Students of Project FREE preschool (top) show their gratitude during a special Mother’s Day celebration as Lead Teacher, Shelley Troup accompanies them during a song on the guitar. Children’s Learning Center youngsters (bottom) express thanks to volunteer workers that helped clean up their playground.

The concepts of gratitude and thankfulness are encouraged every day with children enrolled in Project FREE preschool and the Children’s Learning Center (CLC) in Petoskey; both are programs of the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan.

Recently, Project FREE preschool students practiced gratitude during a Mother’s Day program that included songs, stories and a variety of activities to honor their mothers.  The students shared in three activities with their mothers including an art project, creating a graham cracker treat and planting a flower in painted terracotta pots created by each student.  Afterwards, mothers were invited to spend additional time with their children outside on the playground.

“We encourage students to be thankful for everything from a kind gesture by a classmate to the rain that helps our gardens grow; so it’s important to extend this concept of gratitude to key people in our lives, such as our Mothers,” said Shelley Troup, Project FREE’s Lead Teacher.

The CLC and Project Free are located in the same building on Porter Street in Petoskey, also home to the Women’s Resource Center’s administrative and counseling offices.  The teachers in both programs share a common philosophy on practicing gratitude and feel their intentional teaching strategies are paying off.

“We encourage the children to be mindful of important events and people in their lives and to show gratitude and appreciation on a daily basis,” said Megan Green, CLC Lead Teacher.  Green and other teachers knew they had made an impact when the children suggested, on their own, to write a large thank you note to volunteers they saw providing spring clean up on their playground. “It was just heart-warming to see the children wanting to express their appreciation in this way,” said Green.

Project FREE preschool is offered half days, Monday through Thursday, from October through May and is free to those meeting certain state qualifying criteria.  The Children’s Learning Center is a fully licensed facility providing quality educational programming to children 2 ½- 11 years.  For more information contact the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan administrative office at (231) 347-0067 or visit wrcnm.org.