Students at St. Peter Interparish School received lessons in inclusion Monday morning.
Amy Allison, the chief operating officer of the Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas, gave presentations to children about Down syndrome - a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome, which causes low muscle tone, small stature, almond-shaped eyes and developmental issues.
"We've been trying to raise awareness for inclusion," St. Peter Principal Gayle Trachsel said.
On Monday, the school also raised some money for the guild. It held "Dress Down for Down Syndrome" day, in which students were allowed to wear casual clothes if they donated a dollar.
The school held multiple assemblies for the presentations.
Allison read the book "Taking Down Syndrome to School," by Jenna Glatzer, to some of the younger students. The book tells how someone with Down syndrome feels when they are treated differently than their peers. The book also includes a quiz, intended to reinforce information the students learn.
"We now know that having people with disabilities in schools with students who don't have disabilities is very beneficial," Allison said.
She explained - because they take longer to learn than others - Down syndrome babies begin school at 3.
Allison conducted an exercise for students in which they put a large marshmallow in their mouths and tried to communicate with their neighbors. The exercise illustrates the difficulty people with Down syndrome have because the muscles in their mouths and their tongues are weak.
She demonstrated a challenge people with Down syndrome face because of their weakened muscles. Allison asked three students to place oven mitts on their hands, and try to pick up a pen and write their names with their non-dominant hand. Although they were able to complete the task, it took them much longer than they would have otherwise. And the results weren't easy to read.
Older students watched the Down syndrome-awareness film called "Just like You - Down Syndrome."
The 13-minute film "explores the life, hopes, challenges and dreams of three kids living with Down syndrome," according to justlikeyou-downsyndrome.org.
The film follows the stories of three children with Down syndrome, Allison said. The Down Syndrome Guild and director Jennifer Greenstreet (Just Like You films) collaborated on the film and released it seven years ago, she said.