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Devan was referred to our special education classroom
because of behavior issues and lack of knowledge for most of
the alphabet. When I first saw Devan I didn't know what to
expect. He looks like a normal sized first grader except for
his rather large head and huge, round eyes. A few minutes
with Devan though, and one can tell that his mind is going a
mile a minute. His eyes are constantly darting, focusing
from one thing to the next. His limbs flail persistently,
and his speech is often difficult to understand due to a
large overbite.
Devan has had a difficult time following the rules of
school. It hasn't been easy on anyone this year, as our
classroom has had and lost two teachers by December's end.
We have found through observation and experience that Devan
needs a constant routine. Devan needs frequent breaks and
time to run out his energy. Devan needs people he can rely
on to be there, or his day ends badly. I have been a part of
many bad ended days.
One day Devan had it in his head that he had to get on the
bus with the other kids in his class who are bussed to
another building for K-2 lasses. Devan's regular schedule
was to stay in our classroom for two hours, then get bussed
to his regular classroom. I stopped Devan at the door and
tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't have any of it. He was
set on getting out the door and now! He tried to run away
from me but I caught him, only to get my arm pinched so hard
it made me actually cry tears of pain. I ended up picking
Devan up and carrying him down two hallways to the office,
getting pinched and kicked the whole way. Devan was sent
home and I watched my bruises heal over the next few days.
The next incident I had with Devan was less physical on me
at least. He is a child with a short fuse and one day that
fuse was lit when he didn't want to follow the rules his
peers had to follow. Devan began throwing things around,
telling me to "shut up", etc., but when he went towards
another student with his fists raised, I had to grab him. He
was angry and attempted to pinch me, but must have
remembered hurting me previously, and decided not to. I
couldn't get Devan to sit in time out with the timer; I
couldn't get him to be still at all. Our principal was close
by and took Devan to call his mother. We all had a meeting
with mom when she got there, and Devan seemed to be very
remorseful.
The next day I had Devan, he presented me with a note. It
was written in his little chicken-scratch, saying something
about being sorry for being bad. On the bottom of the paper
he signed it "Love, Devan." I love that note, and I know
that he really meant it. I think I'll keep it for a few
years (or more).
- JoAnne Harden
This second quarter of my AmeriCorps service period has been
a lot different than the first. My routine is fairly
structured and I know the staff and children better. It is
easier to deal with each child when I know how they respond
to certain things. Every child is different, their behaviors
vary and you have to find a way to reach each child. My
great story is about a three-year old girl in the a.m.
class. She is a small girl, cute as a button, but not always
as innocent as she looks. She likes to argue with the other
kids, she's the kind of kid who says it's raining when it's
actually sunny and blue skies. She doesn't take authority
well nor instruction.
She started to do this thing with her eyes, where she would
open them up really wide and stare at you, with a frown.
This intimidated the other children, and we tried not to
acknowledge it when it was directed at us. During lunch one
day she did this to me, I decided to do it back, just to use
some reverse psychology. She busted into a smile when I did
this. She then went on to say," My mom does that to me too".
I was relieved to find that this wasn't an act of rebellion,
or a form of dislike. She was rather trying to play a game,
and we had all overlooked her intentions. After this we
began to see a break through and she was more polite and
participated more. Once we could understand her more, we
were able to connect with her. I am relieved that this
misunderstanding didn't last long. Every child has their own
personality and own sense of humor. It is really all about
how you approach them, and how you learn to interact with
each personality. Understanding a child, and figuring them
out not only helps you, and the classroom, but it helps the
child to feel more welcome, safe, and accepted for who they
are. I find it easier to help a child by listening and
giving them different options on how to do things, rather
than to just say "No" or "Stop" . If you don't give a child
a reason to why they "can't" do something than they don't
understand. You need to back up your words with reasons, and
explain them so they can see the point.
- Sarah Nordstrom
For my great story there are two students that stick out in
my mind. Both of these students I have developed a positive
relationship with. Its always a pleasure to see them around
school and chat with them about how their life is going. One
student was new to the U.P. this year while the other has
lived in the area for many years. Both are very respectful,
good-natured individuals. One is rather quiet when dealing
with the other students. Many times I have provided an open
ear for whatever difficulty or exciting new enterprise she
wants to talk about. I have helped her with a Nova Net
course in history that she is working through. She is able
to accomplish a lot when there is someone helping her stay
on task or when she gets stuck on some difficult material.
The second student is a wonderfully unique individual. He
possesses a great sense of who he is. While he does have
trouble with attendance and completing all of the work that
is required of him, he is always respectful and never is a
discipline problem. He and I have gotten into many
conversations where we talk about a wide range of subjects.
Sometimes he teaches me a great deal about what we are
talking, for instance about the many shipwrecks that he is
very interested in. We have been able to work together on
some of his assignments but he is in need of academic
assistance which he does not want. It is a tough situation
because he is a very bright person but as a student he has
many deficiencies. I have seen an improvement in his ability
to apply his intelligence toward his schoolwork though.
In both cases, it has been very rewarding to get to know
these individuals. Interacting with them makes my service
meaningful because I can see the direct result of my
mentoring efforts. To witness this positive change in
individuals is the reason that I wanted to pledge a year of
service with AmeriCorps. And these two have made it a
pleasure to do so.
- Jesse Huge
After winter break my schedule got changed from a split
first-second grade class to the special education room. At
first I was really nervous but after a few days I fell in
love with it, and the students.
Dillan is a student that I work with everyday for at least
forty-five minutes. He is in the 6th grade and is
cognitively impaired. We work one on one in math. Mrs. B. -
the special education teacher - informed me that he really
struggles with math and sometimes just doesn't want to do
it. She also let me know that his home life is very
unstable.
The first day he came in and we got almost nothing done. He
had so many questions for me and wanted to know why I was
helping him and he was telling me that he was a hopeless
cause. But I stuck to it, and the next day he came back
ready to learn. After working diligently for the 45 minutes
he finished all his work. From then on I knew it would get
better. After he left Mrs. B. said "now the hope is that he
remembers that tomorrow" - and he did. In fact he is doing
great.
Every morning he comes in the room to check to make sure
that I am there. When I am gone he always asks where I am
and if I am ok. He does not like to work with anybody else
on his math - just me. He has completed more work than the
teacher thought he would by the end of the year.
- Dana Gray
Every other week I visit each preschool classroom in the
middle and north end of the BHK spectrum to play games with
the children to get them moving for 30 minutes. Now that I
have visited each classroom numerous times, the kids know
who I am and what I am there to do. They all yell "Katelyn's
here!" excitedly as I get the room ready for the games we
are about to play. It is really nice to see that the kids
are still excited to work out with me and play along
joyfully as we try out new games. I have been having a great
time working with the Healthy Families Project and feel that
it is an excellent way to increase the knowledge of exercise
and eating healthy in preschoolers. It is especially
important to do so in the present day with the problem of
obesity growing larger every day.
- Katelyn Skoog |