Vista Learning Center programs integrates individualized academic instruction with social thinking skills to help students thrive and meet the demands of everyday life. 

We are able to accomplish our goals by implementing certain teaching approaches, individualized instruction, purposeful social skills training, and social emotional learning opportunities both in the classroom and out in the community. 

Teaching Approaches & Instruction
Within the Vista Learning Center program, we work with students on improving self-esteem and strengthening social skills. We evaluate student needs and gaps and use a variety of curriculums, teaching tools, technology,  and small group, direct instruction to help them be successful. 

Social Skills & Experiential Education
Students are provided with engaging learning opportunities both in the class and out in the community. Staff support students in social situations with both adults and peers with the classroom and out in the community. Whether it is in an academic class or during a local community outing, Vista Learning Center educators are there to process different social situations with students and practice different skills including commnication, cooperation, problem-solving, and building trusting relationships.

Standards-based Grading
Standards-based grading is an approach to evaluating students' performance that focuses on whether they have mastered specific skills or knowledge, rather than simply measuring their performance on tests and assignments. The Vista Learning Center educators base progress on a range of skills based on Common Core and grade levels. This allows us to more accurately explain individual strengths and challenges to families in context and is in accordance with current best practices in special education.

Vista Learning Center’s philosophy

The foundation of Vista Learning Center is the belief that no two students learn or are developmentally alike. We must utilize a wide variety of best practices to identify the one that is most effective for each student. With this in mind, Vista Learning Center explores every opportunity to capitalize on each student’s abilities and interests.

This approach integrates rigorous academics with social thinking, not only how to solve a problem but teach students how to think through a problem. Opportunities for students to experience a sense of belonging to a larger community are embedded in Vista’s programming. Students will also be provided with opportunities to expand their learning beyond the walls of Vista Learning Center. Extending learning opportunities within the local community will provide experiences for students to generalize their social thinking learning while promoting independent living skills and working towards a high school diploma.

• Social thinking
  Students may demonstrate interfering behaviors when lagging social thinking skills and ineffective coping mechanisms are present. Supporting adults at Vista allocate the necessary time to identify what problem the student is trying to solve and provide direct instruction and feedback in order for the student to learn and practice new skills to find solutions.

• Individual learning programs
  Each student is an integral component in the planning and assessment of their learning program. The first step in gaining the cooperation of a student is to identify where they are successful and continue to build from where they are. This approach will build a student’s confidence and skills, which becomes a catalyst for continued learning. Blending of skills and confidence creates opportunities for a successful re-entry into the public school system.

• Community belonging
  The core tenet of Vista Learning Center is a sense of community belonging. Combining academic knowledge with emerging social thinking skills is essential to navigating the ever-present demands of life, adding in the collaborative effort by parents, schools, and related service providers to help student experience the real meaning of community. This protective village contributes to developing a genuinely individualized education and life plan for each student.