@NMSU
Puckett developing young minds at Children's Village's School for Young Children
For more than a decade, Kate Puckett has worked with the New Mexico State University College of Education's preschool program. She began in 1998 as a graduate assistant and a year later became a full-time employee after receiving her master's degree in early childhood education from NMSU.
Puckett is now a teacher and co-director of the Children's Village's School for Young Children, an on-campus education program for children of NMSU students, faculty, staff and community families.
The School for Young Children provides an age-appropriate classroom for children from 2 to 5 years old. The program's staff believes that children learn through play and that children's interests are the foundation for learning, so the preschool provides a play-based curriculum in which children choose from a wide variety of activities - some child-initiated, and some teacher-initiated.
"The real joy of my work comes from working with the children in the classroom," Puckett said. "It's rewarding to see the kids learn how to problem solve themselves and how they respond to new situations in the classroom. Another big reward is successfully interacting with children who were at first difficult to interact with."
Puckett initially was set for another career path, receiving a bachelor's degree in oceanography from the University of Washington in 1989. But it was during this time that she realized she had a talent in working with children and that that suited her more.
"I really enjoy the physicality of my work - playing and dancing and messing around with the kids, not just sitting behind a desk all day," Puckett said. "Probably the biggest challenge of my work is the administrative side."
Puckett believes the School for Young Children, being a laboratory school, is very important because the staff works with College of Education students in the school, helping them to earn a wealth of experience and to become better teachers when they begin their career.
"I do it because it is important to me though," Puckett said. "The real joy comes from working with the children."
Written by Bryant Million.