New Young Fives program implemented in East China School District’s schools

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Elena Cousino

Pine River Elementary School, located in China Township, Michigan, is home to the first-year Young Fives program.

ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Mich. – The Young Fives students at Pine River Elementary School, taught by Jodie Guzowski, are known as the Zipper Club. 

Following their teacher’s example and learning how to be more independent, the students are now able to zip up their coats by themselves.

The Young Fives program does more than just teach children how to zip their coats, according to Pine River Elementary Principal Rachel Card.  This first-year program prepares students for kindergarten and allows them to learn basic skills, like the alphabet, writing, reading and counting through hands-on activities and playing. 

“Some of the things that we were focused on are developing their independence, building their self-esteem, giving them experiences in problem-solving, both academically and in social situations,” Card said. “There’s also a lot of practice in fine and gross motor skills throughout the day. I think the development of school and social skills is particularly helpful in getting them ready for kindergarten.”

This is the first year that the program is being used in the East China School District. The program is for students who are turning 5 years old between July 1 and Dec. 1 and it is offered at Pine River and Palms Elementary this year. 

Palms Elementary School, located in Fair Haven, Michigan, is home to the other Young Fives program found in the East China School District.

Parents have the choice between having their younger children head into kindergarten earlier or enrolled in this optional program. Card said that the ultimate decision about whether the child is enrolled in Young Fives is up to the parents. 

Parents who would like to send their child into kindergarten, and their child qualifies for the Young Fives program, just need to sign a waiver. For parents who do not enroll their child in the Young Fives program or move them up to kindergarten, the child could attend preschool or take a gap year of learning.

The program mimics a kindergarten classroom while focusing more on social skills and letting the students learn through playing. Although the majority of students in the Young Fives classroom are heading into kindergarten the next year, the program allows students to skip kindergarten and enroll in first grade.

“We haven’t encountered any situation yet where a parent has requested that, but in theory, we could test them out through reading assessments and math assessments and move them into first grade,” Card said.

Due to around 600,000 coronavirus cases and approximately 16,000 deaths reported in Michigan as of Feb. 23, 2021, according to The New York Times, the Young Fives class and East China School District have been following the MI Safe Schools Roadmap set in place by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

“I have 14 students in my class,” Guzowski said. “They’ve been doing very well. I don’t think it’s affecting them as much as it’s affecting the older kids.”

Guzowski splits the children into small groups at the tables and gives them baskets of toys to play with. The toys are then collected into the baskets and rotated daily and placed into a 72-hour quarantine.

The children also wear masks the whole day and wash their hands regularly to protect themselves and others. Card was impressed with how quickly the children adapted to these guidelines.

“I think children are more adaptable than adults,” Card said. “It really is the modeling of the teacher and the reinforcement of that independence.”

Kelly Woodhouse, the Young Fives teacher at Palms Elementary School, said overall the program is running smoothly and her students were willing to follow the coronavirus rules in order to get back into the classroom.

“The students were so excited to come back to school and see all their friends,” Woodhouse said by email. “The masks and distancing in the classroom are worth being back.”

The students also attend specials every day, like math, art, gym and music. Gwyn Kubiak, the music teacher at Pine River Elementary, enjoys seeing the Young Fives. One of the reasons is because her 5-year-old daughter, Norah, is a student in the program. 

“It’s fun to see a different side of your child,” Kubiak said. “Seeing her interact with kids from school and even just seeing how she learns in a group setting, it’s been really great.”

Along with singing in music class, the Young Fives class uses singing to learn.

“I know that they sing a lot in her class, as well,  just to help them learn letters, numbers, sounds, things like that,” Kubiak said. “She is always singing, she’s singing every song that they ever learn in her class.”

The music teacher said she appreciated the program and would recommend it to any parent.

“I don’t think that any parent would regret waiting a year for kindergarten,” Kubiak said. “But enrolling them in Young Fives is not just saying, ‘Okay we’re not going to do anything with them this year.’ This is allowing them an opportunity to still be in a school setting, in a great school with great teachers and learning and growing. So that you know when you’re sending them to kindergarten the next year, that they’re ready for it.”

Pine River Elementary is having an information session about the Young Fives program on Thursday, March 25, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at their school in person. Palms Elementary school is holding an information session on Wednesday, March 24, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at their school in person, as well.

“I’m really excited that we are continuing this program,” Card said. “I think it definitely fulfilled a need that we had, and I’m excited for the students in that program to go to kindergarten. I can tell already that they will be ready and much more confident as kindergartners.”

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