At the Matheny School’s recent Open House, Matheny student Natalie Tomastyk talked about her work experience at the Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center with Ryan MacNaughton, assistant principal, special services, and Kathleen Simpson, special education case manager, at the Kittatinny Regional High School in Newton, NJ.
The Matheny School’s Transition program is designed to increase the independence of its students both within the school and in the surrounding community. One way that is accomplished is through community-based experiences and structured learning environments that simulate real-life working situations. Matheny students are currently receiving an opportunity to learn on-the-job skills at both the Bridgewater, NJ, Township Library and the Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center in Bridgewater.
Students also encounter an authentic work environment in the Tea Time Café, Matheny’s in-house school refreshment stand, equipped with an adapted cash register, AbleNet and Point-of-Sale technology. And they are able to enhance functional and social skills during weekly trips to local stores to apply what is learned in the classroom to real-world experiences.
