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Mrs. Townsend’s Classroom Edit display name

  • Joseph Stilwell Middle School
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • More than half of students from low‑income households Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more

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In our classroom, we work on self-feeding skills three times a day at breakfast, lunch and snack. Students need and use adaptive bowls, plates and utensils to promote self-feeding. Many of our students have limited physical abilities, and parents have had to spoon feed them for their entire life, even when out in public. Our goal is to give them the skills that allow the families and students to have independence and dignity whether eating in their homes or out to eat in a public setting. This means that we have basically set up a "kitchen" in our classroom. We need a cart, adaptive spoons, trash can and other supplies. We wash dishes three times a day, prep meals, and do laundry. We have to prep lunches that can be eaten by the students since some of them have difficulty with swallowing. Some students even have to eat blended food. Then we wash all the items that we use. Our space in the classroom is about 20 square feet but we pack a lot into that space. Storage is always an issue for us. Many of our students are very oral. They like to gnaw and chew on things. This presents problems when it is their clothing or shoes or items in the classroom. We try to offer alternatives for them to use that protect their clothes and ensure their safety. We try to simulate a real life setting so the skills they learn transfer to their lives outside of school. For the parents, it means so much ,when their children can do what other children of normal cognition can do. So many times our families have to hear a grim diagnosis about their child's life expectancy and abilities, and we try to give them dignity and abilities they otherwise wouldn't have achieved.

About my class

In our classroom, we work on self-feeding skills three times a day at breakfast, lunch and snack. Students need and use adaptive bowls, plates and utensils to promote self-feeding. Many of our students have limited physical abilities, and parents have had to spoon feed them for their entire life, even when out in public. Our goal is to give them the skills that allow the families and students to have independence and dignity whether eating in their homes or out to eat in a public setting. This means that we have basically set up a "kitchen" in our classroom. We need a cart, adaptive spoons, trash can and other supplies. We wash dishes three times a day, prep meals, and do laundry. We have to prep lunches that can be eaten by the students since some of them have difficulty with swallowing. Some students even have to eat blended food. Then we wash all the items that we use. Our space in the classroom is about 20 square feet but we pack a lot into that space. Storage is always an issue for us. Many of our students are very oral. They like to gnaw and chew on things. This presents problems when it is their clothing or shoes or items in the classroom. We try to offer alternatives for them to use that protect their clothes and ensure their safety. We try to simulate a real life setting so the skills they learn transfer to their lives outside of school. For the parents, it means so much ,when their children can do what other children of normal cognition can do. So many times our families have to hear a grim diagnosis about their child's life expectancy and abilities, and we try to give them dignity and abilities they otherwise wouldn't have achieved.

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About my class

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