The Children’s P.L.A.C.E. is located at Lincoln Elementary School, 40 Mill Street, Pompton Lakes, NJ 07442 and is made up of 3 classes: PreK, Kindergarten-Grade 2, and Grades 3-5.
The Teen's P.L.A.C.E. is a middle school program (Grades 6-8) for children with autism located at Lakeside Middle School, 316 Lakeside Avenue, Pompton Lakes, N.J. 07442
Program Philosophy:
The Children’s P.L.A.C.E. and Teen P.L.A.C.E. are classes developed and supported by the Pompton Lakes Board of Education in response to the growing needs of our children with autism. It provides a highly structured, individualized educational program that utilizes the principles of ABA. In addition to an intense regimen of discrete trial teaching or applied verbal behavior teaching, The Children’s P.L.A.C.E. and Teen P.L.A.C.E. utilize other ABA-based teaching methods such as shaping, prompting, prompt fading, backward and forward chaining, modeling, reinforcement programs, and functional assessments. It offers other specialized interventions such as speech/language therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. In addition, opportunities for mainstreaming and inclusion with neuro-typical children exist.
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)
ABA is a set of concepts and principles “devoted to the understanding and improvement of human behavior” (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 1987, p. 2). ABA is the process of systematically applying interventions based upon the principles of learning theory to improve socially significant behaviors to a meaningful degree (Baer, Wolf, & Risely, 1967; Alberto & Troutman, 2008; Buchanan & Weiss, 2006; Celiberti, Buchanan, Bleeker, Kreiss, & Rosenfeld, 2004; Sulzer-Azaroff & Mayer, 1991). The key components of ABA are: (1) focusing on objectively defined, observable behaviors of social significance; (2) improving the selected behavior while demonstrating a reliable relationship between the methods used and the behavioral improvement; and (3) using the methods of science - description, quantification, and analysis (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 1987).
Program Components
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Intensive, highly structured 1:1, 2:1, 3:1 or small group instruction
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Individualized goals
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Teaching strategies based on ABA and VB
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Program BCBA
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Ongoing home-school collaboration
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Parent training and workshops
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Speech/language therapy
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Augmentative communication (PECS, high tech devices, IPad, etc)
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Occupation therapy, including sensory input strategies
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Inclusion opportunities
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Collaboration with general education teachers and students
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Educational programming from ages 3 through 21
Self-Contained Life Skills Program
The Life Skills program is located at Pompton Lakes High School, 44 Lakeside Ave, Pompton Lakes NJ, 07442.
The high school self-contained program provides supports within a class program where both students from the middle school LLD and middle school Teen Place can spend a greater amount of time in a learning environment that they are accustomed to and be systematically exposed to less restrictive high school expectations.
This program offers course offerings for Self-Contained Language Arts, Math, Social Studies, and Science with a modified approved curriculum and mainstreaming options as appropriate. The Special Educators and trained aides have specializations for working with students who present with significant language learning disabilities and/or present with Autism Spectrum Disorders and have experience in targeted instruction, data collection, and interpretation. Observation, reporting, and behavioral plan reviews are included as needed. Related services are provided based on IEP needs. BCBA oversight is also included as needed for students participating in this program.
Transition to Adulthood
The Young Adult P.L.A.C.E (YAP) 18-21 program is located at Pompton Lakes High School.
Technology
Students in the HS Life Skills and YAP have computers or iPads depending on their needs. Specific technology components, tools, skills, and training are provided for special education students and staff in this program in order to develop, monitor, and enhance student access to the general education curriculum.
ESY
Extended School Year is offered to students who have been identified in their IEP to require additional schooling in order to ensure the maintenance of skills and reduce regression that would result in difficult recoupment of skills.
Community Based Instruction
Community Based Instruction (CBI) is a component integrated into the program in order to provide greater exposure to the community where students can use essential skills they have developed within the program. These are sustained and repeated instructional activities that take place in the community rather than within a school building in order to provide real-life opportunities to teach the curriculum. Structured Learning Experiences (SLE), beginning at age 16, may include, but are not limited to Job Sampling, Community Volunteer Opportunities, and Service Learning projects that develop students’ vocational goals.