By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
When teacher Lindy McDaniel brought the STAR program to Roosevelt Elementary School two years ago, she created a new family for her special education students.
She did not know at that time this tight-knit group of students, teachers, paras and parents would be struck with tragedy so soon.
Last year, a second-grader in the program, Kaylee, died unexpectedly. McDaniel said some of the children in the STAR program have fragile health, but it was a blow to all the children and adults who knew the student.
Danielle Scott, the girl’s aunt, said Lindy stepped up to not only comfort her students, but the little girl’s family.
“When my niece passed unexpectedly, she was right there to hug us and the STAR family,” Scott said. “Lindy went above and beyond to give my sister little treasurers from the classroom that Kaylee loved so much.”
McDaniel also included the family in special events for the STAR program.
All the children in the STAR class, as well as the general education second-grade students, painted ceramic stars for a special Christmas tree. McDaniel painted a larger star in Kaylee’s favorite colors. She invited Kaylee’s family to see Kaylee’s tree and the winter wonderland put together by the STAR students.
“Lindy, along with the staff in the STAR room spend countless hours planning and coordinating activities for the STAR students, and I forever have a special place in my heart for the STAR room, students and staff,” Scott said. “The STAR program wouldn’t be what it is without all of the staff, but especially Lindy for the love she shows for every student day in and day out.”
For this reason, Scott nominated McDaniel for Hays Post’s Teacher of the Month award.
When McDaniel heard it had been a member of Kaylee’s family who nominated her for Teacher of the Month, tears filed her eyes. She said the death brought the STAR children, staff and parents together as a family.
“You just want to give them the best they have in the time they are with us,” McDaniel said.
Although she said the death was difficult for all who knew Kaylee, she said she thought it brought out the best in her students.
“I have always thought of our kids knowing more than they could ever communicate because a lot of our kids our nonverbal,” McDaniel said. “And it was so intriguing to me how much they could sense the sadness of their staff and the sadness of the kids in the family. One little friend that is fairly nonverbal when the grandparents came to visit our program a couple days after, she knew immediately to give the grandpa a hug.
“It made me realize and continue to know these kids — they’re smart. They have a lot to offer us, and we can learn a lot from them.”
A memorial was set up in Kaylee’s name, and an equipment shed was donated to STAR in her honor. The STAR children watched the shed being put in by remote video and then helped paint it.
STAR stands for Systematic Teaching with Adaptations and Reinforcement. The teachers in the STAR rooms work to integrate their students into general education classrooms as much as possible. However, they have a safe place to be if they need more support.
The program at Roosevelt has grown from 14 to 34 students in just its third year.
The program encompasses four rooms. The first of which is academic.
The students in the program work at their own pace, and the program takes into account the students may be motivated in varying ways, McDaniel explained. A student who has autism is not going to be motivated by social interactions, such as recess. In fact, social interactions may cause them anxiety. One of the program’s students enjoys animals, so when the student has accomplished his task, they allow him to play with toy puppies.
“Because we have those opportunities for him to be reinforced by things he is interested in, he is going to work that much harder at building those reading skills to get to have time with his puppies or to get to have that music time for other kids,” McDaniel said.
The program has a social skills room that is more play based. The STAR program serves children pre-K through fifth-grade, but some of the students are developmentally pre-school age or toddlers. Play-based learning includes stations such as art or blocks.
A third room addresses life skills. This includes family-style lunch for children who need it. They can work on language skills, such as asking for more to eat, or motor skills, such as holding utensils.
The last room is STAR community, and each student has his or her own desk. They work in this room at in-seat desk behavior and other skills they would use in a general education classroom.
“I love getting to see that child who maybe wasn’t successful in a general setting get the interventions and supports they need to become successful. Getting that really close relationship with families to provide that to our kids is pretty awesome. In a general ed situation, you don’t necessarily get to know your families on this scale of how close we are in this program.”
McDaniel shows compassion to all the students at Roosevelt. During the Hays Post interview, she stopped for a moment to comfort a student who was upset. The girl began to cry, so she gently guided her to her mother, a fellow staff member.
She stopped on another day to comfort a young boy in the STAR program who was upset. She talked to him softly, encouraged him, and let him pick some lotion to smell and rub on his hands to calm and sooth him. The tears faded quickly, and he went on to his next assignment.
McDaniel, 37, has been teaching for 15 years. She took some time away from USD 489, where she started her career, to work for State Department to support children with autism and other disabilities. During that time she was exposed to different learning models, including STAR.
She decided the travel for that job was resulting in too much time away from her family. When she came back to the Hays district, an opportunity opened up in special education. She eventually was able to pitch STAR to district administrators.
The program has been highly successful and even garnered a visit from Kansas Education Commissioner Randy Watson.
McDaniel, a Quinter native and FHSU grad, said she would like to see the STAR program used across buildings in the district. She said using adaptations and reinforcement does not have to be reserved for students who have significant challenges.
“The commissioner of education came to visit our program last year, and his vision for the state of Kansas is that all kids can,” she said. “All kids should be a part of something bigger than themselves and get to learn with others in a way that suits them.
“If we have students that want to be teachers, they can come in and help teach our STAR kids or just different ways to help every kid feel a part of the building and feel like they have something to offer to a bigger community than just their classroom or themselves.”