Apprentice Students Celebrate End-of-Year Successes
Apprentice students had many reasons to celebrate in the month of May! Their hard work over the course of the year filled the community Greenstone jar four times. Greenstones are awarded to students and/ teachers for work on their goals. To celebrate their hard work the students received $100 to do with as they chose. Together, the community chose to celebrate with a pizza party, and to use the remainder of the money to purchase a gift for the community. The students brainstormed about how to use the money, and the community chose to put the money toward the purchase of a swing for the new campus. Students also gathered to celebrate their successful year at the end-of-year awards ceremony. The entire Apprentice community – students, faculty, parents, and friends – came together to acknowledge and celebrate progress made throughout the year. Each student was honored individually for his or her achievement in ownership of self-regulation and self-awareness, executive functioning, relationship development, and/or academic competence. Afterward parents were invited to their children’s classrooms to review students’ portfolios. The evidence of the Apprentice students’ hard work and growth this year is undeniable. We look forward to the start of another successful year in August!

A Talented Bunch

Students of The Apprentice Program were able to show off their talents in the Apprentice Talent Show. The show was coordinated by Kay Kahl, MT-BC, Monarch’s music therapist. Group acts were practiced during weekly music sessions, and individual acts were also included. The show included singing, dancing, a magic act, instrumental performances, and even a martial arts demonstration! Students worked hard to practice and perfect their acts for several weeks before the performance, giving them the opportunity to practice perseverance. The show provided students with an opportunity to perform, experience and regulate anxiety, and to share joy!

Monarch Staff Present at AutismOne Conference in Chicago
Monarch faculty members Sharon Duval, M.A., CCC-SLP, DIR® trained facilitator, and Debrah Hall, Ph.D., recently traveled to Chicago to represent DIR® and The Monarch School at the Sixth Annual AutismOne conference in Chicago. The five-day event featured a keynote address by actress Jenny McCarthy, autism advocate and mother of a child with autism. Sharon Duval gave a presentation about the DIR® Floortime™ method and how it can help individuals reach their maximum level of functioning. Dr. Hall represented The Monarch School at an information table and was also able to meet and establish relationships with other professionals and parents.

Sharon Duval to participate in the National DIR® Institute
Sharon Duval, M.A., CCC/SLP, DIR® Certificate 2007, has been invited to serve as a facilitator at the July 2008 DIR®/Floortime™ Institute in Washington, D.C. Ms. Duval will join participants from around the country at this five-day program, which offers training and certification for professionals in the DIR®/Floortime™ method. As a facilitator, Ms. Duval will be sharing her wealth of DIR®/Floortime™ knowledge and experience as she helps train others to implement the model successfully.