By KATIE HURST/ Staff Writer

CALERA — A new brightly-colored business has popped up in Calera and is providing a place for little ones to play and learn.

Laneaka Turner-Miller opened the doors of her new business, Imagine That! Kidz Club, July 24 and has been providing parents with a much-needed respite ever since.

Turner-Miller said she decided to open the business when she realized there were no other kids play places in the area.

“I knew we needed a place for birthday parties,” she said. “There were no places in Calera to have birthday parties and there were not that many activities for kids under age 6.”

Imagine That! Kidz Club is especially designed for children 6 years old and younger. The club offers development classes, school skills preparation, an indoor play gym, birthday parties and parents’ night out.

Development classes include art, dance, music and movement and baby sign language. The early math class allows children to practice counting money and telling time, and in the silly scientist class they’ll make volcanoes and slime.

Turner-Miller said offering a wide range of classes helps children determine what their interests are.

“Here they can sample it all so they’ll know what they like when they’re older,” she said.

Several of the classes help prepare skill sets for school, Turner-Miller said. Besides factual knowledge, it also provides important socialization skills and teaches them to play with other children.

“It definitely works with socializing,” she said. “Most of the kids, it’s their first time in a preschool environment. I’ve seen kids more social now then when they first started.”

For the class curriculum, Turner-Miller draws from her own knowledge as a teacher, and the help of her staff with early-education training.

Twice a month, the club offers parents’ night out, a Saturday night where parents can drop their children off from 6:30-10 p.m.

“Most people in Calera are from other places and don’t have a lot of family in the area,” Turner-Miller said. “That means they don’t have reliable babysitters. As a parent, I know how nice it is to have that night off.”

Children 18 months to 10 years are welcome at parents’ night out at the price of  $25 per child and $10 per additional sibling. Reservations and payment are required ahead of time.

For more information about Imagine That! Kidz Club and to see a full list of classes, visit Imaginethatkidzclub.com.