MARIETTA – When Oak Grove Christian School opened its doors for the first time last school year, the halls were filled with preschool and kindergarteners, but for its second time around, the growing school is now teaching all the way up to second grade.

The Christian faith-based school added a combined first and second grade classroom and teacher to its ranks for the 2015-2016 school year, and now has a total of 118 students enrolled.

The school, which is now drawing students not only from Marietta but as far out as Walker, W.Va., is hoping to keep growing and expanding.

“We want to be able to grow a class for each grade, and we’d like to go through sixth grade,” said administrator Melody Hoskinson.

The school building itself came ready-made, as Oak Grove is housed in a building owned by the Oak Grove Recreation Center, which until the 1970s, was Marietta City’s own Oak Grove Elementary School.

“This year we now have specials for the primary K-2 grades, so each month, they have a bit of P.E., art, music, chapel, library and Spanish,” Hoskinson said.

Oak Grove offers half and full-day preschool for 3 and 4-year-olds, but also extended its preschool service this year to include full-week options for 4-year-olds.

“Many parents need that extended childcare throughout the week, so their parents can bring them five days a week rather than just three,” Hoskinson said.

The kindergarten class, which currently has 18 students, and the first/second grade class, which currently has 12 students, both run on a full-day, five day per week schedule.

“My favorite part of the day is recess and lunch, but I like to learn, too,” said kindergartener Bella Mullen. “We’ve been learning the letters.”

The school charges tuition and other fees that vary between preschool programs and its primary grades, with payment options available for nine or 12 months.

“We have a lot of students from Marietta, but some from Belpre, Lower Salem, Warren and even into West Virginia,” said co-administrator Lori Austin.

Parent Melissa Miller-Arnold, of Marietta, has three of her children, ages 3, 6 and 8, enrolled at Oak Grove.

“Our children are surrounded by staff members that have the love of the children in mind and with small classes, they have more one-on-one time per student,” she said.

The school also staffs to help students with speech and students with individualized education plans (IEPs), and offers a full-time hot lunch service through Joe Momma’s Kitchen, a third party business that also serves the community.

“Our primary grades go by Ohio Department of Education guidelines and curriculum now, while our preschool is licensed through the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services,” Hoskinson said.

The grade cluster system in first and second grades allows teacher Beth Lemon to provide small group lessons as well as combined learning activities, which she said has a range of benefits.

“Having first and second in one class helps them think on a higher level,” she said. “When we start again next year they already have a step up.”

Lemon separates the two grades for some activities, like math and languages, but combines the whole class for others.

“We do health, sciences and Bible lessons together, which helps because second graders, being a year older, have some more experience they can add to it,” Lemon said. “It creates independence.”

The cluster system is often seen as giving older children the added benefit of learning responsibility, too.

“When I finish my work in class sometimes I go over and help the first-graders out with what they’re doing,” said second-grader Jocelyn Arnold.

The school is continuing to grow in its building too, renovating in the back parts of the building to allow room for a library and other amenities. The gym, which is already rented out by a local gymnastics and dance group, gives children that participate the opportunity to go straight from school to extra-curricular activities.