Site could be of interest as a potential resource for special needs in Quebec

A site / group of interest that was recently noted is www.laccompagnateur.org.

This site appears to be an attempt to catalogue a significant portion of special needs services and interested parties in Quebec. They have even gone so far as to sort the listings by region, and do an English translation of the information, which is greatly appreciated.

Somehow though, they managed to put this whole thing together without mentioning REACH School, the only English-language public school for kids with intellectual disabilities in the Greater Montreal Region. Obviously Reach is located on the South Shore, in St. Lambert, and serves surrounding communities and most of the Monteregie.*

It isn't readily apparent whether the site continues to be active.

While we're at it, we might as well mention the "Monteregie Handicapped Portal", another website resource listing, in French only. This one doesn't list schools or school districts - but it is listed on the sidebar as it does target the South Shore Montreal area, and includes a good list of associations.

* April 8/2012  In the meantime, I have been in touch with the good people at the laccompagnateur site and they have promised to include REACH School and some of our other links in a future update of their site, so that is great news. It bears mentioning that they are a group of parents who have done all this on a volunteer basis, so kudos and best of luck to them in their endeavours in our common cause! 

REACH School 2011 Graduation June 16

REACH School's graduation and final concert of the year was held June 16 at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in St. Lambert.

The school, which provides specialized education for children, aged 4-21, with intellectual disabilities, celebrated the achievements of three young graduates and presented a number of awards, accompanied by an inspirational concert program.

Included in this year's awards were, the James O'Donnell Memorial Award, the Bill Clahane Memorial Award, elementary and secondary awards from the Riverside Teachers' Union, the Sheila Woods Memorial Award, the Riverside School Board Bursaries Achievement Awards, the REACH Certificate of Merit, the Riverside Administrators' Awards, the Commissioner's Awards of Merit, The Sports Merit Award, the Travel Training Award, the Work Study Award, the Music Award, the Robert Hobbs Memorial Award, and the Michael Poirier Memorial Award.

Congratulations to this year's three graduates, to all the award winners and to all the students and teachers of REACH for another successful year!


Members of the entire community joined in for a rousing rendition of the REACH Song, which is as follows:

The REACH Song

When the world leaves you feeling blue, you can count on me
I will be there for you
When it seems all your hopes and dreams
Are a million miles away, I will reassure you
We got to stick together, good friends there for each other
Never ever forget that I got you and you got me, so

Chorus:
Reach for the stars, climb every mountain higher,
Reach for the stars, follow your heart's desire,
Reach for the stars and when the rainbow's shining over you
That's when your dreams will all come true.

There's a place waiting just for you, it's a special place
Where all you dreams all come true,
Fly away, swim the ocean blue, drive that open road
Leave the past behind you
Don't stop, gotta keep movin'
Your hopes, you gotta keep buildin'
Never ever forget that I got you and you got me

Chorus

Don't believe in all that you've been told
The sky's the limit, you can reach your goal
No one knows just what the future holds
There ain't nothin' you can't be
There's the whole world at your feet

REACH, Climb every mountain
REACH, Reach for the moon
REACH

The song was written by a member of the REACH community a few years ago. It would be much appreciated if someone could fill in the name of the author by way of a comment.

REACH Holiday Concert a Much-Loved Tradition

While many children and their parents are busy with ballet recitals, choir concerts and school plays at this time of year,  for many REACH students and their parents, the annual Christmas concert is their time to shine.

REACH's Time to Shine

The REACH School Holiday Concert was held Dec. 17 at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in St. Lambert. As always, there was a great turnout and a near-packed house, including parents, Riverside School Board representatives and other community members, for the occasion.

Without more careful research, it wouldn't be possible to say that the REACH holiday or Christmas concert has been presented every year without fail for any particular length of time. It is certain, though, that the tradition has endured many, many years and holds a special place in the hearts of all of the members of the REACH community.

