When I first came to Pace Learning Center I didn’t want to be here. There were only a couple of kids, but i got a lot of attention and made some friends. I had a bad temper and always was getting held at the YMCA before and after school.

I really like my teachers here and am really good at doing my work, especially math. So I finished kindergarten and first grade, then I got a new teacher at PLC for second grade. My mom really wanted me to go back to my public school and I wanted to go back too.

So I started to go there for a half day in the afternoon for a couple of weeks. Things went really good and right after Thanksgiving I went back to my public school permanently. At PLC I learned to control my anger and be a positive role model to the little kids. I only needed to be restrained one time the whole time I was at PLC. I also learned to be safe and to use my safety plan when I get mad.

~PLC student

— Pace Student

~ Pace School Student

Learning to read is a challenge!  This challenge is due in part to the structure of our English language.  Words such as “rough”, “cough”, “through” and “bough” all contain the same /ough/ pattern, but each word is pronounced quite differently.  It is no wonder that many children have a difficult time learning to read!

We all know that words are made up of speech sounds (phonemes) and the awareness of the speech sounds in words is the foundation for learning to read.  Beginning as early as the age of four, children can learn the sounds of our language through language play known as phonological awareness.

Phonological Awareness and Phonemic Awareness

Phonological awareness is a general term that describes a myriad of linguistic concepts such as rhyme and alliteration, clapping syllables, blending word parts, isolating sounds in words, deleting syllables, phoneme blending, phoneme segmentation, and phoneme deletion.  Phonemic awareness is a term that specifically refers to the awareness that spoken words are made up of individual speech sounds (consonants and vowels) and that these sounds can be manipulated in a variety of ways. The majority of these skills are accomplished by the time a child completes second grade. According to the National Reading Panel (2000) phonemic awareness ability is strongly correlated to a child’s success with learning to read.  In addition, it is strongly believed that the majority of children that have difficulty learning to read demonstrate a deficit in their phonemic awareness skills.

How Parents Can Help

There are a number of things that parents can do to ensure the their child develops the foundation for learning to read.  Parents of students in preschool to third grade should ask their child’s teacher about the classroom literacy curriculum.  Specifically, parents should ask for information regarding how phonological awareness is taught during these formative years.  Most of today’s research-based reading curriculum embed phonological awareness activities within the curriculum.  If phonological awareness activities are not included in the reading curriculum, parents should ask how these skills are taught in the classroom. An effective phonological awareness program only takes 10-15 minutes per day to complete and can occur at any point in the school day.

For some students, participation in the reading curriculum alone does not provide the amount of support that a child needs to learn to read.  If you feel that your child is struggling with learning to read, talk with your child’s teacher about getting additional support for your child.  A referral to a reading specialist or a speech therapist may be beneficial, particularly when children struggle with phonological tasks.  A short intervention period with a reading specialist or speech therapist may be all that your child needs.

Finally, phonological awareness activities are fun and easy to do at home.  Dr. Seuss books are an excellent source for recognizing rhyme and tongue twisters are a fun way to learn alliteration (beginning sound repetition).  Clapping the syllables that make up the names of friend, family members and pets are an easy way to learn that words are made up of syllables.  Guessing the secret word is a fun way to teach phoneme blending.  Parents can say the individual sounds that make up a word and the child guesses the secret word by blending the sounds (d-o-g is dog).  Phonemic segmentation is a more challenging activity.  Parents slowly say a word such as “dog” and the child puts up a finger or moves a penny for every sound heard.

Parents are their child’s greatest advocates.  Talk to your child’s teacher about the reading curriculum and phonological awareness to ensure that your child has a strong foundation for learning to read.

written by Diane Bradley M.Ed.

Speech & Language Therapist/Reading Specialist

Faced with increasingly frequent and severe behavioral issues, the team members worked hard to address the problems within their classroom while also expressing their concerns and ideas to others staff members. They selflessly worked extra hours to collaborate with an extensive consulting team to understand and implement new interventions to meet the needs of their students. They modeled their commitment to positive growth and change to their students by accepting suggestions from supervisors and other teams and then teaching their students how to accept these changes in classroom routines, procedures, and management.

What made this so amazing is that many of the new ideas did not show immediate results, yet the team persevered.  By continuously analyzing and evaluating each student’s needs, individual and classroom behavior did eventually improve and the positive growth and change, that at times felt impossible, did happen.

~written by Rachel Kittenbrink, Educational Supervisor

The quality of Pace School’s programs and the excellence of its management practices were recognized by the prestigious Alfred W. Wishart, Jr. Award for Excellence.  There are over 600 nonprofit organizations in Southwestern Pennsylvania and, among so many, Pace School took the prize for its superior performance.

Throughout the year, Pace explored new worlds and strategies to reach students with Autism and serious emotional, developmental or learning needs. Comic book adventures were created in collaboration with Brainstorm Creative to introduce incoming students to their new school. On-line videos were produced to allow parents to see what benefits await their child before they enroll. Collaborations with local professional artists gave children opportunities to express themselves in different ways.

And the journey continues!

Your support for 2010-2011 will make the lives of our students even better. Please join me and give now. Be part of our award winning effort to open the doors to learning for every child. Pace School students deserve no less.  Thank you.

Click the image below to view our Annual Report comic!

Gateway to the Arts has made a first rate impact on the students at Pace School ESY program.  The students have learned about the rich Brazilian culture.  They were exposed to the vibrant dance, appealing food, and alluring music. The students adopted Portuguese as a second language and learned many words in Portuguese including “hello” and “goodbye.” The next week, the students learned about quilt making. They learned how different symbols found on modern quilts represent words like “peace, boy, girl, and protection.”

The students at Pace were enriched by the astonishing music of Jazz. They learned how Jazz made an impact here in Pittsburgh and how Jazz musicians from Pittsburgh have changed the world. Gateway to the Arts brought modern dance to Pace and gave the students the opportunity to see professional dancers interpret their abilities. Last the students at Pace School ESY program were educated about the mother of all modern music- the Blues. They learned how the Blues started on the plantations in the South during the time of slavery. They learned how some important Blues musicians helped this country through a time of great adversity and division.

Gateway to the Arts would mean nothing if I forgot to mention something about the professional people who brought this program to Pace. Ricardo, Allison and Olivia were all knowledgeable about the Arts and shared a great deal of what they know to both staff and students. We greatly appreciate them visiting us this summer and enriching us with their skill and creativity. Both the staff and students have enjoyed a variety of projects. We hope that they are willing to come back next year to enrich us again. They will be warmly welcomed.

~written by Special Education Teacher Timothy Todd