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Learning Support Techniques For High School Students

Ask Danielle Jaynes, Orinda Academy’s Learning Specialist, what her long-term goal for OA students is, and she’ll get a smile on her face. “By senior year you know your learning differences, you know your strengths and weaknesses, and you’re able to advocate for yourself.” Danielle’s work with OA students, through creating learning plans, working on the student support team, teaching study skills classes, and one-on-one mentoring, directly works toward that goal: help students discover how they best learn and to advocate for their needs. Danielle has seen first-hand how essential those skills are. As a former classroom teacher, and mother …Read More.

Sue’s News – A blog from the Head of School

Vol. 1, No. 3 Dear OA Families, Only three weeks left until the end of year! It’s hard to believe, but school is almost over – graduation will be here in a flash. We will be headed off in many directions come mid-June, so please get in touch soon if you would like to check in with us. Recent News Spring Concert – a Broadway tunes montage, two rock bands, a trio, and an (almost) a capella group entertained a packed crowd at the OA Spring Concert on Friday. It was a great display of both talent and moxie …Read More.

Three Key Supports that Ensure Student Success

What an Independent High School can do for your child Pop quiz: What does the student support team, self-advocacy, and a cup of tea have in common? If you said Mollie Mowat, our assistant head of school for student affairs, you’re right! As head of our student support team, Mollie is an integral part of helping students thrive at Orinda Academy. Her blend of mediation, advocacy, and mindfulness ensures that students can achieve academically, socially, and emotionally. With Mollie’s help, students can grow into adulthood with an empowered emotional toolkit, ready to face life’s challenges. Let’s take a closer look …Read More.

Search Committee Announces New Head of School Sue Porter

On behalf of the Orinda Academy Board of Trustees, it is with great pleasure that we announce that Susan Eva Porter Ph.D. has been selected by the Board of Trustees to serve as Orinda Academy’s next Head of School. Sue comes to us from The Bay School of San Francisco, where she has served as Dean of Students. Previous to her experience at The Bay School of San Francisco, Sue worked as the Dean of Students at The Branson School in Ross, CA. The appointment of Sue marks the end of a thorough search that began shortly after our founder …Read More.

The Importance of Health Education and How Parents Can Help

Although a college prep curriculum is focused on things like science, math, and foreign language, health education never stops being important. A comprehensive health education curriculum gives students the tools to care for themselves for life. Achieving academic success is closely tied to staying healthy, and students need the educational tools to prioritize their well-being to achieve good health. Here is a look at why your student’s health classes are as important as the rest of his or her schedule and how you can help to ensure that your child learns about how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Why Health …Read More.

How Orinda Academy Supports Student Success

At Orinda Academy, we’re invested in the success of every student in our private college prep school. Every student gets the personalized attention he or she needs to succeed in the classroom at our school and beyond. Watch this video to find out about the programs Orinda Academy has to help students excel. Our smaller class sizes allow us to cater to different learning styles, and our mentoring program helps students find the right courses, manage their academic requirements, and find a college that is the right fit for them. To find out more about Orinda Academy and to see …Read More.

A Quick Look at Assignment Scaffolding

Assignment scaffolding can be a helpful way to break down large assignments so that they are more manageable for students. Scaffolding gives students with different learning styles a broad view of an assignment and splits it into manageable pieces so that students can determine the best way to approach the work. Using scaffolding in a college prep curriculum helps students develop the tools to tackle university-level work after graduation. Assignment scaffolding is all about breaking work down into smaller steps. For instance, if a student has to write a research paper, the assignment may be scaffolded by breaking things into …Read More.

A 10th Grader’s Checklist for College Planning

If your child is in a college prep school, then you know college planning is no longer relegated to senior year. In fact, students start planning for college as early as 10th grade to ensure that they are on the right track to get into the school of their choice. What should your 10th grader be doing to get ready for college? Be sure to check these items off your list during sophomore year. Visit College Campuses It’s not too early to start visiting college campuses when your child is in the 10th grade. In fact, visiting a few colleges …Read More.

A Look Back at Our 2016-2017 Accomplishments!

We’re heading toward the end of another incredible school year here at Orinda Academy, and we’re very proud of what our prep school students have achieved! The 2016-2017 school year started with a retreat to the redwoods, where our advisors and students bonded over s’mores. Later, our entire college prep school headed out to seeOthello at Cal Shakes. We’ve been busy with all-school meetings and advisory chats to talk about hot button issues like feminism, race, and religion. Somewhere in the midst of our ever-popular winter concert, visit to the Oakland Museum, and Black History Month presentations, we managed to …Read More.

Quick Tips for Succeeding Despite Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a common learning disability that involves problems identifying speech sounds, which leads to difficulty reading. Dyslexia is not reflective of a student’s intelligence, but rather is simply a learning difference. Although dyslexia is a lifelong, incurable disorder, it is possible to overcome its challenges—especially with the positive support you’ll find at a private college prep school. Take your time working on tests. At the beginning of each school year, it’s helpful to sit down and chat with your teachers and our learning support coordinator, Mollie Mowat, about your dyslexia-related needs. Teachers tend to be very accommodating about giving …Read More.