Courses

Success in high school depends on more than innate intellectual ability. Students must practice disciplined approaches to learning using effective techniques to succeed in a rigorous curriculum. Step Up Study Skills provides students with the foundation and tools necessary for success.

In Pathways to Independent Learning, students are given tools and strategies to take charge of the learning process. They will be able to take full responsibility for choosing effective approaches to long-term learning.  Why is this ability especially critical now?

Students need the skills and strategies of independent learning so that they are equipped to excel in any learning environment or situation. Research has proven that facility and practice of executive functioning skills and critical thinking is a greater predictor of student success than IQ. Students who develop the skills of independent learning are better able to adapt and succeed when they encounter obstacles.

Developing the skills of self-advocacy, communication, and critical thinking give students the skills and strategies to take charge of the learning process. They have the ability to be self-aware to know their specific needs, what help will support those needs, how to communicate those needs to teachers and parents, and how to develop a deeper understanding of new information. These skills lead students to become better problem-solvers and build upon other essential life skills. Developing the skills of independent learning is beneficial to all students because it provides the tools needed for success in school and in life.

The Step Up Study Skills course is designed to facilitate a smooth transition to high school by teaching students the vital executive functioning skills necessary for academic success. Success in high school depends on more than just innate intellectual ability. Students must practice disciplined approaches to learning using sound techniques if they are to succeed in a rigorous curriculum. The program consists of 5 major themes in its instructional units: Setting and Achieving Goals; Getting Organized Managing Your Time and Improving Your Study Habits; Reading and Taking Notes from Textbooks; Memory Strategies; and Steps in the Learning Process: Developing Critical Thinking Skills.

In the Pathways to Independent Learning course, students are given tools and strategies to take charge of the learning process. They will be able to take full responsibility for choosing effective approaches to long-term learning.  Students need the skills and strategies of independent learning in order to excel in any learning environment or situation. Research has proven that facility and practice of executive functioning skills and critical thinking is a greater predictor of student success than IQ. Students who develop the skills of independent learning are better able to adapt and succeed when they encounter obstacles.

The Step Up Study Skills course is deisgned to facilitate a smooth transtition to high school by teaching students the vital executive functioning skills necessary for academic success. Success in high school depends on more than just innate intellectual ability. Students must practice disciplined approaches to learning using sound techniques if they are to succeed in a rigorous curriculum. The program consists of 5 major themes in its instructional units: Setting and Achieving Goals; Getting Organized Managing Your Time and Improving Your Study Habits; Reading and Taking Notes from Textbooks; Memory Strategies; and Steps in the Learning Process: Developing Critical Thinking Skills.

Developing Skill Sets for Success:
• Self-Advocacy
• Effective Communication
• Executive Functioning
• Critical Thinking
A St. Thomas High School program for girls and boys to nurture independent learners who go to school each day with a positive attitude and intellectual curiosity, motivated to succeed.

Houston-area Catholic and private high schools require entrance exam test scores as a part of the admissions process. Testing for admissions in the fall of 2022 begins in early November, 2021. 

St. Thomas High School is once again offering classes for current eighth grade students in preparation for the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE).  The classes are coed and open to all students who intend to apply to those schools.

The courses provide tips and strategies, as well as instruction in the content areas tested:

Reading Comprehension
Verbal Reasoning
Quantitative Reasoning
Mathematics Achievement

A great majority of students who have taken the courses were admitted to their first choice school.

In Pathways to Independent Learning, students are given tools and strategies to take charge of the learning process. They will be able to take full responsibility for choosing effective approaches to long-term learning. The program consists of three major instructional units: Developing Self-Advocacy; Developing Communication Skills; and Developing Critical Thinking Skills.