Reading, writing and arithmetic aren’t the only lessons going on in April Hoover’s class at King Elementary School.
Her small classroom, which has been transformed into a homelike setting to make her students feel more comfortable, also includes practical life skills that tackle tough situations such as getting along with each other, patience when waiting in line, how to order a dish at a restaurant and proper table manners.
A $2,000 donation from Copper Mountain Solar will allow Hoover to “test” the children’s skills in real situations by underwriting the costs of field trips throughout the year.
Hoover said community-based instruction is an integral part of the lessons she offers for the students in her self-contained classroom.
She said her students need specialized lessons with learning the general education curriculum. It also teaches them how to be independent.
The homelike setting helps create a bond of trust needed for the students to learn, she added.
“It has been life changing for a couple of them,” she said of her unique lessons and classroom setting.
Among the field trips the class has taken this year are visits to Lake Mead and its visitor center, the Lost City Museum in Overton, and to a buffet, where they practiced how to wait in a line patiently, proper table manners and how to navigate a buffet.
With the donation from Copper Mountain Solar, Hoover said she plans to take her students to a mall so they can shop for a new pair of shoes. This will include lessons on mall safety and how to get fitted for shoes.
Hoover said she expects having nine students in her class next year.
Susan Melton, of Copper Mountain Solar, who coordinated the donation for her company, said helping students is a passion, adding that these funds are essential for underwriting the costs of the class’s field trips.
Hali Bernstein Saylor is editor of the Boulder City Review. She can be reached at hsaylor@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9523. Follow @HalisComment on Twitter.