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Continuum of Services

Space Camp
Much like how there are different levels of academic support afforded to students at LES, there are also varying levels of behavioral, social, and emotional support available to our students.  The majority of students at LES respond to the curricula and programs provided to them in the classroom (See ‘Core Curricula’ below), but for those who need additional support, there are a range of other intervention options (see ‘Targeted Intervention’ and 'Intensive Intervention').
 

Core Curricula At the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year, LES adopted and began implementing the PATHS program across all grade levels. PATHS, which stands for Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies, is a comprehensive, evidence-based social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum that teaches students a range of important skills, from recognizing and identifying their own emotions to solving complex problems with peers. The below excerpt from the PATHS website offers a helpful description of SEL, its importance, and how PATHS benefits students is as follows:

Morse Hill

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is a critical component of the educational experience that is proven to lead to improvements in student behavior, reductions in classroom disruption, and greater academic achievement. It does so by going beyond traditional academic skills and teaching students how to resolve conflicts, handle emotions, empathize, and make responsible decisions. Again and again, the evidence shows that in order to develop healthier school climates and improved academic results, schools must teach the whole student.

The PATHS program covers the 5 distinct categories of social-emotional learning:
  • Self Awareness is the ability to understand and manage your own feelings and to know your strengths and weaknesses.
  • Self Management is the ability to manage your behavior and impulses, to have integrity, and to act according to your values.
  • Social Awareness is the ability to understand and have empathy for others.
  • Relationship Management is knowing how to work with others and get along effectively.
  • Responsible Decision Making is the ability to make good decisions and know how to problem solve effectively both alone and in groups.
The PATHS program brings students through each of these domains in stages. Each unit is organized around one or more of these domains, while integrating aspects from all five. For more information on the PATHS program and the wealth of research behind it, please visit the PATHS website.

Targeted Intervention
When students need additional social, emotional, and/or behavioral support, the school psychologist and counselor work with the students -- as well as their teachers and parents -- to provide more targeted interventions designed to foster specific social skills, address a particular problem, or increase or decrease certain behaviors. These more targeted interventions may be implemented with a whole classroom, with a small group of students, or one-on-one. Examples of these types of interventions are as follows:

  • Personal Space Camp (whole-class intervention on personal space)
  • SMARTS executive functioning curriculum
  • Growth mindset lessons
  • Targeted counseling groups on topics such as relational aggression, friendship making skills, coping skills, anger management
  • Conflict resolution
  • Short-term, solution-focused individual counseling
  • Behavior contracts and incentive plans

Intensive Intervention
At times, children may present with social, emotional, and/or behavioral needs that require a more intensive level of support. In these cases, the school psychologist or counselor typically meets with the student individually and together they work toward both short-term and long-term goals. This type of intensive intervention is often part of a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan; however, students do not necessarily need an IEP or 504 Plan to access this more intensive level of support. The following are services are frequently associated with intensive intervention:

  • Individual counseling
  • Brief, daily check-ins with the school psychologist or counselor
  • Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA)
  • Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)
  • Safety plan
  • Consultation with classroom teacher, paraeducator(s), and/or specialists
  • Frequent data collection and observation
  • Regular home-school communication
  • Collaboration with outside service providers

If you have questions or would like to know more about any of the above programs or interventions, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached at 413-548-9144 or [email protected]/[email protected].