From Barriers to Blooming: The Benefits of Therapy Integrated into the Classroom

 

Imagine having to find a lawyer to sue the state Department of Education, simply so your child can learn.

That was the situation facing Erin Barr and her husband as their daughter Frances prepared for kindergarten. 

“We didn’t know if she would walk and she really struggled with speech as well. Both were incredibly delayed. The medical professionals weren’t sure what was going on,” said Erin. “She’s done physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, all from the age of 1. It was pretty intense. And then finally, when she was 4, we got some answers that the developmental delay was related to a genetic mutation, as was the autism spectrum disorder.”

They had some answers. But they didn’t have a solution.

The family looked into all the schools for children on the autism spectrum, which were extremely expensive (about $130,000 per year). In researching all the options, they attended a seminar where they learned of what seemed the only viable option: to sue the state Department of Education to pay for private school by proving the public school system wasn’t adequate.

And then the pandemic hit. With chaos and death all around them, all the cases were dismissed and they were told they had to mainstream Frances to public school. What could they do?

 

Finding Solutions: Halfway Across the Country

Fortunately, Erin, who came from Minnesota and still had family here, had already started looking for resources and found Franklin Center (at the time, Academy of Whole Learning).

Given the pandemic, the family met with the Franklin Academy team online and shared videos with them of Frances scootering, talking, and playing, so the team could get a sense of who Frances is.

“Frances started in October of 2020, and she’s now in fourth grade. The move was so worth it,” said Erin. “Frances always reaches the goal, in her own way, in her own time. She’s thriving. She’s reading, she’s writing, and she’s good at math. She always mentions that her teachers work at her level. She might be at one level in one thing, but a different level in other subjects. Even neurotypical people aren’t at the same level in different subjects, so Franklin’s approach to work at each student’s level across subjects makes total sense.”

Beyond the academics, Frances is now the most social member of the family. “She always wanted to be a social butterfly, but didn’t quite know how. At Franklin she’s learned to be confident, to regulate herself, to make friends. She loves drawing and fashion; she always has fun outfits on. She’s doing yoga, going to the apple orchard. It’s been really cool to see her grow.”

Frances also works with Franklin Therapy. Originally she received 40 hours each week and is now down to 20. “They would rotate different therapists to work with her, so she could get used to new people and different approaches. Before Franklin we would have to drive her all around to the different therapists – it’s so nice now with Therapy in the same building. The therapists are all in communication with each other. It’s so streamlined, which I really love,” said Erin.

Claire Roberts, Senior Registered Behavior Therapist, works as a treatment lead, coordinating all the professionals working with a family. When Frances first came to Franklin, Claire was one of the therapists who worked with her 40 hours a week. 

“I’ve seen so much growth and we’ve bonded so much over the years,” said Claire. “It’s kind of sad not to be with her all the time, but it means we’ve all done our job for her. She’s learning and she’s capable of doing things on her own.”

Hadiya Martin, a Registered Behavior Technician, works with Frances on a daily basis, greeting her at the start of the day, staying with her in class, and then working 1:1 with her after school.

“I like to step aside to see if she can do it by herself, because I want her to be independent,” said Hadiya, “but if I feel like she can’t, I’ll encourage her. I’ll give her a visual card showing the action (like putting her coat away) and say, ‘let’s use your lion voice’ to ask for what she needs help with. She’s getting better advocating for herself.”

Beyond positive verbal reinforcement for progress, Frances loves to get stickers and all things “girly.”

“She’s a really special person. Oftentimes she’ll walk into school holding a waffle, so you can find her standing by her locker, finishing breakfast, kind of smiling at everybody walking by. She’s just a happy kid,” said Claire.

 

An Integrated Team

Frances is one of many students who attend the Academy and receive therapy, including physical, speech, and occupational therapy, offered at Franklin Therapy by Capernaum Pediatric Therapy.

In addition to monthly team meetings with the therapists, the treatment leads, and the program manager, the team frequently checks in with one another – which is made simpler by the fact that they’re all located in one building.

Any therapist can sit in on another therapist session – for example Claire and Hadiya can observe Frances’ physical therapy, and a therapist can join a family skills session.

Therapists also offer “push therapy” via Franklin Academy.

“Instead of taking the kids out of class, the occupational therapist might provide therapy in the classroom,” said Claire. “They might help students eat or write or fulfill their sensory needs in the environment that they’re most often in or when they are most often having the need for those tools and services.”

 

Future Promise

After a beginning filled with barriers and unknowns, what does the future hold for Frances? 

“She’s progressing and growing. She’s doing it on her own time,” said her mom. “We want her to work and live up to her ability. And her aspirations are pretty high! She wanted me to sign her up for basketball already in fourth grade, but it doesn’t start until sixth grade!”

The therapy team agrees. “I think she’s going to grow up to be an artist. She’s going to be drawing and coloring,” said Claire. “She’s got the coolest aesthetic of how she draws. You could hold up a hundred drawings and one of them would be hers and anybody that knows Frances would be able to pick out her drawing.”

To learn more about how Franklin Center integrates therapy and learning for a holistic education, please schedule a conversation with us.

If you’d like a consultation with the Therapy team, please schedule an intake here.