Since school started, twice a month Lincoln first grade students in Allison Hutley’s class have been spending time with residents of Parsons Presbyterian Manor.
The beginning of each month, Presby residents come to Hutley’s classroom and then at the end of the month the students go to Presbyterian Manor to visit residents there.
“When the residents come here, we have little poems ready or cards made for them. They kind of interact for a while. Then the residents like to read a story to our kids and then the kids read a story to the residents,” Hutley said. “It is a good way for us to interact with them when they come here and they kind of see what our classroom is like.” When the students go to Presbyterian Manor, they have B-I-N-G-O set up for them to play with the residents.
“The kids, they look forward to that,” Hutley said.
The idea was first proposed by Presbyterian Manor Administrator Crystal Packard, who had highly appreciated the involvement of students with the residents at Prairie Village Retirement Center in St. Paul, where she formerly worked as administrator.
”It has been relatively easy. Those Lincoln teachers and (Principal )Shelley Gardner from the beginning have just been very receptive to it and really worked with us schedule wise,” Packard said. It’s been a really good partnership.”
The students and residents have met together about eight times since the beginning of the year, in addition to other community connections, like the Veterans Day Parade. Presbyterian Manor had several residents who are veterans riding in a van in the parade, and Lincoln students lined the curbs, holding up pictures of their veterans and signs, and were shouting their names and wishing them a happy Veterans Day.
For their last get together before winter recess, the students and residents had an ice cream party.
“They have met so many times that they have formed a relationship with the residents,” Hutley said. “I hope that some of the students, maybe on their free time at home, may take the time to go visit the residents one-on-one. I think that would be really cool. Some of them don’t have much family so I think it is really a great thing for them to see all the kids.”
As the students visit with residents, both the children and the residents ask questions to help them get to know each other better.
“One of the questions the students asked the residents during a visit was, ‘What is your favorite thing to do?’ One lady said her favorite thing was to come and see all the kids’ smiling faces,” Hutley said. “It was so sweet.”
There have been some added benefits too, such as the nursing home has the funding through a special program called Bridiging the Gap, allowing them to purchase books for Hutley’s classroom for the children to take home.
“So, it’s been really, really fun,” Hutley said.
Next semester Mrs. McGuire’s class is going to get to go and spend time with the residents.
While Mrs. McGuire’s class meets with the residents, Mrs. Hutley’s students are going to continue to send cards and letters to residents throughout the remainder of the school year to keep their relationship with residents going.
“Hopefully that will make a continuum and they will be able to stay in touch with them,” Packard said. We would love to have those connections still continuing.”
“Then at the end of the year we ‘re going to have a big going away party in May,” for both classes and the residents, Hutley said.
Packard and Hutley both said they think the visits help residents.
“For the elders, I think they benefit, one from getting out and two from seeing these bright smiling faces. Some of them don’t have much family so I think it is a great opportunity for them to interact with students in their community. “From the student aspect, they have just formed a really good, positive adult relationship with them. Some of them may not have that at home. At school they have positive adults, but it’s seeing the elders in our community, meeting with them and forming that relationship with someone they didn’t know prior that is so neat.”
Hutley said the impact on her students has been very positive. “I think it’s been really great for them and they look forward to going there. We count down the days and they always ask, ‘How many days until we get to see them?’” Hutley said. “Eventually we want to do all first-grade classes, but this year we just chose one class and I happened to be picked. I think it’s been amazing.”
The program has had such a wonderful impact on residents that the nursing home personnel said it would be amazing if they school could do the entire year and have each class meet with a different nursing home in Parsons, to get in a little bit more interaction with residents.
“I would love for the kids to be able to go to the other nursing homes and make those same kind of connections,” Packard said.
There are five first grade classrooms, so there are enough classes to visit every nursing home in Parsons.
“We thought at first we’d do one first grade class each month, but then we thought it would be better to keep the same class with the residents, so they can form those relationships,” Hutley said.
“There have been so many positives out of it for both sides,” Packard said the residents at Presbyterian Manor “absolutely love it.”
“We have one gentleman who lives in health care. We’ve kind of had to talk him into starting it, but now that he has, we can’t keep him away. He goes to the schools. He loves to read to the kids and then when they come here, he always makes sure he is down here with them as well,” Packard said.
“I think any time kids can come into the building the residents love it. They sometimes don’t get to see all their grandkids and it’s just another connection for them. I think the kids, maybe they are nervous about it at first but then they for those relationships with them, and they are just as excited,” Packard said. “I definitely would like to see it continue.”