Mickey Mouse Head Start

The Head Start program in Franklin next door is called Peter Pan. Mickey Mouse Head Start in Baldwin is on the other side of the tracks. Literally. The last time I picked up a group of volunteers, we had to wait twenty minutes for a freight train so we could return to Sager Brown.

Upon opening the door of an aged, white, clapboard building with Mickey Mouse Head Start Program labeled across the lower half in small, neat letters, one is greeted by a tidy, spacious, bright interior, a large desk, and a neat row of connected small tables and chairs. The desk is often manned by Miss Louise, Director. (In these parts, the title 'Miss' is a term of deference used for an older woman. I liked it better before I knew that.). The tables and chairs are where the children have snacks and a hot lunch. This large entry room and the kitchen separate two classrooms and sets of restrooms which hold twenty students each, consisting of three to five-year olds, mainly African American with a couple Latino children in each class. There are two African American teachers for each class. Miss Louise knows every child and each teacher--well. The teachers know their flocks, too. Each team of teachers consists of a head teacher and an aide, who does the majority of the discipline and carefully supervises bathroom breaks and field trip procedures. Field trips consist mainly of bi-monthly trips to the local library, where Miss Yvette (a library employee) reads a couple theme books (zoo, parade, helping mommy at home), facilitates a couple action songs and a related art project and gets a bunch of hugs for her efforts. Back in the classroom, children spend a lot of time on social skills, basic hygiene, and building a foundation for a successful kindergarten experience. Each day one student gets to be the leader, reviewing days of the week, months of the year, shapes, colors, the five senses and the weather. When the children are prompt with the correct response, they get to, "Kiss your brain!" Even the youngest three-year old knows how to pucker-up on the tips of the fingers of one hand, then tap the side of her head. There are interest centers (musical instruments, blocks, books, science, math and computers) where the children play and learn simultaneously. The program goes from 9am-2pm, Monday-Friday, includes nap time, and even the volunteers get hugs from the cutest little ones in the community before we go.