On Monday October 25, Ms. Olson’s Child Development II classes escorted their playschool students, who were dressed in their Halloween finest, through the halls of the high school to trick or treat. Child Development II has done the playschool fall walk for as long as Mrs. Olson can remember. The walk included the high school students plus 14 students under five, ones our students have taught and played with since the start of the year.

As the year starts to get cold and gloomy, the fall walk helps lift students spirits half way through the semester. “The high school kids definitely needed a little joy this time of year and so it was great to see them laugh and have fun with the kids,” Ms. Olson said.

Senior Delani DeCarlo tried to express the joy she felt seeing the little ones. “They were all smiling and very grateful and happy to be there, which made me smile and happy to be there, too.”

Although it is a great time, challenges do occur throughout the day, especially with the little ones. “We’ve had two kids take off their costumes who were not willing to put them back on,” Ms. Olson said.

The playschool program continues to grow each year, and with that, so do the kids. “It gets pretty tough because some of the older kids are super-hyper and have a bunch of fun while the younger kids, like our two and three year olds, tend to lose interest quickly and get pretty tired towards the end of it,” Ms. Olson explained.

Even though the challenges can add up and things get stressful, the walk never seems to outweighs getting sweet treats and having fun. “My favorite part is letting the high school kids and other departments see the little ones,” Mrs. Olson said.

The experience was positive for the high school students, as well. “It was this little boy’s birthday and when I gave him candy he smiled and said, ‘Thank you,’ which was adorable,” DeCarlo said.

The fall walk provided a little spark of joy for students and teachers.