Charleston Promise Neighborhood designs and manages summer instruction through its Expanded Learning Time program that helps students advance academically and avoid the Summer Slide, the process by which students, particularly those from low-income homes, lose ground academically during the summer as their minds sit idle.
This summer, Charleston Promise Neighborhood manages two summer learning programs, one at Mary Ford Elementary School and one at Sanders-Clyde Elementary School, serving a total of 270 children.
At Mary Ford, we’re leveraging the opportunity to integrate with Charleston County School District’s Summer Residency teacher professional development program. Through this unique partnership with CCSD, 160 students from kindergarten through fifth grades will have the benefit of small group instruction.
Seventeen master teachers will be paired with 17 novice teachers for a co-teaching academic model focused on both math and literacy. With this model, students will experience a classroom environment with a teacher to student ratio of 1:5, allowing for individualized instruction.
During the afternoon hours, students will participate in EPIC, an evidence-based, project-based learning system, followed by extra-curricular enrichment such as soccer and lacrosse. The program will run for four weeks, Monday through Friday, from 7:30 am – 3:30 pm. Breakfast and lunch are served.
At Sanders-Clyde, we’re partnering with the principal to offer an intensive academic experience as well. Teachers will instruct 110 students from pre-K through fifth grades in math and literacy. Each classroom will engage two teachers for a co-teaching model, resulting in a 1:10 teacher to student ratio. This program will also incorporate structured extra-curricular enrichment, in addition to a strong social-emotional growth component. The program will run for five weeks, Monday through Thursday, from 7:30 am – 5:00 pm. Breakfast and lunch are served.
Last year, 106 children participated in CPN’s literacy enrichment either at Mary Ford Elementary or through Metanoia’s Freedom School at Chicora.
All but two of the first-graders maintained or improved their literacy skills at Mary Ford. 98% of students at Chicora did the same.
Studies show the summer gains students make in programs like this last indefinitely.
