Andrew McManus often got upset and agitated. He had tantrums. Life was tough. Now he’s the kind kid helping others overcome similar difficulties.
Earlier this year Andrew was put in an intensive behavioral intervention (IBI) classroom at Naples Park Elementary School to help get him on a better track. The fourth grader almost immediately took on the challenge to rise to the highest levels of success in that classroom. Soon the tantrums ended. He spoke with compassion instead of anger. His teachers and specialists at the school were amazed by his turnaround. But they were even more amazed when he turned his tough experiences into something that helps others.
“I encourage [my classmates],” Andrew said. “I try to help them when they feel sad. I help them use their coping skills.”
When he sees his classmates spinning out of control, Andrew often leads them to the calming corner and gives them words of advice.
“I say, ‘You can do it. Just calm down and take some deep breaths.’ I learned that from the teachers. If they don’t get a good score that day, I say, ‘You can do it the next time.’ Every day is a new day.”
Andrew said he learned to take deep breathes when he is upset, so he does deep breathing exercises with his classmates.
“I don’t like when kids get upset, so I try to help them,” he explained.
Terri Grusemeyer is an aide in Andrew’s class and is astonished by his new attitude.
“Andrew has come a long way with communication,” said Grusemeyer. “He has really done a great job, and now he is helping everyone else learn to communicate. That makes me the happiest.”
“He has grown so much,” added Ashton Hausin, the school’s behavioral analyst. “He is new to our IBI program, and he improved his coping and social skills so much that when he sees others having this problem, he goes out of his way to help. He gives them pep talks. He helps them with coping strategies. He is just kind.”
Hausin said students in IBI usually don’t improve that rapidly, and they don’t switch from being tough to being kind in just a few months.
“He is a definite success story,” said Hausin. “He was just super motivated.”
Hausin said Andrew mimics many of the sayings he has heard from teachers when he is helping others.
“If he sees someone agitated he will say, ‘Hey, it’s a small problem.’ That is a phrase that we use. There is a calming area in the classroom so he might direct them toward that, and help them make a better choice.”
Andrew also adheres to his own advice.
“I have seen other kids sometimes try to get him riled up, and he just brushes it off,” Hausin described. “At the beginning of the year that might have led to an explosion. Now he says, ‘I just want to be with people that make better choices.’ I am so proud of him.”
Andrew, who is a huge Philadelphia Eagles fan and enjoys playing soccer, says he was nervous and frustrated when he first arrived in the IBI classroom, but now he is proud of his success. His kindness isn’t just in the classroom anymore. He’s helped stop a fight from escalating on the school bus, and he encourages his brother when his brother gets stressed with piles of schoolwork.
“I learned to help my friends because they need it sometimes,” he said.