This year's production included songs by all of the classes, with inclusion of various props, musical accompaniments and audience participation. There was also an entertaining Christmas play performed by the older classes. Following the student features, there was also a carol sing-a-long including the audience.

The morning's proceedings began with a singing of O Canada and  brief addresses by the school principal and the church reverend. Following the concert, participants were invited back to the school for a potluck lunch contributed to by the parents.

REACH Students Enjoy Seasonal Festivities

As may be well imagined, there are some daunting challenges for any school to present a Christmas concert in this day and age. Issues ranging from what to politically correctly call the event through to rehearsal logistics all create hurdles to the production of a successful concert.

In the case of REACH School, there is the obvious challenge involved in conceiving and adapting all of the aspects of the program for such a diverse community. As a school for intellectually challenged kids, REACH personnel do a lot of thinking outside the box to create an event that all can participate in and enjoy, while still providing the audience and parents with an occasion to remember with pride and fondness for years to come.

Due to the size and sparse population of REACH's huge service area, there are only a small number of students in each age group and ability level. However, the diversity and age range of the school's students do allow for creation of a program that includes humour, song, creativity, fun, sharing, interaction and great memories for all.

 Strong Ties in the Community Appreciated

REACH's strong ties within the St. Lambert and south shore community are most appreciated at this time of year. The ability to use the facility offered by St. Andrew's church illustrate once again how REACH has always benefited from the physical assets of the community and the neighbourly warmth and generosity of the people of St. Lambert.         
 

Germany Very Slow to Embrace Integration

A recent study has revealed surprising numbers from Germany reflecting the state of the integration of kids with special needs into school classrooms.

Overall, only 60% of pre-schoolers with special needs are integrated, 34% of elementary school students and 15% of high school students. This, despite the fact the Germany has adopted an official policy supporting integration and signed an international agreement to that effect, according to an article in thelocal.de.

The reasons given for this situation include "a lack of space" in appropriate classrooms.

The Bertelsmann Foundation, which produced the study, found that in 2009 there were some 480,000 students with special educations needs – about six percent of the country’s student population. Among these were 85,000 preschool age children.


As in Canada, the systems and scales of identifying students with special needs vary between jurisdictions, with German states claiming proportions of students requiring special education ranging from 6-11% of the total student population.


In Riverside School Board, the percentage of students who have an IEP (individualized education plan) is approximately 10% and rising. There is one specialized English language special needs school on the south shore of Montreal, REACH, which currently accommodates approximately 65 students with pervasive intellectual handicaps. It is the only public special needs school in the Montreal area, although the large majority of the students are from the Riverside area.

Dog Adoption Day to Be Held at REACH School

The St. Lambert Underdog Club Dog Adoption Extravaganza will be held Sat. Nov. 27 at REACH School, from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

It's the first St. Lambert Dog Adoption event! Dogs will be there to give you a little one on one sugar! Organizers are hoping to find some wonderful pooches a permanent (and very lucky) home and spread the word about fostering, too. At very least, stop by and say 'how do'!

Beyond the obvious specially trained dogs, such as seeing eye dogs, it is well known that pets and dogs in particular can be great additions for families with special needs.

Here are ten reasons why pets are a good thing for kids (or adults!) with special needs.

1. Unconditional love
2. Companionship
3. Accomplishment
4. Exercise
5. Responsibility
6. Learning about animals
7. Communication
8. Organization
9. Money skills
10. Problem solving

(see the link for the longer explanations)

St. Lambert schools plan massive "Wave" against bullying

On Nov 16th, at approximately 11:00 a.m., over 1,000 students from Riverside School Board's St. Lambert schools will be participating in a wave against bullying. Over the past few weeks, some of the students have been involved in performing skits, making posters, listening to testimonials, etc., all to help them realize that bullying hurts and that it is time to do something to stop it.

Student at St. Lambert Elementary, REACH, Chambly Academy, PACE and the Alternate School will be gathering together, shoulder to shoulder, from one end of Green St. to the other. The students and teachers will be participating in the wave as a culminating activity to their campaigns against the harmful effects of bullying.

