Spring Harbor Academy is a private school for children and adolescents who have been admitted to the developmental disorders program at Spring Harbor Hospital. Located within the hospital, the academy runs 32 hours each week, Monday - Friday, all year long.
Student success is our priority.
The academy’s goal is to ensure each student’s successful transition back to the community after leaving the hospital. We work closely with each child’s home school to make sure that the curriculum aligns with their individualized education program (IEP). All plans are fully documented. Academic instruction is coupled with evidence-based strategies to help students:
- Learn coping skills
- Build independence
- Improve emotional and behavioral regulation
![Cathleen Small, PhD, BCBA-D](https://assets.mainehealth.io/s3fs-public/styles/inline_sm/public/imported_images/1649475682.jpg)
Cathleen Small, PhD, BCBA-D
Director of Behavioral Services and Spring Harbor Academy
Phone: 207-661-6225
Email: cathleen.small@mainehealth.org
Our expert staff includes:
- Certified special education teachers
- Certified educational technicians
- A speech and language pathologist
- An occupational therapist
- A physical therapist
- Psychologists
- Behavior analysts (BCBAs).
Spring Harbor Academy offers specially designed instruction for each child, including:
- Individual and small group teaching
- Individualized instructional strategies (e.g., discrete trial teaching; incidental teaching; functional communication training)
- 1:1 support throughout the school day, provided by our certified Educational Technicians
- Access to a large curriculum library
- Technology tools accessible for each student (e.g. iPads)
- Access to a kitchen space, art room, gymnasium, cafeteria, and an outdoor play yard
We work to promote curiosity and creative thinking. Some of the more commonly known curricula that are used at Spring Harbor Academy include:
- IXL
- Raz-kids
- A to Z Reading and Science
- Edmark
- Touchmath
- Scholastic News
- Explode the code
- Khan Academy
- Everyday Math
Spring Harbor Academy offers other services to help students achieve success in important areas of development and functioning.
Speech and Language Therapy
Speech and language services support the development of communication skills. Services are delivered in individual therapy sessions, group sessions, and through consultation with teachers and educational technicians. Focus of treatment can include:
- Expressive and receptive language disorders
- Social-pragmatic communication disorders
- Articulation and phonological disorders
- Dysfluency
- Alternative and augmentative communication systems (AAC)
- Functional communication training (FCT).
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy at Spring Harbor Academy helps children improve functional life skills. It is provided within the context of meaningful and every day activities. During hospitalization, occupational therapy targets the following, as outlined in each child’s IEP:
- Self-regulation
- Sensory processing
- Fine-motor skills
- Gross motor skills
- Visual motor skills
- Activities of daily living
- Vocational skills
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy (PT) is provided to students who have PT on their IEP as a needed service. PT works on safety and movement in the school environment. The physical therapist at Spring Harbor Academy assesses each child who needs PT when they arrive. Then they make a treatment plan for their time at SHH, and usually work with the child weekly on these goals. This plan might include:
- Sessions made up of obstacle courses to work on balance
- Ball play games for coordination
- Trying different seats to help them use upright posture while working at a desk
Specials
Some of the special activities and groups that students participate in include:
- Art group
- Cooking group
- Drama group
- Science group
- Physical education
- Music group
- Social skills groups
Educational Trips
Eligible students enjoy weekly outings that promote community engagement and life skills development. Activities include: recreation at the YMCA and public parks, browsing the public library, bowling, star-gazing at a planetarium and guided grocery store tours with a registered dietitian.
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