The dog days of summer are upon us! With our summer ESY program in full swing--complete with pool visits, art projects, Wii tournaments, STEM projects, and more-- it's good to take a moment to reflect on the 2015-2016 school year. 

First though, from all of us at The Calais School, THANK YOU for making this year a happy and successful one. Your support as parents, family members, teachers, counselors, case managers, special education directors, donors, and friends of The Calais School make it possible for all of us to learn, grow, and improve. 

But don't just take my word for it! Watch this special thank you from our wonderful students....

We've been busy here. This past Spring we put on our lab coats for the Science Fair, enjoyed time with friends during Family Fun Day, watched Peter Pan defeat Captain Hook during our Spring play, and celebrated the accomplishments of 16 bright young men at our 45th commencement ceremony. 

Students in the 12Plus program created a video about their Structured Learning Experiences (SLE) throughout the year. From pre- to post-production, this student-led project discusses the value of SLE internships in the community. The technical aspects of writing and recording a script, filming on location, and editing footage also speaks to the talent and dedication of our students and the guidance of our staff.  Read about how SLE students celebrated their year at work and view their video  HERE!

We have also welcomed a number of new students to our ESY program. It has been a pleasure to meet these new students and watch them become a part of our Calais community!

With so much going on, please keep up with us on Facebook and our school blog. We keep adding videos to our YouTube channel about life here at Calais so please take a few minutes and see for yourself-- there's always something going on! 

Happy summer reading.... and please read through for updates for the 2016-2017 school year. 

Six high school seniors and ten 8th graders participated in The Calais  School's 

45th commencement ceremony, celebrating their accomplishments and hard work in the classroom and in the community. 

Each senior shared their experiences at The Calais School speeches that moved us, inspired us, and made us laugh. Each senior took a moment to thank the people that made a particular impact on them,including family, friends, teachers, and counselors. Their stories were heartfelt and humorous.

Read highlights of our 45th commencement ceremony on our school blog.

Students Create Mural with Artist-in-Residence

The final art piece is beautiful; however, the more amazing aspect is how Mr. Brooks as an art teacher makes each student feel they are a valuable part of a team. His approach allows anxious students and those who doubt their ability to create art to feel empowered. The students are proud of their individu al work and of the completed project. 

When visiting The Calais School, please take a look at the incredible works of a rt created by students in our ESY program. Our school bus in the Lower School hallway, but don't miss our other works of art in the Upper School hallways!

Franchesca Grey

STEM has been a buzzword in the world of education and it has officially reached The Calais School! STEM is an acronym which stands for the subject areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. It is so much more than a grouping of subjects; STEM education develops a new way of thinking and reasoning, investigation, teamwork and creative skills that can be used in many facets of students' lives. 

During the three-week ESY STEM program, students work hands on and collaboratively with their classmates in order to generate solutions for daily STEM challenges. This program focuses on a student-centered learning environment which allows students to communicate with their peers to share ideas and control their own designs. 

What can you create using a few straws, some tape, and a plastic cup? Well if you ask the students in our new STEM program you will get many different answers! These students have been hard at work designing and finding solutions to different STEM challenges. We have created things such as load-bearing towers out of straw, hovercrafts, rockets, volcanoes, and class favorite, the egg drop challenge.

Each class, students are given a new challenge with different materials and minimal restrictions. They are encouraged to use their imaginations and there are various possibilities for creative solutions. 

After they try out their designs, often times they go back and redesign their creations to make it even

 better! The Calais School's STEM program provides the opportunity for multiple correct answers. Students are expected to learn from what went wrong  and try  again. At Calais, failure is a positive step on the way to discovering a new solution!

Diligence and hard work in the Structured Learning Experience (SLE) program has literally and figuratively paid off for Andrew B.  He has secured a part-time employment opportunity at Village Supermarkets/ShopRite of Greater Morristown.  

Andrew gained valuable work experience at ShopRite during his SLE assignment.  His professionalism and work ethic was so impressive the supervisors at the store expressed interest in hiring Andrew right after graduation.   Now, Andrew works several days a week at the store and is responsible for merchandise displays, marketing strategies, front-end support as well as a variety of other duties.  We are so proud!

Our fifth annual field day with our friends at the Gridi ron Institute brough NFL-style football drills, basketball, soccer, relay races, video gaming with Microsoft, and much more to Calais School students! 

Sponsored by The Calais Foundation, Touchdown for Success with the Gridiron Institute gives our students with special needs the opportunity to learn about health, fitness, teamwork, education and self-confidence from current and former NFL players.