Learning Styles & Accommodations
SPECIAL EDUCATION
The academic program at Valley View School is designed to address the educational needs of a wide variety of students, including those who require specialized instruction. Carol Goodrow is a full-time special education instructor who works intensively with boys whose learning differences have caused past academic failure. Carol has 30+ years of experience as a special education professional and is certified in the Wilson Reading System and the Orton-Gillingham method.
Valley View is able to provide specialized instruction in reading, writing, and math. A diagnostic structured literacy approach is used for students with dyslexia. The programs used to teach reading are Wilson Reading Systems, Orton-Gillingham method, Read Naturally ( all levels including the Gate Tutoring Program), and the Merrill Linguistics Program, which provides a generous amount of reading practice to help students apply their skills. Each session is individualized according to the short and long term needs of the student.
Daily data are collected and instructional decisions are made according to the needs and successes of each student. In addition, speech-to-text can be utilized to make writing accessible to students who would otherwise be unable to communicate due to extreme difficulty with spelling.
The Saxon Math program (home school version) is used for students who struggle with math and those with dyscalculia. This program uses direct instruction and covers the areas of math fact fluency, problem-solving, mental math, and a multitude of computational, measurement, and word problem skills to name a few. It offers self-correcting flash cards and daily timed math fact quizzes. There are also hands-on and investigative lessons using math manipulatives. The cyclical nature of the program and frequent testing, as well as clear and simplified explanations, ensure achievement.
ACCOMMODATIONS
- Small group or 1-1 instruction
- Smartboard lessons
- Study guides
- Customized tests
- Printed notes
- Rubrics for writing assignments
- Extra time for test taking
- Information presented in multimodal ways
- Teacher check-ins for understanding
- Instruction is broken down into manageable chunks
- Purposeful homework
- Oral completion of tests as needed
- No penalty for spelling as needed
- Quizlet review games
- Interactive class review (Jeopardy game)
- Off level or alternative reading material for content area subjects
- The use of audible devices for listening to literature
- Student reference guide for math vocabulary, formulas, and definitions(Saxon program) during lessons or tests
- The use of Google Chromebooks for longer writing assignments or research projects
- Sharing documents on google docs to teacher and student may edit/write together
- 1-1 attention during study hall as needed
- Support during AR tests shared reading with the teacher
