Working Towards Independence

Self-Advocacy

Siena encourages students to take ownership of their learning. Students from elementary to high school are taught ways to self-advocate and reminded regularly to ask questions and seek help or clarification when needed. Teachers provide students with tools and strategies they can use in the class, at home, or during (or outside of) school activities to best meet their needs. From assistive technologies such as Read & Write or Learning Ally, to classroom practices such as sentence starters/frames or color-coding, students can learn and decide what helps them and implement it when necessary. Actively discussing the tools, strategies, and methods teachers employ helps students to learn about how they think and complete their best work.

By helping students become more aware of how they learn best, teachers help students to become more independent. Promoting self-advocacy gives students a voice in their education and fosters confidence in their own ability to tackle the difficulties and problems they encounter. Siena hopes to not only instill a love of learning in its students but also a sense of determination and dedication that will prove valuable far beyond the classroom.