Mercer Island Special Education Preschool
Our Students:
Ranging from age three to six, MISD special education preschool students have been diagnosed with a variety of disabilities including developmental delays, autism, blindness, intellectual disabilities, health impairments, emotional or behavioral disabilities, and communication disorders.
Our History:
The preschool began in 1999. Originally, it was a half-day program at Lakeridge Elementary School. In 2000, the preschool increased to a full day program and moved to West Mercer Elementary School. Due to increasing enrollment and the resulting space limitations at West Mercer, the preschool moved to the Mercer Island Boys and Girls Club in 2010.
Our Model:
The program consists of two parts: a developmental preschool and an extended day program for students with greater needs, such as are seen with children with autism.
Our Goals:
We set high expectations for our students and provide them a safe, nurturing and motivating learning space along with scaffolds and supports (which are slowly faded) that help them meet those expectations.
The developmental preschool focuses on building a community of happy, confident learners. We find commonalities among the students and develop important life skills such as building friendships through sharing, turn-taking, waiting, requesting, kindness and play. Students learn readiness skills of listening and critical thinking through structured activities and play. By learning in a safe, nonjudgmental environment, our students increase their self-confidence as well as acquire knowledge and competence in academic skills and specifically targeted IEP goals.
An overarching goal of the developmental preschool is to unlock the puzzle for each child to enable him or her to learn at an optimal level. When the children are excited about school, understand the components of learning, feel confident and successful, and build social bonds, they have a good foundation for kindergarten and beyond.
Our Curriculum:
Our curriculum and programming is highly individualized and implemented in a flexible way to suit the needs of individual learners. We first determine motivators to develop instructional control so as to facilitate communication and learning readiness. We incorporate instruction in motor development, social and emotional skills, speech and language development and pre-academic skills. Learning to play is a critical component. Most of our curriculum and materials are teacher-made since the unique needs of each student does not allow for a “one size fits all” approach.
Our Approach:
We have a multidisciplinary approach with a team consisting of special education teachers, school psychologist, speech and language pathologist, occupational therapist, physical therapist and paraprofessionals. The team meets weekly to plan the program, decide on instructional strategies and review how those methods are working. Data collection, review and strategy adjustments are a critical part of our approach.
Our Methodology:
We use a variety of methodologies, incorporating research-based strategies. The setting is also varied ranging from highly structured one-on-one instruction and therapy, to group instruction and activities. This allows for generalization and consistency across environments. Other teaching techniques include using visual schedules and visual communication systems, especially for students who are nonverbal.
Why Early intervention?
Research shows that the early years provide a crucial window of opportunity for children because the brain has a high degree of plasticity. Providing intervention at this time leads to greater independence, better outcomes and less need for special services in future years.