Some experience-based boarding schools offer programs that cover standardized curricula while focusing on the kinesthetic student learning experience. There are many students who do not do well sitting in classrooms for 6 to 8 hours a day because their learning style is not being addressed by traditional education methods. Special needs students or behaviorally challenged students may also find a better fit at experiential boarding schools, where high-school credit can be achieved while enrolled in an expedition-based program.
Specialized programs are adapted to teaching student populations with ADD/ ADHD, using trained professionals and a wide variety of experiences to help meet students' needs. Examples of educational opportunities include traditional academic instruction mixed with local history, learning about regional ecology, flora, fauna and geology. These educational opportunities can be mixed with a variety of adventure activities, including mountain biking, caving, rafting, backpacking, orienteering and rock climbing. SOAR is an example of a specialized program for ADD / ADHD populations.
Students with behavioral needs can also find a variety of experiential-based programs that use trained counselors, wilderness instructors and living in community with other program participants to meet each student's needs. Some of these schools mix the teaching of primitive living skills, group dynamics and peer support as the main process for teaching behavior modification and adventure outings. The completion of these types of programs generally depend on the student's ability to move forward through a series of advancements in ranks as determined by the program staff. Examples of these types of programs include SUWS and Adirondack Leadership Expeditions.
Some expedition-based schools, such as those offered by the Aspen Education Group, offer follow-up educational approaches where the student transitions from an experiential-based setting, emphasizing adventure education, to a more traditional boarding school that is run by the same parent company. Other programs, such as SOAR, offer workshops for parents in learning about how to work better with individuals with disabilities.