Preparing complex, gifted learners to thrive in college & beyond

We’ve brought the best parts of “gifted” education principles together with state-of-the-science interventions remediating learning differences and empowering kids

At the core of our innovative educational model is a school tailored to the needs of gifts who have strong analytical reasoning and/or creative thinking skills: no ceiling, project-based learning; small class sizes with close teacher relationships, and the challenge kids need to develop these gifts further.

All of this happens within a ground-breaking educational model developed by experts in how children learn, socialize and grow that harnesses the power of modern neuroscience advances to remediate—not just accommodate—differences in learning, executive function and social-emotional functioning. Each student’s program at Cajal is customized using the data in their neuropsychological and neurophysiological profiles, but they all learn and grow as part of one unified community. Here are some of the elements they have in common; scroll down to find out more about how we customize this approach to move each child forward.

Small Class Sizes, & Close Teacher Relationships

A child casts a big shadow, pointing up at his poster board — No Ceiling, Project-Based Learning

Preparation to Thrive in College, & Admissions Support

K-12 Community: Mentors, & Leadership Opportunities

Social-Emotional Learning Integrated Into the Classroom

Our students master Connecticut state curriculum standards through a problem-based approach that develops the skills intellectually-gifted students need for 21st century success

Our academic programs are designed with one goal in mind: to give kids who have meaningfully unique ways of seeing things the skills they’ll need to turn those perspectives into thought-leadership.

Students collaborate with one another to solve real world problems through in-depth project-based learning that places the emphasis on critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving while developing the executive function and social collaboration skills that are essential for 21st century success.

Our students have made a short film urging regulatory change to save the declining horseshoe crab population in the Long Island Sound; they’ve created 3-dimensional, scaled architectural models of imagined democratic communities in the midst of feudal, 13th century Europe; they’ve written proposals for new superhero characters for Marvel Comics; and they’re designing an app to spark a revolution for climate change.

Each project integrates curriculum aligned to Connecticut state requirements across math, science, engineering, literature, writing, fine arts, providing purposeful learning that prepares students for rigorous college curricula and professional careers. Executive function, social skills and growth mindset coaching and support are integrated into each project and into the classroom itself, giving students the tools they need to experience their strengths.

learn more about our project-based learning curriculum

Ground-breaking interventions remediating learning disabilities

While other schools start with what a given child’s challenges look like, we see those challenges as markers or clues indicating what problem a child needs our help to solve. We dig into the data in the child’s neuropsychological and neurophysiological profiles to identify cross-cutting “splinter skills” are areas of relative weakness in their profile. This includes things you do every day without thinking about it, to perform a range of academic and social-emotional activities, like working memory, sequencing and motor-cognitive integration. Most of these skills can be assessed using well-normed neuropsychological, occupational and/or physical therapy assessments; for those that aren’t included in those standardized assessments, we are developing new testing procedures here at Cajal.

learn how we’re redefining what’s possible by remediating learning differences

Putting Academic Learning into a Bigger Picture of Personal Growth

Academic, social-emotional and neurophysiological growth are addressed together using a data-driven approach to understanding and addressing the challenges this child needs our help to solve to improve their learning and their life-lived experiences. Each of our students receives a personalized program, customized to help them access academic curriculum through their strengths while we work to build up the skills that are holding them back across not just academic but social-emotional and physio spheres as well.

Each child’s academic instruction is differentiated using the data in their profiles, as part of a holistic approach to addressing the challenges holding them back.

In order to give our students access to the challenging course material appropriate to their strengths, our teachers break down task demands according to the myriad ‘splinter skills’ that they require, and then differentiate them to reduce demand from any “Not Yet Skills” that are still developing, so that the student can have the chance to experience their own strengths.

academic differentiation

Instead of fighting kids to sit still, we leverage movement & sensory input to accelerate learning, through our exclusive Body-Informed Learning.

Research shows that kids’ engagement, retention, organization of thought and regulation all improve when learning is paired with motor & sensory input. We’ve built an OT-directed kinesthetic curriculum putting that science into action to increase students’ abilities to access their strengths while modeling self-care strategies that are essential for the physical demands of the knowledge economy.

body-informed learning

We help students overcome resistance to learning activities through a trauma-informed approach that validates their responses and helps them understand—and overcome—their fears.

Twice exceptional kids often become resistant to learning tasks outside their interests. We understand this as a fear-driven response, and apply a trauma-informed approach to help students overcome them.

overcoming task avoidance

learn more about how we personalize student programs

Preparing High School Students for College

Our comprehensive programs prepare our kids to thrive in college—not just get into one!

Our high school program is focused on helping our older teens truly master their own profiles, so they are ready to independently manage not just their academic needs but their social-emotional and physio ones as well. Executive function skills and coaching in Growth Mindset and Agency shift as students move through the high school years to demand greater self-direction from our students, ensuring that they have the understanding of their needs that will be essential to college success. As the student moves towards their senior year, support is added to help navigate the college admissions, with the benefit of extremely close teacher relationships.

learn more about our high school program