CHAMPAIGN - Parents of three children allegedly molested by teacher Jon White said they learned of a game their children played in the classroom from news reports and casual conversations with their children.

The parents testified Thursday in pretrial hearings held to determine what evidence a jury will hear when White's trial begins on predatory criminal sexual assault charges.

White was arrested in February in Champaign County and accused of molesting nine second-grade girls at the Thomas Paine Elementary School, Urbana.

White also faces molestation charges in McLean County related to his time in the Unit 5 school district. Those allegations involve two students at the Colene Hoose Elementary School, Normal.

The mother of a 7-year-old girl recounted the conversation she said she had with her child on the ride home from school on Nov. 2, 2006.

The child mentioned that her school day included a game in White's classroom after school.

The Urbana mother said she continued to talk casually with her daughter on the ride home "so frankly she wouldn't see the panic going through me."

The girls' parents met with Urbana school district officials over the next several days and moved their daughter to another school.

The mother of an 8-year-old girl testified that she also had immediate concerns about the game when her daughter told her about the activity.

The child said White invited her to his classroom during recess, the mother testified. The child also said White offered to request a transfer for the child to his classroom, an offer the mother would not allow.

A newspaper account of White's arrest in February was the first time the mother of one of the alleged victims learned about the allegations. She testified that her child offered a description of the game similar to those police had received from other children.

While the 9-year-old did not consider the game to be sexual abuse, she did realize that White had touched her inappropriately during a movie in his classroom, according to the mother's testimony.

The mother told the court that her daughter did not report the alleged abuse previously because "she said Mr. White is big."

The pretrial hearings will resume Tuesday with arguments expected to include information about the McLean County case against White.