Intramural activities at Indian Trail are legendary, but the daily program added another notch to its belt last month when a group of students helped special education students in the Comprehensive Development Classroom (CDC) participate in the games.
In the past, students in the CDC classroom were able to join their schoolmates before school and attend the events to cheer, but this was the first time they had their own opportunity to participate.
“I’ve seen some of the most incredible things over the last seven years with intramurals at Indian Trail, but this, by far, is the best thing that we’ve ever done,” Indian Trail physical education teacher Kelly Lane said. “There are so many incredible memories, but the smiles on our students’ faces on that morning will stick with me forever.”
To make the environment even better, students from Bobcat 1 Hall showed up with signs to cheer on their classmates.
CDC teacher Allison Russell said that seeing the smiles on her students’ faces, and how much they talked about the opportunity, has left a lasting impression on her students. And the fact that this opportunity was organized by students for students made it even better.
“That is a huge reflection of how our kids are loved and included at Indian Trail,” Russell said. “They are considered to be a part of this school and what happens at this school. That is huge and that is the ultimate goal for us and our students.”
The idea was sparked by a group of girls on Falcon Hall, who saw how much the CDC students enjoyed competing in games during gym class.
“We saw how much fun they were having, so we decided to make an intramurals team for them,” said Indian Trail sixth-grader Reese Campbell, who along with friends helped organize the team. “We wanted to give them the same experience that everyone else gets.”
The plans are now to modify games for the students each time a new intramurals game is started. The next game is dodgeball, which brought a big smile to the students’ faces. Having regular ed students take on the responsibility of creating opportunities and helping the CDC students participate is something that Russell said speaks to the fabric and culture of Indian Trail.
“The students at Indian Trail consider our CDC students to be their own, and that is the goal of all special ed programs in the world,” Russell said.
