Though the school has only been in session a short time, students who attend The Canopy School are already making outstanding progress. The faculty and staff report significant growth amongst their students in many areas, such as academic, emotional and social. With small class sizes, intensive interventions, and support from parents, staff and community members, the children who attend The Canopy School are truly beginning to tap into their enormous potential.
“Giving children confidence is our first priority,” says Sarah Perkins, Business Manager of The Canopy School. “We give kids confidence and let them know they are smart, and just learn differently.”
Helping their current students feel safe, accepted and confident both inside and outside the classroom is a huge goal for The Canopy School. Through interventions, accommodations and intentional support, The Canopy School’s faculty and staff aim to help children be successful. Whether they transfer to a more traditional school after a few years or continue at The Canopy School until graduation, the Canopy team wants to ensure an easy transition and long-term success.
The recently acquired accreditation of The Canopy School is one significant way to ensure access for students. Having achieved all standards determined necessary for accreditation by the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE), students of The Canopy School can transfer back to a traditional school setting, such as a public school, without the fear of losing their credits or being behind. Similarly, students applying to college can be confident that their transcripts will be accepted.
Accreditation from MDE also means The Canopy School can now offer dyslexia scholarships to students struggling with dyslexia. While approximately 1 in 5 Mississippi students experiences some level of dyslexia, those with mild or moderate symptoms can often receive the help they need directly from their public school. With classroom accommodations and weekly or bi-weekly dyslexia therapy, these students can move forward, confident that they will be successful despite their learning difference.
Students struggling with high levels of dyslexia, however, need more intensive support, which public schools are often unable to provide due to a lack of funding or resources. However, special purpose schools, such as The Canopy School, are specifically designed to support these issues. With their licensed, on-staff dyslexia therapist, dyslexic students at The Canopy School receive one hour of dyslexia therapy daily. The dyslexia therapist also collaborates with classroom teachers to determine accommodations and strategic methods to practice, ensuring the students receive in-class support for what they are practicing in therapy.
Sean Brewer, Canopy’s Director of Education Solutions, believes that the integration of all of these pieces is what makes the approach of The Canopy School unique and effective. “Providing intense and specific resources to the children who need extra help in the classroom gives those students and their families the very best chance to be as successful as they can be,” states Brewer.
Kara White, Head of The Canopy School, agrees. “They are so capable,” she says. “Students can and will thrive, but they need just need a little bit of extra support to thrive.”
The Canopy School offers open enrollment and encourages anyone who believes their child may have a learning difference (dyslexia or other) and needs intensive intervention to reach out. The school also provides the needed testing to diagnose dyslexia, as well as assistance with applying for the dyslexia scholarship.
The faculty and staff of The Canopy School believe that every child is capable of success and that every child deserves a safe, accepting environment to learn. “The children feel very safe and cared for here,” says Perkins. “A lot of these children, because of their challenges, have felt ashamed or bullied in a typical school setting. Here, they are very accepted for who they are and how they best learn.”
For more information on enrollment in The Canopy School or for assistance in applying for the dyslexia scholarship, visit thecanopyschool.org or call 769-777-1500.