School Days for Feb. 10

Bishop McHugh
Teachers at Bishop McHugh Regional Catholic School will be learning more about improving outcomes of students diagnosed with autism and other special needs, made possible by a $5,000 grant from the Mike’s Seafood Polar Bear Run/Walk for Autism in Sea Isle City. According to the Mayo Clinic, autism impacts more than 200,000 in the U.S. each year.
The grant will fund professional development workshops and coaching/mentoring coordinated by Dr. Mary Kientz, autism consultant and Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy at Stockton University. Dr. Kientz and other experts will meet with Bishop McHugh faculty and staff over three sessions to provide practical and evidence-based strategies to promote success in the classroom for all children, with special emphasis on effective ways of addressing the needs of children diagnosed with autism. 
“Research indicates that targeted professional development promotes teacher and staff skills and affords optimal education outcomes for all students,” said Principal Tom McGuire. “Students diagnosed with autism as well as all students have unique learning needs.  This professional development opportunity will permit our teachers and staff to learn more and implement effective strategies in the classroom with benefits for everyone involved.”
Students in Bishop McHugh’s Little Storm Preschool have begun Young Active Minds, a new initiative facilitated by Stockton University’s Occupational Therapy Program that is designed to facilitate the self-regulation skills important to the young child. The Young Active Minds Program is being developed in collaboration with faculty and students from Stockton, and a generous donation of learning materials from the online equipment company, Fun and Function (funandfunction.com), which specializes in therapeutic learning tools.
“Self-regulation is a child’s ability to develop and gain control of his/her emotions, behavior, motor skills and communications skills,” according to Dr. Kathleen Klein, Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy, Stockton University. “It is an important life skill that children begin to develop from birth with the support of caring adults, and it’s one that will help children maintain interest and attention needed for learning and good relationships.”
As part of the program, teachers will receive professional development in topics that include (a) Self-Regulation in Early Childhood, (b) Fine Motor Skill Development, (c) Challenging Behaviors, and (d) Best Practices in Teaching Pre-K Students. Teachers then work alongside Stockton graduate students and staff to co-teach with these additional learning experiences. Occupational Therapy Students Carly Jordan and Gabrielle Richardson will be working in the Bishop McHugh classrooms.
Bishop McHugh Regional Catholic School is a PreK-8 regional school in Cape May County with a student-centered curriculum grounded in the Gospel values. For more information, visit http://bishopmchugh.com/mchugh/. The community is invited to “Like” Bishop McHugh on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BishopMcHughRegionalSchool and follow Principal McGuire on Twitter at @BMRCSPrincipal.