Fulton Preschool students will be playing in a box of sandy fun when school starts Aug. 27-28.
Fulton Preschool Lead Teacher Sue Beaty said children will have a large sandbox ready for play time because of the generosity of two businesses. She said Ameren Missouri and LaCrosse Lumber were instrumental contributors to the sandbox's construction.
Beaty elaborated on the grant process, and said that Ameren gave the Fulton Preschool Association the "team's grant" for construction materials. The grant originates from several preschool parents who work at Ameren, according to Beaty.
"The employees can get together as a team and they can submit a request for some funding for a project that helps the preschool, and that's how it came about," Beaty explained. "So they had to write up the proposal, and they had to also agree to help build it and do the work on it, so it's definitely a team effort."
She said Ameren retirees were also welcome to help build the sandbox, and that her husband, a former Ameren employee, helped during the construction process.
"They were the ones that dug the hole and built it," Beaty said. "They did all the work."
LaCrosse Lumber provided spontaneous help by giving the FPA a truck load of sand.
"When we got ready to fill it (the sandbox)," Beaty said. "We simply went up there and said we needed a truck load of sand and I just said, "Would you be able to help us out?' and they said, "Certainly we'll be able to help you out,' so they donated the truck load of sand for us."
Beaty said the planning process and the construction of the sandbox took a few months. Preschoolers with a parent currently or formerly employed by Ameren started the grant process in January and began working on the sandbox at the beginning of summer. The construction had to be postponed because of the record rainfall in Fulton at the start of this summer.
"It (sandbox construction) was done on volunteer time so they had to work in the evenings," Beaty said. "In between the weather and everyone's schedule, we were able to accomplish it in the summer months."
Now that all the hard work is finished, Beaty is sure the sandbox will be a "big hit" with the children.
She said in addition to the 60 children who are currently enrolled for the upcoming school year, First Presbyterian Church personnel will also have access to the sandbox for children to use during Sunday school classes.
Beaty thinks children benefit from playing in sandboxes because the experience helps them develop and hone their social skills. "Sandbox play is a very important developmental and learning item," she said. "It's a sensory item where they can explore volume, matter and material - how things pour and sift - and they learn a lot of cooperative play because they're in a limited space. You have to share the space and the toys."
She also said children enjoy playing in sandboxes because of the opportunity to express creativity and for "imaginative play."
"They love to cook and bake birthday cakes, build roads and towns," Beaty said.
The preschoolers will have a variety of toys to choose from that will enhance their sandbox play time.
"We have lots of dump trucks, sifting things, water wheel type things where you put the sand through and the wheels spin, shovels of all different sizes, shovels, spoons, cups and bowls," Beaty said. "Basic toys that allow for more imagination to take place."
She said when children arrive to school before class starts, they will have the chance to use the sandbox for 10-15 minutes until class starts.
"At the end of the class period, we get everything picked up and put away and then we go out and play anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the weather," Beaty said.
Fulton Preschool offers four classes - morning and afternoon classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and morning and afternoon sessions on Tuesday and Thursday. Beaty said the school tries to put the 3-year-olds in the Tuesday-Thursday classes and the pre-K children, the 4- and 5-year-olds, in the Monday-Wednesday-Friday classes. She said there are only two openings left for the Monday-Wednesday-Friday afternoon class for the approaching school year.
"If a child is going to turn four next month, that will be fine," Beaty said. "We try to look at each individual child to see where they would best be served. You know, there's such a big difference between 4-year-olds - some are pretty mature and others are not so mature yet."
Parents can contact Fulton Preschool at (573) 590-1899 if they have inquiries regarding enrollment.