Pre-K Teacher Shares Love of Music With Children
When Mackenzie Tilma, Assistant Teacher, is in the classroom, you are likely to hear the happy notes of…A UKELELE? “I always like when the children get excited when I bring my ukulele to play songs for them,” said Mackenzie. “They are always suggesting songs I need to learn to play. We keep multiple toy ukuleles […]
Laura and Leo tell their story
It was 1988 and after 2 weeks in the NICU, Laura was sent home with her parents, Jane and Randy who were completely unprepared on how to help their daughter. Laura was born with cerebral palsy and visual impairment. When Laura was 5 months old, a friend told them they needed to call Rainbows. The […]
Is my child too sick to go to child care?
Rainbows is thrilled to have the expertise in-house that a Registered Nurse offers, as the children, families, and staff of Rainbows benefit. Kathleen “Kat” Sauber, RN, received her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Wichita State University. Before joining Rainbows, she was an RN at Wesley Medical Center on the Labor and Delivery Unit. In […]
Person-first Language = Dignity and Respect
Person-first Language is a form of speaking and writing that puts the person before their disability or diagnosis. It provides the understanding that they are multifaceted and that their diagnosis or disability is just one aspect of them that contributes to their identity. Person-first language, also referred to as people-first language, is about dignity and […]
A Solid Foundation to Grow
Do you remember this little curly-haired girl with the winning smile? Diagnosed with Chromosome 16P11-2 Micro-deletion Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder in May 2013, her parents were first told that she may not really talk and have a lot of difficulty expressing herself. “Now ten-years-old, she enjoys talking A LOT,” said Kim, Sophia’s mom. “Sophia […]
Megan’s Story 2002-2006
A successful Wichita State University student, Megan Bailey is 20 years old and pursuing a career in Speech Language Pathology. Megan knows a lot about speech and other developmental therapies because she’s experienced most of them. Born with poor hearing, astigmatism, Cerebral Palsy with diplegia, and low birth weight, Megan benefitted from therapies since she […]
We all hold that diagnosis.
The day before Thanksgiving 2018, 18-month-old Khamoi was diagnosed with Autism. Michael was there to support the family in learning about the diagnosis. “Michael Tatro, Speech Language Pathologist, literally saved our family,” said Rickeyia. “She helped us navigate the whole system and guide us through appointments, and then she helped explain the mind-blowing diagnosis.” “When […]
How to Build a Snowman
Learning with Candy Canes
Candy canes are a fun and educational way to engage young children in the classroom or at home. Best of all, you can eat them when you’re done! If your child doesn’t like to hold a pencil, hand them a candy cane. Pour some dry hot chocolate mix onto a tray. Ask your child to […]
Modeling respect and empathy
We often spend time making sure that we work with children on being socially appropriate, but we do not always spend time making sure that they are culturally competent. It is important that teachers assess, re-evaluate, and implement cultural competent practices into their personal lives and in the classrooms where they teach. Without introspection and […]
