A NEW AND INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO TEACHING LEARNING DISABLED STUDENTS

A school for pre-teens and adolescents with learning disabilities...

An alternative choice...

A school with a difference...

Welcome to the world of Gap Academy. We are a new and innovative approach to educating preteens and adolescents with learning disabilities. We are located in Toronto, Canada, (in the vicinity of 401 & Weston Road) - easily accessible by T.T.C., highway and Go Train. Our total student population is intentionally kept at a minimum. We usually have under 25 students at any given time. The student-teacher ratio is exceptionally low; our programme is very designed to allow students the greatest increase in skill level over the shortest period of time.

We believe that an intensive approach with extremely low ratios over the period of a school year can dramatically alter the outlook for a student - and we have seen this materialize time and time again. Our approach is very alternative; we teach students about their own learning disability and give them tools and strategies to cope with their particular learning style or difference. We also believe in using a combination of relevant and creative teaching methods in our applications of the Ontario Curriculum, which change according to the specific needs of each student. Our methods are very individualized - we believe that what works for one student may not necessarily work with another who may be diagnosed with the same disability or may even have the same learning profile. We work around the differences by offering highly tailored programmes and by teaching individualized 'problem attack' and problem solving skills, as well as critical thinking.

Our course load includes all of the basic courses regularly expected in a school environment, like Math and English, but it also includes: instructional strategies, learning strategies, attentional skills, sensory desensitization, homework strategies, test-taking procedures, independent learning, risk taking in academic environments, academic tolerance and stability, consistency, deduction, problem solving, critical thinking, error methodology and social skills. These skills are crucial if students with learning differences are to succeed in regular school settings.

If you need any more information, you can find it here on our website, or you can give us a call.

Thank you to the following groups:

OFIS, LDAO, The Geneva Centre, and The Music Therapy Trust Fund of Ontario

for their referrals and support.