For the past 19 years, Leslie Esterly has been working with the youngest of students in the Reading School District challenged with multiple disabilities and supporting each of them on a path toward achieving individual goals while learning and growing.
A graduate of Alvernia University with a degree in Special Education, Leslie realized early on that she loved working with children placed in this type of classroom. “I loved getting to know the students and watching their successes; they made so many gains. Most of their child’s lives, parents may have been told that they can’t, or they won’t be able to do something. It is wonderful being able to tell a parent, this is what your child is doing, look at this, every child can learn”.
Children starting in kindergarten and first grade from throughout the district are transported to the MDS (multiple disabilities support) classroom located at the Lauers Park Elementary School, where Mrs. Esterly is ready to meet each student’s specific needs head on at the beginning of every school year.
“My students come to my classroom with a wide variety of special needs. Some are working on learning how to be in school, some need help with feeding, or behavioral issues, some may be adjusting to sitting in a wheelchair, or learning how to communicate with no verbal skills and learning how to trust someone teaching them skills on how to function in their daily lives, and at school. So many questions pertaining to each student. Are they able to sit in a regular seat? Do they need a walker? Do they need different communication devices? We have students who have cognitive functioning well below grade level, or are medically fragile, with blindness or hearing difficulties.”
Leslie emphasizes that working as a team with parents, as well as the Reading School District Intervention Team to plan and support every child according to their needs, helps to give each student entering her classroom the optimal chance for experiencing success from day one.
Mrs. Esterly, as she is known throughout the district, begins her preparation in August, when she holds informal parent interviews to evaluate each new student. “We discuss any number of things that will help us to better understand their child. What are their interests? Do they have allergies? Do they need help with feeding? Do they take small bites? Do they use any special devices for speech, and do they need assistance with them? Depending on the number of students who need one-to-one assistance, we assign aides or paras, and sometimes there will be a nurse with the student in the classroom.”
The team pays much attention to the individual needs of the student before the school year gets underway, and Leslie has always made it her practice to have an open communication with families who are able to call her after school or on the weekends if it is in the best interest of the student. “I have an open-door policy, and I make families feel so comfortable that they want to keep their students in my classroom.”
Her work as a special education teacher overflows beyond the classroom and outside of the typical school calendar. Leslie has consistently taught summer school for students who benefit from the added support because of her sensitivity to keeping times of transition for these children consistent with what they are accustomed to in her classroom. Her willingness to go above and beyond for her students was evident during the covid pandemic when learning went virtual.
“We had a 5-year-old who would look at the computer screen and get sad; he just did not know what to do. I proposed that I would go out to students who were not adjusting to the virtual learning. It was completely volunteer, and I would mask, or wear a full suit, and we would meet on porches, sidewalks, and courtyards to continue learning during this time.”
Leslie’s love and her sensitivity toward the needs of her students resulted in a nomination for the 2024 Berks County Annie Sullivan Award which is presented to a professional who portrays exemplary care to students with disabilities, while going beyond the classroom to help those in the community. “I am an advocate. I love being the biggest cheerleader for my students…every child deserves that!”
Leslie commends her fellow teachers in the district for their dedication to their students and the belief in their potential for success. “The heart is there with the teachers in the Reading School District. We are proud to be teachers, and we are proud of our kids!”
