During a student's time with us they will receive remediation of skills indicated as areas of need derived from the documentation provided by you, their parent/guardian. Through careful scheduling your child will participate in several remedial classes or skills classes designed to meet their needs. Our skills classes are monitored through use of checklists scaffolded to gradually increase a student's ability in a particular area. Individualized work in a 6:1 student-teacher ratio, multi-sensory classroom allow students to progress through the skills they need in order to be successful throughout their academic career and beyond.
Once a student has demonstrated mastery of a skill or set of skills; that is, they no longer require support or prompting to implement a skill, that work becomes used as the basis for their homework. In this way, we can continue to monitor their knowledge and awareness of information previously taught. Through spiralling back to skills past, we can ensure retention of information and keep those critical skills at the forefront of a student's memory. Skills classes assign homework based on the skills each teacher feels the student has mastered, tailored to their particular learning profile, to be no more than 10 minutes in length per night.
Below is a list of the skills classes offered at Bridgeway and an overview of their purpose and topics covered.
Study Skills
A remedial class focusing on skills related to organization and planning; students will use various resources in applying those skills throughout their academics and life.
Topics covered include:
- Organization
- Calendar Use and Schedule Planning
- Dictionary and Thesaurus Use
- Project and Assignment Planning
- Note-taking
- Test Preparation and Test Taking
- Communication Techniques
SpellRead
SpellRead is a reading program that focuses on phonological automaticity and reading fluency for struggling readers. Backed by independent research, SpellRead combines intensive phonemic and phonetic activities with a language arts program to build students' reading comprehension, fluency, decoding, spelling and writing strategies. These goals are achieved through participation in three phases of the program: A, B and C. Topics covered in each phase include:
Phase A
- primary vowel sounds
- primary consonant sounds
- speed reading card packs
Phase B
- secondary vowel spellings
- consonant blends
- syllabication
- audio-visual automaticity
Phase C
- fluency with polysyllabic words
- clusters
- verb forms, spelling and pronunciation
Writing Skills
Topics covered include:
- Handwriting Skills
- Parts of Speech
- Sentence Structure
- Capitalization
- Punctuation
- Paragraph Structure
- Writing Styles
- Proofreading
- The Writing Process
- Essays
Read/Write/Spell Skills
For those who need a review or less intensive supports and remediation in one or more of reading, writing or spelling skills. The topics help students to apply these skills to their academic subjects as well as other areas of everyday life. Topics covered include:
- Parts of Speech
- Capitalization/Punctuation
- Antonyms/Synonyms/Homonyms
- Sentence and Paragraph Writing
- Main Idea and Sequencing
- Reading Comprehension
- Reading Fluency
Vocabulary/Comprehension
This skill-based class uses topics and outcomes from content classes to aid students in improving their vocabulary, reading comprehension, sequencing and oral expression.
Topics covered include:
- Visualizing and Verbalizing
- Following Directions
- Question Comprehension
- Figurative Language
- Reading Comprehension
- Higher Order Thinking
Technology Skills
This skill-based class uses topics and outcomes from content classes to facilitate use of computers and updated technology as a support for student learning and expression.
Topics covered include:
- Introductory/Basic Skills
- Keyboarding Skills
- Word Processing
- Internet Skills
- Spreadsheets
- Assistive Technology
Math Skills
In math skills lessons, students practice inquiry in manageable steps. They are guided in discovery and understanding of mathematical concepts by answering questions and working through challenges on their own, but they are also provided with a good deal of rigorous guidance and support from the teacher. Repetition of concepts is key to ensuring automaticity of skills for application in the following topics:
- Place Value
- Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division of Whole Numbers
- Working With Integers
- Fractions
- Decimals
- Algebra
- Problem Solving
- Measurement
- Patterns and Relationships
- Graphing
- Geometry
- Exponents and Scientific Notation
Social Skills
This unique skill-based class guides students through learning about themselves, relationships, expectations, understanding others and the meaning in everyday interactions.
Topics covered include:
- Awareness of Self and Others
- Self-Management
- Relationship Skills
- Life Skills
Spelling
This course is designed to help students learn and apply the various spelling rules associated with the English language. Students scheduled in a spelling class may or may not have completed a dedicated phonics based reading support class or writing skills class., though the skills they learn will be applied throughout each of their classes. Topics covered include:
- spelling commonly used words
- omissions, substitutions and transpositions
- consonants, consonant blends – both initial and final
- vowels
- syllables
- advanced sound-symbol patterns
- prefixes and suffixes
- spelling rules
- word families
- memory and discrimination, both visual and auditory
- rhyming
- self-editing
- word attack skills
Learning Disabilities Awareness (LDA)
Developing an awareness and understanding of one's learning profile is key to success. At Bridgeway we teach students about their unique learning strengths and needs as well as how to advocate for adaptations they may need to reach their full potential. Topics covered in LDA include:
- Overview of Bridgeway Academy
- Myths and Facts about Learning Disabilities
- Learning Disabilities and other types of Difficulties
- Multiple Intelligences
- Your Learning Profile
- Advocacy
- Aptitudes and Abilities
- Executive Functioning Skills
- Putting knowledge into Practice
- Rights and Responsibilities
Homeroom
Our day begins and ends with Homeroom class. One of our keys to success involves organization and supports for those with difficulties in executive functioning skills. Through guided activities and routines, we teach and reinforce skills around preparation for the day, planning and gathering necessary materials, time management and accountability. Although this time of the day is shorter than our other classes, it is of the utmost importance to student success! Topics covered in Homeroom include:
- Binder
- Agenda
- Organization
- Collaboration
- Time Management
- Respect