The Lionheart School

The Lionheart School is a 501(c)3 non-profit independent school for children ages 6 through 21 with autism or other disorders of relating and communicating. The school was established in 2000 and is located in Alpharetta, Georgia. Lionheart was awarded SACS/SAIS (Southern Association of Colleges and Schools/ Southern Association of Independent Schools) Accreditation in 2008. Lionheart is a member of GISA (Georgia Independent Schools Association). Lionheart currently serves 30 students, and is embarking on a capital campaign in order to move to a larger space and enroll more students. The school was featured in an article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on August 17, 2008.^[1]

Mission statement

The school describes its mission as to provide a "developmentally appropriate program for children on the autism spectrum or with other disorders of relating and communicating who need a specialized learning environment, therapeutic interventions, relationship building skills, and the educational tools necessary to achieve their greatest potential."

Approach

The school's approach is described on its website as follows:

"The Lionheart program is founded on the Developmental Individual Difference Relationship-based (DIR) model of Stanley Greenspan, M.D. and Serena Wieder, Ph.D., founders of the Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL).

Sensory Integration theory, as developed by Jane Ayers, is embedded throughout the school day. Strategies and methods from Lindamood-Bell and Wilson, as well as other innovative and creative learning approaches, are incorporated as needed for each individual child.

The school's main objective is to extend a child's learning environment - from school to home to other settings where nurturing adults maintain a vested interest. A child who has meaningful and important relationships throughout life will naturally initiate academic skills. Hence, a stimulating and loving environment will motivate and allow children to develop interactions, ultimately leading to abstract, logical and creative thinking.

The school emphasizes the importance of addressing the sensory underpinnings of a child’s developmental difficulties. Lionheart specialists examine each child's "pyramid of development", and work on gaps that may exist, to enable each child to consolidate for learning the foundation to move forward. Lionheart believes that affect is a strong motivating factor for a child’s desire to interact, communicate, think and learn – affect connects an individual’s ideas or intents to actions. At more advanced developmental and cognitive levels, affect generates specific interest, passions and competencies and becomes the driving force that leads to successful learning.

Lionheart also features group activities and a recreation program, which includes such outings as swimming, horseback riding and hiking. On these excursions, the students learn to develop friendships, trust, social skills and self-esteem. These outings also set a different stage to practice intentional social communicative skills and work on sensory integration issues."

References

External links

• The Lionheart School
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
• Southern Association of Independent Schools
• Georgia Independent Schools Association