Paraprofessionals
A little guessing game for our reflections this Friday? Who fits these descriptors?
Who has a ready smile and a helping hand often to our neediest of students?
Who knows more of the personality, the quirks, the strengths and weaknesses of special students?
Who has the patience to help student/s to break down complex ideas and finish challenging assignments?
Who adapts materials, cuts up triangles and squares, creates graphic organizers, cleans up messes?
Who never gives up on the student who needs one-on-one help learning sight words or two digit numbers or piecing together a persuasive paragraph and more?
Who follows complicated schedules and sometimes has to adjust to the routines and expectations of numerous classrooms?
Who is often “sent in” with little formal training and expected to perform miracles with underachieving students?
If you guessed correctly, you identified our many paraprofessionals. They are often our unsung heroes in and out of the classroom. I want to share an incident that reminded me of what our aides contribute to our students. An especially needy student - one with a difficult, touching back story - was acting up and was kicked out of gym class. Kim McMaster was reminding her student of the obligation that Mr. Depa had to teach all his students and that when one student acts out and demands so much of Mr. Depa’s attention it is unfair to the other PE students. Kim was so kind and objective with the student - no shaming - just calm and cooly putting the facts out for the student to consider. I was impressed with her demeanor toward the student. Kim spends a great deal of one-on-one with the student, and it would have been easy for her to get exasperated and chastise her student. She did not. She gave respect and patience.
Thank you Kim and all our paraprofessionals - all of you provide our student with some of the strongest connections to school.
Who has a ready smile and a helping hand often to our neediest of students?
Who knows more of the personality, the quirks, the strengths and weaknesses of special students?
Who has the patience to help student/s to break down complex ideas and finish challenging assignments?
Who adapts materials, cuts up triangles and squares, creates graphic organizers, cleans up messes?
Who never gives up on the student who needs one-on-one help learning sight words or two digit numbers or piecing together a persuasive paragraph and more?
Who follows complicated schedules and sometimes has to adjust to the routines and expectations of numerous classrooms?
Who is often “sent in” with little formal training and expected to perform miracles with underachieving students?
If you guessed correctly, you identified our many paraprofessionals. They are often our unsung heroes in and out of the classroom. I want to share an incident that reminded me of what our aides contribute to our students. An especially needy student - one with a difficult, touching back story - was acting up and was kicked out of gym class. Kim McMaster was reminding her student of the obligation that Mr. Depa had to teach all his students and that when one student acts out and demands so much of Mr. Depa’s attention it is unfair to the other PE students. Kim was so kind and objective with the student - no shaming - just calm and cooly putting the facts out for the student to consider. I was impressed with her demeanor toward the student. Kim spends a great deal of one-on-one with the student, and it would have been easy for her to get exasperated and chastise her student. She did not. She gave respect and patience.
Thank you Kim and all our paraprofessionals - all of you provide our student with some of the strongest connections to school.
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