Blog

Nurturing Young Minds: The TK Journey at 91��Ƶ by Grace Minlend

Guest User — Wed, 05 Feb 2025 20:22:45 +0000

Transitional Kindergarten (TK) is a unique and critical phase in a child’s educational journey. It serves as a bridge between early childhood experiences and Elementary School. At this stage, children are learning what life is about and how to function in a safe and meaningful way. The primary goals in TK revolve around understanding expectations, establishing boundaries, creating routines, and learning to manage relationships with peers and teachers. Students learn safe self expression and develop their language and literacy. This is where the love of learning begins, nurtured through play and teamwork.

One of the distinctive features of TK at 91��Ƶ is the emphasis on mixed-age learning. This approach provides invaluable lessons for young learners. Children understand that everyone is at their own level, and rather than comparing themselves to others, they are encouraged to reflect on their personal growth and progress. Mixed-age classrooms foster a sense of community as the mixed age students work together on their trimester long project. This not only builds a nurturing environment but also strengthens empathy and leadership skills.

Play-based learning is foundational to the TK experience for many important reasons. Play is inherently fun, keeping students actively engaged and excited about learning. Through play, children develop essential social skills, such as communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution, which are critical for navigating relationships both inside and outside the classroom. At 91��Ƶ, the high level of peer interaction allows empathy to develop among students as they learn to appreciate and understand each other’s perspectives. Play presents countless opportunities for children to encounter challenges and develop creative solutions. Learners from play-based classrooms often approach life's challenges with confidence, knowing that their hands-on experience during class time has given them the skills to navigate through.

In a play-based environment, relationships and learning experiences are authentic and meaningful, which allows trust and respect to be the foundation of all relationships. Children also retain more information when it’s connected to authentic games and activities rather than traditional, lecture-based teaching. Play-based educators tailor activities to the diverse needs of students, ensuring that every child is challenged and supported at their level. When a child’s interests guide their learning, they are more motivated and invested in their own educational journey.

By fostering a play-based, mixed-age learning environment, TK at 91��Ƶ sets the foundation for a lifelong love of learning. Children develop not only academic skills but also the social, emotional, and problem-solving abilities that will serve them well throughout their lives. As students navigate this stage, they build confidence, curiosity, and a strong sense of community, preparing them to thrive in their educational and social journey.

The Transformative Power of Small Schools: Insights from 91��Ƶ

Tanya Sheckley — Tue, 19 Nov 2024 18:32:00 +0000

At 91��Ƶ we are small by design. We often get asked about how that affects learning, friendships, development, and the school experience. It’s important to remember that the size of public school classes was not created for the benefit of students, it was created for efficiency and budget. Smaller class sizes have numerous benefits. When we talk with teachers who teach in larger environments and ask about the one thing that could benefit students (and teachers) the most - the answer? - smaller classes. In fact, the size of a school can detract from the quality of education, as students in larger settings often feel lost in the crowd and may struggle to form meaningful connections with peers and teachers.

Small schools like 91��Ƶ provide an ideal setting for social emotional learning. Our small school size allows us to engage in restorative practices and conflict resolution as a part of a close-knit community. Consistency fosters deeper relationships and helps students navigate social dynamics more effectively. This also means that solutions to conflict and challenge may look different for different students and in different situations. Restorative practices seek to support dynamic learning in changing relationships and meet each student where they are while working to repair, maintain, and build relationships.

From the very beginning 91��Ƶ was designed with the best interests of students in mind. In our new space we have created learning spaces that are flexible, comfortable, and conducive to collaboration and creativity. Our practices prioritize the well-being and development of students over administrative efficiency. We continually seek to involve students, parents, and community members in the decision-making process to ensure that the school environment exceeds you expectations and is really your community.

While the benefits of small schools are clear, there are financial challenges that come with operating with a small community. There are fewer families to donate, there is less tuition income, and the overhead expenses remain similar to large class sizes.

Small schools cultivate openness, humility, and empathy among students, which are essential qualities for personal and professional success. By fostering these traits, 91��Ƶ helps students develop into well-rounded individuals who are prepared to navigate the complexities of life beyond the classroom.

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The Importance of Productive Struggle in Education

Tanya Sheckley — Thu, 14 Nov 2024 18:31:35 +0000

Productive struggle is all about creating just enough challenge for students to think critically and work through difficulties, leading to genuine success. When we fully commit to a task true learning happens. Our brains thrive on challenges and students need to engage deeply with challenges.

The part of the brain involved in handling friction and doing hard things is the anterior mid-cingulate cortex. Engaging in difficult tasks strengthens neural connections and enhances cognitive abilities. In fact, shielding children from struggles can hinder their cognitive development and self-esteem. Allowing them to face challenges helps build resilience and confidence.

At 91��Ƶ we encourage hands-on engagement, collaboration, and critical thinking. We build student agency by allowing children to experience challenges and failures. This not only builds their skills but also equips them with the confidence to navigate future difficulties.

Productive struggle is not just about the end result but about the journey of learning and growth. By creating environments at home and school that celebrate this journey we help our students build resilience, confidence, and lifelong learning skills.

Doing Nothing is Doing Something. Do Something.

Tanya Sheckley — Tue, 02 Jun 2020 20:14:08 +0000

The events of the last several days have created an atmosphere in my mind which makes it difficult to work or concentrate. I am concerned about our country and our world, there are protests and riots here in the US. Other countries are protesting America’s human rights policies towards their own people. This country has hit a tipping point, where too many people are disadvantaged and not heard, too many people are unemployed and scared, too many people are angry and they are taking to the streets. Over 100,000 people have died, there are fires in the streets and people continue to be injured, killed and arrested.

