Budgeting
The money management curriculum focuses on budgeting for the week. Students learn the difference between needs and wants and how to decide when, where, and on what to spend their money.

Each student opens a bank account at a local bank they can access on foot. They have an ATM card and learn how to manage on a budget of $40.00 per week.

Circles Curriculum
Students learn about different relationships and associated intimacies using a proven methodology. Students also learn about boundaries and behaviors involved in various relationships.

Community Exploration
This course takes students out of the classroom setting and beyond the school facilities to experience historical sites, places of business, and other locations of interest that offer opportunities to learn and grow.

Community learning experience gives students authentic practice in community access skills including:

• Communication skills
• Social skills
• Money handling skills
• Decision making and problem solving skills

Community Independence Lab
This is an opportunity for students, with guidance from an instructor, to learn, practice, test, and refine community independence skills by walking from the school to the South Hadley Commons.

To earn Community Independence privileges, students must show that they are able to navigate the route to their destination safely, use good social skills in the community, adhere to their budget, keep their belongings safe, and show they can respond appropriately in the event of an emergency situation.

Computer Skills
The goal of this class is for students to increase computer competencies. Topics include electronic mail communication and safely navigating the internet. Skill development is ideal for study, personal enjoyment, and the workplace.

Functional Mathematics
This curriculum focuses on arithmetic functions, currency recognition, money management, and bill payment. Practical applications include: ATM use, personal shopping, paying for leisure activities, saving money for the class trip, understanding cooking recipes, remembering important numbers, and maintaining personal information.

Healthy Living/Fitness
This course teaches students how to live a healthy life. The course includes lectures on healthy food choices and offers supervised fitness activities including daily walks, running, weight lifting and yoga.

Healthy Relationships
This is a weekly therapeutic group lesson aimed at increasing students’ understanding of the various types of relationships in their lives, and is taught using the circles curriculum.

Language Arts
Students learn basic reading and communication skills and build on current skills. They focus on expressing themselves effectively, conversing well with others, advocating for themselves, being informed, and pursuing interests – all of which prepares them to participate meaningfully in work, community, and society.


Laundry
Students receive step by step instruction on doing their laundry. The instruction is done in a lab setting where students do their own laundry. In the first year, laundry is done on campus, and in the second year, students have hands-on experience navigating a laundromat and working the cost into their weekly budget. This experience prepares students for independent living settings where they may not have their own washer and dryer.

Meal Preparation
Students are taught to:

• Properly and safely use kitchen utensils
• Follow a recipe
• Read and follow cooking instruction on a package
• Safely use a microwave, oven and stove top
• Wash, dry, and clean up dishes and cooking area

Upon completion of the Two Year Certificate Program students should be able to prepare meals with little or no prompts. Students will receive a personalized cookbook at the end of the program to aid them in their independence.

Morning Meeting
This thirty-minute meeting begins each day to review necessary daily information and to reinforce:

• Punctuality and reliability
• Healthy habits including stress management and regular exercise
• Breathing and stretching activities and light exercise included in the meeting
• Listening skills
• Participating in appropriately in discussions
• Reciting of Pledge of Allegiance

Pre-Vocational Training
Students have the opportunity to prepare for work in music and non-music vocations. Students learn to understand their abilities, likes and dislikes, perceptions, interests, skills, values, dispositions, attitudes and goals. They also get to survey the world of work and begin to develop ideas about jobs suited to their interests, goals and needs.

Public Speaking
This class is for second year students who are interested in improving their public speaking skills. Students are taught to speak using a four part rubric. The rubric represents the qualities of a good public speaker:

• Speaking quality
• Non-verbal communication
• Tone of voice
• Content

This class teaches students confidence in public speaking, to deliver speeches that are appropriate to the circumstance, and to engage the audience. As part of the class, the students have an opportunity to give Ability Awareness speeches at area schools, to speak at engagements that raise awareness of BHMA, and to give graduation speeches.

Room Maintenance
Advisors provide support and instruction to students on how to keep their rooms tidy and organized. As skills develop, room maintenance becomes an independent study and practice. Inspections and reminders of students’ responsibilities in room maintenance are provided.

Shopping
Students learn to independently locate commonly purchased items in retail stores and stick to a budget to become a wise shopper.

Women’s and Men’s Health
This course provides students with enough factual information, given in a safe and confidential setting, to protect their safety and allow them to make informed and healthy choices about relationships and behaviors.

The course covers relevant vocabulary, anatomy, puberty and physical development, maturity, responsibilities in friendships and romantic relationships, sexual orientation, pregnancy, childbirth, postponement, abstinence, birth control, STD’s, and sexual abuse.

Also discussed are healthy expressions of sexuality, appropriate boundaries, and personal safety.