September 2019 | Vol. 16 Iss. 09
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FROM SOCCER TO STEM: EXPANDED CORE
CURRICULUM GAVE USDB STUDENTS A SUMMER OF OPPORTUNITIES By Heather Lawrence | heather.lawrence@mycityjournals.com
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tudents from USDB (Utah School for the Deaf and Blind) were busy this summer with Expanded Core Curriculum activities. From soccer camp to STEM camp, there was something for Utah students with vision impairment of all ability levels. “All of our expanded core programs are so important for our students who are blind or visually impaired. We have a strong academic program, but anything we can do for these kids outside of regular academics is great,” said Susan Thomas, communications director for USDB. Thomas said students who are visually impaired can miss out on a lot of social cues that people who aren’t visually impaired take for granted. The expanded core programs seek to close that gap with extra learning opportunities. Robbin Clark, the Expanded Core Curriculum coordinator for USDB, oversaw many of the activities. The summer kicked off with adaptive soccer camp in Ogden, which ran June 21–23. For more information on how USDB is leading the country in adaptive soccer programs, see the Holladay City Journal, January 2019, “School for the Deaf and Blind Hopes to Pioneer Adaptive Soccer in Utah.” Camp Ability was July 8–12. “It’s a program that happens all over the U.S. and other parts of the world. Camp Ability Utah is a chapter of this amazing program. It focuses on fitness, sports and recreation. This year’s theme was ‘going for your personal best’ and we had golf, dance, five-a-side soccer and other activities,” Clark said. Clark said she liked the program’s focus on improving. “Teaching students to achieve their personal best is awesome,
Kids with visual impairments rock their STEM summer camp at USDB. (Susan Thomas/USDB)
because it doesn’t need to be compared to someone else. It’s about how you push to be your best self,” Clark said. Adventure Camp July 10–12 was an opportunity for students to get out of their comfort zones. “Adventure Camp was exactly what it sounds like — an adventure! We’re having our students in third through 12th grade join us. There are so many ways we’ll see obstacles in life, and we’re teaching
them many tools for taking on those obstacles,” Clark said. “Our students got to know their strengths and weaknesses, and how we work together. We crossed a river, built rafts and shot paintball guns. They’re learning to take on life and make it a grand adventure,” Clark said. The STEM camp held July 17–19 combined STEM skills with an unlikely partner Continued page 21
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