I am a parent, an educator, and a white American who is part of the problem. It is time to do something differently. I never would have defined myself as part of the problem, I do not think I am racist, I enjoy the richness of different people and different cultures and I work to understand the stories of others. But that is not enough, adding more social justice curriculum to our schools and teaching history from concepts and different perspectives is a start, but how do we really make a difference that will make the future different than this recurring past?

As a part of the problem, I had never talked to my kids about race. My thought was that if they don’t see color, if that’s not what they notice about others, they won’t think of all the reasons why race matters. They will just see people. And they do just see people, their best friends are brown, their preschool was run by a black man. In the community where we live and the friends we have, we are often the minority in the room, as white Americans, frequently we don’t even speak the dominant language in the gathering. In fact, at one of my children’s first preschool field trips I was talking with other families and they were shocked as they realized I was American, we may have been the only family who was born in the US that year at school. It was Japanese families, Chinese families, Israeli families, French families, all together looking for a place for their kids to learn and play together. This is the future I want for my kids, to just see other kids, to just see other people and their capabilities, not their colors, or their abilities.

In my own life it wasn’t until college that I became more aware of the struggles of different races. I grew up in an affluent white suburb in the midwest. There was one black student in school and he was a foster child. My favorite show was Soul Train and as a dancer, my favorite company was Alvin Ailey. I didn’t know until someone pointed it out in my 20s that the show I danced around my living room to, my favorite dance show, was all African-American - Soul Train. I didn’t know the history of Alvin Ailey or notice that the dance company was an all black company until I was in New York literally studying at the school with the company. It wasn’t until someone told me I would never join the company because I was white that I learned more. I honestly never noticed the color of their skin, but their movement and connection to the music was unrivaled and that was what I wanted to learn.

But not to see colors means not seeing history and understanding struggles, it misses a whole aspect of the richness, and madness, of being human. If my children don’t see color and they miss this background of history and connection, then color will eventually come to find them and teach them. Likely, the lessons won’t be of kindness and compassion, they will be of anger, repression, torture, and voices that are muzzled. While that is part of the story, now is the chance to create a different storyline for the future, now is the time to listen, to understand, to educate and to change so the future doesn’t repeat the past again.

As a parent and educator, I can do this through ongoing deep conversations with my children and students, and curriculum that underlines social justice. So that we can all work together, play together and grow together, not despite our different colors and histories, but embracing how they make us better and stronger together.

We will do better.

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Robotics and Growing from Failing

Tanya Sheckley — Wed, 04 Mar 2020 20:09:08 +0000

Our girls had their first robotics tournament in February. We didn’t go see a match first, we watched a few videos. We didn’t read the whole rule book, just the parts about the robot. We didn’t test our robot first, it wasn’t really working.

Wait, what? That’s correct, I took a group of girls who were unprepared, hadn’t read the rules, had no robotics experience (I didn’t either) and our robot barely worked, to a competition.

The Thursday before they thought about forfeiting, they thought about not going, they couldn’t get the robot to move in a straight line, or move around the field in any meaningful way. But they decided to go.

It has been said that 90% of life is showing up.

These girls showed up! They got the robot moving on Friday, they went to competition on Saturday. We saw robots of every shape and many different ways to lift, push, pick up and shove the elements on the course. Ours didn’t really do many of those things. They had three opportunities to score points in skills challenge, they scored 0. They were afraid we would be disqualified and not get to compete, but instead of sitting in defeat they were saying “there are so many cool robots here, if we don’t compete can we go back to the school and start working on our next design?”

They started to plot and plan what their next robot could look like. They talked to other teams with robots like ours and made some modifications. They didn’t get disqualified, they competed, and they tried every round. They scored 10 points. They found an older girls team who is located near ours and asked to work together and if the older girls could help and mentor them. There were only three girls teams competing out of 23 teams.

Two of our schools agreements are to Participate and to Always do your Best. These girls showed up, they participated and they tried their best. They learned so much that day.

I couldn’t be more proud of them if they had won. The lessons we learned and they way they showed up show how they will show up in the future. They knew they were in over their heads, they knew our robot wasn’t ready for competition, but they tried, they collaborated, they learned from others, they formed relationships and they are ready to rebuild and try again.

Go Girls!

