Skills Center

MISSION

CSW’s Skills Center provides an opportunity for students to improve their academic and executive function skills and begin to understand themselves as learners. We do a deep dive into self awareness and advocacy by providing user-friendly tools that enable students to harness their unique strengths and support growth areas.

VALUES

CSW’s Skills Center offers academic classes designed to address executive function skills such as planning and prioritizing, task initiation, sustained attention, working memory, emotional regulation, self-care and self-advocacy. Students also apply academic proficiencies such as deep reading, annotating, written expression, note taking, research, problem solving, class participation, and presentation skills to their course work.

Graduation Requirements

Skills Center courses are all offered on an elective basis. There are no graduation requirements in the Skills Department.

Course Offerings

Skills Center teachers collaborate with each student at the beginning of the module to articulate objectives that they will work towards to help them achieve their goals. Each dynamic, individualized program is tailored to meet student goals and objectives based on workload, individual learning plan (if applicable), strength and growth areas, and any other criteria that might arise. 

A, B, and C Blocks

  • All students are welcome to enroll in a Skills Center class during A , B, or C block, any of the 6 modules. Students can take this course up to 3 times per year.

  • Students enrolled in the Skills Center are expected to participate in short group lessons based on topics they wish to learn more about. These topics cover executive function, self care, and academic skills and last between 10-20 minutes, occurring at the beginning of each period.

  • Students are expected to meet one-on-one with their Skills Center teacher at least 3 times per week to go over assignments, ask/answer questions, prioritize their tasks for the remainder of the period, and receive content specific academic support as needed.

  • Students are expected to use their class time productively.

  • Students are expected to use newly acquired tools to help build skills in both their academic and personal lives.

  • Some students who do not require ongoing support for their other courses may be assigned a “skills project” on a topic or idea of their choice that will help them to hone a particular skill or set of skills. They may be asked to teach a lesson towards the end of the module.

Office Hours/Open Blocks

  • Any student, whether enrolled in a “day” Skills Center course or not, is encouraged to use our drop in help time during open blocks on Tuesdays and Fridays or during office hours to receive executive function and/or academic support. They can also schedule regular appointments with us during those times. 

Evening Support

  • The Skills Center also offers evening help for boarding students who need both structured study time and academic support. The Evening Support Program (ESP) provides hands-on help in all subjects for up to 12 students per module. The Gryphon Den (GD) provides guidance around effective study skills and habits for those identified as having this need or those who choose to enroll. 

Formative and Summative Assessment

The Skills Center focuses primarily on formative assessment, since our pedagogy centers around process, growth, and creative problem solving. For summative assessments, all students are assigned mid-mod and end-of-mod “quizzes” to ascertain which skills and tools they have retained and applied throughout the module. Students receive a letter grade at the end of the mod based on their participation in lessons, productivity in class, and application of skills learned.

  • Skills Ctr- (A Block)

    The Skills Center provides an opportunity for students to improve their academic skills and begin to understand their individual learning styles. At the beginning of the module, students new to the Skills Center assess their strengths and weaknesses through self-evaluation exercises. All students outline specific goals for the module and then work to improve skill deficits, apply newly learned skills to their other course work, and improve study habits and strategies. Graded evaluation at the end of the module is based upon individual improvement and effort.
     
    The Skills Center teachers assess each student at the beginning of the module and decide on your individualized curriculum:
     
    • For students who take two academic courses that require regular written homework. These students learn study skills and apply them to course work. They are expected to meet homework requirements for their other courses and to use time productively in the Center. Some in-class work may be assigned. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who take a history or English course along with a course that does not require daily written homework. These students receive support for their course and also follow a Skills Center syllabus, which focuses on areas they wish to improve. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who do not need support for their other courses, but who wish to strengthen their academic skills. These students follow an individually tailored Skills Center syllabus. In some special cases, English credit may be given.  Students receive a letter grade.

  • Skills Ctr- (B Block)

    The Skills Center provides an opportunity for students to improve their academic skills and begin to understand their individual learning styles. At the beginning of the module, students new to the Skills Center assess their strengths and weaknesses through self-evaluation exercises. All students outline specific goals for the module and then work to improve skill deficits, apply newly learned skills to their other course work, and improve study habits and strategies. Graded evaluation at the end of the module is based upon individual improvement and effort.
     
    The Skills Center teachers assess each student at the beginning of the module and decide on your individualized curriculum:
     
    • For students who take two academic courses that require regular written homework. These students learn study skills and apply them to course work. They are expected to meet homework requirements for their other courses and to use time productively in the Center. Some in-class work may be assigned. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who take a history or English course along with a course that does not require daily written homework. These students receive support for their course and also follow a Skills Center syllabus, which focuses on areas they wish to improve. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who do not need support for their other courses, but who wish to strengthen their academic skills. These students follow an individually tailored Skills Center syllabus. In some special cases, English credit may be given.  Students receive a letter grade.

  • Skills Ctr- (C Block)

    The Skills Center provides an opportunity for students to improve their academic skills and begin to understand their individual learning styles. At the beginning of the module, students new to the Skills Center assess their strengths and weaknesses through self-evaluation exercises. All students outline specific goals for the module and then work to improve skill deficits, apply newly learned skills to their other course work, and improve study habits and strategies. Graded evaluation at the end of the module is based upon individual improvement and effort.
     
    The Skills Center teachers assess each student at the beginning of the module and decide on your individualized curriculum:
     
    • For students who take two academic courses that require regular written homework. These students learn study skills and apply them to course work. They are expected to meet homework requirements for their other courses and to use time productively in the Center. Some in-class work may be assigned. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who take a history or English course along with a course that does not require daily written homework. These students receive support for their course and also follow a Skills Center syllabus, which focuses on areas they wish to improve. Students receive a letter grade.
     
    • For students who do not need support for their other courses, but who wish to strengthen their academic skills. These students follow an individually tailored Skills Center syllabus. In some special cases, English credit may be given.  Students receive a letter grade.

  • Skills Ctr (Math)

    The Skills Center provides an opportunity for students to improve their language arts skills and begin to understand their individual learning styles. At the beginning of the module, students assess their strengths and weaknesses through self-evaluation exercises. They also outline specific goals for the module. They then work to improve skill deficits, apply newly learned skills to their other course work, and improve study habits and strategies. Graded evaluation at the end of the module is based upon individual improvement and effort. There is an additional charge for each module of Skills Center courses after the first class taken. The Skills Ctr (Math) section offers a specific focus on mathematics skill acquisition and support.

Browse Departments

Department Faculty

  • Photo of Marci Cohen
    Marci Cohen
    Director of Skills Center
    781-642-8677
    Bio
  • Photo of Olivia Foley
    Olivia Foley
    Skills Center Faculty
    Bio
  • Photo of Morgan Swain
    Morgan Swain
    Mathematics Faculty and Skills Faculty
    781-398-8373
    Bio
45 Georgian Road, Weston, MA 02493
Phone: (781) 642-8600
CSW—a gender-inclusive day and boarding school for grades 9-12—is a national leader in progressive education. We live out our values of inquiry-based learning, student agency, and embracing diverse perspectives in every aspect of our student experience. Young people come to CSW to learn how to learn and then put what they learn into action—essential skills they carry into their futures as doers, makers, innovators, leaders, and exceptional humans who do meaningful work in the world.