Des Plaines Park District preschool graduates 48
The Des Plaines Park District Creative Corners Preschool graduated 48 students, all sporting blue cardboard mortarboards, on Thursday, May 15, in a ceremony at the Prairie Lakes Theater. As the children received their diplomas, Preschool Director Margaret Nuscher announced what the children want to be when they grow up.
"We have seven future policemen and five firefighters in training," Nuscher said. "Three of our graduates want to be teachers, three want to be rock 'n' roll singers, three want to be princesses, and two want to be doctors. Be on the lookout for the next Barbie, Batman, Incredible Hulk, and Optimus Prime, because they all graduated today, too. The rest of the children think being a chef, mommy, plumber, architect, builder, astronaut, scientist, baseball player, artist, soldier, knight, veterinarian, dancer, train engineer, video game designer, soccer star, or fashion designer is the perfect choice for them. Our students always amaze the audience by selecting careers inspired by their parents occupations, stories we have read, visits from community professionals, or simply, their imagination."
The graduation ceremony included the Pledge of Allegiance, led by Marko Spaojevic and Gianni D'Aiello carrying the flag; welcome speeches by Angelina Kalou and Lily Sassolino-Bowling; a presentation of the alphabet by Victor Polissky; songs, including "It's Time to Graduate" and "Oh, What a Miracle"; and a farewell speech by Renata Rodriguez and Amelia Williams.
"The children are ready for kindergarten," Nuscher said. "We have blasted off to outer space, traveled back in time to meet the dinosaurs, enjoyed a king's and queen's feast, turned the classroom into a pizza parlor, sailed a sailboat, pitched a tent, laughed, learned, and played."
Twelve of the graduates will attend kindergarten at Central School in the fall of 2014. Seven will attend South School; five will attend Forest; four will attend Iroquois Community School; three will attend Terrace; two will attend Cumberland, and one each will attend Plainfield and Orchard Place. The rest will go to private schools or schools outside District 62.
"Beyond the scholastic training of letters and numbers, colors and shapes, we teach social interaction and independence," Nuscher said. "This group of 4- and 5-year-olds have the age-appropriate social skills of sitting still, listening, following directions, and playing and working well with others. Today, very few children attend kindergarten without some kind of preschool foundation, and our job is to give them a good start and teach them to love school," she said.
For information on Des Plaines Park District Early Education Classes, call (847) 391-5700 or visit www.DPParks.org.
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