Gesher staff hold master level degrees in special education and early childhood development providing us aunique partnership with Jewish Day Schools
unique partnership with Jewish Day Schools
and Pre-Schools.
We are equipped to provide teacher training on a variety of disability topics, including how to provide accommodations in the classroom, how-to and why differentiation is critical in the classroom, and how to create inclusive spaces and activities.
Our Student Support Specialists work in a similar manner as a public-school Resource Teacher. We provide both small group and 1:1 academic support. In 2017, Gesher expanded its services to include after-school academic support.
Teacher Training
Gesher staff have developed and are ready to provide a variety of training sessions related to learners with disabilities in the secular classroom. These sessions include, but are not limited to classroom accommodations, inclusion, differentiation, and special education qualification and process.
Day School Support
Gesher staff are integrated into several local Orthodox Jewish Day Schools. Our teachers work in small group, 1:1, and sometimes alongside the classroom teacher to provide academic support to students identified with, or suspected of experiencing, a learning disability. Our services focus on core academics - reading, writing, and math - and we are available for consult to Judaic teachers. Additionally, we offer after-school sessions for students needing additional support with their secular studies. These services can be paid for by families, ESA, and for qualifying students, a school-district purchase order.
Summer Programming
Summer camp is a time for fun. Gesher's education team works with local day- and sleep-away-camps to assist in creating programming to include all campers. From reviewing the camp's registration forms to being available for camper observation and training camp staff, Gesher partners with the camp administration on best practices for making the camp as accessible and inclusive as possible. Camp programming is funded in part by a grant from the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix. We also offer a back-to-school session at the end of the summer for students getting ready to return to their day schools in each coming school year. The process is to gently ease students back into a learning mode. Over the years, this has shown a significantly positive impact on the subsequent integration and learning. Sessions are small group, concentrating on grades 2nd thru 5th , and focus on the core areas of reading, writing and math.