Brainworks® - School Year Program
School Year Program
Brainworks Instruction Creates Success
During the school year, Brainworks offers instruction to both students in grades 1-12, college students, and adults. Using the same strategies that have made the Brainworks curriculum successful for 29 years (one-on-one instruction, customized lessons for each individual client, and constant monitoring by certified teachers), clients achieve intensive academic skill building, in addition to sharpening social and communication skills.
Students who benefit from the Brainworks curriculum:
- Gifted students who need enrichment outside of their regular classroom.
- Clients who have high potential but struggle to keep up academically.
- Individuals who need practice with social skills and positive behavior choices.
To register for our school year program, please click here for prices, forms, and schedule details.
The incredible success of the Brainworks program is a result of several factors:
- Each student is given an in-depth diagnostic evaluation, which includes assessments for twenty-six different processing skills.
- Results of the evaluation are used to create a customized learning plan tailored to the strengths and limitations of each person, including gifted and remedial curriculums.
- This individual plan allows for a compacting of curriculum, meaning that time is not wasted on skills the individual has already mastered, but the focus is on those skills that present new challenges for the student.
- Each lesson plan contains eight different activities that the student completes in fifteen-minute segments.
- Constant movement through the activities decreases the boredom often associated with longer study sessions and provides a chance for the student to work with different peer instructors every 30 minutes.
Certainly, one of the keys to Brainworks’ success is the individual attention given to each student.
- Each student receives one-on-one instruction throughout his or her session.
- This attention accelerates the learning process and allows for an opportunity to build rapport with the student instructors.
- These instructors, who are gifted high school and college students, lead the student through customized lessons.
- Not only does the student get individual attention from the student instructors (SIs), but also certified teachers are also always monitoring the students’ progress and assisting the SIs.
- At the end of each month, parents and students receive personal feedback through the detailed progress reports on the academic and social achievement made by the students.
- Post-testing is done every 30 – 40 hours of instruction.
Furthermore, the integration of social skills into the curriculum is a vital part of Brainworks’ success.
- Based on the individual’s needs, social skills can be as much as 25% of the two-hour session.
- The beauty of this piece of curriculum is that it is taught in role-playing exercises instead of lecture. For example, a specific social skill (i.e. eye contact, body language, tone of voice, etc.) is introduced and discussed. Then, students and instructors practice that social skill in a role-playing exercise.
- Each person reflects on how he or she observed the skill being used and what was learned about his or her partner.
- These social-skill building lessons at Brainworks allow clients to perfect them in a non-threatening environment and to observe those skills being modeled by the instructors.
In addition, clients are encouraged to assume personal responsibilities in a supportive group environment and to become more confident in their abilities to perform and succeed.
- In some activities, students engage their instructors and/or other students in friendly competitions that involve a game or contests, which motivate them to do their best.
- These activities also promote sportsmanship, self-esteem, and friendly conversation.
Sample Routine for Students during a Brainworks Session*
|Grades 1 - 5||Grades 6 - 12|
|4:30||Math Facts or Advanced Math||Research Strategies|
|4:45||Reading Speed and Comprehension||Organization & Time Management|
|5:00||Organization & Time Management||Remedial or Advanced Math|
|5:15||Logical Thinking or Advanced Math||Reading Speed & Comprehension|
|5:30||Paragraph Writing & Handwriting||Social Skills or ADHD Training|
|5:45||Spatial Problem Solving Game||Note Taking Training|
|6:00||Social Skills or ADHD Training||Memory & Test Taking|
|6:15||Following Directions or Goal Setting||Right Choices (Decision Making) or Goal Setting|
|Additional Options||Additional Options|
|Memory Training||Coping With Perfectionism|
|Typing or Eye Tracking||Writing Workshop|
|Gross Motor / Fine Motor Skills||Logic Game or Activity|
|Hands-on Fraction Training||Creative Brainstorming|
|Creative Brainstorming||Spatial Problem Solving Game|
|Color Coded Parts of Speech||SAT or ACT Prep|
|TAKS Prep||Life Skills|
*Lesson plans are created on an individualized basis. No two students’ plans will be the same. All our 2,500 activities are personalized according to the testing done through Brainworks.
Also, at the end of each month, we have a parent/student conference to discuss the progress at Brainworks and at school. During this conference, we include feedback from the student’s classroom teachers, and goals are set for the following month. Students in grade 6 and above are always present at this conference. Our focus continues to be on the skills that will make the student a more confident, independent learner.
Moreover, Brainworks has high expectations for its clients.
- We expect students eventually to be making 85 or better in all their classes.
- We want them to be able to ask questions when they are confused and get their needs met in school and in life.
- We expect our clients to get their assignments done on time without having to be nagged.
- We want our clients to have friends and have high self-esteem.
- Most of all, we want them to live up to their potential and enjoy the success they are due.
Call Brainworks (972) 416-9410 for further information or to schedule testing. The results will determine your child’s curriculum.