(CNN) — After 15 years teaching second and third grade at Burney Elementary, a 350-student school 30 minutes outside Tampa, Emily Lee set up her classroom this month to welcome three- and four-year-olds for pre-K.
It's a change she has embraced, she said, a chance to get kids on the right path in their educational journey from a young age.But as instruction began in most of Florida this past week, there are other changes that make Lee anxious about the new school year.
Contentious laws went into effect during the summer recess that restrict how schools teach topics linked to race and sexual orientation.
New avenues were created for parents to sue teachers and challenge instructional materials. Math textbooks have been culled for traces of critical race theory.