Soda Creek, CO: Elem school adds program for autistic students with "complex" needs
The new center-based autism program at Soda Creek Elementary in Steamboat Springs, run by special education teacher Amanda Gordon, is building an environment with clear, predictable routines to give students room to learn and settle in, according to a Friday statement from the district.
The program, which opened this fall, serves elementary students with significant support and complex communication needs. . . .
One area is devoted to a structured one-on-one and small-group instruction, while a nearby space opens into a “sensory and break sanctuary,” fitted with spinning chairs, a trampoline, a “cuddle box” and items like dinosaurs and magnetiles. . . .
All students in the program use augmentative and alternative communication devices, which are tablets or laptops that help individuals with a speech or language impairment to communicate.
Gordon works with speech-language pathologist Amanda Rohde, occupational therapist Molly Arndt and registered behavior technician Maddy Rodriguez on a weekly basis to run a joint “core word” group. . . .
With this year’s opening of the autism program, the district plans to open two additional center-based programs next fall — an affective needs program at Sleeping Giant School and a multi-intensive program at Strawberry Park Elementary.
District officials underscored in the statement that, through Gordon’s leadership and collaborative spirit, Soda Creek Elementary is “setting a powerful standard for what specialized support can achieve—ensuring every student is recognized, supported, and equipped to thrive.”
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