Buisness Lessons I Learned from Snowboarding

Tanya Sheckley — Wed, 08 Jan 2020 23:24:32 +0000

I learned to snowboard in 1994. I loved to ski, I was terrible, but I loved it. I had a boyfriend who was a ski racer, a competitive snowboarder and generally up for all things adventure. He helped me renew my love of the outdoors, of the wonder of the mountains and the glory of nature. He also taught me to snowboard. It was a rough learning curve, I fell, got back up, fell, got back up, fractured my tailbone, and got back on the board the next season. We went to Montana. I was a Midwest girl, I had never been to the mountains, the purple mountain majesties, as the song promises, of big sky country. We took the gondola up to the top, I looked out at the incredible view, the snow caped mountains and covered plains, the bluebird sky and glistening snow, then I sat and tears ran down my face. I was terrified to stand and go. The boys all took off. I sat. A while later, my boyfriend’s best friend came back for me. He enticed me to follow him, that day I learned to snowboard. I didn’t expect the lessons that snowboarding would teach me. Over the next several years I learned three things about snowboarding that have served me well in many aspects of my life. When in doubt - point it, go big or go home, and commit.
On a snowboard if the board is sideways, you slow, stop or catch an edge and fall. It’s when you point the board that the magic happens, the board slides and glides gracefully down the mountain. In life deciding which direction to take can be paralyzing, we can analyze and over think which way to turn. Robert Frost famously wrote “I took the road less traveled. . .” but is that the best? How do you know? If you sit with your board sideways and look at the possibilities too long, you are just sitting. If you point it down hill, pick a direction and go, there will be more choices and possibilities will open up. I have found in my life, when I am unsure, to listen to my intuition, to listen to the trees and the mountains and the pulse of the earth, and then, pick a direction and point it. As any Labrador will tell you, going is always better than staying in one place.
However, pointing the board and going requires one more step, except if you are on the top of the K12 and you are planning to go straight unless something gets in your way and turn, like the famous line from Better Off Dead. If that is not your plan, if you are planning to glide gracefully down the hill, you must turn, and to turn, you must use an edge, any edge, but you must pick one. Commit to your edge. If you do not commit to your edge and you waiver, you doubt, you second guess, you land on your face in the snow (I have even hit my head with my board coming over my head when this happens). It’s called catching an edge, and it happens when you don’t commit. In snowboarding, and in life, you choose your path, you choose your values, and you commit to them. If you waiver, if you stray, if you doubt, often you lose your way, or get distracted, or have difficulty with many aspects of life. If you commit, decide what and how your going to do what you do, and who you are, and you commit to these things, life, like the mountain, will unfold before you and it will be a much more graceful, not without moguls, but navigable ride.
On that day in Montana, as I sat under the bright sunshine atop Big Sky mountain, I wasn’t thinking about going big, I was thinking about how I got myself into that mess and how I would safely get to the bottom. But going big is different at different times in life. For Shaun White it might be a 1260 double mctwist to win the Olympics, for me in that moment, it was standing up. As we looked to open the school we thought of all the ways to play it safe and open slowly, to build support, to fund raise, but there comes a time when you have to point it and go big. I have found myself in situations at the top of a cliff or chute where I had no choice but to go big and commit. I find myself in situations with the non-profit where the future of the school, or at least the next big donation, depend on my ability to go big, to be uncomfortable, to have the hard conversation or to make the tough ask. The ability to put myself, my thoughts, my beliefs out there to be supported by others, I learned, in part, from snowboarding. By going big, landing and surviving, not only surviving, but feeling the heart pounding, adrenaline rush fueled smile and surge of joy, of thriving in the moment.
A few weeks ago, on November 20, the sport lost it’s pioneer, Jake Burton Carpenter. Thank you Jake for founding the space, creating the freedom, revitalizing the mountain lifestyle and working to bring us snowboarding. We are forever in your debt. #rideonjake

Kars4Kids Guest Post - Using My Daughters Life, and My Own, to Find Purpose

Tanya Sheckley — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 13:40:52 +0000

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Love That Max Guest Post - Why People Should Never Expect Less of Students with Disabilities

Tanya Sheckley — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 13:36:51 +0000

Why People Should Never Expect Less of Students with Disabilities

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The Painting On The Wall

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:59 +0000

We started the exciting process of moving into 91��Ƶ and making it ours. The first step was to add a splash of kid color to the barren office white walls. We picked out our colors and set off to paint. As with most things, I learned a few lessons along the way.

1. Set expectations

As we walked into the building we were all giddy with excitement. It started as just my family: me, my husband (with a hurt back) and three kids. They were literally bouncing with joy and anticipation. I told them they could paint the big white space in the middle with the rollers. I didn’t tape the walls, I thought I would do the edging by hand. We poured the paint, I explained how to put the paint on the roller, but I didn’t show them. I explained how to put the paint on the wall and where I did not want paint - the floor, the other walls - but I didn’t show them. They expected to paint the whole wall, I expected them to paint a little and be done so I could finish the wall. They used too much paint and didn’t spread it around, they painted over and over in one spot. I got frustrated. One of them painted onto the baseboard, that wiped off, but I was getting more frustrated, then my four year old touched the other wall with his brush. I got angry and made them all quit. What started as a fun day of helping was a mess of anger and frustration after about 20 minutes. I didn’t set the right expectations, for any of us. I didn’t demonstrate the process, and I didn’t know my materials.

2. Know your materials

We ran out of paint on the first wall. We used too much and didn’t spread it out enough. Then I had to clean out all of the brushes and rollers to do another color in another room. I looked at the box of wet green rollers, I looked at our half painted wall, I looked at my kids, who were now watching a show because I had taken the fun of painting away. It seemed overwhelming. It was too big of a job. We couldn’t do it. I called a painter. During the conversation I learned that all of the paints in California are both low VOC and water based. I had been afraid to wipe off the errors that my son had made because I didn’t want to make a large light green mess on the opposite wall. Turns out, if I had known, I could have just wiped it with a wet paper towel and it would have washed right off (as all our mistakes later did). The irony comes next, as I was carefully paining the edges and filling in the white above where they could reach. I touched the side wall with my roller.

3. Be alright with mistakes

Those three green marks are still on the side wall in the main office. When I touched my paint to the wall, I had to laugh. I had made my kids feel bad, I had taken over a job they were excited to do, and I had made the same mistake. All of our expectations were lost, the paint was too dry for me to wash it off, and I owed my kids an apology. It’s alright to make mistakes in life. This is true of school work, STEAM projects, and parenting. What’s important is that you find a way to fix it. In school, it might be correcting a problem, in an engineering project it might be understanding why your prototype doesn’t work and creating a new design, in parenting, it’s often pointing out what I did wrong, offering an apology, and asking forgiveness. Kids learn through example. They see us as less than perfect and it makes it ok for them to make mistakes. I called the kids in and showed them my green mark. I told them I understood it was hard to paint and I apologized for getting angry and frustrated when they made a mistake. My kids smiled.

