In schools across the country, both private and public, some students struggle in upper elementary grades with reading, math and language skills. For many, this is the result of not having had the intervention to identify and address their specific needs at the beginning of their formal education.
“As educators we feel that one of the keys to helping children best is by working on strengthening their areas of weakness as early as possible, even as early as our pre-k, Buds, class,” said Rabbi Chaim Hagler, Principal of Yeshivat Noam.
Piloted this past year, the school is now formally launching the “Chazak B’Noam” program, which will begin for the 2016–2017 school year. Made possible by a multi-year donation of $100,000 per year by an anonymous donor, Chazak B’Noam is a push-in inclusion program that spans from kindergarten to second grade and seeks to strengthen students’ academic and social skills through special services delivered by newly hired specialist instructors, who will provide differentiated instruction to students who need it, in each student’s regular classroom.
Every child has different strengths, needs and areas for personal growth, and fully addressing these needs is part of Yeshivat Noam’s core educational mission. When a child is at risk of not being on grade level, it is early identification, intervention and specially designed differentiated instruction that can help these children the most, said Rabbi Hagler. Thanks to the help of this anonymous grant, Yeshivat Noam is poised to continue to add more programs that can address the unique needs of every individual student.
The additional/new seamless support and differentiated instruction that will now be provided by Noam educators trained in special education will yield a higher level of results and student excellence. Rabbi Hagler happily reports, “Children thrive in environments where they feel that they can succeed. With the help of this new grant, Yeshivat Noam is able to increase the variety of support opportunities available to our students and to make each child’s success possible.”
The Chazak B’Noam program builds on other new educational models that Yeshivat Noam has implemented in the last two years to meet student needs. Last year, the pilot program for kindergarten was introduced, providing additional support to students who need extra help in developing their foundation in language, learning, social and student skills. Students participating in this model are part of a traditional kindergarten classroom, with three full-time teachers. In addition, a dedicated specialist inclusion teacher supports the children who are part of this model, both in and out of the classroom. The children build their confidence, while the classroom curriculum is modified to meet the learning needs of each child.
Yeshivat Noam has also put multiple new structures and hires into place to help identify children with specific needs that may have otherwise gone undetected. Buds (pre-k) students are being screened to detect any potential learning issues using an assessment called the “dial-test,” which helps teachers collect valuable information about who might be candidates for additional help. In kindergarten, Yeshivat Noam has hired an exclusive, full-time, dedicated reading specialist, and has woven several new formal reading assessments into the curriculum, both to help enhance reading skills and target problem areas in Early Childhood learners.
As children move from early childhood to first grade, some students find the transition to be difficult. To that end, the 2015–16 school year saw the addition of a full-time reading specialist for the first grade who was tasked exclusively with working with first graders in small groups, or one on one, to develop their reading skills. This was part of the pilot program as well. By using PAF, “Preventing Academic Failure,” which is an Orton-Gillingham–based reading intervention curriculum, Yeshivat Noam has witnessed growth in specific and measurable ways. Debra Tolchin, the inclusion teacher explains, “The First Grade Inclusion pilot year has been a tremendous success. Our students have enjoyed being a part of the larger class while getting the individualized attention and support that they need to grow academically. Plus, the confidence that the First Grade Inclusion model fosters in each student leads to increased success.”
For the 2016–2017 school year, the Chazak B’Noam program will expand to include several components in second grade. For students who are below grade level in reading, a research-based Intensive Reading Acceleration Program (IRAP) will be available to provide students with 90 minutes of literacy daily, utilizing, in part, an Orton-Gillingham approach in a small group setting. Arwen Kuttner, a trained reading specialist and veteran Yeshivat Noam special educator, will be the instructor for this program. In addition, an inclusion option will be offered, in which students can work with a facilitator in a small group within the classroom to help them navigate social dynamics, anxiety-based challenges and various student skills. As in all of the elementary grades, small-group learning will continue to be available with learning specialists for reading, math, chumash and Ivrit, for students who are ready to learn the core of the second grade curriculum but benefit from a smaller teacher-to-student ratio.
As part of this comprehensive approach to better reach students who learn differently, Yeshivat Noam has added another crucial position to the elementary school team—Mrs. Shulamit Roth, a full-time speech and language therapist. Mrs. Roth is a licensed, ASHA certified learning specialist and Speech and Language pathologist (SLP) with a specialty in language and learning disabilities. She will screen students for language-based learning difficulties and train the teachers to meet more language needs directly in the classroom. Together, the Yeshivat Noam early childhood and elementary school special services team, which includes School Psychologist Dr. Miryam Benovitz; Director of Early Childhood Support Services, Amy Kagedan; Director of Elementary School Support Services, Stacy Katzwer and eleven special educators will work collaboratively to help each child fulfill his or her own potential.
Yeshivat Noam invites those interested in hearing more about its exciting new initiatives in differentiated learning to reach out to Mrs. Stacy Katzwer, Director of Elementary School Support Services, at [email protected] or call 201-261-1919 x232 to receive more information about any of the programs.
