TORRINGTON – According to Lincoln Elementary principal Lana Swingholm, there are a number of new programs and methods the school is implementing to better benefit the learning of our young students.

As mentioned by other principals in the district, Lincoln will also be implementing Leader in Me. She shared how the staff will be training this month and they plan to start working with the students using this program in October. 

“We’re really excited about it. I don’t know if you know of any of Stephen Covey’s work, but the teachers all went through a seminar and it was just, you know, very valuable for self and for growth and I think I would recommend it to any to anybody,” Swingholm shared. 

Another program the school and, others in the district, are applying is Professional Learning Community (PLC). The program collects data to make better decisions for the students. It helps the staff figure out what is and isn’t working for the students and help them decide how the students’ needs can be met. 

 “What do we want students to know? How are we going to know if they get there? What are we going to do if they don’t? And what are we going to do for students who already know the material? According to Swingholm, those are the questions the database uses to help make those decisions. 

“So really meeting kids where they need their academic support and supporting that. So, using database decisions to do that is really exciting and we’ve done some of that work in the past but we’re getting really laser focused on being able to do that and I can say last year we we’ve already seen some really great successes,” Swingholm noted. 

The staff have also been working on using student success teams to help make sure all students are receiving the resources they need. 

“And the third one is student success teams and the MTSS is multi-tiered systems of support. We really just want to get really good at what we do, you know, and if the student needs something specific, we’re there to able to be there with the resources so that every student has the ability to learn and grow to their utmost potential,” Swingholm said. 

More specifically grade-wise, each grade has a new method in place to help the students adjust and learn at an appropriate pace. Lincoln is really focused on getting the students to where they need to be in a way which works best for the child. 

This year, kindergarteners are doing a staggered start. This is in place to help the staff really get to know the students and their individual needs so they can better place the students for success.

“Kindergarten has gone through the staggered start process, which is very unique to Lincoln, and it’s a phenomenal process. It’s a two-week process of bringing kids in, in small groups, and then doing testing and getting to know them and where are their strengths, what are the things that we need to work on, and then the teams bring the classes together. So they actually build very cohesive classes that are just well balanced and that’s very unique to us because in many kindergarten classrooms you haven’t had any exposure with them and so you just drop kids into different places and sometimes you get a class with maybe some high behaviors or some really significant needs but using the staggered start process really balances the playing field and it’s really really good for kids,” 

The kindergarteners just finished this process last week and now will being working as whole classes. 

First graders are working to put new systems in place. They are looking at data from the previous year to find out where they need to start and what needs worked on. 

Second grade is working in a similar way to the first graders. A lot of deciding is going into the curriculum based off of last year’s scores so the staff can decide what the kids need in order to put them where they should be. 

Swingholm shared a new technique they are using with the second graders, “Second grade has a great motto they’ve used the Nike swoosh and rather than ‘just do it’ they have ‘just learn it’ and so it’s kind of a unique motto for their grade and it’s just really fun to see them collaborate and building culture in their classrooms”.

This year Lincoln is really working on getting to know the kids and their individual needs and making sure those needs are met. This is why these programs are being implemented. Many school are attempting to work on more child based learning rather than just adding more and more information the children seem to forget and it seems like it may be working.

“You know, we always want to hold that high standard and the high expectation for students but sometimes, you know, we’ve got to meet the students where they are and build the skills from there and so that’s really what the intervention is about,” Swingholm stated.

The next thing Lincoln has implemented is what they’re calling extended learning. The idea of it is to help the kids in between where other students are learning rather it be above or below. The idea is to combat overlapped learning or to fill in the gaps where things are missing. 

 “Another thing we’re going to really focus on this year, is extended learning for students who already have the skills in place and just need, you know, an extra push. It’s not about giving them more work, right, it’s differentiated work so that they are learning at their levels as well. So, lots and lots of conversations happening and starting and moving kids and it’s really neat. Every grade is so unique and the way that they work together and so it’s fun to see that. So, kindergarten, you know, staggered start. First grade does very fluid intervention groups and they do such a great job with that. Second grade really works together and has banded together about, you know, what they teach in the classroom is very similar and so really good work happening at Lincoln,” Swingholm said.

Swingholm wanted to give a special shoutout to the food service staff in the district. With the new grant which allows all the kids to receive free meals, she is excited to see it utilized. Swingholm is hoping to see a lot of people taking advantage of it. She also hopes it will help the students academically. 

“There’s a grant that all kids can receive free breakfast and lunch this year. We are really excited about that and the more participation that we have the more that we can offer this. I’m excited for kids. When I think of free breakfast and lunch for any family, right, I think about my own family. My kids are grown and older now but, you know, we have a blended family of five, you know, that could be $500 every month, you know, if not more, so having the opportunity to have free breakfast and lunch for families is good for kids and good for families. You know a hungry brain focuses on hunger right, and a fed body focuses on the mind of what it can learn so you’ve got to feed your kids,” Swingholm stated. 

Swingholm also shared how Lincoln has seven new staff members this year. Some for classrooms, some for specials and a few new paraprofessionals. She is very happy with the staff members she works with, pre-existing and new. She speaks very highly of all of them and the work they do with the kids. She knows the staff care and will do their best to support them. Swingholm is very excited for the school year. She believes Lincoln is a great place to be.