School is about more than academics. It is where children learn the life and social skills they need to reach their potential. That is just as true for children who learn differently.
Public school works well for some children. For others, it can't provide the specialized teaching and attention they need. The decision belongs to the people who know your child best. For many families, a boarding school for learning differences turns out to be the right choice.
Five Reasons Boarding School Works
1. Consistency All Day
Trained faculty and staff are present throughout your child's day. The same cues and expectations carry from the classroom to the dining hall, the dorm, and the playing field. That kind of consistency is hard to achieve in a six-hour school day, or at home. A skill learned in class gets practiced at dinner and in the evening, in a safe and supportive place.
2. Peers Who Understand
In a traditional school, a student with a learning difference can feel like the only one. At a boarding school for learning differences, classmates share the same challenges. That shared experience helps with learning and with friendships. Research by The Association of Boarding Schools found that 78% of boarding students said they were motivated by their peers, compared with 49% of public school students.
3. Independence
Living and learning away from home builds independence. Dorm life teaches time management, a strong work ethic, and the everyday skills of living on your own. Many parents are surprised by how much their child grows with that responsibility.
4. A Smoother Road to College and Career
Boarding students have already lived on their own and taken charge of their own learning, so the step to college is smaller. Time management, responsibility, and work ethic prepare them for whatever career they choose.
5. Teaching Built for Each Student
Boarding schools for learning differences have specialized staff and teaching aimed at each student's needs, with an individual plan for the instruction, support, and services each child requires.
How Gow Can Help
The Gow School is a coed, college-preparatory boarding and day school for students in grades 5 through post-graduate. We specialize in teaching students with dyslexia and related language-based learning differences, executive function challenges, dyspraxia, central auditory processing disorder, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, and disorder of written expression. Since 1926, we have helped students build the skills and confidence to succeed in college and beyond.
Talk with Us About Your Child
Our admissions team is glad to listen and answer your questions: 716.687.2001 or [email protected].