Students in Caroline Fehlhafer’s preschool class at Bright Beginnings Child Development Center in Seward recently made and sent gingerbread men to 13 other states. They are tracking the gingerbread they receive on a map of the United States.
Youngsters at Bright Beginnings Child Development Center are learning about life beyond Seward—through gingerbread men.
The center, based at the Seward United Methodist Church, is participating in a Gingerbread Men Across America project, in which they’ve sent paper gingerbread people to 13 other classrooms in the United States.
In return, they get a gingerbread person back from each destination.
“The kids love getting one every day,” said preschool teacher Caroline Fehlhafer.
When they get a gingerbread man in the mail, they do some research on where it came from—Montana, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Florida, Louisiana.
“We learn about a different state and different weather, what the kids do there,” Fehlhafer said.
She said she participated in the project years ago at HeadStart and found it again through Facebook. Participants are divid-
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ed into groups and then exchange addresses to send the gingerbread people that the kids make, along with pictures and letters.
Fehlhafer said her seven students, who are 2 and 3 years old, are tracking the gingerbread they’ve received on a map of the United States. They expect to receive the rest of them by the end of this week.
“We get to have fun and communicate with others and learn what other preschools look like,” Fehlhafer said.
Lindsey Meyer, one of the directors at Bright Beginnings, said Fehlhafer’s experience with this and other projects has shown strong leadership for the center.
“Her initiative shines in projects like this,” Meyer said.
emily@sewardindependent.com
