Because One Size Does Not Fit All
At Friends, we understand that every student’s educational journey is different. And our goal, above all else, is to ensure academic and social success in and out of the classroom. The Learning Center at Friends provides students with educational support, instruction, and organizational assistance that helps students reach their potential. To sign up for the Learning Center, or if you have any questions, please reach out to Academic Dean, John Bain, at [email protected] or our Learning Specialist, Kaleigh Merritt, at [email protected].
What We Do
While at the Learning Center, we focus on individual learning abilities and styles. Below, explore some of our services we provide:
- Individual evaluation and assessment
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- In the first meeting that Kaleigh has with each student, she will assess the student’s current reading levels, writing abilities, and math skills using both establish benchmarks from the VBFS’s curriculum as well as standardized assessment tools. This will provide baseline scores for each student that enable the proper interventions to take place.
- Measurable goals and objectives tailored to individual needs
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- Based on the assessment results, Kaleigh will work alongside the School Counselor, Dean of Students, and your student’s teachers to establish a set of measurable goals for your student to reach. These goals may relate to writing capabilities, reading benchmarks, math skill development, organizational skills, or any other academic-challenge that your child may need guidance with.
- Regular checks for progress will be made based off of the goals established. This will allow for Kaleigh, your student’s teacher, and other members of your child’s team to see what accommodations and/or modifications might be successful, or what may need to be adapted to better fit your child’s needs.
- Organizational skills
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- Organization plays a huge role in academic success, so it is imperative that your student is taught and is provided
with the support needed to build proper organizational skills. Kaleigh will provide this support to students who may require additional assistance in this area.
- Organization plays a huge role in academic success, so it is imperative that your student is taught and is provided
- One-on-one instructional support
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- Despite VBFS’s small class sizes, some students may need additional focused support that cannot always be provided during class times. Kaleigh has the ability to meet with your student outside of core class periods to focus on essential
knowledge in a one-to-one setting.
- Despite VBFS’s small class sizes, some students may need additional focused support that cannot always be provided during class times. Kaleigh has the ability to meet with your student outside of core class periods to focus on essential
- Remediation of essential academic skills
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- Reviewing and practicing is a major portion of learning! Students will be asked to review and practice specific skills with Kaleigh during their meeting times. The type of review and practice may vary across subjects, and may not always be covered in assigned homework activities.
- Comprehension skills
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- In addition to reviewing and practicing essential skills, comprehension of what has been read is vital for all learning
subjects. Areas of practice include (but are not limited to) problem-solving, drawing conclusions in the reading,
describing the main idea, inferencing, the relation of background/ previous knowledge, etc. Kaleigh will provide
support and activities that can target the forming and success with these skills.
- In addition to reviewing and practicing essential skills, comprehension of what has been read is vital for all learning
- Content area assistant and instructional support
- Individual reports on student progress
- Enhancement of visual and auditory processing skills
- Student advocacy
Meet Kaleigh
Kaleigh holds a Masters Degree in Special Education from George Mason University, where she also became a registered Behavior Technician and has a certification in Autism Spectrum Disorders. Kaleigh has always loved working with children of all ages and abilities. She has also had a close connection to the Friends School community, as she attended and graduated at the top of her class from Friends in the Spring of 2015. Since then, she has continued to learn with the Friends school SPICES instilled within her. She began her collegiate career at George Mason University studying psychology and childhood development. While dedicated to her studies there, she started working with college-aged students with developmental and intellectual disabilities as a specialized tutor, helping students to reach their highest academic potential. In her senior year of college, she shifted gears a bit and started working as a Registered Behavior Therapist for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. In this position, she truly found her passion for working with children with learning and behavior challenges.
The families that Kaleigh has worked with over the years describe her as someone who is energetic, intuitive, and supportive. She knows how to reach and connect with children of all ages and abilities, and understands that collaboration with families and teachers is imperative to learning. Watching students succeed in meeting their goals is one of her biggest joys in life, and she can’t wait to make a difference in the Friends School community!
Led by Kaleigh, the Learning Center provides personalized, individual instruction to any student in kindergarten through 8th grade.
Getting Started
The Learning Center has several different options:
Option 1:
$160- Woodcock Johnson IV assessment. This tool provides a comprehensive set of individually administered, norm-referenced tests that explore individual strengths and weaknesses across cognitive, linguistic and academic abilities.
Option 2: Hourly:
$55 per hour- Instructional support for students requiring less than 2 hours of service per week throughout the school year, on an “as needed” basis.
Option 3: Flat Fee:
$3,000 per school year- Instruction support for students requiring up to 2 hours* of service per week throughout the school year.
Scheduling a time for your child in the Learning Center could be between 7:15-8 am, 3-4:30 pm, or during free periods, extra help periods, or lunch. We will try not to schedule students during core class time, or community times as we want them to be successful in their classes and fully engaged in the community.
Option 4: Elementary Small Reading Group
$55 per week for 2-3 sessions of small group reading instruction and practice for 2-4 students for 30 minute sessions.
