Learning supports at A. E. Bowers include the Learning Support teachers, literacy support teacher, school Child Development Advisor (CDA) and Learning Support Assistants.
Learning Support Teachers:
- Mrs. Gillian Hatto
- Mme Alex Gillingham
Generally working as a resource for the classroom teacher, the Learning Support Team provides support in the regular classroom, in small group or one-on-one outside the regular classroom. This is done through assessment and programming for individual students.
The students we work with may be formally identified by Alberta Education as students with special needs. Additionally, we work with students who are not formally identified but are experiencing significant difficulty for one reason or another. Students with developmental, medical or physical, learning, behavioral and or emotional needs and second language learners are, generally, the students with whom the team is involved.
Accessing and coordinating services from RVS' Learning Support Department is another responsibility of the Learning Support Team. These services include a divisional Educational Psychologist, Family School Liaison, Learning Specialist, and an Autism Support Strategist as well as Alberta Mental Health. Access to outside agencies for supporting students with complex and/or severe needs is also initiated and coordinated by the school based Learning Support Team through the divisional team. Some examples of outside agencies we work with are REACH, COPE and the Alberta Children's Hospital.
Our school based Learning Support Team also works with RVS' Early Intervention Team to support students transitioning from Kindergarten into Grade 1 and supporting Kindergarten and Grade 1 students receiving speech and language, and occupational therapies.
Assisting families to access community based supports such as speech and language services through Alberta Health Services (AHS), family/home supports through Airdrie - Community Links and AHS Public Health are other ways we support students school wide. We can also help families to access services for children with disabilities through the Alberta Government's "Family Supports for Children with Disabilities" (FSCD) program.
Acting as school contacts/lead teachers, we support the Alberta Education & Human Services "Success in Schools" (SIS) program for students in foster care, and the goals and objectives of Alberta Education's "First Nation, Metis and Inuit" (FNMI) Initiative and "English as a Second Language" (ESL) programs.