KC teacher plans summer play days to combat childhood isolation
EAST BRADY — One teacher’s sleepless night became days of fun in the sun for many children from kindergarten to high school.
Megan Slaughenhoup, sophomore English teacher at Karns City High School, held her last of eight pick-up game events at East Brady Playground Wednesday night.
Since the first event in May, attendance has doubled and community involvement has skyrocketed.
The weekly play days became known as “Pick Me Up” and encouraged students to connect and grow through play.
“’Pick Me Up.’ That’s a play on words,” said Terry McElroy, volunteer and Sugarcreek Elementary School teacher. “This is to lift each other up through a pick-up game.”
Slaughenhoup said ‘Pick Me Up’ began with a night of tossing and turning following the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, in May.
“Following the Texas shooting, I laid awake all night in bed,” she said. “People like to talk about weapons, but I think we need to look at people. Something is going on with people we have to figure out. The something missing is connectedness.”
She said the problem of isolation for children has only increased since start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Kids need raised on play and community and connectedness. How else do we solve the problem of isolation?” she said.
Her initial Facebook post announcing the event received dozens of comments. The first Pick Me Up had 26 children from local elementary schools attend.
Attendance has since doubled, and the final Pick Me Up was a celebration with ice cream, kickball and water slides.
Slaughenhoup said organized games were held once a week on different days, so different kids could attend.
“We have elementary school teacher volunteers and community members who want to come. Parents play and participate along with the kids,” she said.
Every Pick Me Up sought to foster community among the students and volunteers with all-ages kickball. Throughout the summer Slaughenhoup facilitated basketball games, dodgeball, tag and relay races.
“Some kids don’t want to play, so we bring chalk for them to use, or they can play on the playground. One day we came back and they made a whole mural the size of a basketball court,” she said.
Once word got out about Pick Me Up, Slaughenhoup said community members went to great lengths to help.
“All the snacks you see were donated by community people,” she said. “They’ll come back around to see the kids play.”
McElroy said she and her husband, David, both teach at Sugarcreek and have volunteered at Pick Me Up since the beginning. She said the socialization aspect of the program is important for children.
“I’ve been a teacher for 29 years. This year, with mental health (in children), seeing them come together has been amazing. I hope to continue to get kids outside to play,” she said.
Though the group was never limited to Karns City Area School District attendees, Sugarcreek and Chicora elementary students have cultivated new friendships on the playground.
“There’s been a good mix of kids from both schools. It’s great when they come together and get to know each other,” McElroy said. “To see the older high school kids interact with the younger kids, that’s definitely my favorite part.”
JayLee Daniel, a rising sophomore at Karns City, said she’s attended every Pick Me Up day this summer.
“It’s to help me get out of my comfort zone,” she said. “Kickball and dodgeball have been my favorite games. I’ve met a lot of new people here, a lot of little kids, because they seem to cling to me. But I like little kids.”
Madeline Weidenhof, who’s going into third grade at Sugarcreek, said Pick Me Up has helped her build friendships with classmates.
“I’ve met new friends. My friend Liam, we were never friends before, but we always talked,” she said. “I would probably say knockout is my favorite game we play.”
Slaughenhoup said the community reaction she received from her late-night idea was a good kind of surprising, and she hopes to hold a similar program next summer.
“I think it’s honestly been a positive thing for the wider community. It gave them a sense of hope, honestly, seeing kids happy and playing,” she said.
