First Steps Primeros Pasos

Coastal Point • Monica Fleming
Miss Daisy teaches a group of kids at First Steps Primeros Pasos Early Childhood Learning Center in Georgetown.

“Green, verde; Orange; anaranjado; Red, rojo...”

“Science Area; Area de la Ciencia...”

No, this is not an introduction to seventh-grade Spanish, it’s circle time at First Steps Primeros Pasos Early Childhood Learning Center in Georgetown.

The center is a built on the foundation that it is a “child’s start on becoming a confident, capable citizen of a global society.” Every day starts out with bilingual circle time learning the month, the days, colors, shapes and numbers – both in English and in Spanish.

According to their Web site, the center’s history started in 1996, when a group of concerned citizens in Georgetown were determined to find a way to provide safe, affordable and nurturing early care and education for the burgeoning number of children from Spanish-speaking families in the area. They included educators, clergy and ordinary people.

“We noticed that there weren’t many bilingual centers,” said Director Trudy Cole, “even though the Hispanic population here in Georgetown is huge. The bilingual circle time helps us to talk to them where they feel comfortable, and then we can concentrate on building a strong foundation of English for the rest of the day.”

Not that the center only has Hispanic students. The students are a melting pot of cultures, much like Georgetown itself. Although situated next to the Perdue plant – a major employer for the area – half of the students have parents who are teachers in nearby elementary schools.

Cole pointed out that some of their graduates last year received rave reviews from area district teachers. She said they receive feedback all the time that her students are more than ready for kindergarten when they get there. She also noted that the top-down effect schools are experiencing often leaves them without much time for fun.

“It’s sad, because what they used to learn in first grade they are learning in kindergarten, so there is not much time for play,” said Cole. “That’s where we come in. We use learning as fun, so they don’t even realize all that they are learning.”

And the parents of English-speaking children enjoy it, too, because of the early exposure their children are getting to other cultures and another language.

After circle time, Primeros Pasos works much like any other early childhood center. They have art; twice a month they have cooking projects; they have open play; they eat lunch, rest and then have language arts. There is music and dancing. And, of course, on nice days, they go outside to play. On Wednesdays, they have special reading days where the students can bring in a special book from home, in addition to the circle-time book, and it gets shared with their peers.

“Also, Tuesdays and Thursdays, we have show-and-tell,” said Cole. “It helps with their speaking skills, and their friends can ask questions. One of the cutest things is to watch them from the beginning of the year, when they might be hesitant or shy, and then at the end of the year, they are all pros.”

The center offers three yearly assessments of each child. Cole said the first is to determine where they are; the second concentrates on what they have learned and how they have improved; and the third, often in May, gives parents ideas of what still needs work.

According to Cole, it’s this parental involvement that allows the students to thrive.

“We also have a big program, the Together Program,” she explained, “where we can assist parents in being their child’s advocate, and we have workshops. We believe we should work with the whole family.”

Cole also said each child does homework twice a week, and parents are encouraged to help the children with these assignments.

Being a center rich with culture, they like to showcase that to the children and parents, alike. They have a harvest festival each year to celebrate the fall, with pumpkins, and they have a piñata. Each Thanksgiving, they have a big feast where parents are welcome to come and share in the festivities.

The winter holidays are also a time where the center focuses heavily on the family. Parents can come and read and, each December, they celebrate “Christmas around the World” and showcase a different country each week: how they celebrate, what their foods are and, of course, share their favorite Christmas books with one another. The children each get a passport and, as they visit each country, they get to have their passport stamped.

“If I had to say we have one philosophy,” explained Cole, “it would be child-based learning. You don’t limit the child, and you meet them where they are.”

It’s a simple strategy, and Cole said it works. Also on their side, is size. Right now, they have just 12 students and three teachers, which allows them to have a small child-teacher ratio and give individualized attention.

Cole, who comes from a long line of educators, said she believes something teachers need to be able to do and do well is “teach on a dime” and be able to read the student’s actions.

“If they have a lesson plan and it revolves around a leaf, and the kids aren’t into it, they need to be flexible,” said Cole. “Often, kids can be more interested in a bug on the leaf, or where the leaf came from. If the teacher works with them, they can meet the needs of what interests the children and get their lessons in. When you follow their lead, they learn better.”

In addition to the small ratios and child-based leaning, Cole said that her wonderful staff that believes in children is a big asset.

“They can tell when you’re fake,” she said of the children, laughing. “And that individualized attention helps the children blossom.”

Full-time tuition at Primeros Pasos is $125 per week, but the center has gotten help from St. Paul’s Women’s Group, which has been raising money for scholarships. That’s important because, as Cole points out, Purchase of Care government subsidies – which they do accept – only cover a portion of that cost, and many times parents just can’t make up the difference. And they don’t want to have to turn children away.

“If they want to come, we want to be able to say ‘bring them in,’” she added.

Cole emphasized again that all children are welcome at the center. Children of Spanish-speaking families get the early start they need to feel comfortable once they register in an English-speaking elementary school. And children from English-speaking households get the early exposure to a new language, while both get to celebrate and appreciate different cultures – all while having fun together.

The center has actually been in existence as a 501c(3) organization, with a complete and diverse board of directors, for seven years. After two setbacks regarding their building, they started up last year in their present-day location.

In November, they plan on moving to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where they will be able to split into two classrooms: one for 2- and 3-year-olds and one for 4- and 5-year-olds. Cole said she plans to hire more staff so they can keep their ratios low. In the spring, they plan to break ground on a new building that, when completed, will be able to hold 100 students.

For every dollar of tuition they receive, Primeros Pasos must raise another 90 cents to make ends meet, making fund-raising in the community a key to their continued existence. To help defray programming costs, or to donate to their capital campaign, visit www.firststepsde.org online.

They are also always in need of supplies, such as paper, pencils, pens, crayons, paints, brushes; age-appropriate musical tapes/CDs, books and videos; magnifying glasses, magnets, scissors, paste, glue, chalkboard, paper clips, staples, tape, clay, play dough, soap, detergents, mops, sponges, brooms and paper towels.

First Steps Primeros Pasos is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, call (302) 856-7406.