Teacher Miss Annette Barrett said that the first graders are enjoying the many hands-on manipulatives they are using to learn this year.
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| From Classroom Activities Ongoing 08-09 |
"We have been using the connecting cubes to count and to make towers to find out about the relationship of numbers to each other. We then use the information to make bar graphs. "
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| From Classroom Activities Ongoing 08-09 |
"During phonics class we have used all kinds of manipulatives to help us learn sounds, and put sounds together to make words we can read and write. One of our favorites seems to be the strange balls we use to toss and catch while we make sounds, " commented Miss Barrett.
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| From Classroom Activities Ongoing 08-09 |
The manipulatives are part of Holy Cross Catholic School's efforts to address multiple learning styles among the students from EC3 to eighth grade. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 4.6 million children--7.8% of children 3-17 years of age--have been told they have a learning disability.
Mrs. Robin Jo Jensen took a few moments recently to share the efforts of faculty and staff to address the needs of children of all abilities and learning styles at Holy Cross Catholic School.
Why did you begin working on addressing the needs of kids with learning challenges? Did you notice an increase in kids with these needs?
We haven’t noticed an increase. There have always been "struggling students," we just know more about them now--that they learn differently than other children. Most often, it is not that these children cannot learn, they just need to learn differently.
What have you been doing the past several years to meet the needs of children who learn differently than the majority of students?
One of my visions for the programming at HCCS is to meet the individual learning needs of each and every student.
During the 2007-2008 school year, we brought in various in-service presenters to speak to us and educate us on the subjects of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), and Emotional Disorder (ED). We brought in a psychologist to speak to us on a broad spectrum of learning disabilities, and had a certified reading specialist speak to us on reading-related learning difficulties.
Based on the presentation by the reading specialist, we decided to bring in a certified Orton-Gillingham trainer, who presented an in-service to our Faculty, specifically on Dyslexia and how the Orton-Gillingham method meets the needs of those students who are dyslexic.
Did you make any changes based on those presentations?
After much time, effort, research and lengthy discussion, I made the decision to train all of the classroom teachers and as many “special subject” teachers as possible in the Orton-Gillingham Approach. The first training session for our educators occured this summer.
What is the Orton Gillingham Approach?
The Orton-Gillingham Approach uses a comprehensive, leveled, multi-sensory approach to direct and enhance student learning. This program applies to all disciplines—math, reading spelling, phonics, etc.—at all grade levels. It gives us, as teachers, strategies and methods to help those students who are challenged to learn in a different way.
When a child isn't learning, teaching "louder and slower" isn't going to change anything. We need to teach in a way that that particular child can grasp and learn; therefore "multi-sensory" is the way to teach: visual, auditory, kinesthetic--reaching all of the senses.
When will these changes occur?
As you can see from the photos above, we are already implementing the strategies and methods this school year.
Have you made any other changes to address student needs and challenges?
We also put into place the supportive consultant program which supports the same philosophy. The program helps us to identify those students who struggle with learning or behavioral challenges, so that we can find a teaching approach best suited to their needs.
About Holy Cross Catholic School
Located on the growing northeast side of Green Bay at the historic crossroads of Church and Bay Settlement Roads, Holy Cross Catholic School is the point at which faith, community and education converge. The school educates children within the Catholic faith and provides them with opportunities to develop the values, attitudes and skills that will enable them to become vital members of the community.Holy Cross Catholic School has been in existence for 140 years and has an enrollment of 189 students in grades EC3 to 8th grade. For more information, please visit the school's website: www.holycrossfamily.org/.
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