Electives & Clubs

Equine Therapy focuses on improving life skills, relationships, physical strength and riding skills in a strong, interactive approach. Instructors collaborate with students to give each individual the opportunity to overcome fears, anxiety and distraction. In turn, students walk away with increased self-esteem, positive behavior and focus. Horses provide the positive feedback, understanding, and patience that make learning and change easy to understand.

Gateway utilizes an inclusion service-delivery model. As communication is the primary impairment across our student body, communication skill development is an integral part of our curriculum. Our speech pathologist’s role is Advocacy, which deals with the students strengths, learning differences, and needs; Collaboration: academic standards are aligned with students’ goals and the teachers’ curriculum; and Empowerment: student-led meetings with students demonstrating the ability to express their strengths, learning differences, and needs. Additionally, students are taught how to monitor their goals, Direct Intervention: communication differences class which addresses language (receptive, expressive, and pragmatic lessons), articulation precision drills, literacy drills, academic drills and teaching, executive functioning: word retrieval, fluency, self-regulation, memory, study skills, semantic webbing, etc.; and Pull-Out: as needed for intensive therapy, etc.

Gateway Academy students are dedicated to helping others, and Service Learning is a very important component in exploring our world. St. Mary’s Food Bank, Feed My Starving Children, and Ronald McDonald House are just some of our Community based activities that all students, 6th-12th grade participate in.

There’s so much potential for bringing the curriculum to life using virtual and augmented reality experiences, from visiting far-flung corners of the world to holding the human heart in your hands.

VR and Augmented Reality can have a remarkable impact in all areas of learning. Ensuring students are engaged and challenged throughout their school career is a key priority for teachers. Virtual and augmented reality can unlock potential, giving students new ways to experience learning and even create their own media.

Vocational training will really begin to feel the impact of virtual and augmented reality over the next year or so. The ability to experience training in 360 is invaluable – and imagine budding mechanics viewing a working engine from all angles without leaving the classroom. All this is possible right now with ClassVR.

The goal of the World Language Lab at Gateway Academy is to provide the opportunity for our students to accelerate language acquisition through the use of computer resources. By using modern computer programs, students are enabled to see, hear, speak, and write in the new language. They are exposed to the sounds, grammar, and sentence structure of the language, as well as knowledge of the culture that uses the language. During the time they are in the language lab they “swim in the waters” of the new language and thus grow in their communication skills.

We also work with Rosetta Stone. Through this partnership, students choose a new language they want to learn from a list of 22 different languages. They also gain a cultural view of the language, discovering the music, food, religion, costumes, and more.

Gateway therapy dogs are trained to provide affection and comfort to our students. Apollo and Athena are friendly, patient, confident, gentle, and at ease in all situations. They enjoy our students and are content to be petted and handled, sometimes clumsily. Their primary job is to allow students to make physical contact with them and to enjoy that contact. They are very social, interacting with students in a positive manner. They enjoy being touched, petted, and held, when appropriate. They present a stable temperament and do not display aggression or fear. They also have the ability to stay calm in situations that are new, and may involve a number of distractions.

Gateway students adopted a Desert Tortoise from AZ Fish & Game. Students are responsible for its care and oversight. Our horticulture garden will grow food items to sustain the tortoise Tortilla Steve.

The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achievement), leadership, service, and character. The National Honor Society requires some sort of service to the community, school, or other organizations. The time spent working on these projects contributes towards the monthly service hour requirement. Gateway’s National Honor Society is active in community service activities both in the community and at the school. The Gateway Academy Chapter maintains a requirement for participation in such service activities. In addition, NHS elects officers, who, under the supervision of the chapter adviser, coordinate and manage the chapter, as a student organization. At the end of each academic year, students are chosen to receive the President’s awards for Educational Achievement and Outstanding Academic Excellence.

Each Middle and High School Contact group will elect 1 representative and one back up representative to serve on the Gateway Student Council. A representative from each Contact group will be present at monthly Student Council meetings.

In order to be an eligible candidate for Student Council, the student:

1. Must demonstrate the Gateway Honor Code consistently in all classes and activities.
2. Must be comfortable speaking up, and speaking for others, when appropriate.
3. Must be willing to take on leadership roles for special projects such as: Spring Dance, Spirit Days, Bake Sales, etc.
4. Must demonstrate appropriate behavior and a positive attitude in all classes.