On June 13 Mrs. Clifton’s Child Development class of 125 transformed the Southside theater into the School of Rock to celebrate the commencement of 43 Little Eagles.  Mrs. Clifton shared her thoughts on the philosophy of the class

“Every year my high school students learn the valuable lesson of how important they are to the growth and development of the children they meet! The relationships and bonds that form are natural and beautiful. The gift of helping others becomes one of the most important gifts they will ever receive…even though the gift is actually giving of oneself for the benefit of another:)   The teenagers have learned that childhood is an extremely important part of life and we need to slow down, observe and allow the children to learn at their own pace. This is not about how quickly we can teach a new word, concept or shape…it is about exploring, creating, discovering and questioning and my teenagers have provided each child with the opportunity to “fly” like a true Eagle!”

The Child Development full-year elective is very popular among South students. The first month of the Child Development program is far from how a class normally begins. On the contrary, Mrs. Clifton immediately instructs her students on everything there is to know about a child’s development, child psychology, and effective teaching strategies. She tells the teachers that the class is not about “rolling around on the rug with the kids”, but that it is much more serious than it seems to an observer. As “teachers”, the high school students must construct lessons, lesson plans, and detailed weekly observations about a different child in the class. While there is definitely a lot of work involved in the class, I have also had an unbelievable amount of fun and know that all of the work was worth it for the memories I made in the class. 

Personally Child Development has given me the opportunity to escape from any stress in my daily life and to literally just be a kid again. As a teacher in this program, you are responsible for the happiness of each child you work with, and your words and actions impact them more than you will ever know. Mrs. Clifton and the students changed my life, and I will never forget this program and how lucky I was to be a part of it.