Skootenay principal updates board on two-year 'Kinder Strong Start' pilot, district to collect data before decision

Denise Meersch, principal at Skootenay, told the Othello School District Board of Directors on a recent night that the district's two-year Kinder Strong Start pilot used smaller groups and shortened initial days to help kindergarten students adjust to school. The program, she said, was designed to build routines, reduce transition anxiety and give teachers more time for early observations and relationship building. Meersch said the pilot began two years ago after staff noticed incoming kindergarten students with high needs — including many on individualized education programs, students receiving speech therapy and a large number of multilingual learners. “We thought if they only went two days a week, they could get in and learn the routines,” Meersch said. “Fewer…