Charles Warner|Daily Times Christmas break ended Monday for the students of Union County's schools but that didn't mean an end to fun as Buffalo Elementary School student Noah Hendrix demonstrated as he prepared to kick a ball on the school's playground during recess. He is a fourth grade student in Miss Rita Hines' class.

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This rock climbing tower on the playground of Buffalo Elementary School was popular with a number of students during recess Monday morning. Students in Union County had been out of school since the start of Christmas break on December 21 were back in class Monday for the start of the spring semester.

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Gerald Gilliam, Vincent Martinez and Jakobe Harris are hard at work coloring in the continents of the world in Heather Barnado's second grade class at Buffalo Elementary School. Students were hard at work in classrooms throughout the district with Monday morning with the end of Christmas break.

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Some 4K students enjoy lunch in the cafeteria at Foster Park Elementary School on their first day back at the school after Christmas break. Schools reopened Monday for the spring semester with students getting back into the routines of class time, recess and, of course, lunch.

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Blair Edwards and Norah Greer read a book together in Sheila Bates' first grade class at Foster Park Elementary School. Reading and other academic pursuits were the order of the day for student across the school district on Monday with the end of Christmas break and the start of the spring semester.

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Hunter Senn, Ryan Thomas, and Jacorey Kershaw work together to determine what items are attracted to magnets and what are not in Christie Hayes' fourth grade class at Foster Park Elementary School. Monday was the first day of classes for students in Union County since the start of Christmas break on December 21.

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Like its counterparts throughout Union County Monarch Elementary School welcomed its students back Monday for the spring semester following the end of Christmas break. One of those who returned to school Monday was Calvin Jeter who was in Monarch Elementary's library with his fellow first grade students in Lucretia McClurkin-Peake's class checking out books.

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Trey Fowler, Landon Anderson and Collin Adams are quite intent on checking out the contents of the books they are studying in the Monarch Elementary School library on Monday. They and their fellow first grade students in Lucretia McClurkin-Peake's class were in school after the end of Christmas break and the start of the spring semester.

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Jabarius Crosby, Jaboria Dawkins, Willie Jeter and Hunter Millwood are hard at work on their every day edit for ELA in Lisabeth Kelly's four grade class at Monarch Elementary School on Monday. Students were back in school Monday for the start of the spring semester after being out since the start of Christmas break on December 21.

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UNION COUNTY — Students in Union County were back at school Monday and principals at three elementary schools reported their student were not only back but enthusiastic about returning to the classroom.

Students had been out of school since the start of Christmas break on Dec. 21 and Monday was not only their first day back at school but the start of the spring semester.

Melissa Inman, Buffalo Elementary School principal, said that despite the cold weather Monday morning, students were happy to be back at school.

“It was a very cold day to start back,” Inman said. “The kids took it well, we had no complaints from the safety patrol about the weather. We’d like to thank all the parents for following the rules and procedures in the car line.”

Inman said the day was spent helping the students get back in the routine of the school day and preparing them for academic testing later this semester.

“We’re just practicing our routines and procedures, reminding the children of the rules, two weeks is a long time for young children,” Inman said. “On the academic side we’re preparing for our district writing prompts. In March, grades three, four, and five have to take writing portion of PASS. So as a district students in K through five are practicing writing to a specific prompt.”

Barbara Palmer, Foster Park Elementary School principal, said the students were not only happy to be back at school but eager to return to class.

“I think all the students were excited to be back at school today,” Palmer said. “They were all talking about the holidays and what they did during the holidays. I talked to some of the teachers after school and they said the students were very motivated and on task, ready to go back to learning.”

Anita Maness, Monarch Elementary School principal, said that only were the students glad to be back in school, but had also continued to read during Christmas break. She said she had hoped Monday would serve as a model for the rest of the spring semester.

“It was fantastic,” Maness said. “We just had a great day. We believe in reading and the students read, read, read during the holiday. I hope the rest of the spring semester is as good.”

Editor Charles Warner can be reached at 864-427-1234, ext. 14, or by email at cwarner@civitasmedia.com.