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Summer Sojourn at Franklin Academy is designed for
students between the
ages of 13 and 19
who have nonverbal
learning
differences,
including
Asperger’s
Syndrome.
Students
eligible for this
summer program
include those
students who are
currently enrolled
at
Franklin
Academy, students
newly accepted for
the Fall, and
students enrolled at
other schools who
meet our admissions
requirements.
The purpose of the program is for students to have fun, make friends, improve social skills, and develop independent living skills while engaging in content-specific areas of interest called "Paths." Students select two paths for each session - one morning path and one afternoon path. Here are the exciting opportunities that are being offered this summer at Franklin Academy.
Glass
Sculpture
Become a glass artist!
This path examines the art of
glass working.
Students work
with a small
jeweler’s torch
and Pyrex glass rods
to explore the
properties of glass
and create works of
art.
A
professional glass
blower leads the
group in torch
safety and sculpting
techniques.
Forensic
Science
Using standard
techniques developed
for forensic
science, students
will solve a
mystery.
Typical
topics covered
include
fingerprinting, DNA
analysis, blood
typing,
chromatography, and
fiber analysis.
After
students become
familiar with the
techniques
presented, they will
use these techniques
to solve a staged
crime and present
their findings in a
mock trial.
Animal
Behavior
Ever
wonder why animals
do what they do?
While humans
have been observing
and trying to
understand animals
for thousands of
years, the
scientific study of
animal behavior has
been recognized only
for a little over
one hundred years.
This path
will take students
on a journey
beginning with
neurons and senses,
moving up to social
behavior, and
concluding with the
evolution of
behavior over time.
Aeronautics/Flight
Training
This exciting path
looks at the
fundamentals of
flight.
Students
learn about various
aircrafts,
aerodynamics, flight
mapping, and air
safety.
Using flight
simulators to
prepare missions and
practice maneuvers,
skills are honed and
refined.
The group
will work together
to build and launch
their own model
rockets, use
radio-controlled
airplanes, visit the
New England Air
Museum, and finally,
visit a local
airport where they
will experience the
wonderful freedom of
flight.
Flying over
central
Connecticut
with certified
pilots/flight
instructors is an
experience students
are sure to remember
for the rest of
their lives!
Horse
Whispering:
Equestrian
Adventure
The focus of this
path is to learn
about horses and how
to work with them.
Combining
riding and ground
work, students
engage in innovative
activities at three
different horse
farms.
One farm
offers riding and
horse care
instruction.
Another
offers an
introduction to the
world of equine
therapy,
particularly as it
relates to
rehabilitation from
illnesses and
injury.
The third
farm is an equine
retirement facility
where students will
learn about the
special needs of
aging horses and
enjoy the company of
wonderfully
appreciative equine
friends!
Organic
Food Production
Ever thought about trying your hand at gardening? Collecting farm fresh eggs? Understanding more about organic food? This path will include several farm site visits, maintaining and harvesting from a campus garden, learning about edible flowers and more. Discover the world of organic!
Ecology
Love the outdoors? Learning
about forest and
water ecology is the
focus of this
dynamic path. Help create a
nature path, study
the properties of
pond water and life,
be able to recognize
different animal
tracks and habitats,
identify
wildflowers, go on a
bird watch. How about
going on a night
hike to find spotted
owls? If you like
being outside, this
is a path for you!
Radio
Journalism
In addition to
exploring recording,
script writing,
production and sound
editing techniques,
students will visit
a radio station to
see this craft being
practiced firsthand.
A wide
variety of radio
programs will be
examined – from
“War of the
Worlds” to
“Story Corps”
– learning about
production values
and the impact that
radio journalism has
had on popular
culture throughout
its history.
Students will
write and produce
their own pieces by
creating a Podcast
series that can be
uploaded to iPods.
Can you say “Ghostbusters?”
Students will
learn about ghost
hunting equipment
and techniques, as
well as data
collection and
analysis.
History,
mythology,
literature, science,
psychology and
technology of the
paranormal will be
examined.
Projects
include field
investigation of a
“real-life”
case.
Landscape
Painting
The
Hudson River
School
was a mid-19th
century American art
movement by a group
of landscape
painters.
Their
paintings depict the
Hudson River
Valley
and the surrounding
area, as well as the
Catskill Mountains,
Adirondack Mountains,
and White Mountains
of New Hampshire.
In gathering
the visual data for
their paintings, the
artists would travel
to rather
extraordinary and
extreme
environments.
During these
expeditions,
sketches and
memories would be
recorded and the
paintings would be
rendered later upon
the artists’ safe
return home.
We will be
traveling to
locations along our
Connecticut River
and other local
scenic areas to
sketch and record
our own
Connecticut
landscape.
Small
Boat
Building
Learn the basics of
boat building,
woodworking, and...
hopefully paddling!
Depending on
individual
experience, students
will build one of
two vessels during
this path – a
Sunrise Double canoe
as a group or the
Classic Cajun
Pirogue
individually.
Leadership
This path is a
4-week option for
students entering
the 11th grade, 12th
grade, or
postgraduate year.
Leadership
style, conflict
resolution, group
dynamics,
reflection, and
self-assessment will
be covered the first
half and the second
half will include
such things as
service projects,
and first-aid
training.
Students in
this path will serve
as RA’s and
mentors to the
younger students in
the Summer Sojourn.
The
daily schedule for
Monday through
Friday is as
follows:
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8:30 - 9:00 |
Breakfast |
|
9:00 - 9:30 |
Community Meeting |
|
9:30 -
12:30 |
Path 1 |
|
12:30 -
1:30 |
Lunch |
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1:30 -
4:30 |
Path 2 |
|
4:30 -
5:45 |
Activity |
|
6:00 |
Dinner |
|
7:00 -
9:15 |
Evening Activity |
|
9:30 - 10:00 |
In dorm |
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10:30 |
Lights out |
Afternoon activities include swimming, biking, arts and crafts, fishing, hiking, fitness, and golf, as well as field and gym sports. Evening activities focus on a variety of opportunities, including astronomy, cooking, movies, bowling, campfires and barbeques. The weekend schedule offers more leisurely activities, including excursions throughout Connecticut, to New York City, and to Boston, beach trips, concerts, summer stock theatre, camping miniature golf, and shopping.
There are two 2-week sessions held from the end of June through the month of July. Students may choose to attend one session. However, we highly recommend participation in both sessions to take full advantage of the personal growth opportunities. While not a requirement for admission to Franklin Academy, we urge new students to consider attending Summer Sojourn because this program provides a superb introduction to our school and gives every participant a head start when the regular school year begins in September.
Franklin Academy administrators provide program oversight, and the school's faculty handle the supervision of our summer students. Specialists in the field handle Path instruction.
The fee for each session is $2,500 or $4,500 for
both sessions. This
covers tuition, room and
board, laundry, and the
activities fee.
Applications for either
session are now being
accepted. For more
information, please call
the Franklin Academy
Admissions Office at
860-873-2700.
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