The Stephen Gaynor
School: Providing a Warm and Enriching Environment to Children
with Special Needs
By Liza Young
Dr. Scott Gaynor, Head of the Stephen Gaynor School, recently
shared his dedication, passion and vision for his school. Housed
in a landmarked townhouse on the Upper West Side, Dr. Scott
Gaynor, whose grandmother founded the school which bears the
namesake of his uncle, helps children with learning disabilities
overcome the challenges they face so that they can ultimately
transition to a mainstream environment. The school's mission
is based on the idea that there are intelligent children with
learning disabilities who can potentially thrive in a mainstream
environment through proper social and academic support.
Woven throughout the
endeavors of the Stephen Gaynor School is a nurturing and
caring environment. The school itself contains a relatively
small population, only 120 students, divided into small class
sizes, with two skilled teachers per class. Every member
of the educational staff knows the student population personally,
being familiar with the specific strengths and needs of each
child. Teachers are highly dedicated and intricately involved
in the education of their students. Dr. Gaynor describes
the approach at the school as being one of “multiple
lenses, with all teachers involved, looking at the child and
how can they can best address their needs.”
An important feature of the Gaynor School is that classes
are not based strictly on chronological age, but all relevant
factors are weighed in creating classes. They are generally
based on academic and social needs. Further homogenization
is created through breaking up classes into groups. The goal
is to create as homogenous a group as possible. At
the same time, the school contains a “student driven
curriculum,” where students are provided with “Diagnostic
Prescriptive Instruction, a term coined by Yvette Siegal, one
of the School's Founders and current Director of Education,
where each child is provided with support and instruction specific
to their needs. This approach involves the idea of taking a
child who is intelligent but has a disability in an area, and
allowing them to learn about the topic through overcoming the
barrier. This can involve, for example, teaching a child with
decoding problems—who is capable of understanding a complex,
abstract story—through making the story accessible to
them using tools and resources to overcome the decoding barrier.
Technological resources are readily available and used to
help students learn in a way that meets their needs. Software
such as Kidspiration and Inspiration, are used, which are excellent
resources that employ visual tools into the learning process
in an interactive fashion. Note-taking programs are also available
for children who are dysgraphic.
The curriculum at the Steven Gaynor School is comprehensive,
covering areas that are part of a mainstream program, such
as history, science, music, art and physical education. Speech
and language pathologists as well as occupational therapists
meet regularly with students to help develop speech skills
and organizational skills. The program is also cross-categorical,
enriching a child's knowledge of a subject through multiple
approaches.
Additional means of preparing
the student towards the future of transitioning to a mainstream
environment are through the learning of organizational skills,
having the opportunity to learn from social studies textbooks,
learning research skills, and for the older student, interview
skills.
Recently, Dr. Gaynor has embarked on the most ambitious undertaking
in the history of his school: a $19 million capital campaign
for a new school to be opened in the fall of 2006 and located
at 90th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenue.
The new state-of-the art-facility will be able to accommodate
45 additional students. Further, each of 18 classrooms will contain
a breakout room, which can be used when classes are divided to
create further homogenized groups. There is an additional plan
of launching a Community Learning Center, providing special education
support to children outside of the enrolled population. Dr. Gaynor's
wish is for this state-of-the art-facility to remain true to
the mission of the Stephen Gaynor School, providing an individualized
approach within the context of a warm and nurturing environment.#
