Kids learn about parents' jobs through project

SIKESTON -- To learn more about what her father does for a living, Southeast Elementary first grader Morgan Poindexter recently sent her mini paper clone, Flat Morgan, to tag a along with him for a day.

In one day, Flat Morgan, working as a UPS delivery person, traveled to places like New Madrid County Central High School, New Madrid Associated Electric and Riceland -- all captured by still photographs that were later pasted on a piece of poster board along with Flat Morgan.

"Daddy had her in the seat so her hair flew back," Morgan said as she looked at a picture.

But Daddy also forgot to buckle Flat Morgan in, and she fell out of the UPS truck, Morgan laughed as she looked at a picture depicting a Flat Morgan lying flat on the grass.

Morgan said she liked that her dad, Heath Poindexter, was able to take Flat Morgan, which Morgan freehandedly drew complete with brown yarn hair and blue eyes she'd colored with crayon, with him to work.

But Morgan wasn't the only student to get a peek into her dad's job.

It all began a few weeks ago when over 300 first through fourth grade Southeast Elementary students read the book, "Flat Stanley" by Jeff Brown. In the book, Stanley is smashed flat by a falling bulletin board and has to learn how to live as a flat boy. He becomes a hero when he captures robbers in an art museum by pretending to be an empty frame.

Students made a flat paper image of themselves during Kim Maclin's guidance class. Then they sent their flat persons to work with their parents to learn about what they do on their jobs. Each child was given a journal page to fill out and asked to take pictures of the flat person at work.

"The purpose of the project was for students to learn about different careers," said Maclin, counselor/pyschological examiner at Southeast Elementary in Sikeston.

Wednesday was the last day for students to turn in their flat people to Maclin.

"We've gotten some really interesting things back," Maclin said. "There's one who's mother is an LPN in home health care and she brought in different tools of her work. She brought in rubber gloves and a stethoscope," Maclin recalled.

Other pictures included a flat person making ice cream at Good-Humor Breyer in Sikeston and another going through the metal detector at the Scott County Detention Center.

And then there was student Hannah Reynolds' Flat Hannah, who ended up making a trip to all the to Iraq and back.

"Her mom works with somebody whose husband is stationed over there," Maclin explained.

Another student's flat person went on a business trip with his mom to New Mexico.

Overall, Maclin said the project was very successful even though there wasn't 100 percent participation from parents.

"The parents have really enjoyed it and thought it was a great idea and have gotten a big kick out of it," Maclin said.

Maclin was quick to point out she isn't the only Sikeston R-6 counselor to try the Flat Stanley project. Students at Matthews Elementary and Morehouse Elementary participated in the project last year.

"I enjoyed getting to know the kids in a personal way because I don't get to spend as much time with them as their regular classroom teachers do," Maclin said.

Southeast first grade teacher Elaine Sever said she had considered doing the Flat Stanley project with her students and was going to arrange for them to swap flat people with students in Washington. But when Maclin approached the teachers with the idea, Sever said this was better.

"This is more personal. It keeps it in the community, gets the community involved and the children can relate better," Sever said.

And the good thing about this project is every grade level can participate, Sever said.

"My first graders absolutely loved every aspect of making their flat people, from actually drawing them, to taking them home and showing their families, to watching mom or dad drive off with their flat people on their way to work," said first grade teacher Tonia Pillers.

The project is just a wonderful way of involving the parents, and making them a part of the classroom is so important, Pillers said.

"They loved the write-ups their parents wrote about their flat person's day at work and even more fun was when they came to school with their flat person and the pictures that told about their day on the job," Pillers said about her students. "They were hilarious and so adorable."

Lorie Fisher, mother of 9-year-old Ashton Fisher, said she thought the project was a wonderful idea. And although her husband may have had mixed feelings at first about bringing a paper person with him to work, in the end, Flat Ashton spent a day at Steward Steel, Fisher said.

"From a dad's point of view, he second-guessed it at first, but he enjoyed doing it," Fisher said. "It was a good experience for both of my kids to see inside their dad's work. Because where he works, kids aren't allowed. It's too dangerous."

Fisher said even her husband's co-workers got into the project by posing with Flat Ashton for pictures.

The project could also prove beneficial for children and their parents, who aren't as fortunate to be able to sit down and talk their kids anytime they want.

"I could see where it could bring parents and their children closer," Fisher said. "It gave a reason to talk about what they do."