Settlement School Partners with County to Improve Reading Skills

Hindman, KY—Knott County Superintendent Kim King knows that helping young children achieve proficiency in reading is key to unlocking their educational potential. Hindman Settlement School has been helping children learn to read since it was established in 1902. For the past 28 years, it has specialized in teaching reading to children who learn differently.

Last December, King had an idea: “What if Hindman Settlement School and Knott County public schools were to form a partnership to teach reading to struggling students?” King approached the Settlement’s director Mike Mullins and they put together a group to explore the idea further.

This fall, Hindman Settlement School and Knott County schools launched a pilot reading program in three Knott County elementary schools (Beaver, Carr Creek and Hindman). Settlement School teachers, along with staff from the Knott County school system, are establishing reading labs in each school to provide specialized assistance to students who demonstrate early signs of learning differences.

The reading labs will employ a multi-sensory teaching approach, which has proven highly effective at the Settlement’s James Still Learning Center. Multi-sensory learning techniques require the simultaneous use of four learning senses: visual, auditory, tactile (touch) and kinesthetic (muscle movement).

For the child with learning differences, the emphasis on systematic development of reading skills has shown early and lasting success. These techniques concentrate on the process of learning and allow the student to use his/her strengths to achieve success and maintain motivation.

Teachers from the Settlement School and public school staff who are specially trained will work closely with students until they master reading skills. This instruction is in addition to the students’ regular classroom instruction.

Individual needs and learning styles will determine each student’s schedule and placement in a reading lab. Placement and schedule decisions will, in turn, determine the intensity and duration of the program for each student.

“We know that early identification, coupled with comprehensive early reading interventions, can reduce the percentage of children reading below the basic level in fourth grade from the current national average of 38% to less than 6%,” says Superintendent King.

Most students who are assigned to the reading lab will receive a full year of instruction. Some students may need prolonged support both in their elementary schools and through after-school and summer tutoring programs offered by Hindman Settlement School.

“Through Hindman Settlement School’s emphasis on structured and systematic development of reading skill, students have experienced both success and lasting results. We are pleased to offer the same opportunity to students in the Knott County School District,” King said.

“The Settlement School has operated a full-time school for children who learn differently for the past 19 years. But we’ve only served about 30 students a year,” said Mike Mullins, Executive Director of Hindman Settlement School.

“It was a very difficult decision to discontinue our full-time school, but this partnership provides us with an opportunity to do what we do best—teach children to read—and reach between 100-150 students,” Mullins said.

In recent years, it has been a challenge getting students to enroll in the full-time school, Mullins noted. “This partnership allows us to go where the students are instead of them coming to us.” The new program is currently serving 138 students.

Knott County schools and Hindman Settlement School are providing funding for the pilot program. Mullins says the goal is to expand to other schools as resources become available. 

Hindman Settlement School has provided educational outreach activities to public schools and surrounding communities for more than 100 years. This new initiative is another example of the Settlement School’s strategy of adapting its services to meet the changing needs of the community and region it serves.