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Our children attend school from 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. daily during the school year (2-4:1 student to teacher ratio and Language Arts (2-3:1). In a small classroom setting students are taught Science, Social Studies, Grammar, Art, Music, Physical Education, Social Skills and Mind That's Mine (a Mel Levine program) (11-12:2).

What do you mean by "language-based" curriculum?
Learning is accomplished through language; language development takes place in all subjects. At The Highlands School, we consider every aspect of school an opportunity to foster language development.

What do you mean by "multisensory"?
All five senses are used whenever possible in order for
the child to acquire, learn and remember information. The simultaneous integration of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile modalities is commonly used throughout the day.

What do you mean by "structured"?
Structured means a predictable, organized and sequential
academic program with behavioral expectations that are clearly defined.

What do you mean by "processing"?
Processing is the child's ability to mentally arrange information into a format that can be acted upon immediately or at a later time.

What do you mean by "phonemic awareness"?
This is the ability to perceive the identity, number and order of sounds within words and the ability to manipulate those sounds by deletion, substitution or addition.

How do you define "a child who learns differently"?
A child who learns differently is one who needs non-traditional teaching techniques due to an uneven profile of processing abilities.

How long will my child be at The Highlands School?
Remediation of skill deficits will take place as quickly as possible. Children develop at different rates; the average stay is two years.

After all this care and special treatment, how will my child manage the transition to conventional school?
The individual students manage the transition to the next school by
becoming aware of their learning style and taking responsibility for their individual learning needs. We teach organization and study skills, which enables the student to acquire knowledge regardless
of the curriculum or setting.

What is the training and background of the faculty?
The faculty is trained in a discipline relevant to their work at The Highlands. Some are special educators, elementary educators, speech and language specialists, and reading specialists. All have been trained in Orton-Gillingham and Lindamood-Bell techniques. All are encouraged to participate in ongoing professional development
and training programs.

One of the first students who attended The Highlands School was an eighth grade severely dyslexic young man. Upon enrolling, his math was at a fourth grade level and his reading was at a first grade level. His mother wrote, "He has such great potential; it just needs to be set free." By the end of the year, his math was at a seventh grade level and his reading was very close to a seventh grade level. He went to Harford Technical High School and graduated in auto mechanics. After working a year, he plans to go to college to study business. He wants to have his own auto shop someday. One could say The Highlands School set him free.

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