Lake Washington Special Services Beliefs

We believe…

• Each individual child has unique strengths and abilities and it is our responsibility to create opportunities to build upon these strengths. All students can learn when provided the right supports.
   
• Effective communication is critical for creating a sense of community and to solve challenging problems. We must create a brave space rather than a safe space.
   
• Every child has a right to a high quality instructional program with evidence-based curriculum, progress monitoring, tiered supports and effective teaching.
   
• It is our ethical and moral imperative to ensure equity and support students within general education – every child belongs in our community.
   
• One of our fundamental responsibilities is to coach and build capacity with staff so they can meet the variety of needs that our students demonstrate. We are all teachers.
   
• To meet our goals for student achievement and foster a growth mindset amongst staff, we need to offer ongoing professional learning in collaboration with other departments.
   
• If we are going to eliminate the achievement gap, we must work collectively with families and our community to ensure that each child can fulfill their potential. We work in partnership with families.
   
• Behavior is a form of communication and positive relationships are essential to ensure student success. Many of the children we struggle to teach are those that need us the most.
   
• We are advocates for students with special needs. Every child has a voice that should be recognized, honored and uplifted.