Center offers students jump on child care careers

Some Conquistadors are working at the Child Development Center to gain hands-on experience working with children.
    Dodge City Community College students, that is.
    Lorna Ford, DCCC early childhood education teacher, integrates lecture and practicum for students in the program. During the first semester of early education classes, students observe children, plan activities and teach lessons.
    Sophomore Tiffany Timmons, who is studying early childhood education, is a lead teacher of the 3-year-olds or "Piglets" at the center.
    Timmons said working at the center was helping her decide which age group of children she would like to work with in the future.
    Freshman Samantha Day is taking general studies courses while deciding on her major. Day said she just began working this year and is helping with the piglet classroom.
    "I really like kids," she said. "I haven't decided on a major yet, so I thought this would help me out."
    The center is divided into three classrooms, each with a “Winnie the Pooh” theme. The Piglet room houses 2 1/2- and 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds are in the Tigger room and 5-year-olds are Kangas — or kangaroos.
    A typical day for children at the center begins with breakfast and brushing their teeth. Preschool activities such as math and literacy take place in the morning, followed by a 30-minute recess for each class, said director Theresa Ochs. 
    After lunch, the kids go outside for recess — weather permitting — and socialize with children from other classrooms. The children then take a nap and have a snack to begin their afternoon.
    Each day's activities and meals differ. Fridays are Movie Day and Show and Tell, so kids can bring something to share with their peers.
    This week's theme was Homecoming and football. Each class participated in activities to prepare for the Conqs' Homecoming weekend.
    One class took pictures in Conqs jerseys with their best "game faces." Some made pom-poms, and others got to be football players. The students also were given the opportunity to decorate the outside of the building with chalk as a way to support the football team.  
    DCCC students who are not studying early childhood education also work in the day care center between classes.
    Chandler Robinson is in his second semester at DCCC, studying athletic training. He works in the 4-year-old classroom. He said he enjoys playing with the kids, even though some of them can get pretty hyper.
    Ochs said the kids like having males in the classroom because a lot of the time, they have female teachers. She said it's good to have that balance.
    "We try to grab guys to work here when we can," she said.
    Ford said students in the early education program have three options: A one-year certificate, a two-year associate's degree or a four-year bachelor's degree.
    With all three levels of education, students can enter the work force and even direct a day care center. However, a higher degree may be required, based on the number of children that attend a center.  
    Someone with a four-year degree in early childhood education is qualified to work with children from birth through third grade. Ford said being able to teach elementary school-age children makes a person more marketable in the workplace.
    And although the program at DCCC is small, she said the industry is growing quickly.
    "There's a huge demand in the field," Ford said.   
    Ochs also said there is a need for more day cares and workers in the area — particularly in Dodge City.
    Ford said they hope to move to a larger facility sometime in the future so they can add classrooms to accommodate more children.

Reach Cherise Forno at (620) 408-9931 or e-mail her at cherise.forno@dodgeglobe.com.