The Times

2 TIMES/GUIDE Wednesday, May 26, 1976

Trading 2 wheels for 1 really doubles their fun

By ELIZABETH OWEN Staff Writer It takes some people as long as a year to learn; others master it in a half hour. When George Pringle finally got the hang of it, he bought his own unicycle and started the Unicycle Club of West Miami Junior High School. Pringle, who teaches physical education at Banyan Elementary in South Dade, said one of his students showed up for class one day on a unicycle, and so impressed his instructor that Pringle asked for lessons. "One of my sixth graders taught me how to ride hers and then sold it it me," said Pringle. With three other young students, the tall, wiry PE teacher organized and announced the creation of the Unicycle Club at Banyan. "After Christmas, 50 kids had joined up," he added. "But when the older ones graduated, they had nowhere to ride. So Alberto Diaz, community school at director at West Miami Junior, said 1 could hold classes there." Since then, Pringle has been showing up at the school every Monday at 5:30 p.m., ready to share his new-found skill. He arrives on the concrete basketball court in a Toyota crammed with unicycles, first aid kitts and a supply of drinking water. "There are 60 kids registered in the class, but only 20 or 30 are regulars. Most are from Banyan Elementary and Rockway Junior High," he explained. "Some already knew how to ride a unicycle, but at least half didn't." Ten-year-old Anthony Claxton said that balance and practice are the keys to riding a unicycle. "But once we learn how to ride, we get lazy," he admitted. "My mom works at Banyan . . . she found that they had a unicycle club and for Christmas she bought me and my sister one. "I can ride with one foot, on my chest, backwards and forward; and I can pick up things, jump ramps and go over beams." Terri Daniels, a little 14-year-old with long, wavy blond hair and huge eyes, has been riding for six years. "I'd seen pictures of unicycles, and I started drawing them," said Terri, who lives on SW 34th Terrace. "When Christmas came around, I got one." Recently, said Pringle, the Unicycle Club was filmed for a national television show entitled "Kids' World" which will be aired in September. The excitement took place at the Youth Fair, where the club had a regular show. Bonnie McLeod, the class daredevil who lives at 8850 SW 42nd St., was the star. She said that learning the sport is elementary. "You have to hop up on the cycle and get your balance before starting," she instructed. "Then you start pedaling and spread out your arms to keep your balance. "Mr. Pringle teaches a different way, though. He says to get up, balance and then try to catch the cycle as you fall off." George Yribarren, 13, has been riding only five months.. "It's not really that hard," said George, who lives at 2620 SW 77th Ct. "All you have to do is practice." "I like doing the stunts . . . going over the ramp especially." "Occasionally, we get some scraped knees," he said, watching two boys collide and "wipe-out" on the pavement. "But these kids have learned to control their bodies and they've learned how to fall. "We really have very few injuries." The soft-spoken mentor dismissed himself to patch a couple of scraped knees. Bonnie McLeod, right, class daredevil, shows how she wheels and deals while teacher George Pringle, below, shows others the art of unicycling. Photos by ELIZABETH OWEN

Everyone benefits in care program

Trevor Maltby's mother Carolyn . . . watches over his painting progress "I think it is beneficial to parents, students and children," said Cynthia Bowman, a student at Killian High School who participates in a child care course at the school. "It frees mothers in the community , it teaches us a lot about children and the children learn to share things and share with one another," she said. Cynthia is just one of 160 Killian students enrolled in the Child Care Aid course at the school. The program is an alternative to nursery school or custodial type care for preschoolers. It offers high school students interested in child care the opportunity to work with two to four-year-olds while attending their regular classes. It also provides a much needed service to the community — child care for only $3 a week. Killian is the only South Dade school offering the course and students enrolled in it receive credit for working with the pre-schoolers for an hour each day. The pre-schoolers, on the other hand, have a wide range of educational activities that keep them busy from 6:45 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. Although the program has only been in effect for one quinmester, Sue Henderson, who teaches the course, said it had been extremely successful. "This is not custodial type care," Mrs. Henderson said. "We offer a well-rounded educational program for preschoolers. "The purpose of the program is to give practical experience to high school students who are interested in working with children," she said. "It is an elective course so students who enroll are genuinely interested in children. Some of them either have brothers or sisters or even children of their own," she added. The Killian students participate in a variety of activities with the small children including fingerpainting, vegetable prints, paste-up mosaics, fingerplays with music, marching with rhythm instruments and puppet plays. "I really like kids and I've learned a lot of things about children in this course," said Denise Fiatau, a junior at Killian. "I plan to get a summer job working at a day care facility and this class will help me a great deal," she added. For a weekly $3 fee, the 16 preschool children in the program receive two snacks a day plus juice with the lunch their parents provide. In addition, all art materials are provided by the school. "There is a growing interest in child care because it is difficult for parents to find good facilities for their children," said Mrs. Henderson. "We hope to incorporate this program into several other classes next quinmester because we have had excellent community response," she added. ANA MARIA ALVAREZ