Ensuring students are happy, secure, and prepared to participate
Our educational philosophy is centered around student autonomy and self-advocacy and we’ve designed specific services to help empower students when they come to school each day.
Ongoing student support is a critical part of our academic program. Deans regularly monitor student performance and proactively identify those who need support or are making exceptional strides.
All teachers are required to hold weekly office hours that are available to students (and guardians) who want to check in on progress, review content or homework, work on some extra skills, and more.
Whether a transferring student needs to catch up on material or a student is struggling in a particular class, a customized student support plan is necessary. Deans play a very specific role in developing and orchestrating a plan for students who need additional support above what is offered in the classroom. They meet with the student and assess, then they employ strategies such as extra teacher hours, peer tutoring, executive functioning and organizational support. Whether a student is on a Student Support Plan or not, we celebrate success as students inevitably make strides towards achieving their individual goals as scholars.
Peer tutoring is purposefully designed to be a hallmark of our school. Held as an after-school program, it is designed to achieve two outcomes:
- To encourage academic confidence. Peers are often sufficiently well-equipped to explain a concept to a struggling student, and we want to give them the chance to demonstrate their knowledge.
- To normalize asking for help. Students become more comfortable with asking for help when they seek it, not just from teachers, but from fellow students.
Early Bird is an extension of the school day available to all students before the start of school from 7:00 AM until class starts. This hour provides a place for students to complete homework or quietly socialize with friends in a supervised environment. There is no fee for Early Bird.
Late Bird is a fee-based after-school extension available to all students from the end of the dismissal window until 6:00 PM. We provide students with a quiet academic environment to complete homework and an opportunity to socialize with friends in a supervised environment.
BASIS Independent McLean offers a fee-based hot lunch program to students of all ages. We work closely with our third-party provider to accommodate dietary restrictions and allergies. Please note that we are not a nut-free campus.
BASIS Independent McLean is committed to ensuring that getting to and from school is as convenient as possible. However, we do not offer transportation at this time.