Wolmer’s Preparatory School boasts one of the most effective Special Education Programmings in Kingston. Our Enrichment Centre offers the following:
- Scaffolding
- Direct Instruction
- Small Group Instruction
- Multi Sensory Learning approaches
- Individual Learning Profiles/Plans
- Referrals / Educational Consultancy
- Academic Remediation / Interventions
The programme was geared toward removing students from mainstream classes intermittently, utilizing and implementing remedial instruction to reinforce and strengthen the students’ weaknesses.
In 2011 the Special Education Department implemented an Enrichment Centre. The purpose of this centre is to address the growing needs of our students with diagnosed learning disabilities. The disabilities vary from slow learners to mild to moderate autism.
The main objective of the programme is to provide one-to-one, direct, small group and the remedial instructions. Our goal is to strengthen the individual weaknesses of each student promoting and fostering functional literacy and maximizing their individual potential to be reintegrated into mainstream with minimal scaffolding.
To date our centre has grown over the past three years serving over 40 students. Our current disabilities are:
- Students with mild Autism
- Trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome)
- Slow Learners
- Pacropremie (under privileged new born)
- Behavioural Challenges
- Intellectual disabilities
- Nonverbal students
- Early onset Glaucoma
- Students with pervasive developmental disorders.
The students’ ages span from 4 years to 12 years. Our staff consists of two trained Special Educators and Education Therapists, one Reading Specialist; one Level 2 trained Early Childhood Teacher, one Teachers’ Assistant and two ‘shadows’.
Our fees are quite competitive and our students show significant progress . Over the years our students have done well in Standardized Examinations and have received placement to traditional high schools. All our Grade 4 students typically receive Mastery for the Grade 4 Literacy and Numeracy Examinations.
Our enrichment centre caters to the needs of children with learning differences and difficulties. We currently have 10 students enrolled in the centre, which is staffed by 4 teachers who are qualified and committed to helping them maximize their potential. We aim to create a learning environment which meets the needs of the students, allowing for the development of confident and independent learners.
The Learning Enrichment Center provides one-on-one, continuous academic support for students.
The Learning Enrichment Center has three primary goals: to maximize individualized learning enrichment opportunities for our students, to serve as a resource center for teachers and parents and to offer services and resources to the communities we serve.
The Learning Enrichment Center is a place where students can seek academic support in any subject area at anytime. Areas include:
- Reading
- Math
- Other subject content areas
- Understanding assignments
- Study habits
- Confidence-building activities
- Referrals for anxiety
- Informal assessments for possible recommendation to any outside professionals (psychologist, speech and language pathologists, etc)
The Process
The Learning Enrichment Center process looks different for each child, because we serve students with a wide range of academic needs, including those with learning differences.
Teachers regularly review student progress and consult with an LEC faculty with any concerns about student academic performance, and plans are created to work alongside parents to help the student. During LEC Class, students work one-on-one with a trained instructor to meet academic goals. In the event that the LEC faculty determines an assessment needs to be completed for extra outside help, the LEC instructor works with closely with parents and teachers to complete this process, and if there are suggestions of accomodations or modifications, the LEC will help facilitate appropriate interventions.
Qualified Experts
The Enrichment Center faculty are trained on the Orton-Gillingham approach to reading and writing. This is an instructional method developed in the early 1900’s by a neurologist and is proven to be effective for many students who have difficulty with reading, writing or spelling. Our well-trained and certified Orton-Gillingham instructors use this approach as a powerful tool to help students master this subject area.
All of our teachers in the Learning Enrichment Center are certified teachers who collectively have over 60 years of combined experience working with students.