​Samara Day School is an academic, alternative school for students needing a small school setting and an individualized education plan.  

• 1st-8th grade (see tutoring/homeschooling for HS options)

• 6:1 Student/teacher ratio

• We specialize in students who are neurodivergent (ADHD, dyslexia, high-functioning autism, etc.) ​

  • We ARE for kids struggling with their academic skills, self-esteem, and learned helplessness

  • We help kids with impulsivity, self-awareness, perseverance, executive functioning, etc.  However, we are NOT a behavioral school. We would be happy to discuss your child's specific situation. 

• Our head teachers are trained to work with kids at different grades and academic levels, utilizing various learning approaches and diagnostic teaching to help each student.

• Every day is an opportunity to help build and grow executive functioning skills necessary for life success.

• We target a variety of learning styles using multi-disciplinary and individualized research-based programs that facilitate strengthening areas of weakness while building compensatory strategies.

 

The fundamental areas of learning include:

• Academic achievement in core areas of academics.

• Critical thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, and test-taking strategies.

• Daily emphasis on executive functioning skills, such as materials organization, use of a planner, utilization of resources,  and proactively asking clarification questions.

• Daily emphasis on building success attributes such as self-awareness, proactivity, perseverance, goal-setting, support systems, and emotional coping strategies (Based on the Marianne Frostig Center’s longitudinal study).

• Integration of social development skills, such as verbal and non-verbal communication, inter- and intra-personal awareness, and pragmatic language development.

• Community/Makers' programs, such as art, music, computer science, collaborative activities/games, and student-led interests.

 

Based on each student’s learning profile, an Individual Instruction Plan (IIP) is designed to maximize his/her learning. This instructional plan incorporates best practices, which are based on current research, and is re-assessed on an ongoing basis. Learning comes alive through classroom and small group participation; interactive, hands-on, multi-sensory instruction; and student-led ideas in a motivating environment. SDS students are given the opportunity to achieve their fullest potential.​

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Makers Class

This dynamic course includes art, music, computer science,

game play, and success attributes.  It provides an opportunity for

students to explore interests, creativity, possible career paths,

and social skills.  The Makers program continues to evolve

as students offer suggestions and ideas. 

Athletics 

SDS students have physical education 4 days a week.  In addition to

physical activity, this class allows them to practice following rules and 

using their social skills.  It includes student-initiated activities,

organized games, and access to nature and the outdoors.

We understand that students with learning challenges can often struggle

with physical challenges as well, from balance to sensory integration challenges.

Physical education does not conform students to a one-size-fits-all program,

and respects a student's need to grow at their own pace. 

 

Student Activities

SDS believes a good education involves much more than providing a strong academic program.  Our students will learn by doing and be given opportunities to participate in various non-academic activities, which support and enrich their classroom experiences. These activities include; field trips, overnight trips, athletics, the arts, Student Council, interest clubs, school dances, and community service. These activities, combined with the academic program of SDS, will provide our students the tools to develop into well-rounded, social young people who are ready for life beyond school.

 

Success Attributes

An increasing amount of research is proving that IQ or S.A.T. scores are not key predictors of success in adulthood, and that personal attributes, such as perception and type of motivation, are the more reliable factors to predict the likelihood of success. The Samara Day School wants to support the growth of academic skills with our students, but understands that if a child learns to persevere in the face of life struggles, proactively finds a resource to answer his/her questions, and sets high yet manageable and accessible goals, those skills are more likely to affect success rates leading to mature adulthood.  The impact of a community using a common language of success, in explicit lessons and teachable moments, is significant.  To foster the students’ future success at SDS, we base our common language on the longitudinal (over 20 years) research done at the Frostig Center in Pasadena by Goldberg, R. J., Higgins, E. L., Raskind, M. H., & Herman, K. L. (2003).  Frostig is a school for students with learning disabilities that has been open for over 60 years, and during the research, they discovered that those students who developed into successful adults often had attributes in common.  Frostig’s findings were formed into the “Success Attributes.”  

 

• Self-Awareness

• Proactivity

• Perseverance

• Goal-Setting

• Presence and Use of Support Systems

• Emotional Coping Strategies

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*http://frostig.org/our-research/frostig-published-articles/#sthash.zKfmUc5F.dpuf

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Social Skills

SDS believes that students show the most growth when they are provided with a safe, predictable, and structured learning environment.  Along with their academic challenges, a number of our students may have social challenges resulting from impulsivity, noticing and interpreting non-verbal cues, drawing inferences, and pragmatics. The teaching staff incorporates social skills in both direct and non-direct lessons, integrating them into the curriculum and teachable moments.  The development of the success attribute self-awareness, is essential, but many of the other attributes also come into play.  

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Dual Enrollment

Dual-enrollment (attending Samara in conjunction of another public or homeschool program) options are available to our students at SDS. Organization of the dual enrollment is done through a team of the student’s parents/guardians, SDS administration, and the other school.  Some of the factors to consider are: travel time, class schedules, credits, student benefits for dual enrollment, etc.  If dual enrollment is decided to be added to the child’s education program, that student will usually attend SDS during the morning and enroll in one to three classes at an alternative school in the afternoon, but we can discuss options. One of the goals of SDS is to encourage the inclusion of students in the mainstream school setting or vocational program for as much as appropriate for that child to excel. Therefore, dual enrollment may be all the student may need from the beginning of their attendance at SDS, or a great way to help "learn and return" students from full-day attendance at SDS to the mainstream educational setting.

 

Homework

Teachers assign homework based on the student’s individual level.  Usually, assignments are those that can be done independently or with minimum home assistance. As the school year progresses, more challenging assignments, like long-term projects, are used as wonderful opportunities for teachers to model, encourage, and help the students build their self-awareness, proactivity, perseverance, goal-setting, awareness of/use of support systems, and emotional coping strategies.  Generally, the goals for homework are:

 

• Build good work and organization habits to build responsibility and independence, such as utilization of a planner and binder organization.

• Building independent and effective study habits

• Reinforce and practice skills taught in the classroom

• NOT to take up the child's whole afternoon or cause strife in the family dynamics.