Pink poodle skirts, letter sweaters and slicked-back hair were all the rage to celebrate the ’50s and 50 days in school for kindergarten students in La Grange-Countryside Elementary District 105.
Students took buses from three elementary schools Friday to gather at Seventh Avenue School in La Grange and take turns in a variety of activities. Opportunities included an art project, sock hop and small construction projects.
Administrators and teachers decided to bring more than 140 kindergarten students together periodically, following meetings this summer to revamp the kindergarten curriculum for a full-day program. A full-day allows more flexibility to plan district-wide programs, teachers said.
“It was our vision this summer that every school host one of these mornings to build community,” said Mary Elizabeth Duffy, who teaches kindergarten at Seventh Avenue School. “We have volunteers from every school helping.”
Jim Kopp from Countryside said he enjoys volunteering whenever he can in his daughter’s kindergarten class at Seventh Avenue School, and he looked forward to ’50s Day.
“Having all four schools together is a great idea, because they’ll all be together eventually as they go through school,” Kopp said. “I wasn’t sure how dividing them up was going to go, but this is a pretty small group, and they seem to have enough activities.”
Kopp helped out in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math room, where students built structures with wooden blocks, magnetic pieces, Legos or plastic cups. Other volunteers reminded students to count 50 pieces as they built projects.
“It’s amazing. Kids are so excited about today,” said Jessica Eterno, Parent-Teacher Organization president at Seventh Avenue. “It’s neat to see them learning about the different eras.”
Eterno said her kindergarten son talked a lot about the day beforehand and showed her all the moves to the hand jive, including, “How low can you go.”
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In the gym and cafeteria, students tried out hula hoops and bowling, which were popular ’50s pastimes. Volunteers also shared some dance moves from the era, which kindergartners tried out.
Celine Hill, who teaches kindergarten at Seventh Avenue, said PowerPoint presentations and posters with photos contrasting life in the ’50s and today sparked lots of discussions.
“They liked seeing how restaurants and clothes looked,” Hill said. “We put a lot of math into it, too. We kept it fun counting every day until today.”
Children sported buttons they had decorated, which read “I’m 50 days smarter.” Their teachers said they’re pleased with the increased learning opportunities afforded by a full-day program.
“There’s so much more time to work with students,” said Ellen Pape, a reading specialist at Seventh Avenue. “They’re improving so much quicker. They have time to read both in the morning and afternoon.”
Mary Pat Larocca, who has taught a half-day kindergarten program for 33 years at Ideal School in Countryside, said she noticed the full day was a long one for some students at the beginning of the school year.
“But they’ve adjusted great,” Larocca said. “The schedule allows for some down time.”
Larocca said she appreciates more time in the classroom to differentiate instruction and have more time for core subjects.
“I don’t know how I ever did it with a half day before,” she said.
Seven Avenue principal Erin Hall said parents have embraced the full-day program, with only three families selecting the half-day program. One student switched after trying the full-day class, she said.
“The full day has allowed us to take a deep breath and see that we don’t have to cram so much into 2 1/2 hours,” she said. “We an also do more fine arts and technology in the afternoons, as well as some social interactions.”
Other district-wide kindergarten events are planned to celebrate 100 days in school in February at Ideal School, St. Patrick’s Day at Spring Avenue School and Cinco de Mayo at Hodgkins School.
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