Academics

Skills and Academic Strategies

Discussion On Skills and Academic Strategies Program

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Students who take SAS will develop into skilled, confident learners who can independently advocate for themselves as they successfully complete high school and move on to college.

Skills & Academic Strategies (SAS)

The Skills and Academic Strategies Department (SAS) provides an individualized program of support and strategies so that students can successfully meet the challenges of work in high school and beyond. The SAS curriculum focuses on the specific academic skills and strategies needed for success in high school and college. SAS learning specialists work with students so they:

Strengthen executive function skills
Adapt well to varied educational environments
Implement academic strategies
Develop self-advocacy skills
Understand himself/herself as a learner

SAS is taken as a scheduled class which meets during the academic day, three times a week as part of a student’s normal schedule. Each class includes group discussion of study strategies and skills, such as note taking, textbook reading, test preparation, computer literacy, and problem-solving, with ample time reserved for students to work on their individual class assignments. With a student-teacher ratio never greater than 4:1, SAS learning specialists are able to address individual student needs in a personal and friendly setting.

Tutoring vs. SAS

What to Expect in SAS

Learning Style Inventory: Each student at CH-CH completes a “learning style inventory” in order to help the students and their teachers unlock appropriate learning strategies.

Individual Learning Profiles: SAS develops in-depth Individual Learning Profiles for all students at CH-CH. These documents are shared with faculty and promote creative lessons that engage students’ strengths.

Executive Function Development: Executive function development work at CH-CH includes work on planning, prioritizing, organizing, cognitive shifting, and self-monitoring skills that allow intellectually capable adolescents to mature into effective independent learners.

Layers of Support: SAS coordinates its work with the work classroom teachers are doing, providing layers of support for students.

Monitoring Their Progress: A student’s classroom progress is monitored by SAS teachers, and the student’s work in the SAS classroom is adjusted accordingly.

Real-Time Practice: SAS overlays executive functioning skill development on top of the core curriculum, so that students have real-time practice with real skills.

Evolution and Progress: The SAS program evolves to meet the skills development of students as they progress from grade to grade.

Skills and Academic Strategies at CH-CH

Meet the SAS Faculty

List of 5 members.

Zuri Ball

Skills and Academic Strategies Teacher

Simmons University - B.A., English Literature
Marissa Terrasi

Skills and Academic Strategies Teacher

Framingham State University - B.A., Liberal Arts
Regis College - M.A., Education
Elizabeth Rosen

Skills and Academic Strategies Chair

781-314-0838

Roger Williams University - B.A., Communications
Northeastern University - M.S., Education
West Virginia University - M.Ed., Multicategorical Special Education

Bio
How does your prior teaching experience lend itself to being a successful teacher at CH-CH?
I worked in a number of public and private schools before coming to CH-CH. These experiences have given me a greater understanding of how to connect with each student I work with. Specific to my role as an SAS teacher here at CH-CH, I think that working as a learning specialist at the university level has given me a strong foundation that helps prepare students to be successful in college and beyond.

How does your job help impact the students? Why are you passionate about that?
Working in SAS gives me the ability to teach my students different academic skills that help them be successful in their content classes. I’m passionate about skill building because it creates a foundation for my students. They can read, write, and listen to information all they want, but when they are able to take that information and use it effectively, then it becomes clear that they understand. I enjoying watching my students navigate their way through their classes with the support they receive through the skill building that we do.

What about CH-CH do you love most?
I love the fact that I can have a student in one of my classes, be his/her advisor, and also be able to enjoy time outside of academics with them, whether it’s during dorm duty or sharing a meal in the dining hall. You get to know your students on a whole other level that you wouldn’t normally if you were in a typical public school. I think that being able to connect with them in that way makes the teacher to student relationship even stronger.
Bekah LaCoste

Skills and Academic Strategies Teacher; Theater Teacher

New York University - B.S., Educational Theatre

Bio
How did you decide to explore education as a career path?
Initially I went to school for musical theatre and I realized that the lifestyle and cutthroat atmosphere was not for me. Since kindergarten, as weird as it is, I've always wanted to be a math teacher. I always thought being a teacher was the greatest job ever. New York University has an educational theatre program which is not only about teaching theatre, but also using theatre as a catalyst in core curriculum as much as possible through process drama.

How did you arrive at your position at CH-CH and why is the Skills and Academic Support department a good fit for you as an educator?
At the school I taught in previously in NY, I was a math teacher but for a small class of about 6 kids on average, all of whom had learning differences in math. I used my creative side in theater arts as much as I possibly could in a core curriculum class. It was a really fun as well as challenging for me. The students responded to it very well because it wasn't a cookie cutter, cut and dry math class. It involved a lot of projects and long-term group work, and it provided the students the steps they needed to succeed in math class, which tends to be a difficult class for most.

At CH-CH, you have also taken on the role of Director of the Drama Performance Program. What do you bring to this role for our students?
First and foremost, I bring a sense of excitement. I love theatre and my biggest wish is that those who come to the drama program understand how easy it is to love theatre. I want to show them how much it can change your person. It can make a person better, more creative, more able to communicate, more open to social situations and more brave. You have to be brave to be onstage and make bold choices.

What have you learned in your teaching that you think of and practice on a daily basis?
As a teacher you need to know how to pose questions. As a director, it’s not about giving answers, it’s about asking questions to guide them and give them the skill they need to then solve the problem on their own. It’s about earning trust so we can communicate and learn together.

Using one word, how would you describe CH-CH?
Synergistic. There are lots of types of people, but we all work well together.
Ericka Berman

10th Grade Dean; Skills and Academic Strategies Teacher

Endicott College - B.S., Communication
Mercyhurst University - Graduate Certificate, Organizational Leadership

Chapel Hill - Chauncy Hall

785 Beaver Street
Waltham, MA 02452
781-314-0800
admissions@chch.org

Located 10 miles from Boston, Chapel Hill-Chauncy Hall (CH-CH) is a private, college preparatory day and boarding school for grades 7-12/PG. CH-CH cultivates intellectual courage, creative ambition, and unwavering empathy that drives students to achieve their best.

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