Sarah reaches into the bin of potential candidates, and pulls out another one, handing the smaller doll to her playmate.

"Yup, she'll be perfect," Gillianne says as she places her in the bed.

It may look like a scene from any typical pre-K class, but Sarah is hearing impaired. They're part of a new "inclusion" program launched last fall at Park Hill School in East Syracuse. The program merges hearing-impaired children from BOCES' Children Village program with "typically hearing" children from East Syracuse-Minoa.

The program started with one class of 16 pupils, but school officials want to expand it to include all four Children's Village classes next year and have asked the state Education Department for permission to do that, said Ken Thurston, BOCES special education supervisor. That would bring 64 children with special needs into the Park Hill Pre-K program. The 3- and 4-year-olds would come from throughout Central New York.

The class at Park Hill houses an auditory/oral program for children with cochlear implants in the morning, and a "total communication" class during the afternoon that includes sign language. Teachers often wear transmitters - headsets with

microphones - which are connected to receivers worn by children with cochlear implants or hearing aids. The system diminishes background noise.

There are eight children in each session and they mix frequently with other pre-K children.

The program is a fabulous way for "typical" children to become sensitive to people with hearing disabilities at a young age, said Park Hill Principal Carol Feldmeier.

"Our children don't even notice there's a difference," she said. "They're just interested in playing with each other. They learn how to do that, and how to communicate with each other."

Tom Zinger, of Clay, can speak about the benefits. His son Andrew, 4, received a cochlear implant almost two years ago and is in the Children's Village class at Park Hill this year. Being in an inclusive setting at Park Hill allows Andrew to form a solid language base, Zinger said.

"At 4 years old, he's a sponge," Zinger said. "He's a mimic, repeating everything he hears from the other kids at school. . . He needs the chatter and camaraderie you get when you're with hearing/speaking children. His speech has improved 110 percent."

Pat Fey, who teaches the Children's Village class at Park Hill, said "typical" children serve as speaking models, helping those with cochlear implants understand what they hear.

"In this class, they begin to imitate what they hear because they have a model," she said. "It builds confidence in them."

On the flip side, the "typical" children become more sensitive to others who may sound different from them.

"Some children are delighted to take on the role of teacher or helper," she said. "It adds a whole new chapter to their little worlds."

A group of parents recently commended the ES-M school board on the program. "People want their children today to be exposed to different disabilities," Fey said. "We've had a lot of parents volunteer their child to be in the inclusive setting."

By By Elizabeth Doranhttp://www.syracuse.com/news/poststandard/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1143194178103520.xml&coll=1