4. Ask for help

At this point (about an hour into our day of painting) I had called a painter and was giving up. My kids, happy again, were running around the empty space screaming and playing. I had half of a wall of green painted, and seven other unopened cans of paint sitting on the floor staring at me. I needed help. I checked my phone, no one had responded to messages we sent out asking for help. I had a painter coming the next day to give me a quote. We were about to leave when I looked up and a friend walked in. “How can I help?” He asked. I took a deep breath, started to tell him about where we were in our process, and he just said, “let’s paint.”

5. Create a process

He started to tape off a room (what?!?!). It gave us room to make mistakes - needed! - it gave us room to be a little messy - my hands were already sore from trying to edge by hand - and it gave us a process. Miss Audrey came in to help too. One could tape, one could edge, one could fill in the middle. In the next hour we finished two more rooms and were taping the third. It felt doable, it looked great, it was fun to accomplish. My kids came back and wanted to help, we gave them a job and a section of the wall, we set an expectation. Joe was great at teaching them to paint, he had a lot of experience, his grandfather was a painter. His patience and experience saved the day.

I had a boss who used to say “failure to plan is planning to fail,”. We didn’t plan well, we didn’t lay out expectations, we didn’t have a system, and we had performance that was akin to failure.

Understand what you are working with. If you don’t know or if the job seems too big, ask for help. Everything is more fun when you do it together. Sometimes you just don’t know what you don’t know. I didn’t know how much paint had changed. I thought we could have fun painting, but didn’t explain my expectations or the process. When we had clarity, the job was fun.

We finished our painting this weekend. 91��Ƶ is looking great and will be ready soon for students to both learn and teach us in return. And those three spots of green paint will remain on my office wall as a reminder to listen, explain, be patient, and that mistakes are ok.

Saying YES and Growth Mindset

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:55 +0000

Whenever possible, I try to say “yes” to my children. Sometimes, I am too tired and I want to say no. Sometimes, whatever they want isn’t what I want to do and I want to say no. Sometimes, I just plain don’t like what they want and I want to say no. But then I ask myself, is it dangerous? Do we have time? Can they benefit from this? If my answers are that it is not particularly dangerous, we have a bit of time, and they might learn something - it is time to say yes, even if I may not want to.

Experts show that we say “no” to toddlers an average of 400 times per day. If a toddler is told no every time he moves to do something, how long before he no longer tries? Before he no longer explores? Before he loses his sense of finding his limits? This is a toddlers job: to explore, to try things, to find their personal limits of what is possible.

Step into almost any kindergarten class or spend time with young kids, and those who have been told no consistently, will constantly ask permission. Even something they have been asked to do! I remember one child at recess who came and asked permission to use the slide, on the play scape, outside, at recess. That is exactly what kids are supposed to be doing at recess! This little one had been told no so many times, he didn’t know what he could do.

Let’s extrapolate that into a bigger picture. Solving a pressing world problem, this little one will look around and ask permission for a way to solve it, instead of trying new things, instead of using creativity and curiosity - because every time he has been creative and curious he, was told no.

Hearing no all the time can cause children to shut down and stop trying; it can put a lid on the natural jar of wonder that is childhood. In contrast, a child who hears yes more often is better able to try new things, has a positive outlook, and believes in possibilities.

A growth mindset is often seen as the ability to struggle, to fail, to be wrong, and to try again. To understand that failure is only the outcome of one possibility, so its time to try again and find another. If you hear no all the time, trying again may seem difficult - your project just told you no, it didn’t work - why try again? If you are used to hearing yes - your project just told you this way doesn’t work - find another.

That’s not to say that we don’t ever say no. But if I’m saying no for myself - I try to say yes instead.

Try to find ways in your home and in your life to set up situations where you can say yes to your children’s ideas. Think of ways to get to yes. It can make a world of difference in how your child perceives the world.

“Here's What Happens To Your Child's Brain When They Hear “No" By Candace Ganger, Apr 13 2018 https://www.romper.com/p/heres-what-happens-to-your-childs-brain-when-they-hear-no-8758356

“How to Say No (Without Saying No) "No." Kids hate to hear it, and you hate to say it — but how else can you keep them safe and well-behaved?” By Barbara Aria , Jan 14, 2008

A Letter To Eliza, As We Open 91��Ƶ

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:51 +0000

We opened this month. I wish you were here. The struggles and battles to find a location, to secure a lease, to fund raise, to raise awareness, to market, to recruit and admit kids; all of these pale next to the struggles that brought us to this adventure in the first place.

It was you, with your bright eyes and curious smile. You, who taught us that everyone has potential, that people of all abilities are too often not given the opportunities they deserve. And as I meet more families, I understand that to be more and more true.

We were lucky to have been given some services, to have wonderful teachers who tried their best. But that’s not always true. I’ve talked to families who have not been offered needed services, families who have been promised experiences and support that have not been supplied. I’ve met smart, aware students who are being put in a classroom with no challenges, no academics, and little support. Students whose futures are being taken away before their childhoods have even started.

My daughter loves to come to our school and asks excitedly in the morning if she can come. 91��Ƶ was built with all three of my kids in mind, to challenge, to support and to engage different learners. She told me she likes all of our activities, she likes being active in her learning, she likes doing fewer worksheets.

We are creating an elementary community and education that allows kids to learn by doing, gives them choices in activities, supports their strengths, and challenges their weaknesses. It is a place for gifted students to thrive, physically disabled students to be supported in learning skills for independence and for all children to learn empathetic action, emotional fitness and build better brains.

I came home the other night exhausted but happy. I am never bored. I am challenged each day with inspiring those who work with me, with creating a warm, nurturing and engaging learning environment, with leading our cause and finding ways to reach our market, recruit families, and build our school so that it can benefit so many.

