Olivia Johnson

It’s been over two decades since Rolla High School established the Bulldog Preschool where high school students have the opportunity to teach children from ages two to five. This year brought a change in the course’s leadership from now-retired teacher Jamie Cantrell to Leadership teacher and yearbook adviser Janice Webb. With new leadership comes new course plans for high school students and preschoolers alike to explore new interests and skills.
There are many educational benefits to taking a child development course. Many jobs require good communication, patience, and empathy, all of which are tested again and again in Bulldog Preschool. For junior Morgan Moats, the program is a great step to a career as a teacher.
“I think, especially if you want to become a teacher, it’s a good thing to figure out if you actually want to work with kids, but also a lot of the information we learn is nice to have…most people are going to become parents so they should know what they’re getting into,” stated Moats.
Teaching children of preschool age comes with challenges as well as lifelong skills. Ages two through five are some of the most difficult to teach because this age group has short attention spans. For sophomore Alicia Tennyson, this has proven to be a challenge.
“[The most challenging part is] when they don’t want to listen, and they get bored easily with language. I read some books to them about community helpers…and there were some questions, but there are some who are bored and they don’t like to do anything,” explained Tennyson.
Little kids are difficult to teach normally, but especially when learning is hard work. High school students still have trouble sitting in class for a period, even though they’ve been doing so for over a decade. To prevent daydreaming and boredom in the preschoolers, Webb and her students maintain an active environment where there are rotations, physical education, and new social activities to partake in. Sophomore Hadyn Brooks picks up the preschoolers in the drop-off line with the rest of the first hour class in the morning.
“When they first come in in the morning, they will go play with all the toys in the back…They split up into their different groups, they’ll go to the different centers, and then once we’re done teaching, we’ll send them back out to play until the next hour will come in to teach. So they are able to play with each other,” said Brooks.
The course also provides a strong basis for skills needed in everyday life. Not everyone is going to pursue a career in child development, but everyone will inevitably need to know how to connect with children. Although Tennyson’s career path changed from her original plans, her future is still very involved with children.
“I wanted to further my understanding in child careers and I was planning on becoming a pediatrician when I grew up, so I thought [doing the bulldog preschool lab] might help with that. I’ve decided to go a different route but it still kind of includes that,” stated Tennyson.
Participating in Bulldog Preschool provides some of the best opportunities to further understand children and their needs firsthand, which will come in handy in the future.
“Students who don’t grow up to become parents will likely in some capacity interact with kids, whether that’s through coaching or family members or friend’s kids, and I firmly believe that what they learn in child development is applicable to every single student in this high school for their future,” stated Webb.