FUNKSTOWN - They were all in their places with bright, shiny faces, as the old nursery rhyme says.
No, it wasn't the students - they haven't arrived for the 2006-07 school year. But the five new teachers at Funkstown School for Early Childhood Education are and they were eagerly anticipating the start of classes Aug. 23.
Of the five, Amanda Miller already got her feet wet, having started at Funkstown in January because of a retirement.
"I love it here," said the second-grade teacher. A graduate of Shippensburg University, Miller serves as a source of encouragement for the other newcomers, several of whom have never taught before.
Matthew Tack specialized in early childhood education while studying at Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania.
"I taught third grade in Slippery Rock," Tack said. But when he heard there was opening at Funkstown in early childhood education - specifically kindergarten - he quickly arranged for an interview.