Lessons in learning
By Lori EhdeShe’s been an influential childhood figure to hundreds of local children and now-grown children, teaching them, among other things, how to take turns and stand in orderly lines.Jane ("Mrs.") Gropel, known for her cheery disposition and sing-song classroom leadership, will retire at the end of this school year.She said it’s been a tough decision to make, but as her four sons are grown and some have children of their own, retirement is more appealing."I thought, ‘Oh my. I’m missing out all that.’ It’s time," she said.While her grandchildren are the primary motivation for retirement, Gropel said daily paperwork and lesson planning for 80-some 3- and 4-year-olds is a monumental job she’s ready to give up."It seems like it’s become a 24-hour-a-day job," she said. "You have to do so much preparing after school and before school."Daily adventuresWhat she will miss though, is daily contact with the little people, who she said are always so full of life."Every day is an adventure," she said. "There is never a dull moment, and I always have fun — almost as much fun as the kids have themselves."She said social behaviors of 3- and 4-year-olds can be particularly entertaining."They add life — they generate life … and oh, the stories! I’m going to miss the stories. They come up with some really neat things … some things we never repeat."Parents who put their children through Gropel’s Discovery Time classes know the deal:"We promise not to repeat things they say about you, if you promise not to repeat things they say about us," she said.Gropel has been teaching full-time for 26 years, including three years in Owatonna where she taught first grade, and two years (1970-72) in Luverne where she taught kindergarten.Gropel took 10 years off to raise her own children, Matt, Chris, Tom and Phil, but she put in some serious substitute teaching hours during that time as well.Started with Jack and Jill Learning CenterShe started teaching full-time again in 1981 at Jack and Jill Learning Center preschool in the basement of First Presbyterian Church.In 1987, it closed when the church’s insurance company could no longer cover a program that wasn’t religion-based.In the year following Jack and Jill’s closure, Gropel rewrote policy for a new preschool, "Discovery Time," that opened the following year through Community Education.For that first year, her classroom was in the lower level, west side of Luverne Elementary School, which at that time was still located in the center of town.From 1988 to 1994, Discovery Time was at 109 E. Luverne St., and from 1994 to 1999, classes met in the "Bell Building" at 216 E. Luverne St.When the new elementary school opened on the high school campus in 1999, a portion of the Community Education wing was dedicated to Discovery Time.Under Gropel’s guidance, the program grew from 30 students to its current enrollment of 80. "It used to be I’d have an afternoon off here and there to plan lessons, and that doesn’t happen anymore," she said.But Gropel said it’s a good thing more parents are recognizing the importance of preschool. "I hope every parent who is given the opportunity can give their children a preschool education," she said.Learning should be funWhile preschool is important, Gropel has always held firm to the belief that it should be a fun introduction to learning, not a place to push kindergarten fundamentals.Instead of starting reading and math, preschoolers learn how to take turns and how to stand in line."You spend the first one-third of the year teaching them there has to be order when you go from Point A to Point B, or somebody gets lost," she said."These are the major things. That’s what preschool is all about."Gropel said she hopes her replacement shares this same philosophy and isn’t swayed by current trends to push more kindergarten curriculum in preschool."Preschool is a place to introduce numbers and letters … in the form of alphabet games and number games," she said. "We just have fun, which is the most important thing."Give hugs generouslyShe said her advice to the new Discovery Time leader would be to give out hugs generously."They really need for the teacher to notice them and give them one-on-one time," she said. "Each child comes in with their own individual needs. They need touch. They need hugs … and they need for the teacher to be happy every day. If they know you’re happy, maybe they will be too."Gropel's classroom assistant, Dixie Aanenson, will stay with the program, and the District is advertising to fill Gropel’s position.