But I wish you were here. I think of how much easier launching this school and sharing our ideas would be, if you were here. You taught our family so much about life, spirit, intelligence, and disability, and you would be able to help us teach the world. You gave me the gift of purpose. It is up to me to build our school, invite families to join our community, and create the vision you helped shape for children's education.

We opened this month, there is so much more work to do, but I am enthusiastic and excited to be on this journey. I did my happy dance the day we opened, it’s been a roller coaster ride since day one, but there’s no where else I’d rather be. Thank you, Eliza, B, and K.

Ideas 91��Ƶ Inclusion, Education And Life: A Chat With Natalee Righetti

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:46 +0000

Originally posted April 17, 2017 - written by Taylor Singmaster

Last week I sat down with author, advocate and overall amazing human being, Natalee Righetti to share ideas about inclusion, education and life with Cerebral Palsy over coffee. I could go on and on about how wonderful the afternoon chatting was, but instead, I will let her do the talking… Enjoy!

Name: Natalee Righetti

Age: 25

Work: Classroom aide for a preschool class at Weingarten Children's Center…formerly known as Jean Weingarten Peninsula Oral School for the Deaf.

Tell us a little about yourself… Along with the fact that I have Cerebral Palsy, some things that have shaped me into who I am today are my dad’s career in baseball and my siblings. I feel my disability is ultimately what keeps me grounded. I’m forced to face a challenge everyday, and I can either choose to complain and get frustrated with every little thing that is difficult or takes too much time to do, or I can be positive and accept my body for what it is and focus on growing my abilities and improving. I have a lot of support around me. My boyfriend has always made it clear that he see’s me as being capable of anything I put my mind to, which is how I like to see myself.

My dad being a professional athlete introduced me to sports at a very young age. I have always loved being active, and naturally wanted to be able to play sports like my dad, which is what drove me to work hard in physical and occupational therapy even though I hated it. Years of playing sports, volleyball in particular, proved to be very taxing on my body, so I decided to stop playing officially when I was 19 years old. I have never liked to give up when it came to the ability of my body, so I channeled my passion for playing sports into learning good nutrition and beneficial fitness routines.

Lastly, my brother and sister are a huge part of who I am. Even though there is so much I could say about having a disability that is positive, I feel the biggest blessing out of being born premature as a result of being part of triplets and almost not surviving are my brother and sister. I have always had at least two people supporting me and cheering me on through the many challenges I’ve faced. Even though our lives are going in different directions now, I know I’ll always have their support and the bond we share. At times when I’m not feeling as positive, I can look at them, and I’m reminded of everything we went through and have overcome, and that gives me strength.

91��Ƶ is looking to change the face of education, can you tell us a little about your experience in school as a child with CP? Growing up, deep down I always felt kind of like an outcast because of the struggles I faced with learning due to the trauma my brain suffered at birth. In elementary school I was pulled out of class to work with another teacher on my reading comprehension and math skills, and in junior high and high school I took my tests in the disability resource classroom. Although my peers were still kind and friendly to me for the most part, I always felt like I was labeled as “less than” because I needed extra help. My classmates always seemed confused and curious as to why I had to leave the classroom and didn’t always show it in a respectful way. That’s why I think 91��Ƶ’s goal of inclusion is so great. As long as a classroom has the educators/para educators and the resources they need, why should kids have to be separated from their classmates and the classroom environment to do so? I think it’s important for peers to interact and be aware of how the pace at which somebody learns is unique to the individual.

Now you work in the education system… can you tell us a little about your decision to go this route? I didn’t choose a job in education because I want to teach necessarily, but because I can relate so well to children with disabilities and how they may feel excluded from what typical school systems consider to be normal. One of the things that brings me the most joy is embracing others and making them feel included and accepted. If they’re frustrated with a challenge because of their disability, that’s okay, there is always a way to work through that challenge, and my hope is that the kids I work with sense that patience. I can remember being in my “normal” classroom and taking a long time to solve a math problem, and the teacher would move on to another student to get the answer, or my peers would rush me which made feel the need to be sorry for moving at my own pace. That is why I would never want a student I am working with to feel the rate at which they learn is unacceptable. The school that I’m currently working for is specifically for deaf children, so the curriculum is structured for everyone to learn at their own pace and the teachers take their time with each student.

Other than your day job you are also an advocate, speaker and author. Can you explain why you decided to get so involved and what sort of impact you are working to make? My senior year of high school after I created a Disability Awareness Day, I started to realize how much passion I had for inspiring and bringing out the best in others with challenges. From there I wanted to do whatever else I could do to get involved, such as working for organizations that help others with disabilities and writing a book about my own experience with CP and the challenges I’ve faced. When you and I met for coffee we talked about how some people with CP and other disabilities don’t even have the ability to speak for themselves and how someone like me can speak on behalf of them; well that’s how I feel. Since I have this passion for being there for other people, why not have the backs of those who have a story to tell or a message they want to get across?

When we met you told me a bit about your desire to support younger people in their relationship to different types of therapies, can you talk more about that? I went to physical and occupational therapy for the first 17 years of my life, and I never liked it. I hated feeling forced to wear braces on my leg and hand, and feared the possibility of different procedures. However, I still worked hard during each therapy session because I wanted to be strong and capable. One thing I learned from feeling conflicted about therapy yet passionate about wanting to be capable, is that the mentality you have during circumstances that is key. I knew deep down that therapy was going to help me be the best I could be, which is why I pushed through it with a can-do attitude most of the time. I sympathize with other kids who are going through therapy because not every therapy session is easy to get through with a smile on your face. My advice would be to work hard and stay patient, and good things will happen. That’s something I have found to be true with therapy as well as in life in general.

