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Read Across America Week at BEST Academy

In the beginning of March, BEST Academy celebrated Read Across America Week, a nationally recognized celebration of reading and storytelling. Throughout the week, students explored beloved children's books such as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Where the Wild Things Are, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, and The Giving Tree. Each day was filled with themed spirit days and activities that brought these stories to life, creating an engaging and immersive experience for students. Read Across America Week is intended to bring schools and [...]

Read Across America Week at BEST Academy2025-03-20T14:43:45-04:00

Celebrating a Decade of Impact

This fall marks Jennifer Johnson’s 10-year anniversary with High Road Schools of Connecticut and B.E.S.T. Academy. Johnson knew from an early age that she wanted to be a teacher. Inspired by the educators in her life–especially her sixth-grade homeroom and science teacher –who helped solidify Johnson’s decision to pursue a career in education. That passion led her to a career in special education, where she has dedicated herself to helping students overcome challenges and achieve success. Today as regional director, Johnson helps lead multiple schools, shaping the lives of both students and educators. We sat down with her to reflect on [...]

Celebrating a Decade of Impact2025-03-13T16:21:12-04:00

B.E.S.T. Academy Fall Festival

BEST Academy staff and students participated in our Fall Festival this October. Ms. Dirzius and Ms. Williams greeted everyone as Mario and Luigi. Students picked pumpkins from our patch and were able to decorate pumpkins. Classrooms did fall themed read aloud and did some crafting that allowing students an opportunity to work on social skills within the classroom. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR PROGRAMS!

B.E.S.T. Academy Fall Festival2024-12-05T17:14:31-05:00

Fall Fun with Speech and Occupational Therapy

This fall in Speech and Occupational Therapy, we embraced all things fall with festive, hands-on activities! Students participated in edible crafts, games, reading comprehension exercises, multi-step direction tasks, and engaging fine and visual motor activities. One of the highlights was creating Pumpkin Patch Pudding Cups in small groups. Small group activities encourage social interaction and peer engagement while reinforcing both speech-language and occupational therapy goals. For this fun project, students used Oreos, candy corn, sprinkles, and pudding cups to build their pumpkin patches. They followed a visual recipe that guided them step-by-step through the process. [...]

Fall Fun with Speech and Occupational Therapy2024-12-05T18:06:16-05:00

Mary DiCarlo: How Our Family Navigates Life With A Child With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Families with children on the Autism Spectrum face unique challenges and experiences. Each family’s journey is different, filled with both struggles and triumphs. We want to share their stories, insights, and advice to help and inspire other families going through similar experiences. As part of this interview series, we had the pleasure to interview Mary DiCarlo. Mary DiCarlo is a mom of two daughters, Sabrina, 27, a special education teacher, and Summer, 19. She has devoted to her life to being a stay-at-home mother to care for Summer who has autism and other medical issues. Mary lives in East Haven, [...]

Mary DiCarlo: How Our Family Navigates Life With A Child With Autism Spectrum Disorder2024-10-09T19:23:19-04:00

Summer’s Success at BEST Academy

Table of Contents Finding the Right Fit Unwavering Support and Preparation for the Future When Mary enrolled her daughter, Summer, at BEST Academy in 2017, she hoped for a supportive environment where Summer could thrive. Today, nearly seven years later, Mary reflects on how BEST Academy has exceeded her expectations, providing her daughter with the tools to grow academically and socially. From her very first visit to the school, Mary said she recognized BEST Academy was the right choice. "Immediately I could tell it was the school for us,” she [...]

Summer’s Success at BEST Academy2024-06-13T15:03:29-04:00

Ms. Dirzius’s Support During This Unsteady Time

Ms. Dirzius has been a constant emotional and educational support over the past month to both staff and students. She entered the remote learning environment with energy, enthusiasm and an immediate focus on problem solving. She has actively been involved in all levels of this new educational process: gathering materials, participating in synchronous learning events, assisting with technology issues, creating new documentation systems and mailing asynchronous packets. Our whole team has benefited from her expertise and support. She responds to their needs and questions without hesitation and never has a limit on her ideas and solutions. She tackles any [...]

Ms. Dirzius’s Support During This Unsteady Time2022-01-18T00:27:45-05:00

Mr. Landry’s Positive Attitude

Kyle joined us in the Fall of this year, entering the Special Education field for the first time since completing his BA in Psychology. He has a strong commitment to youth with special needs, having been involved in adaptive karate locally. He quickly has become an integral part of the BEST Academy community. He is willing to work with any student, building strong connections with even the most complex students. He is eager to learn and constantly active and involved. Kyle’s coworkers have recognized his willingness to learn and support in any situation. He responds quickly to any area of [...]

Mr. Landry’s Positive Attitude2022-01-18T00:34:15-05:00

Adam’s Smile Lights Up A Room

Adam had many sensory challenges when he joined BEST Academy. Over time, he has accessed coping mechanisms to assist with visual and auditory stimulation. His favorite activities are washing dishes, finding the water soothing, and taking walks. For his comfort, we have purchased He has taken these skills and been able to transition to a new classroom recently, readily accepting new peers, new sounds and sights. Adam has taught us a great deal. He let us into his unique world and allowed us to share our world with him. He has a smile that will light up a room! This [...]

Adam’s Smile Lights Up A Room2022-01-18T00:34:55-05:00

Amanda Is Invaluable

Amanda is always happy to assist with any need at any time, exuding confidence and kindness. She never seems hurried or concerned, making each student feel special and important. These traits were increasingly evident this month as she was more active throughout the school building as she filled in for Nurse Mike’s absence. This Fall, she accepted an additional responsibility as one of our three Qualified Professionals. This role supports our campus RN by addressing basic first aid needs, assisting with medication regimes and generally being a constant voice of calm and positivity. In the past month, Amanda has been [...]

Amanda Is Invaluable2022-01-18T00:34:55-05:00

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