Monticello first graders depict community helpers

     Firefighter. Construction worker. Veterinarian. Gymnast. Professional football player. Military service member.

     These were just a handful of the many professions and community helper positions Monticello first graders depicted.

     First-grader teachers Megan Knapp, Deb Kurt and Kendra Kedley assigned some homework to their students as part of a reading lesson. Each student took home a blank outline of a person (a blank slate, if you will) and had to design the image to reflect themselves taking on various community helper roles.

     “We visited several different business in the community,” said Kurt. She said this was a project showcased a previous school she taught at and went over quite well.

     The idea was to come up with a community helper and turn the project into a family group effort.

     “Each student chose a job they wanted to portray,” said Kurt.

     “We talked about different community roles,” added Knapp.

     The students took mini field trips to the Post Office, Fareway, and Fidelity Bank & Trust.

     In decorating their person, the kids used different mediums, and Kurt said paid attention to the faces to make them look just like themselves. Knapp said one student took on the role of an astronaut and used bubble wrap as the space suit, thinking outside the box. Kedley said one of her students chose a robotic engineer.

     “They put some good thought into it,” she said. “We had some really thoughtful answers.”

     Aside from the art project, the students also had to come up with a statement as to why they chose the profession they did and how it fits their personality.

     “Some just wanted to be a doctor or a teacher,” Knapp added. “And that’s great!”

     “We used this as a wrap-up activity for our whole reading unit,” explained Kedley. “It was their final project, and we wanted them to think of service jobs in the community where they can help people, and think of their own traits.”