Colton, CA—Every Tuesday, Colton High School’s moderate to severe Special Day class (SDC) takes local trips on known as “Community Day” to improve student skills in tasks essential for everyday life.
SDC teacher Alex Ramos said, “It helps the kids kind of get out into the community. They’re able to practice social skills. They’re able to practice using money, getting change. We also are able to practice riding the bus, figuring out what bus routes to take, and, you know, just getting access to the community.”
Through community days, Ramos recognized an issue facing his students when leaving campus. “For the crosswalks, especially for our visually impaired student, it’s difficult to teach him how to do it safely without the proper equipment like having the auditory signal saying it is safe to walk, having the tactile pavers down. So then that way when he feels it on his cane he knows hey, I’m approaching an intersection.”
With student safety an issue, Ramos saw an opportunity to improve. He said, “We need to make sure that we make it across the way without getting hit by a car, you know. And so we contacted the city, who was actually really quick to respond. They extended the time, and they’re actually going to meet us out there and kind of figure out how we’re doing and what we need.” By extending time, Ramos referenced the crosswalk timers that countdown seconds until the next red light.
On Sep. 2, a member of St. Francis Electric joined the SDC class to time the amount it took for Ramos’ students to walk across the street. “If they have enough time to get across the street in a safe manner, it’s a win,” said Mr. Cervantes, the St. Francis technician. “So I basically just gather the information from the city, and pretty much make all necessary adjustments.”
And while the city of Colton responded quickly to Ramos’ concerns, there is yet to be an update on getting auditory or braille signals installed at the crosswalks.
Unlike your typical day-to-day core classes of math and english, an SDC is a specialized classroom that prioritizes the essentialness of life skills-focused instruction, the class has students in the same environment.
The students who are placed in this class experience moderate to severe cognitive, developmental, or physical disabilities; this can make those tasks that most would take for granted such as washing dishes and taking out trash much more daunting for these students.
And that is the role of Community Days: to help students to engage with daily tasks with the support of their teachers by their side.
One of the students in the class, Azriel Malagon enjoys getting the opportunity to go out and take the bus. “Yup, I like the buses and the engines, yup,” he said. Malagon also enthusiastically enjoys performing Eminem’s “Just Lose It” as that is the other name he goes by.
