Student & Family Services

We know that for education to be truly effective, the needs of the whole child must be met. Education is more than what happens at school; it’s what happens at the dinner table or on the way home. Education is more than learning reading skills or math computation; it’s discovering the awe within our world—within ourselves, it is learning how to find information and how that information affects us. Education is a wonderful thing, but how can we educate children who do not have their other physical and emotional needs met? We can’t.

So, we are a gathering place of resources and information for students and families with special needs—needs that go beyond rhetoric and influence preparedness of our students for learning.

Student Services Staff

Social Work Role

In alignment with our Kids at Hope Philosophy; here at Littleton Elementary School District, we value the important role our social work team plays on each one of our campuses. As a vital part of the education team, our robust team of social workers help us to ensure our focus and resources service students and families comprehensively. Social workers within our district work directly with students, collaborate with teachers, support administrators, and partner alongside our psychologists, nurses, and other related services daily to ensure they take care of your student from a “whole child” point of view. Their unique training and perspective enables them to understand the interaction and impact of the home, school, and community environments on the students as they remain an active part in helping students overcome any barriers that interfere with learning. Our overall goal is to provide short-term support to help your student be a successful learner and achieve their goals in a healthy way. If you or your student could use some extra care and support, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your designated school social worker by phone, email, or by request for a meeting through your front office staff.

Our team can provide the following services:

• Individual and group counseling
• Home visits
• Information about resources, and referral for community services
• Crisis Intervention
• Develop partnerships with community agencies
• Lead prevention programs
• Address behavioral concerns that may interfere with the child’s learning
• Partner to communicate family concerns to the school, and find solutions in child’s best interest
• Encourage students to increase academic success, improve attendance, handle conflicts peacefully, prevent bullying, understand and use their emotions to express themselves appropriately, and modify unproductive behavior

FEDERALLY FUNDED PROGRAMS

The U.S. Department of Education provides grant funding for schools that demonstrate need in areas of academic consistency, demographics, and teacher retention. These programs help sustain school efforts of change through extra funding and support. Littleton Elementary School District receives federal funds for the following grant initiatives:

McKinney/Vento Education of Homeless Students

With subgrant funds, the McKinney-Vento Education Act provides money to schools to assist homeless students to get to and stay in school. By coordinating services with local agencies, schools can provide a link to help for families in need. Homeless students may qualify for free lunches, tutoring, and summer school. We will provide a school uniform to each student who qualifies under this program.

Because of this act, students have to right to:

• Go to school no matter where they live or how long they have lived there
• Stay in the school they attended before becoming homeless
• Receive transportation to school, if requested
• Enroll in school without giving a permanent address
• Enroll in and attend classes while the school arranges for the transfer of school and immunization records
• Receive the same special programs and services as provided to other children

Child Find

The intent of Child Find is to identify and evaluate children from birth through age 21 who display developmental and educational delays or disabilities and ensure they receive the support and services needed to thrive. When children are “found,” they are referred to specialists for screening. This screening helps identify areas of developmental or educational need. If necessary, children identified through Child Find are then evaluated using state criteria and offered intervention, special education (including preschool), and/or support services through our local schools. Please contact the Special Education Department for more information.

Kids at Hope

Inspiring communities to believe that all children are capable of success, Kids at Hope is committed to providing training and support to communities, schools, parents, families, and youth organizations to change the concept of today’s kids, transforming them to believe that every child can succeed in an atmosphere of hope and respect—there are no exceptions!

ADE Resources

Resources from the School Safety and Prevention Unit are made available to help parents communicate effectively with their children about difficult topics and improve their parent-child relationship so students achieve higher and are less likely to be involved in risky behaviors. Schools facilitate parent meetings for parents of students in 5th–8th grade, providing resources about sexuality and puberty, drug use, bullying, the safe use of technology, and relationships. For more information, check out these sites and/or contact Barb Iverson, the state’s HIV/ Sexuality Education Program administrator.

• Advocates for Youth
• Search Institute
• Parent Further
• CDC’s Parent Information
• Helping Your Child Through Early Adolescence