Chattanooga Times Free Press
September 25, 2005
Tennessee Launches 300 State-Funded Pre-K Classes
By Angie Herrington Staff Writer
CLEVELAND, Tenn. — Four-year-old Caleb Spires played with farm-animal figurines and wooden blocks on the floor of his prekindergarten class Friday, unaware of the language skills he was learning.
His teacher, Doreen Scott, sat beside him and asked where he was taking the pig in his hand. “He’s going to the barn,” Caleb said.
Ms. Scott said interaction like this is common in her Head Start class at Blythe-Bower Elementary School. “We elicit responses from them so we know what they’re thinking,” she said. “If a child just gives me one word, it’s our responsibility to ask them to expand.”
This “learning through play” method is just one example of why most education experts agree children who go through pre-k programs are better prepared to enter kindergarten and are more likely to graduate high school.
Tennessee will have all of its 300 new, lottery-funded pre-k classes launched by Oct. 1, state officials said. Gov. Phil Bredesen signed the $25 million voluntary program into law in June. Bobbi Lussier, executive director of early learning for the state Department of Education, said roughly 6,000 4-year-olds who are poor or are deemed “at risk” for school failure will be served.
Nearly all of the school systems in Southeast Tennessee are adding pre-k classes, according to the state.
Cleveland City Schools and Bradley County Schools are adding three classes each. All six of the new pre-k classes are in elementary schools and have a maximum 20 students. The school systems have formed a partnership with the Family Resource Agency in Cleveland to help implement the program, officials said. The agency delivers Head Start pre-k classes.
Head Start director David Kelley said the partnership is ideal because the agency has experience with running pre-k classes. Mr. Kelley said there is much demand for the pre-k slots. “I fully expect to have to turn people away,” he said.
Marion County’s four new classes are expected to begin Monday, said Teresa Avera, supervisor of at-risk intervention for the system. All of the system’s elementary schools now will have pre-k classes, she said. “Each area of the county now has pre-k, and I think as time goes on more parents will become comfortable with it and see the success of it,” Dr. Avera said.
Rhea County Schools officials have been meeting with the parents of the 40 children in the system’s two new pre-k classes, said Katrina Casteel, special education director for the system. The children will start class on different days this week to ease the transition, she said. Parents who have children in the system’s existing pre-k class report their children have better language development and do not lag behind in kindergarten, Ms. Casteel said.
