The first day of school is just around the corner for districts throughout the area. In Ozark, administrators and teachers are working to make the first first day go smoothly for the district's youngest students.
Since 2018, the Ozark School District has held kindergarten open house events at all of their elementary schools in addition to the usual Meet the Teacher drop-ins all students and families are invited to. Ozark West Principal Rachel Tabuya explained that the kindergarten-only open houses can create a more welcoming environment for these young students and their families.
“Meet the teacher can be so overwhelming and busy.” Tabuya said. “This is a quieter time for parents to come in and kids get to experience a typical day. They’ll visit the related arts classrooms, they’ll visit the cafeteria, they’ll get to go through the line and experience what it’s like to pick up a meal, they will get to play on the playground and just be able to recognize the faces they’ll be seeing every day.”
Just being there for the firsts is important for parents, Tabuya said, and the event serves that purpose, too.
The morning started with an optional first bus ride for parents and their kids, a rally in the cafeteria and time spent with their homeroom teachers. The young students took their first parentless walks through the halls, all while picking up on the basics: How to walk in line, when to be quiet and to keep your hands to yourself. Meanwhile teachers spent time with parents, making sure they’d know everything they’ll need to about pick up and drop off, how to keep up with their child’s performance and what’s going on in class.
Kindergarten Teacher Michele Giles said, often, parents are more nervous than the kids. Giles has taught for Ozark since before the district started hosting a kindergarten open house, and she said it has had an impact.
“It’s been a great addition,” Giles said, “we’re able to get all the information out at one time to parents, and the kids just feel so much more comfortable coming that first day of school.”
Parent Navarre Brown has older kids in the school system already but was attending the open house with a son who is just starting kindergarten. Brown said he feels more prepared after the morning, and his son will be more empowered, too.
“I loved all the introductions and meeting the teachers,” he said.
As parents met back up with their kids in the cafeteria, buses lined up like at the end of any school day, and everyone was a bit more prepared to start school next week. But Giles said, no matter how prepared you are, there are always some with tears the first day.