Life skills students at Chief Kanim transcend disabilities
January 11, 2012
By Sebastian Moraga
Success has many looks.
For Erin Townsend, Renae Tawney and Marisa Carlson, success looks like a meal, like a trip to the grocery store, like a safe mosey down the hallways of a serpentine building.
Townsend teaches life skills to students with disabilities and Chief Kanim Middle School. Tawney and Carlson are the class’ instruction assistants.
“We do some academics,” Townsend said. “But we teach them to be as independent as they can be.”
By Sebastian Moraga Camden Quinn (left) finishes a jigsaw puzzle under the gaze of teacher Erin Townsend.
The road to independence includes learning how to read a schedule; how to make a grocery list; how to follow a recipe; and how to get in, around and out of buildings safely.
Children’s conditions include things like autism, Asperger’s disease, cerebral palsy and Down’s syndrome.
“We have children with conditions ranging from severe to moderate,” Townsend said. “It’s challenging because no kid is the same, so you have to tailor it to their needs.”
Students’ ages range from 11 to 14 years old. Their classroom sits alongside other classrooms in the main Chief Kanim building.
“For us, it’s about a lot of inclusion,” Townsend said, “being around their peers as much as they can.”
She later added, “We try to get them involved with the general-education children as much as possible.”
This includes bringing able-bodied children to serve as peer tutors, or getting the children in the Associated Student Body to come read to the students.
Principal Kirk Dunckel said Life Skills students have access to the same technological advances the rest of the student body does.
“They are really doing some great technological stuff with their kids,” he said, mentioning the use of ActivBoards as an example.
“All of our kids are getting that, but the Life Skills kids are there, too,” he added.
Townsend, a teacher of the Life Skills class for two years, preaches patience and passion when teaching students with disabilities.
“Sometimes it’s not going to be easy, sometimes it’s not going to go your way,” she said.
Parents are supportive for the most part, she said, although difficult circumstances always arise.
“Parents may have a different idea,” she said. “Or may wish their kid learned something faster.”
The special-education students’ attitude is unparalleled, Townsend said — they are always eager to learn. She also lauded the behavior of general-education students toward the special-education students.
“You never see any of the kids picking on our kids,” she said. “The school is great like that.”
The biggest payoff for her, she said, comes when she sees students take strides forward.
“I love to see them make progress on whatever it is they are doing,” she said. “They are always so happy to learn new things.”
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6 Responses to “Life skills students at Chief Kanim transcend disabilities”
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Aspergers is NOT a disease and this is VERY offensive. Aspergers is who you are!
I am glad to hear about other Life Skills classrooms. A lot of school corporations north of my corporation do not have or do not recognize the need for a class like this. I am proud and excited to teach in an elementary Life Skills classroom. I know my students make very little strides, but in the long run they are huge accomplishments for them. Way to go!!!
Inclusion, really? I’m sorry this is not inclusion. Inclusion is when a student with special needs has the same academic and social opportunities as those without disabilities. I understand the school and staff view this teaching model as beneficial to a student, but it’s really not. These students should be taking the same core classes as everyone else. Are life skills important? Absolutely, but this really is the responsibility of the parents. I know, I know these parents don’t have the time or don’t know how to teach their own child who they know best…excuses, excuses. I have two children (17 & 12 years old) with special needs, one having an intellectual disability, and they both are fully included in the general ed classroom. Is this easy? No way, but so worth it. I also understand there are just some students who need a more restrictive environment, but most students if given the chance would do amazingly well (with trained staff).
It is wonderful that the students are being exposed to life skills. In our district in NH we promote full inclusion. Students are in general education classes with typical aged peers in their neighborhood school. Related services are sometimes provided in class or in a resource room.
We have found with planning, that life skills can truly be embedded into everyday classroom routines.We have found that it is easier for students to then generalize skills to other settings. Since in classroom, typical peers are naturally able to support students throughout the day. We are thrilled with the results inclusion has brought.
I was thrilled to see that even as more and more service delivery models pop up that are focused on co-teaching and full inclusion, some have not lost sight of the need for basic skills. Full inclusion has been a great step forward, but not all sped students will or should go on to a post secondary academic environment, so they must learn basic life and soft job skills.
Ed Amundson,
Chair, National Education Association : Caucus for Educators of Exceptional Children
I don’t understand why some people are so against life skills. Some children have a need for these skills and require instruction beyond what their family may be able to offer them at home. I apprecieate that parents want their child to have the best life possible, we all want the the best for our children. However, the reality is that sometime a child with multiple challenges needs more resourses than parents can offer at home. I am not critsizing parents in any way, I am pointing out that we need to be realistic about the abilities of our chidren and make sure that we meet their needs, not the expectations of a casual observer