Aaron School supports students in becoming confident and successful citizens of their community. In addition to academic instruction, Counseling, Speech-Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Transition services are available to students. Through an integrated model of delivery, intervention is primarily provided within the context of the classroom, and service providers are in close contact with academic and specialty area instructors to promote practice and application of skills throughout the school day. Additionally, individual and small group counseling is available to students on an as-needed basis. The service profile varies from year to year based on the needs of individual students and required course work.
Speech-Language Therapy
Aaron School students in grades 8-12 receive language therapy through an integrated service delivery model, which allows for an interdisciplinary approach to education and skill development. Language skills such as reading comprehension, inferencing, vocabulary development, sentence construction and expansion, and paragraph/essay writing are addressed in conjunction with academic and social development courses. The Speech-Language Pathologists collaborate with educators to develop goals and objectives that relate to academic content and focus on increasing expressive, receptive, and pragmatic language. Through this service delivery model, students receive maximum opportunity for practice, application, and generalization of skills, promoting growth with both academic and social development.
Counseling
In conjunction with academic coursework, all 8th – 12th grade students participate in a comprehensive series of social development seminars and curriculum-based courses. 8th through 10th grade students participate in Forum, a weekly social development group facilitated by a School Psychologist and/or Social Worker. During Forum, students engage in roundtable discussions that relate to personal interests and the development of positive interpersonal relationships. Within this supportive environment, students practice skills such as active listening, critical thinking, problem solving, and reciprocal communication.
In conjunction with Forum, 8th through 12th grade students progress through a series of curriculum-based social development and transition-related courses. These courses are taught by School Psychologists, School Counselors, Social Workers, and/or Speech-Language Pathologists. Students receive discrete instruction as it pertains to social skills and have consistent opportunity to apply and practice strategies that contribute to positive social development and productive peer relationships. Curriculum themes include the establishment and maintenance of pro-social relationships, effective communication, self-advocacy, responsible decision making, social problem solving, and digital citizenship. These themes are addressed through the following course sequence:
Course Sequence:
8th Grade
- Forum
- Core Skills
9th Grade
- Forum
- Responsibilities and Choices 1
10th Grade
- Forum
- Responsibilities and Choices 2
Upon completion of this course sequence, students continue social skills instruction in 11th and 12th grades through the Guidance and Transition program. See Guidance and Transition for more information.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapy services are available through a consultative model and are geared towards increasing student awareness of sensory needs and the impact a regulated sensory state has on learning and classroom performance. Within the context of the classroom, students and teachers work in collaboration with the Occupational Therapist to identify effective tools and strategies to manage sensory needs and improve attention, engagement, and participation in an academic setting. The Occupational Therapist also plays an integral role in addressing executive functioning needs as it pertains to school routines and organization of materials. This model of intervention creates consistent opportunity for generalization of skills and promotes academic, occupational, and overall school success.