Kindergartners going full-day at Moniteau
CLAY TWP — Full-day kindergarten has arrived in the Moniteau School District.
Kindergartners at Dassa McKinney Elementary School used to be split along a physical line bisecting the school district.
Half of the students would arrive in the morning for two-and-a-half hours of classes. The other half would trade off for the afternoon shift.
Now, all kindergartners start at about 9 a.m. and leave around 3:30 p.m.
Half-day systems are phasing out of popularity locally. For instance, the Butler Area School District ended its half-day schedule last year.
The positives sought in Moniteau are similar to those elsewhere: more instruction time, stronger teacher-student bonds and less-complicated dismissals.
Dustin Thompson, Dassa McKinney's principal, said they need a full day to keep up with continually growing education metrics.
“With the standards and expectations in our school system now, you need a full day and then some to meet all the standards,” Thompson said.District students went back to class Monday. On Tuesday, pickup already was operating in orderly fashion.There are 86 kindergartners split among four classes in the district. The district has just the one elementary.Sara Brewer of West Sunbury picked up her three children Tuesday. She has a second-grader and twin boys who just started kindergarten.“I feel that the full day is going to be a better learning experience,” Brewer said. “You don't have to cram it all in a couple hours. So far, they love it.”She said she was a little anxious about it, but those fears have faded.
Aubrie Schnelle, assistant principal at Moniteau Junior-Senior High School, picked up her children Jasper, 8, and Rowen, 5.Rowen attended full-day preschool, Schnelle said, so should be ready for the daylong classes.“He had a great first day,” she said.Thompson said teachers advocated for the move to a full-day schedule.Christine Fleeger, a kindergarten teacher with six years at the school, said it's already paying off.“I absolutely love it,” Fleeger said. “It gives much more opportunity to talk to my kids, get to know my kids. We can spend more time teaching.”Danielle Milligan, another kindergarten teacher, concurred. She said the students “have a better chance of mastery” of their skills.“We can build more positive relationships with our children when we have all day versus two-and-a-half hours.”
