Think back to your first day of school.

Can you remember it? For some of us, it’s one of our earliest memories. It is the first community we join outside of our own family. You may have been excited for that first small taste of independence, to meet the teachers that would help you grow, or the friends that would begin to feel like your new family. Or maybe you were anxious to leave the familiarity and comforts of home to walk into a room full of strangers you’d never met before. 

When posing this question to our UICS staff, some mused about the most coveted toys in the classroom, favorite school lunches that became the most anticipated part of the week, and even the teachers that would become their first crushes. 

However it played out for you, one thing we know is that the first day of school is monumental in the life of a child. We never forget it. It’s an experience that builds who we are. 

This past Wednesday, marking the first day back for students at all three of our UICS Centers was no exception. The halls buzzed with excitement as children filled the classrooms with warmth and laughter once again. With all the uncertainties surrounding the upcoming school year, a simple, yet significant priority at UICS is just to provide some joy for our students. There’s a unique belief  present throughout UICS: great value lies in bringing it back to basics. In the case of early childhood education, that building block is simple. Play!

Play is the fundamental tool that allows children the opportunity to practice what they are learning. It is the fullest expression of what they’re coming to know and learning about themselves and the world around them. With that in mind, we headed out to the playground this week to highlight some of our students and gather their first week favorites: 

• Yodil: Blue Room 

Favorite activity: Playground time and playing with balls

Favorite thing about coming back to school: Getting to bring his new clear backpack even though he couldn’t bring any toys in it to show his class 

Favorite lunch/school snack: Hamburgers

When I grow up, I want to be: Spiderman or a firefighter 

• Mason: Yellow Room

Favorite activity: Playing football and running fast

Favorite feeling to describe school: Very happy and excited to the be door holder and line leader

Favorite school snack: Breakfast pancakes

When I grow up, I want to be: Patrick Mahomes 

• Aliyah: Blue Room

Favorite activity: Art and playing mud kitchen to mix up snacks for her friends

Favorite thing about coming back to school: Having more toys and playing with water outside 

Favorite school lunch/snack: Chicken nuggets

When I grow up, I want to: Be able to run fast