The story of a Leggee Elementary student whose struggles with reading skills were overcome through the application of assistive technology has been highlighted by one of the industry’s leading companies.
By the time he reached fifth grade, Gavin was reading independently at a first grade level. But staff in the building recognized that he was capable of far more if provided with supports.
“The team at Leggee emailed me and said, ‘we have a student that’s just bursting through the ceiling with potential,'” says Kristin Smith, assistive technologist, in the video produced by Don Johnston Inc.
“It just sometimes gets overwhelming when I look at a page,” Gavin said.
The tools they applied to help Gavin gave him “the power to own his own learning,” says Kristi Stamatis, a special education teacher at Leggee who worked with Gavin in fifth grade.
Now a student at Heineman Middle School, Gavin is reading above grade level, and as he told Stamatis, his “possibilities are endless now.”
Calling the success one of the fondest memories of her teaching career, Stamatis says she predicts Gavin will cure cancer or send a rocket to outer space when he’s older.
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