Something is in the water around Armstrong Elementary School in Reston. Teachers are seeing double, and in some cases triple, and Principal Cynthia West does not have an explanation.
It seems that in the small Reston school, Armstrong teachers and administrators have spotted a strange phenomenon. Of the 454 students at Armstrong this year, there are eight sets of twins and three sets of triplets roaming the hallways, or slightly more than 5 percent of the student population. Last year, teachers like Bonnie Schwan began noticing an inordinate amount of twins at Armstrong. However, this year, the multiple populations took an even more noticeable jump.
kindergarten triplet trios Daniel, John and Ryan Hargadon and Hugh, Kerry and Maureen Curran joined forces with kindergarten twin duos Emma and Nathan Steinhobel and Hugh and Patrick Aucella. The second and fourth grades are the only classes not touched by the multiple "bug," administrators said. Sixth graders Andrew, Lauren and Taylor Satyshur are the reigning king and queens of the school’s multiple population.
"It’s like nothing I have ever seen before in my 20 years in education," said West, who is in her fifth year at Armstrong, in the North Point section of Reston. "We are just a small neighborhood school, that’s why I think it is so unusual. It is an anomaly. I wish I had a reason, but I do not. I do know that it’s a lot of fun."
Schwan, a kindergarten teacher, agrees. "We are surrounded, but it’s a lot of fun," she said. "We know they like to be together, but we treat each of them as their own individual. We don’t treat them any differently than any other of our students."
West said Armstrong has a sizable special education population and does have some students who are pupil placed, but she said that all of the multiples are from the "base school." "They all live in the neighborhood, I don’t know, maybe it’s something in the water," West joked.
Kate Blakeman, the principal’s administrative assistant, said she doesn’t have an answer either. "I don’t know what’s in the water around here and I don’t think we want to know," Blakeman said, laughing. "I’ll tell you one thing though, I think I’ll stick to the bottled stuff."
HAVING SO MANY SETS of twins and triplets provides its own sorts challenges for teachers and administrators, West said. Whenever possible, West said siblings should be separated in different classes, a policy, she said, that some parents, especially kindergarten parents sometimes find tough to handle. "Before making those decisions, I did talk to all the parents," she said. "We try to encourage children to be independent. Siblings, especially twins or triplets, can be very dependent on one another."
By separating siblings, the students are encouraged to make their own sets of friends, West said. Often times, it is harder for the parents than the students, the principal said.
Many of the parents, like Cecilia Halseth, are supportive of the policy and actually request that their children be separated. Mother of first graders and fraternal twins Cameron and Christopher, Halseth said she and her husband felt it was important for their twin boys to not spend 24 hours a day with each other. "They are so different to begin with," she said. "They have different friends, they go to different birthday parties. And I am definitely not one of those parents who will call up another parent and ask that both kids get invited to a party."
Not all parents are as understanding as the Halseths, West said. "We do commiserate with the parents, we do. I was the same way with my kid, and I don’t even have twins," she said. "The teachers all know what special relationships these brothers and sisters have with each other, but we have to look at how to best provide for each student’s individual needs."
West said she makes a point to communicate with parents of split up siblings on a regular basis during the first few weeks of school. "I think our policy has been very effective and very positive," she said. "And I think the parents agree. The kindergarten parents are usually the toughest, but I make sure they know they can call me whenever they feel the need. Ultimately, they have to trust us in what we are doing. I tell them, ‘you’ll be surprised; it’s going to be fine.' After two or three weeks without any tears or problems, they come to understand."
KATHRYN HARGADON is one of those parents. Hargadon has four boys at Armstrong, including Kindergarten triplets and older brother Jake, a first grader. Hargadon said she did get a little "teary eyed" on the first day of school this year, but she said her boys have blossomed at Armstrong. "I think it’s great that they are meeting new friends and having their own experiences," she said.
Halseth agrees. "We have two boys made at the same time with the same love and the same care and yet, every single moment I am amazed at how different they can be," she said, adding that Christopher is into sports while his brother Cameron is interested in computers. "It’s definitely double the trouble, but also double the fun."
John Aucella, father of twin kindergartners, Hugh and Patrick, is also a firm believer in Armstrong’s policy. "It’s been great seeing them with their own ideas and their own stories," Aucella said. "As much time as they spend together outside of school, it’s good that they are separated at school. They are very different people with totally different skills and interests. It’s been fun to see."
Hargadon said having four boys so close in age can be overwhelming at times, but she quickly added that, while initially her home resembled a daycare center with "four of everything," it is also a "huge blessing." "There’s always a play date in our house," she said. "I don’t know any other way and I wouldn’t have it any other way."
Hargadon doesn’t have any explanation for the multiple multiples, but she is happy to have another nearby mother, Katy Curran. Curran also has triplets in kindergarten. "It’s great for me to have somebody, so close by, that has experienced the same sorts of things I have experienced," Hargadon said.