Preschoolers, older students working together is a win-win

By Jan Campbell Osakis Preschool

Osakis Preschool has the benefit of being housed in the same building as the rest of the school. Being a PreK-12 school, we are able to collaborate with older grades. A few of the high school students that come down are from classes that are exploring going into education. It is a win-win situation for all of us.

The first time that the kids came down to help, a few of the preschoolers were a little tentative, but they soon warmed up and really had fun working with their new older friends.

There are countless projects that we can work on together. Some of those activities with the “big” kids are – going on outdoor scavenger hunts, reading books, seeing baby chicks that they are raising, writing letters to Santa, doing puzzles, playing games, measuring how tall they are and most recently, creating and running an obstacle course.

In the spring, we usually do a clean-up day to celebrate Earth Day. Any time a high school teacher asks to collaborate, we can usually find some kind of activity that we can do together.

Having older students come down to help has been truly beneficial.

One of the most rewarding parts with this collaboration is when some of my former preschool students come down to help out in our room. It is great to see how some of the older kids connect with the preschoolers, as well as vice versa. It is a win-win situation for all of us, and we are truly thankful.