Organizers have applied for recognition to the Guinness World Records for the event, which will take place rain or shine.

Note: given the current situation with half of the down town streets dug up in St. Lambert, having a student wave running the length of Green should make driving in St. Lambert interesting, to say the least!  

Treats at REACH School for goblins and ghosts!!

On Friday, October 29th, the children and staff of REACH School in St. Lambert celebrated Halloween. Some children participated in a concert of lip synch and dancing while the others cheered them on. Everyone wore a fabulous costume and some of the children did trick or treating around the school to other classrooms. After the concert, the children and staff danced to the music that was set up and played by one of the students. Some of the classrooms had parties and movies. It was a wonderful celebration enjoyed by all.

Thank you to all the teachers and staff for all the help and encouragement for this event to be a great success!

REACH School Provides Indispensable Services for South Shore Special Needs Kids

REACH, (or Realistic Educational Alternatives for Children with Handicaps) School, in Saint Lambert, Quebec, offers an alternate educational program within the family of services offered by the Riverside School Board. It is a regional program serving the territories of Riverside. Reach School is the only English public school for students with special needs in the Montreal area.

This year REACH has 7 classes, with a student population of approximately 65 students, aged 4 to 21 years. Each class has one teacher and one technician or attendant. Each class is composed so as to offer best learning potential for the students in a relatively homogeneous group.

 The school's vision addresses the needs of a safe and caring community of learners that fosters individual growth and autonomy.

REACH promotes the autonomy and development of its students with intellectual and/or pervasive developmental challenges, such as autism spectrum, Down's syndrome (trisomy 21) and many other conditions, through programs of life skills, social skills, personal development, and functional academics; at the same time, enriching its students lives through many other exciting, innovative and meaningful experiences with sports, music, the arts, communication and language building, and specifically with occupational therapy services.

Some of the school's annual events include a Welcome Back Corn Roast, Meet the Staff/Annual GB General Assembly, the Graduation Exercise, holiday concerts, special outings ( e.g. Granby Zoo in June) and activities such as participation in the Defi Sportif.

One of REACH's great assets is its participation in McGill's "Double Challenge Program". In this program, all students spend one morning a week at McGill University, for a period of about ten weeks, where they are paired with a McGill special education student and have access to an extensive range of specialized facilities. 

Each Thursday, several of the older students prepare ‘Yummy lunches' for all the school population, responsible for planning the menu, the budget, shopping and, of course, preparation and serving.

REACH has a focus on being as environmentally conscious as possible and many efforts to be more ecologically responsible within the school, the community and in the world are undertaken. They re-cycle, re-use, and reduce in many ways.

REACH has regularly participated in Arts Smarts, which partners with an artist from the community to come in and work with the students.

Some students learn important life and job skills at their work-study placements at such stores as Winners, Pharmaprix ToysRUs and Zellers. To facilitate this program, REACH has its own "travel trainer", who assists the students in using public transportation and, where necessary, in fulfilling their on-the-job responsibilities.

The children enjoy easy access to nearby community facilities, such as swimming at the community pool, visits to local parks, and field, the arena and gymnasium, which are all within walking distance through residential streets.

Typically REACH hosts work study students from McGill’s Occupational Therapy Department as well as from several local CEGEP programs. This year, Langmobile offered a summer day camp for the week before the new 2010/11 school year began.

This was the 3^rd year that REACH was able to hire its own Occupational Therapist, Mme. Carole Laliberte. This is an undertaking and special initiative of the parents who raise money for this vital service which we now enjoy 2 days a week. REACH also has speech therapy services and a music specialist. 

REACH School serves the communities of St. Lambert, Greenfield Park, Longueuil, St. Hubert, Brossard, St. Bruno, Ste. Hilaire, Chambly, La Prairie, Candiac, Beloeil, Carignan, St. Julie and all other territories of Riverside School Board.

To contact REACH School: 450-671-1649 Here is the The Riverside School Board link for REACH School.