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Bainbridge High School teacher Ms. Marissa Cerrone’s class has had an eventful week exploring their community of Bainbridge, Georgia! For their first community instruction outing of the year, their teacher (Marissa Cerrone) and paras (Beth Dollar and Brenda Bush) planned a day on the square for the students to enjoy. On their first stop, the class planned for breakfast at The Bean Cafe. Students were expected to use their best social skills to relay orders to the cashier and listen for the total. With assistance, each student paid their total and waited patiently for their change back, closing out their exchange with a warm “Thank you!” before enjoying their meals. The second stop was just as exciting, as Mrs. Cecilia Willis (Clerk of Courts) gave the class a tour of Bainbridge’s historical courtroom. She even gave each student a ‘role’ of the court (judge, court recorder, attorney, sheriff, etc) and allowed them to ‘role play’ during her instruction! As the third and final stop, teachers escorted the students to the gazebo in Willis Park to eat their sack lunches and play life size Jenga! together. Ms. Cerrone and Mrs. Dollar even helped one student, who primarily uses a wheelchair, get into the gazebo and participate with his friends!

In the days leading up to this outing, the class spent a great amount of time in preparation. Ms. Cerrone created a visual schedule of the day, complete with time stamps, pictures, and labels for each activity, to prepare students for each specific step. After gaining an understanding of the day’s events, students reviewed the menu of The Bean Cafe and chose what they wanted to order. The class discussed prices and practiced ordering with payment. Ms. Cerrone showed pictures of the Court House, and, most importantly, the class reviewed a map of where they would be walking. This allowed them to review safety rules of the street and how to cross the street appropriately using the crosswalk.

On the day of, the students showed Ms. Cerrone and Mrs. Dollar what they learned by following their schedule and rules of the road! Mrs. Vonda Hubbard even made an appearance and visited them while they finished up breakfast. While it does not seem to be a huge accomplishment to some, it is truly awesome watching these students learn new ways to participate with their local community! 

”Just because they [may not be able] to express it does not mean they aren’t listening, thinking, feeling, or understanding it. Assume they can, and let them tell you in whatever way they [are able].” – Quote by Stay At Home Crazy @mrsdscorner