What was your personal experience with inclusion? I sort of go into my experience in the above question about education, but the classroom wasn’t the only place I felt a bit excluded. I was always the only one with a disability on sports teams, which automatically made me feel different from the other girls. I always had to deal with overcoming my own self-consciousness about being good enough to play on the team. I conquered that each practice and game by going out there and focusing on my role, giving my all, and cheering my teammates on.Tell us about your book and why you decided writing would be a part of your journey? My book is mainly a memoir about my experience with Cerebral Palsy throughout my childhood and teenage years, but throughout the book I take the readers through my parents journey of conceiving, the significance my dad’s career has had on my growing up experience and my hopes for the future. It’s really neat to think back on what my life was like as I was writing the book at 19-years-old, and the hopes that I had that have actually come to fruition. I chose to write a memoir because I was at a point where I felt I needed to share what I had learned so far from what I had gone through. I learned early on that because of my disability, nothing would ever be easy in life. I think it pushed me to mature quickly and I really had no option but to be positive and move forward through every challenge. I wanted to share the message with others in a similar position that even through disappointing or frustrating circumstances, happiness, renewed strength, and wisdom can be attained if you choose to believe in yourself and in life. That being said, I owe any positive impact that my book has had on people to one of my best friends who encouraged me to write a book. I had always thought I would write a book, but not until I was older, and she thought sharing my childhood with others would be just as beneficial as waiting till I had lived more life.

Do you have plans to write more? As of right now I don’t have plans to write more. I think I’d like to let life choose if and when I’ll write another book. I’ve always thought of writing about what it’s like being a mom with a disability is like in order to inspire other women like me, but we’ll see!

Where can we follow your journey? Get in touch? Learn more? Find your book? I am on Facebook and Instagram, although I don’t post things often. I can be reached through Linkedin and my business email: nataleerighetti@gmail.com. You can find my book on Amazon, and buy it in person if I’m doing a book signing!

Stay tuned for possible upcoming collaborated events by 91��Ƶ and Natalee Righetti. Want to support both UP and Natalee? Purchase her book, Beautifully Different, through Amazon Smiles; Supporting: 91��Ƶ:

Where Everyone Fits

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:42 +0000

Originally posted March 15, 2017

This weekend we sold cookies at a Girl Scout booth outside a commissary on a military base. I want to share what we learned about inclusivity and support because it was an unexpected pleasure.

My daughter is a Girl Scout because her sister was a Girl Scout. Eliza was invited to be a Girl Scout and my instinct was to say no. I hated Girl Scouts as a kid. I felt our leader was unfairly mean to me and I didn’t like going. I thought it was boring and I didn’t really like the other girls there, I only had one friend in the troop. In college I was hired to teach mountain biking at a Girl Scout summer camp, but I had to sign that I would practice and teach the Girl Scout promise, in which a part states that “. . . I will try to serve God. . .” and being a good college student, questioning everything I had been raised with, I had turned my back on christianity and could not in good conscience say that I was serving God and that I would teach other girls to as well. So I was not a good Girl Scout.

But, Eliza was invited and she was excited about it. Her friends were Girl Scouts and she really wanted to be a part of their troop. I didn’t want to be one more person telling her what she couldn’t do, she had enough of those, I needed to make opportunities happen for her despite my history with the Girl Scouts. So I agreed, and she joined. And it turned out to be one of the best things that she did. It was one of our first introductions to inclusion and an opportunity for me as a mother to get over myself and do something for my kid. The troop was welcoming and accepting of her disabilities and willingly made changes to ensure she was always included. I learned that the organization had evolved a lot since my own childhood and college experience. And for Eliza, it was the first time she was a part of something that wasn’t based in therapy or school - with the Girl Scouts she could really just be a kid.

Girl Scouts also strengthened Eliza’s relationship with her sister. When cookie sales came around she enlisted her sister to flag down cars to her booth in our driveway.. At the time of cookie sales Eliza had just begun using a button to speak, she hadn’t had a voice before - choices, yes - but now she had a voice, even if it wasn’t exactly hers and always said the same thing. She relished using it every chance she got. We programmed it to sell cookies and she used it to ask everyone she saw. Eliza was the second top seller in her troop by never being afraid to ask for the sale. Her sister witnessed her tenacity and excitement and wanted to be a part of it too.

Eliza passed away before they got to be Girl Scout sisters, but that didn’t stop Breda’s excitement and enthusiasm to be a part of a group that her sister loved so much. Which is why, on a rainy, windy Sunday afternoon we were standing outside a commissary selling cookies.

What I really wanted to talk about was the acts of kindness we saw at the commissary that seemed so commonplace. When we arrived we went inside to introduce ourselves, ask where to set up and use the restroom. As we walked around I realized the entire place is set up for people with disabilities, which makes sense to accommodate injuries sustained while fighting for and protecting our country. It is welcoming to those who have given, sometimes quite literally, parts of themselves, to serve. It was built decades ago, long before ‘universal design’ was a fashionable term. I’ve never seen it executed so completely and it gave me great ideas of what designing a school could look like. Every door, even the one to the restroom, has a button to open it. Every restroom stall has bars, so anyone needing a little help, whether in a regular stall or the bigger stall to fit a wheelchair, has the needed help. The sinks, soaps, towels and dryers were all placed a little lower on the wall, which was great for my 5-year-old who could reach everything, creating no inconvenience for the able bodied and every convenience for someone using a wheelchair.

And that’s just the grocery store! The people were outstanding too. There were extra staff to help out the elderly, disabled or people who just bought a lot of food, get to their cars. We witnessed one older gentleman ask another man in the parking lot to guide him out of his parking stall, and his response was not just to guide him, but seeing he needed extra help, offered to actually drive the car out of the spot for him so he didn’t need to worry about his range of motion to look backward or his spatial awareness to not hit other cars. I haven’t seen that level of helpfulness and kindness since I was a child in a small midwestern farm town.

