Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-09-16
RY JANE OFTEN

~ bhANA va EAN
The third grader had something
important to say. He waited i'm
patiently at the teachers desk.
"You know" he said when she
finally turned to him, Harold is
different this year. He talks"
The boy had been Harold's class
mate since kindergarten. But he
had never heard Harold speak to
another child or to the class until
Just q week or two before.
Harold was only one Of many
children helped last year through
the trail-blazing child guidance
program at the Lafayette Elemen-
tary School in Northwest Washing
ton. This unique program, started
In 1852 by the parents Of the La
fayette Home and School Associa-
ton, gave Lafayette qualified psy-
chologist in residence at the school
one morning each week during the
school year. Her Job has been "
help teachers help children who
were creating problems for them
selves, for their classmates and for
their teacher.
Hope for Expansion
The programs sims 80 beyond
Lafayette, however. Its sponsors
hope that its startling success there
will convince other schools and
communities-and ultimately the
public school system-that guid-
ance for troubled children is as
much a part of public schools as
reading, writing and arithmetic.
The results Of the program SO far
have been impressive impress
sive, in fact, that last spring the
Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foun-
dalton agreed to give the Home and
School Association a substantial
grant to expand the program and
put it on a long-term basis. With
this aid, the operation is being set
up this fall as a continuing three
year program. DR.. Emma Layman.
chief psychologist at Children's
Hospital, will spend the equivalent
Of q full day week at the school
for the 30 weeks Of each school year.
She'll be able to give immediate
assistance to all the teachers and
children in the school who need
help. In addition, she viii be able
to follow carefully those children
with whom she has worked.
Even with the foundation grant,
the Home and School Association
will still invest one-third Of its
total budget-as it did last year
on the guidance program. That's
how vital the parents think it is.
Both the foundation and Lafay-
cite parents have been impressed
with testimony from teachers and
from Lafayette Principal Margaret
<. Patterson. Teachers have found
their minds freed from worry and
Illustration over the problem chill
dren and situations in their class
rooms. and have been able to devote
all their energy and attention to
teaching All the children in the
school have benefited from the
presence of more relaxed and as
sured teachers. Those children who
actually were studied by the psy-
chologist have been able to work
out better adjustments at school
and at home as have their parents.
Miss Patterson, who admitted
to nisgivings at the start of the
program, is now completely sold on
its benefits. Perhaps one Of the
most gratifying results to me as
principal" she says, lis the reas-
surance Of having in the building
consultant whose training and
insight enable her to delve deeper
into the children's problems than
the teachers and I are able to
do" She feels that it has in
creased her confidence "to follow
certain line of procedure in
handling child. following the
recommendations of the counselor"
And, she adds, sit seems to have
the same effect on parents"
The teachers echo her. This is
what we have been waiting for"
one said after seeing three of her
pupils helped by the psychologist.
Another described the program as
having given her "a wonderful year
in terms Of being able to pick out
the children who needed the help
and being able to get it for them"
He Lived Within Himself
But let's get back to Harold and
see how the guidance program
actually works. His teacher had
recognized early in the year that
Harold wasn't acting like nor
NAL third-grader." She puzzled
over him. HE was limp, without
energy" she said. ''FIe was bright,
but he had nothing to say. He
lived within himself"
At any other school, Harold's
teacher would have spent the year
- as any conscientious teacher
would--struggling to help Harold.
She would have taken time and