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<p>HANOVER TWP. &#8212; John Balbach read &#8220;Five Little Monkeys&#8221; with Shakespearean flair, Ava Spielmann broke into a fully-choreographed cheer routine and Chloe McDaniels used her ginger-cute looks and a first-day-of-school-ever excuse to get a chair while everyone else sat on the floor.</p><p>Monday was the first day of classes for six Luzerne County school districts. But at Hanover Area School District&#8217;s former Lyndwood Elementary &#8212; closed in 2011 &#8212; it was a bit of a rebirth. For the first time since the district locked the school&#8217;s doors, the &#8220;Lyndwood Center&#8221; had students in nearly every classroom, a new mascot and that time-honored tradition: the morning announcement.</p><p>&#8220;We want it to be more like a traditional school,&#8221; said Luzerne Intermediate Unit Treatment Coordinator Jamie Fine, beaming at the notion that the building has come so far from the brink of blight.</p><p>In the last few years, Hanover Area teamed with Head Start of Luzerne County to bring pre-kindergarten classes into the building, while the LIU &#8212; which offers special education services to area school districts &#8212; rented space and brought some of its programs for earlier grades.</p><p>This year, LIU services were expanded to students from kindergarten through eighth grade, occupying pretty much all of the available space on the building&#8217;s second floor. The preschool programs fill the first floor.</p><p>This past summer, Fine and other staff members decided to give the school a new lion mascot and formed a &#8220;Lion Pride&#8221; committee that volunteered time to spruce up the rooms and hallways. They are also working to set up things like field trips and community-based learning opportunities.</p><p>Upstairs, older students from various districts get both special needs services and their academic lessons, while downstairs the pre-school youngsters read, sing and exercise their way through the day.</p><p>During a brief lull in teacher Kaitlyn Cibello&#8217;s class of 3- and 4-year-olds, Balbach decided to read some of his &#8220;Five Little Monkeys&#8221; book aloud, adopting a stentorian style worthy of a Macbeth soliloquy, waving his hand in the air. &#8220;Out, Out!&#8221; he bellowed, presumably to the mischievous primates in the fable.</p><p>Spielmann spontaneously ran through a cheering routine, complete with arm and leg choreography. &#8220;Did you go to cheerleader camp this summer?&#8221; Cibello asked. &#8220;Yes!&#8221; Spielmann replied emphatically.</p><p>But it may have been red-headed McDaniels who stole the show. Unlike her classmates, she had not attended the pre-kindergarten class last spring, so this was her first first day of school. When Cibello sat on a kid-size chair for a reading session, McDaniels immediately started dragging one to her spot.</p><p>&#8220;I want a chair, too,&#8221; she said.</p><p>Other youngsters rose from the rug, reaching for other chairs. Realizing she had a bit of a pre-kindergarten revolt on her hands, Cibello told the class that &#8220;this is Chloe&#8217;s first day and she doesn&#8217;t know how we do everything, so we&#8217;ll let her have a chair today,&#8221; nudging the others to sit back on the carpet.</p><p>The literal uprising averted, Cibello began reading &#8220;Little Tiger Picks Up.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Pre-kindergarten school teacher Kaitlyn Cibello and her students sing songs during story time on Monday the first day of school at the Lyndwood Center in Hanover Township. Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_liufirstday02.jpg</photo0><caption0>Pre-kindergarten school teacher Kaitlyn Cibello and her students sing songs during story time on Monday the first day of school at the Lyndwood Center in Hanover Township. Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_liufirstday01.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Pre-kindergarten students Ava Spielmann, left, and Zayden Bradshaw explore story books during the first day of school on Monday at Lyndwood Center in Hanover Township, a school that has found new life after being closed in 2011 </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_liufirstday01.jpg</photo1><caption1>Pre-kindergarten students Ava Spielmann, left, and Zayden Bradshaw explore story books during the first day of school on Monday at Lyndwood Center in Hanover Township, a school that has found new life after being closed in 2011 </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Lyndwood building in Hanover Township fully reborn for first day of school