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The Menlo Park School was selected as an Exemplary Schools Attuned site because of the complete immersion of the faculty and staff in the philosophy and methods of the program. Teachers at this K-5 public school use Schools Attuned materials as well as All Kinds of Minds and Keeping A Head in School written by Dr. Levine to enhance every child’s understanding of learning and their profile of strengths and weaknesses. Administrators, faculty, and students share their understanding using language about learning and management strategies that would not be heard in many other schools. This discussion results in improved academic, social, and behavioral well-being in all students and reduced referrals to special education. A person who visits Menlo Park Terrace School will learn what it means to be attuned to all students.
Exemplary Schools in Focus
It’s 9 o’clock on a Monday morning at Menlo Park Terrace School in Woodbridge, New Jersey. I begin the day, as I always do, with a quick trip through the hallways of our K-5, 400-pupil elementary school. Immediately, I meet up with Justin, a third grader, who tells me that he is trying very hard to go to bed each night at the same time and get up the “first” time his mother calls him in the morning. The smile on my face brings an equally enthusiastic one to his, and we engage in a brief discussion about Mental Energy and how keeping a balance between sleeping at night and really being awake during the day will help with some of his Attention concerns.
As I move on, visiting each classroom, I notice that the three first grades have increased their Schools Attuned vocabulary from Attention, Memory, and Language to now include Ordering and Social (Cognition). Learning about the eight constructs and ultimately about how everyone learns differently, begins with the “common language” which we develop in our Kindergarten and First Grades.
As I open the door to the Gym room and navigate my way through a physical education class, the P. E. teacher hands me the completed section of a Teacher’s View that will become part of the profile we are developing on a second grade student, whom we have observed having difficulty in the areas of Spatial Ordering and Neuromotor functions. We are fortunate at our school to have our entire teaching staff trained in the Schools Attuned program. Even our school nurse, librarian, and speech therapist have been trained. Having everyone “on board” facilitates our ability to help children as we discuss observable phenomena, student work samples, and academic/neurodevelopmental links.
My trip around the school continues as I pass the Conference Room and see one of the fourth grade teachers explaining the Parent’s View to two very interested parents. “Working together we can give Richard the taste of success that he needs.” A very important part of the Attuning process is a strong team effort and collaboration between student, parent, and teacher.
As I complete my morning rounds I pass a fourth grade class reading one of the vignettes from the All Kinds of Minds text. I pause briefly to hear one youngster say, “That sounds like me,” referring to one of the characters. Several students nod their head in agreement, which leads to an impromptu discussion about some Social do’s and don’ts.
Slipping back into my office I notice several pink phone message slips waiting. One is from a journalist writing a story about Dr. Levine who wants to talk to someone who is actually using the program. Another is from a parent from New York who saw our name on the Web site after the re-broadcast of Oprah’s show on Dr. Levine and wants to speak to me about her son. The third is from a colleague who wants to send several teachers to our next Schools Attuned faculty meeting (we have one per month).
There are many things happening each day at our school that are directly affected by our being part of the Schools Attuned network. Over the past five years we have all learned a great deal about learning and how we all have the capacity to learn, albeit differently. As a Schools Attuned Exemplary School, we have given many children the “vitamin” of success.
As an administrator, knowing that there is a tool that teachers can use in their daily efforts to help children who struggle in school and “taste what success tastes like,” is valuable and comforting. In addition, our need to have children referred to the Child Study Team for intervention has been significantly reduced, from as high as eight or ten to, currently, three. Test scores have also been positively affected. Students in grades 3, 4, and 5 have steadily increased in proficiency and skill level over the last three years in standardized tests and the state mandated Elementary School Proficiency Test (ESPA). As the Schools Attuned philosophy has been infused into our daily routine, teachers have looked closely at their own teaching style and methodology and have focused on developing strategies, interventions, and accommodations that not only improve the learning process for a specific child but truly enhance learning for every youngster.
Of course, the piece that truly is special in the Schools Attuned program is the new perspective it gives children on their own self-worth. Imagine the sense of relief that comes when, perhaps for the first time, children understand what their learning strengths and weaknesses may be and that there is hope that they can be successful in school.
Schools Attuned has changed the way we educate children at Menlo Park Terrace School, where, as Dr. Levine would say, “every kid can hit a homerun...if the bat is wide enough.”
For More Information:
Menlo Park Terrace
Metuchen, NJ
Ms. Sharon McGreevey, Principal
732.417 5419
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