Pyramid Program
The Heather Ridge Pyramid Program provides services for high school
students whose behavioral and emotional needs require a more therapeutic and
structured environment than the Day Program.
The mission of the Pyramid Program, like Heather Ridge Day School, is: “to
build the foundation for academic, emotional and social success in secondary
and post secondary settings”. Academic offerings include the same essential
curriculum offered throughout Frederick County Public Schools (FCPS). A
structured behavior management system provides feedback to students
throughout the day. Students earn points for expected behaviors and move
through 6 levels until Level 1 is completed. Students have the option of
mainstreaming to their home school upon completion of Level 1.
Therapeutic support services include crisis intervention, individual, group,
and family counseling as well as coordination of the student’s school
program with outside agencies. The Heather Ridge Pyramid staff also works
closely with inpatient programs to coordinate and implement after care
plans.
Read About Reading Program
Heather Ridge utilizes an adaptive computerized reading intervention program
called Read About. Students access this program through their English
Language Arts classes ONLY. The Read About program meets the needs of every
student by combining the research based principles of expository text
comprehension and vocabulary acquisition with nonfiction content and
technology that differentiates instruction.
iLearn
iLearn Math is a web-based math curriculum that provides everything needed
to learn math. The instruction is delivered by “smart” software that manages
the entire instructional process. ilearn Math has a built-in assessment and
course management feature that automatically determines what instruction is
needed , delivers the instruction, and keeps track of the results. It gives
the user just the right amount of instruction and practice necessary to
insure understanding and retention of the concepts being taught.
www.ilearn.com/about-ilearn.htm
PBIS Program
PBIS stands for Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports.
We are a committee currently consisting of teachers, Administration,
Therapists, Instructional Assistants. We would encourage others in the
community to be a part of this committee such as PARENTS, business owners,
bus drivers, anyone interested in the improvement of the behaviors of our
students.
PBIS is a school wide and almost a whole statewide program used in schools
to teach, support, and encourage positive behavior. Our student body at
Heather Ridge is unique because most of our students are brought to us for
behavior issues. For this reason it is challenging, yet rewarding when you
see the PBIS system work. We teach our mission with constant visual
reminders throughout the school on expected behaviors for specific areas. We
have a mandatory Social Skills class for every student where we teach
students self respect, communicating effectively and advocating for self
appropriately. We teach the character pillars, and numerous other useful and
admirable qualities the community would want and expect to see in a young
adult entering a world of college and or business employment. We use our
Daily Student Progress Sheet to show our students where they may need
assistance through out their day and in what areas they need support. We
offer bonus bucks to our students for an individual, positive behavior. Our
bonus bucks are used for a prize cart loaded with different types of games,
books, and interesting gifts to be used for themselves or others, we also
have Holiday carts. We have dances in which students purchase tickets with
their earned bonus bucks and respectful behaviors. We have contests, and
quarterly prizes that encourage the student to want to earn bonus bucks to
participate in these activities and it is the combination of teaching the
behavior and then rewarding the behavior that helps create the more positive
behaviors in our students.