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Student Support Services

Austin International School is pleased to offer a range of student support services designed to enhance student success in our seamless trilingual program. These services are designed to address three key areas: academic, language-acquisition and social-emotional. 

The student support team also provides support to students with short-term academic needs based on requests from teachers and/or parents. This support is modeled after the school’s approach to co-teaching where multiple teachers are present in a room to support student learning.
 

Greg Donnellan

Director of Student Support Services

Tanya Cook Hoet

Trilingual Learning Specialist

Academic

AIS’ Student Support Services program includes both accommodations and specific areas of academic intervention within the context of our seamless trilingual program.  

Accommodations are outlined in a Student Accommodation Plan designed based on each child’s diagnosis and/or evaluation (psychoeducational or neuropsychological) and provided by our classroom teachers.

Academic interventions target specific skills areas and are provided through push-in and/or pull-out support by one of our learning specialists. AIS is pleased to offer academic interventions in each of the school’s instructional languages (French, English, and Spanish). Academic interventions are included as an addition to their Student Accommodation Plan. 

Common Academic Accommodation Areas
  • Executive Functions: focus, attention, organization,  planning (time/task-management)
  • Independent Work (includes homework) & Grading
  • Specific Academic Areas (ex. reading, written expression, handwriting, spelling, math calculation, etc.)
  • Testing

     
Academic Interventions Areas
  • Structured Literacy / Dyslexia Intervention
    • Limited available
    • Provided in English
  • Reading: decoding (mild), fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension
  • Writing: handwriting, written expression
  • Math: number sense, numeracy, calculation
  • Assistive technology (Read & Write for Google Chrome) for reading, writing, and attention needs
  • Executive Function
     

 

Language-Acquisition

AIS’ provides language-acquisition support for French, English, and Spanish for non-native speakers. Our language-acquisition supports are provided in addition to differentiated instruction in the classroom. Student language ability is evaluated in relation to the Common European Framework of Reference for Language. AIS assesses each students’ language ability on a case by case basis in collaboration with our staff and families.

A note about language-acquisition support: 
Students who demonstrate age-appropriate or above age-appropriate skills in their primary language experience the highest degrees of success in our trilingual program – and with our language-acquisition support.

Dr. Claudine Escobar Durand

FLE 1, MYP French Language Acquisition Teacher & MYP Coordinator

Claire Chaney-Bergeron

FLE 2 & French Academic Support Track 
(FAST) teacher

FLE - Français Langue Étrangère

This program is required for students enrolled in grades 1st through 5th who have minimal French-language abilities. The goal of this one-year program is to provide students with enough French-language skills to participate in grade-level classes taught in French the next year.

This program was designed for students who, when compared to their same-aged peers,:

  • Have above-average language skills (reading, writing, and speaking) in their primary language,
  • Have a desire to learn a foreign language,
  • Are motivated, self-directed, well-regulated, and emotionally mature;
  • Work very well with their peers, teachers, parents, and other adults, and
  • Possess a natural desire and curiosity for learning.
Additional Details
  • Our program is divided into two mixed-grade groupings:
    • FLE 1: Grades 1 and 2 (CP and CÉ1)
    • FLE 2: Grades 3 through 5 (CÉ2 through CM2)
  • Our FLE teachers teach French language skills (reading, writing, speaking), as well as math, science, and social studies.
    • FLE classes are conducted primarily in French, with English used only briefly for support at the beginning. As students' proficiency grows, French becomes the main language of instruction, creating a fully immersive learning environment.
      • Math, Science, and Social Studies instruction is tailored to each student's grade level. These subjects are typically taught bilingually (using both French and English) to ensure students fully understand grade-appropriate concepts while still benefiting from language immersion. The bilingual approach allows students to learn essential subject content while simultaneously developing their French language skills.
  • Students also receive grade-level instruction in English and Spanish with their grade-level peers.
  • Students who have completed the FLE program but may still benefit from support with French, can participate in the FAST program described below. 
FAST - French Academic Support Track

This program is designed to support students in grades K-8 (GS -4é) who may have average to slightly below average French-language skills but possess average to above average language skills (reading, writing, and speaking) in their primary language. These services are provided in addition to differentiated materials and instruction in the classroom.

These students:

  • Have a continued desire to learn a foreign language.
  • Are motivated, self-directed, well-regulated, and emotionally mature;
  • Work very well with their peers, teachers, parents, and other adults, and
  • Possess a natural desire and curiosity for learning. 
Additional Details
  • Services are provided by native speakers or those with C2 CEFR proficiency.
  • Services are provided during French classes and coordinated with the French classroom teacher based on the students' needs compared to grade-level skills.
  • Services are provided via small-group and/or 1:1 support delivered in and/or outside the classroom using classroom materials or supplemental resources.
English and Spanish

Support services for English and Spanish are provided in the same fashion as our French Accelerated Support Track or FAST program.  
 

 

Social-Emotional

AIS provides social and emotional support to all students at the classroom, small-group, and individual level* in collaboration with our school counseling team. Our support is both preventative and proactive and responsive to the needs of our students and families.

*Please note that individual social and/or emotional support services are provided on a short-term basis. Referrals are provided to families of those requiring ongoing social and/or emotional support. 

 
Adrienne Carter

School Counselor 

Ashley Kenebrew

School Counselor 

Social-Emotional Support Areas
  • Social and Emotional Wellness
  • Emotional Vocabulary and Intelligence
  • Coping and Self-Regulation
  • Relationship Building and Maintenance
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Interpersonal and Social Skills
  • Self-Management and Self-Advocacy

As a parent or guardian, if you are concerned about your child’s mental, emotional, or social health, please feel free to reach out to our counseling team at counselor@austinis.org or each specific counselor using the information below.