Ten student volunteers watched 19 children of faculty and staff members during the Faculty Professional Growth Day on Nov. 11.

Students did not attend school Friday, as the school day was designated for faculty development. The babysitting program allowed teachers the opportunity to take breaks during the day with their children and also relieved the stress of finding an alternate childcare plan, according to event organizer and Assistant to the Head of Upper School Michelle Bracken.

“It’s great for teachers to feel like they can focus on what they have to do here, have lunch with their kids and feel comfortable that their kids are here,” Bracken said. “They won’t have to worry about rushing to pick up their kid or if their kids are okay.”

Volunteers took care of the children and planned activities at school, including drawing, magnetism experiments and watching “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.”

“Before that day, my daughter was convinced she wouldn’t play soccer until she was seven, and by the end of the day, she was adamant that she put her on a team immediately,” upper school English department head Larry Weber said. “It was really fun for my kids to come to school, and it was fun for them to have the interaction with older kids.”

The volunteers seemed to enjoy this time.

“We had a lot of fun watching over all the kids and making sure that they were not only safe but that they were having a good time,” Youna Choi ’17 said. “It was really fun to see the kids from each teacher.”