School Age Program

The Faison School Age Program is a unique data driven program that provides evidence based instruction to children ages 5-22.

Each classroom teacher provides services directly and indirectly to the students. Direct services consist of the presentation of instruction and systematic observations of the teacher assistant. Indirect services include consultation with parents and related service professionals, analyzing student and classroom data, and making instructional decisions.

The teacher assistants are responsible for working directly with the students including presenting data based instruction as well as summarizing and graphing data. All teacher assistants participate in weekly trainings on evidence based teaching procedures.

Parents participate in monthly parent trainings and are also invited to take part in activities and events that occur at the school. The teachers provide daily communication to the parents about student progress in a parent communication book.

School age students participate in instruction related to goals and objectives written in their individual education plans. The plans are developed based on assessments, including the ABLLS, PIRK and functional analysis.

Group Activities

Students also participate in group time activities (i.e., gym, art, and music) for up to two hours a day, where opportunities to initiate and respond to interactions with peers are provided. During group activities, emphasis is placed on the student’s ability to independently attend to instructions and to spontaneously engage in communication with adults and peers. Under the supervision of teachers, group leaders generate lesson plans and protocols that provide descriptions of how each student should be assisted during group activities in order to maximize their potential for independent responding.

Vocational Training

In addition to academic instructions in the school age curriculum, older students in the program participate in pre-vocational and vocational training. The vocational curriculum identifies techniques to assess student’s preferences and how these preferences can be incorporated into vocational skills. The vocational opportunities are provided in school and community settings.

The Faison School has developed a collaborative relationship with the Richmond ARC. Assessment tools and ideas for job placement, available through ARC, can be shared with the students IEP team to determine if a student would benefit from the ARC program.

Students in the school age program are also presented with opportunities, throughout the day, to practice skills in activities of daily living, such as personal care, cooking, and purchasing. Students generalize these skills during community based instruction and recreational activities off-site, in places such as grocery stores, botanical gardens, and therapeutic horseback riding.

Supervision

Supervision is another unique aspect of The Faison School program. Supervision is conducted by the Program Coordinator and the Director of Education. All teachers and assistants are directly and indirectly supervised. The supervisory staff summarize student data through observation and data collection to continually assess the quantity and quality of instruction.

Our school day
Services between 8:15 and 2:15
5 days a week
10 month school year; 2 month ESY