Rachel's Challenge Wheelchair Compassion

As part of our ongoing Rachel’s Challenge here at Wolford Elementary, in McKinney, TX, we continue to explore compassion and empathy. Many students face different challenges. We have chosen to highlight the challenges of being in a wheelchair. All of the fifth graders at Wolford were shown a Discovery Education video featuring a young adolescent boy who is actively participating in sports. They then find that the boy was born with only 1 leg. He discusses some of the physical, emotional and social concerns he faces. He discusses how he wants to be treated like a “normal guy”. We offered an opportunity for one student in each of the 5 fifth grade classes to use a wheelchair for a day. This was totally voluntary. Any fifth grader who was interested in trying out a wheelchair for a day turned in a permission slip signed by a parent. One of our students who requires the use of a wheelchair drew the names. The 5 students chosen used the wheelchair at school between 1/18/11 and 1/24/11. The students used the wheelchair for the full day including recess and PE. This was taken seriously. It was a unique opportunity to gather insight, perspective, and most importantly compassion.

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