Freshwater's Special Services are provided to students
through a gamut of specially funded programs. These include:
Resource Specialist Program, Speech and Language Therapy,
Title I Reading, Psycho-educational and Counseling Services.
The credentialed support staff provide instruction and
extra support in all areas of the curriculum to those
students who have been identified with exceptional needs.
Special Services Staff also provides a Summer Study Program
which is designed to focus on each student's skills and
to maintain them throughout the summer for success in
the coming school year.
Our primary goal is to ensure the best learning opportunities
for students, and to create a positive and productive
learning environment for all students.
Gifted
and Talented Program (GATE)
The GATE program opens choices for students as well as
supporting differentiated learning within the classroom.
Young children participate in the Freshwater Chorus,
take leading roles in plays, choose enrichment classes,
and prepare science fair projects. In core subjects,
GATE students can move to a higher grade for their reading
or mathematics instruction. Intermediate grade children
have a wide variety of opportunities: classroom projects,
accelerated learning, enrichment classes, sports teams,
Student Council, and through the pull-out GATE class.
Middle school students are immersed in a project-based
environment with ample opportunities for independent
study, self-expression, leadership, and creativity in
the school and the community.
Resource
Specialist Program
The Resource Program provides services to children
who are unable to remain on grade level in the classroom
due to identified learning disabilities. A thorough
assessment is given and an Individual Education Plan
(IEP) is written outlining the best program for supporting
the child in accessing the core curriculum areas. The
amount and type of support that a RSP student receives
varies and depends on individual needs. Our Resource
Program also offers in-the-classroom support with core
curriculum subjects.
Speech and Language
Program
Our Speech and Language Specialist provides ongoing
evaluation, remediation, and prevention of communication
disorders. Identified students receive therapy for
articulation, language, fluency, and voice disorders.
Referrals are made through the classroom teacher and
yearly screenings are conducted for new students to
the school. The goal of the Speech and Language Program
is to provide individual and small group assistance
to identified students by creating and implementing
activities to improve communication skills.
Title
I Reading Program
Our Title I Reading Specialist provides reading instruction
to individuals or small groups who are having difficulty
in reaching grade level reading proficiency. Students
are identified by individual assessments, group test
scores and classroom teacher referrals. This reading
intervention reinforces the classroom instructional
program and provides practice in phonemic awareness,
phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension skills. |
