a disciplinary style that fits the specific situation and telling students to “choose another word.”
Marton and Nelson wrapped up the workshop by reminding teachers that while students in Sumner aren’t accustomed to a diverse population, they’ll experience it in college and the working world. It’s best to start educating them about diversity early on, they advised.
“We value diversity,” Marton told teachers. “The kids in Sumner need to learn about diversity.”
Parents, rather than children, have difficulty saying goodbye
To help prepare children for the early years of school, many parents choose to enroll their child in preschool or a Montessori school, which emphasizes self-directed activity away from home for children and sometimes teenagers.
However, that first step can be challenging, especially for parents, who often have a harder time letting go than their children do, said Jody Bofmanf, a director at Stepping Stones Montessori in Sumner.
“Separation anxiety is a big thing,” Bofmanf said. “We’re helping these children live a life away from home.”
At Stepping Stones, children can start as early as 2-and-a-half years old and go until they’re 6 years old to complete kindergarten, then move on to public school, she said. The idea behind the Montessori method is to engage children with activity and repetition.
“The more senses you touch with a child, the more they’re going to be drawn into it,” Bofmanf said.
To help make the transition into kindergarten go well, Early Learning Linkages Facilitator Laurie Sjolund helps put together a class for parents called Ready! For Kindergarten, in which parents are given ideas and suggestions for games, activities and songs that will prepare children for a school environment.
“Those things are really what will make that transition into kindergarten smoother,” Sjolund said.
Both Sjolund and Bofmanf agree that if parents engage their children with reading and conversation, it will make the transition into school much easier.
Establishing routine, such as reading for a specific amount of time at the same time every day, can also help, Sjolund added.
“Children have a natural desire to do things for themselves, and if you give them the tools and you give them the skills, they’re capable,” Bofmanf said. “The only way they’re going to learn is by doing.”
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Back to school information
> PUYALLUP SCHOOL DISTRICT First day of school: Sept. 5 Supply lists: www.puyallup.k12.wa.us/studentprograms/registration/BackToSchool.cfm
> SUMNER SCHOOL DISTRICT First day of school: Sept. 4 Supply lists: www.sumner.wednet.edu/Headlines/0708SupplyLists.html Special start times: To welcome incoming freshmen to high school and sixth-graders to middle school, the Sumner School District provides half-day orientations on the first day of school. All other middle and high school students have special start times for the first day only and all schools will have normal afternoon dismissal times and bus schedules. See times below: Elementary schools: Normal start time and full school day schedule, no kindergarten. School lunch will be served. Middle schools: Sixth graders will be picked up according to the normal schedule for full school day schedule. Seventh and eighth graders will begin school at 12:30 p.m. and bus schedules will be five hours later than regular schedule. School lunch will not be served to seventh and eighth graders. High schools: Ninth graders will be picked up according to the normal schedule for full school day schedule. Tenth, 11th and 12th graders will begin school at 12:30 p.m. and bus schedules will be five hours later than regular schedule. School lunch will not be served to 10th, 11th and 12th graders.
For more information, contact specific schools or visit www.sumner.wednet.edu.
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