Parachute and T-shirt Art at Miller Kindergarten Tour

For a 4-year-old, school can be a new and unfamiliar place when he or she enters Kindergarten. However, RoseAnn Mercado of the Nanuet Family Resource Center is breaking the ice with her Kindergarten tours.

Incoming kindergarteners and their parents visit Miller Elementary for a sneak peak into what school life is like.

"We do this to familiarize the kids with the school and classrooms so that the first day of school is not so scary," said Mercado. Mercado encourages the parents to come on the tour, but to stay in the back so that the children can experience the school grounds separately from their parents, but still stay comforted that their moms and dads are nearby.

With about 26 kids in the group, last night's tour was a success starting with storytime in the library and a classroom tour to some parachute fun in the gym and snack time. The kids also brought in a plain white t-shirt to decorate with their parents in the art class at Miller.

There is also bus practice during school hours in which the students experience taking the bus before school actually starts. This helps sooth bus-related fears and teach correct bus behavior.

"I think it's great that they do this. It's a good opportunity to help the kids get comfortable with the school environment," said Kathy Whitney, Nanuet mom of two who was doing this kindergarten tour for the second time with her younger son. "For each child, it's definitely a different experience. My first one was gung-ho. This one was shy, but he's into it now."

For more information, contact RoseAnn Mercado at at the Nanuet Family Resource Center at rmercado@nanuetsd.org or (845) 627-4889