program focus
Students in the Significant Supports Needs Center Program are highly diverse learners with Individualized Education Programs (IEPS,) with extensive needs in the areas of cognition and learning, communication, movement and social/emotional abilities. Students may also have concurrent health, sensory, physical, and/or behavioral needs.
- Evidence-Based, Differentiated Instruction: Evidence-based, direct, small group differentiated instruction in literacy, numeracy and problem-solving in order to acquire and generalize knowledge;
- Substantial Communication Supports: Substantial supports for communication, social/emotional, health, sensory, and mobility needs;
- Intensive Instruction and Adaptations: Intensive instruction, substantial adaptations (modifications and accommodations) and/or ongoing supports in order to provide engagement and meaningful participation in grade-level curriculum
- Assistitve Technology and Tools: Tools to access curriculum and to demonstrate knowledge and skills, student behavior, social skills, and life skills that foster independence and self-advocacy, including access to assistive technology and visual supports
- Direct and Explicit Instruction for Social Skills: Direct, explicit instruction to address student behavior, social skills, and life skills that foster independence and self-advocacy
- Indepedence Encouragement: Planned fading of supports, as appropriate, to increase and encourage independence.
- Adapted Materials and Individualized Instruction: Materials are substantially adapted and instruction is highly individualized and differentiated so students can access learning in alternative ways. This will allow students to acquire, maintain, and generalize academic and functional life skills at school, work, home and community.
Grade-Level Standards of Instruction
Students are provided with specialized academic instruction using modified grade-level standards in the center program. Additionally, SSN center programs focus on functional communication instruction with the end result being that every student has a consistent and usable communication system that can be used in and out of the school setting..
Adaptive, Academic and Communicative Skills
Programming in SSN Centers focuses on teaching academic, adaptive and communicative skills in order to increase independence. Students in the SSN center program have significant cognitive disabilities and are assessed using alternate assessments.
General Education Classroom Time
Time in the general education classroom is not treated as privilege. Rather, like any student on an IEP, it is individualized based on student needs. SSN teams work closely with the general education teachers to maximize opportunities for inclusion with purposeful and meaningful time with peers without disabilities.