It was an experience that was unexpected - we only wanted to sell our last several boxes of Girl Scout cookies… But what we witnessed was an understanding that everyone has different abilities and strengths, and a willingness to help. The structure of the building, the staff and the culture was one of support and acceptance.

A sense of belonging is a basic human need. The feeling that we are accepted, we are wanted, we are valued and we are a part of the natural order of things. The inclusion that Eliza found with the Girl Scouts and the design and structure of the commissary both created a sense of belonging. In a world that is so fractured, it’s comforting to find places where everyone fits.

Gratitude

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:33 +0000

Originally published December 6, 2016

This is a season of gratitude. Thanksgiving offers the country a time to be grateful and spend some time with family and friends. Christmas is about sharing and love. Hanukkah is about seeing through the darkness and finding light, recognizing miracles. Kwanzaa offers a time to work together, find community, unity and purpose. The end of the calendar or a new year in almost every culture and religion signifies a time to reflect, to recognize, to be grateful. A time when we remember everything we have and recognize everyone special in our lives.

This year there are a lot of people who have done extraordinary things for me and my family. And we have so much to be grateful for. Our loss has left a gaping hole in our lives. A hole that I see everywhere all the time. I think of the things she would like, would do, how she would react. But that big black hole has another often unnoticed result. It illuminates everything around it and all of the wonderful things and abilities we have. Surrounding the darkness, we can see the light, and it is so important to see the light.

We ran a turkey trot race on Thanksgiving. As we started my legs were tight, I didn’t feel like running, it was cold, I hadn’t done the proper training and I have gained 15 pounds since my daughter's death, trying to eat away my sorrow. As I was running and feeling miserable, I realized, I CAN RUN. I am so fortunate. My sweet Eliza, and so many people around the world, cannot run or walk. I can run.

I can hear the singing of my two children in the double stroller, they are almost too big to fit, but they do it for a race every once in awhile because they can’t run six miles yet either. I realized, I CAN HEAR. I have two amazing kids that are having fun on this cold morning with me, outside, under a blanket, running with us. THEY CAN TALK. They can easily share emotions, thoughts, needs and wants.

A few miles later I am still not feeling great and I am mentally pushing myself through the race and I remember all the therapy sessions where I asked Eliza for just one more try. She was tired, ready to quit, but she gave just one more try. I thought of how hard she worked to do basic things and reminded myself, I CAN RUN. I reminded myself to try my best, not to stop, to finish the race. Then I could go home and eat leftovers, with my own two hands. I CAN FEED MYSELF. I have the use of my hands and arms and the ability to feed myself. It is a miracle and it is amazing.

I am grateful for all of the support. I am grateful for all of my abilities. I am grateful for my family. I am grateful for my friends. I am truly grateful for the six years that Eliza was in my life, illuminating the possibilities and making sure I never took for granted the abilities and opportunities in my life.

I miss you Eliza.
Thank you for sharing your time with us.
I am grateful.

Why A School? - Part 2

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:29 +0000

Originally posted November 16, 2016

Kids are made of love and acceptance, when we give them a chance, beautiful things happen. I was terrified to send Eliza to school. She was non-verbal, needed support to move around the classroom, go to the toilet, eat her lunch. She couldn’t come home and tell me if children were mean to her, or worse, if someone touched her, hurt her or abused her in some way. I didn’t know how the kids would react to her. But she made friends, very good friends. Her teachers were supportive and receptive to learning to work with her and teach her. She learned to read and do math, she was interested and curious in science and her project based learning group solved problems quickly with innovative solutions. Her friends wanted to sit with her at lunch, wanted to walk with her at recess, wanted to have her in their groups. All of the kids accepted her and she became one of the most popular kids at school. Kids just see kids, they don’t see all of the other “stuff” that adults see. Kids just see kids.

Kindness matters. “Fairness isn’t everyone getting the same, it’s everyone getting what they need”, (Rick Riordan). Empathy may be the trait that most determines success in the coming age of artificial intelligence and machine learning. How do we build little people to be successful, kind, empathetic adults who are capable of handling situations, making decisions, creating progress? Elementary school is the base for further education, it is the base for life, how do we give our kids the best so they can reach their potential? Through creating ways for them to work together, be kind and helpful, considerate and caring. Through inclusion of all types and abilities of people, through helping them to learn to follow their thoughts, express their ideas, build things, fail.

Seeing how my daughter fit in and made friends, the impact those friends and classmates had on her, and the impact she had on the lives of the other children and their families made me realize the only way to educate was in an inclusive environment. We all have so much to learn and share together. I was wanting to create a place where Eliza could reach her full potential, where she could get everything she needed in one place without all of the driving and scheduling, why couldn’t we do that for all of our kids. Many kids are shuttled after school to language, to music, to art, to other places to learn more things - why can’t we offer all of that in the school day? These classes and skills benefit all kids. Let’s create an inclusive academy where all kids can get the things they need, supported by excellent staff, to make it easier for parents, easier for kids and everyone can benefit.

In the early stages of planning the school I laid in bed one night crying while talking with my husband about how to make our school the best place for ALL students. In addition to Eliza, we have two other children. How could I justify taking all three of kids out of their school unless what we created was so much better? How do I provide the programs and ideas they need for success alongside the therapies that Eliza needed for success? Why should my other children have access to coding, foreign language, art, music, and making projects while Eliza works on holding herself up and walking? Doesn’t Eliza need all of this other knowledge too to compete in the world? Actually, it may be even more important for her because of the limitations she will have. Answering these questions became the basis of 91��Ƶ.

