Academics

Curriculum at Carroll School

Educational decisions are guided by the needs of the individual child.

Carroll School is fiercely dedicated to giving each child what "they" most need. What does this mean? Your child's learning profile drives what your child is taught each day, not what is written in a curriculum map or textbook by someone who never met your child. This is different from typical schools where a prescribed curriculum informs teachers about what and when to teach.

Our teachers & tutors assess and track student performance daily and build lessons based on your child’s mastery of essential grade-appropriate skills in reading, writing, and math. In content-rich subjects - science, history and the arts - we align with the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework but use a project-based, cross-curricular approach to ensure your child receives an intellectually challenging and enriched set of experiences.

 


Our Curriculum Guiding Principles

Examine Carroll’s academic program through the lens of five enormously important guiding principles:

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Girl in Orton-Gillingham Tutoring Session

Diagnostic & Prescriptive Education

In other school settings, students with language-based learning difficulties are often taught in the same way. Not at Carroll. We dig in and identify each student's strengths and weaknesses.

We study each child’s neuropsychological testing which is provided by parents, often through their public school system or through an independent psychologist. From that base, we begin to design each child’s educational program in order to provide what each student most needs. The loop continues throughout a child’s time at Carroll as we collect more data and design new educational opportunities based on the information.

Small class sizes are ideal for dyslexic students

Grouping & Scheduling

Once we identify each student's cognitive and academic profile, we create small class groupings and a custom schedule that delivers effective instruction.

Unconstrained by large classrooms with few teachers, Carroll School is set-up to place students in classrooms and tutorials with peers and teachers that can address weaknesses, accentuates strengths, and challenge students academically. This happens not only in language classes, but all core classes.

Dyslexic student doing math on whiteboard

Custom Pacing

At Carroll, a child's education moves forward as quickly as possible and as slowly as necessary.

In other words, we expect children to make meaningful progress and our teachers push forward optimistically at all times. Yet, we also make sure that each child can utilize the skills, strategies, and content that they're taught. Simple exposure is often not enough. We check constantly to ensure that students truly understand, can harness, and “own” what they experience in their classrooms and tutorials.

Hands-on Science Class in Carroll's 6th Grade

Interesting and Intellectually Challenging

We don't just value children's curiosity, passions, and talents - we build an education around them.

Carroll’s program is designed to ensure that each child has daily experiences in areas where they shine. While remediation of language-based weaknesses is also essential, opportunities in the arts, science, social studies, movement, athletics, outdoor education, social interaction, leadership, community service, and technology are integral components of the Carroll School curriculum. Our project-based and cross-curricular approach keeps our bright and motivated children interested and challenged.

8th Grade Tutor in the classroom with 2 students

Skilled Educators

Without skilled teachers and tutors, positive educational outcomes are simply not possible.

Carroll teachers, every one of them, are trained to be experts in educating children with language-based learning difficulties. The Hall Copacino Institute of Professional Study courses were created to help identify and train teachers for the different aspects that make a successful teacher at Carroll: (1) Orton-Gillingham, (2) The Whole Child, (3) Data-Informed Instruction (4) Pedagogy - The Science of Teaching, and (5) New Teacher training.

This ensures that teachers possess the skills that enable children to succeed in ways that typical schools cannot accomplish. Skilled teachers drive the curriculum for each student according to a deep understanding of what each student most needs.

Learn more about our programs: