HOLMDEL – – An innovative step on the part of the school district will have a big impact on a small group of kindergarten age students.
The Board of Education unanimously approved a developmental kindergarten class for the district’s small population of young classified students.
“Currently, we don’t have anything that caters to our special-needs students at kindergarten age because there weren’t as many children in this population,” said Mary Beth Currie, assistant superintendent. “We were doing a good job with our preschool program preparing these youngsters for elementary school, but we are finding that we need more for these children.”
According to the school district’s Director of Special Services Meryl Gill, currently there is a small population of children entering the new program for the new school year.
“Based on the needs and strengths and weaknesses, it was decided that these students would need a developmental kindergarten,” said Gill. “It is an exciting new venture.”
According to Currie, the class size will meet state guidelines of fewer than six children in a class of this kind and level of special education.
The school district visited other school systems with a developmental kindergarten to model their program, and one of them was the Wall Township school system.
“This program is based on the Wall school district’s developmental kindergarten class,” Currie said. “This kind of program is becoming more and more of a need as more children are identified with developmental issues. We try to meet their needs the best we can.”
Currie explained that the program would not incur many new expenses for the district.
“We have a staff member, we have the space and the curriculum,” Currie said. “We are ready to go.”
Students will attend the kindergarten class for a full day, starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 3 p.m.
“Most kindergarten classes are halfday sessions, but with a developmental kindergarten program there are a number of therapies that students need as well as academic activities,” Currie said.
The program will cater to classified children turning age 5, which according to Currie is the typical kindergarten age, and utilizes the autism curriculum the district currently uses.
“We are going to use the Letter People learning program, which uses songs and blow up balloons and builds confidence in the students,” Gill said. “We chose to use that program because it incorporates all things across the curriculum.”
The new program comes at the right time for classified students entering the Holmdel School District.
“In part we are responding [to an increase in autism] in the community,” Currie said. “It is really excellent because there is a greater movement in supporting youngsters that need additional help. We do not want to isolate them, but rather include them in our school completely because they are a part of our community.”
Both Currie and Gill believe in gradually integrating classified students and developmentally typical students.
Currie believes that it promotes camaraderie and increases good behavior in all students.
“It is nice to see the modeling that goes on,” she said. “It works both ways for the students really. The developmentally typical child sees the special needs student as their peer and classmate or someone who is good at spelling, instead of someone who is usually separated from the class. The special needs student learns from the developmentally typical child in respect to behavior and social skills.
“It is important on all functional levels,” Gill continued. “We will be integrating these students with their typical peers during recess and lunch. We hope to get them comfortable enough with each other to move them into a less restrictive environment.”
The district’s efforts to meet the needs of classified students do not stop at kindergarten age.
The district is also offering a program for special needs students in the high school.
The newly implemented Student Transition Readiness Independence Vocational Experience (STRIVE) program is a coaching program, Currie explained.
“It is similar to job sampling,” she said. “But we coach them on how to apply to a job and create a résumé and how to act in that job role.”
The program is brand new for this year and has proven to be a hit with students. Students are matched with jobs that they seem to enjoy as well as jobs that help them develop social skills needed in a workplace.
“Children who have special needs and need more of a supportive environment are eligible for this program,” Currie said. “We want these children to be successful at whatever they do.”