It shouldn’t be this way.

There should be a better way.

So, I started to design one… 91��Ƶ.

Why A School?

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:24 +0000

Originally posted October 21, 2016

When I tell people of my plans to open a progressive, inclusive school, they often ask, Why a School? The answer to that is not simple and did not come easily.

When we found out our daughter, Eliza, had a brain injury and would need extensive therapy for hope of a recovery, I started doing research. I looked all over the country, all over the world, for options to help support her in any way that I could. We did the traditional therapies - Physical, Occupational and Speech and Language. We looked at The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential and followed Glenn Doman’s ideas. We took a course at the Family Hope Center and did a home program for years under their guidance. We then switched to the National Association for Child Development’s home program. We found a clinic in Graz, Austria which helped us get her off her G-tube, found an amazing OT and lactation consultant who had NICU experience and helped us breastfeed. We did neurosuit therapy and CME (Cuevas Medek Exercises) in Los Angeles at the NAPA center and did conductive education camp through United Cerebral Palsy’s Boost Camp. We spent four months out of one year traveling to San Rafael to work with Anat Baniel and her team and worked with other Feldenkrais practitioners as well. I talked to neurologists about medications, surgeries, deep brain stimulation, nanoparticle development and brain plasticity. I read books about child development, brain development, and growth. The list goes on.

I always believed in the power of yet. She couldn’t do many things - YET - but she would, she just needed the right support to learn and develop.

After spending all of my time researching, working, learning and doing everything I could to help my child, I went to her first IEP meeting (her individualized education plan for starting elementary school). It was a shock and a disappointment. They didn’t care about any of it. They would only do what was academically necessary for her to simply access school. After Boost Camp Eliza was sitting independently and walking with a little help and a walking ladder, but these were not deemed academically necessary and they would not train her aide to continue the work. They weren’t interested in helping her progress or succeed, they didn’t care about all of the hours of hard work she had put in to gain the skills she had. They were only required to help her access school. Not necessarily learn, not progress, not get stronger or more independent. Just access.

I was sent a letter explaining the other factors for the school districts refusal. Here is that excerpt:

A student’s IEP must be designed to meet the students unique needs and be reasonable calculated to provide the student with some educational benefit, but that the IDEA does not require school districts to provide special education students with the best education available or to provide instruction or services that maximize a student’s abilities (Board of Education of the Hendrick Hudson Central School dist. V. Rowley (1982) 458 U.S., 176,200). A School district mush provide “a basic floor of opportunity. . .(consisting) of access to specialized instruction and related services which are individually designed to provide educational benefit to the (child with disability)” (Rowley, 458 U.S. 176 at 201). The intent of the IDEA is to “open the door of public education” to children with disabilities; it does not “guarantee any particular level of education once inside.” (Id, At P. 192). The IDEA requires neither that a school district provide the best education to a child with a disability, nor that it provides an education that maximizes the child’s potential. (Rowley, supra, 458 U.S. at pp. 197; Gregory K v Longview School dist. (9th cir. 1987) 811 F. 2d 1307, 1314).

There are so many things wrong with this. A child with disabilities is already facing an uphill battle, against his/her own body, societal norms and accessibility. Shouldn’t school be someplace supportive where the child can learn to overcome hurdles and be given the best chance possible at success? Isn’t that what we want for ALL of our children?

I was so angry. Reading it still makes me angry. I wanted to see if other parents were angry too so I started asking questions. The answers I got made me realize that we were in a pretty good district. Even with everything they had said to me, other parents and children were facing much bigger and harder struggles with their schooling. These kids needed more support and more understanding, not just access to school. They deserve to thrive and be given the chance to show competence and independence.

Every parent wants the best for their child. Every parent will do everything they can to ensure their child’s success. Every parent will give their child everything they can. This is something I could do for my child, to give her the best chance to succeed. To take what she has taught me and make the world better for thousands of other children. Every child deserves the best we can give them.

It shouldn’t be this way.
There should be a better way.
I started to design a new kind of school.

World Cerebral Palsy Day

Tanya Sheckley — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:32:20 +0000

Originally Posted October 10, 2016

I started to cry just trying to think about what to write about my daughter, about how she changed me, how she influenced our family, how she made us a family. Tears are streaming down my cheeks as I begin to share what she taught me, and what I hope her legacy can teach the world.

She is one of the four loves of my life (maybe five if you count my sweet lab Zeke), she was the child who turned my husband and I into a family. She challenged everything we thought we knew about parenting, as any child does. She made us stronger, she gave us purpose. I am so lucky to have a loving and supportive husband and Eliza’s two amazing siblings; but she was my first born.

Eliza had cerebral palsy, as a parent I don’t think I fully accepted her disability until she was going into kindergarten. I didn’t see a child who couldn’t walk or talk, I saw a child full of potential and trying her best to learn. I saw a child who couldn't do it yet, but one day she would. A child who found so many ways to communicate and to get what she wanted. She was so full of expression and I know she had so many ideas. One look into her eyes and you knew that she understood everything around her, she was very curious and observant. She loved everyone and would always be excited to see a friend. She was the most tenacious and resilient kid I have ever known. She never gave up. These things are her legacy: Be Kind, Be Strong and Always Try Your Best.

Today is World Cerebral Palsy Day, which seems like a good day to begin sharing her life and her story. I can honor her by remembering all that she brought to our family, and I can try to honor every person living with Cerebral Palsy by having an idea of the challenges and rewards this disability can bring.

Over the coming months and years I hope to share her story with you. I hope it will help to make the world more understanding and I hope that we are able to use this knowledge to create change and inspire inclusion. We are so lucky that Eliza was loved by so many.