WHAT WE DO
Contents - Links
Nutrition Programming - An Example of Real-Life Learning
The Not-So-Secret Secrets of Our Success
THE CHILDREN WE SERVE
In the last five years we have served an average of over 110 at-risk children from six local schools. This year, we consolidate our operations to the Chambersburg Recreation Center. This facility allows for small classes and activity groups, availability of two gyms, and daily use of a kitchen. Our staff includes a director, six group supervisors and a site manager, providing plenty of the individual attention kids need. Our student/staff ratio is 7:1. That speaks for itself.
THE FAMILIES WE SERVE
There is no question that working families across the country are squeezed for time and squeezed for money. Both spouses need to work beyond school closing hours and they worry about the cost and availability of child care. According to a recent article in USA Today, they are not willing to sacrifice the quality of child care for other things. We offer not only a safe place for kids after school but a place where they can learn and grow. As a 21st Century Community Learning Center grantee, our center has provided staff training, professional development, and access to research over the last five years. And parents will find our prices more than competitive.
This year, for the first time, we are compelled by the economic climate to operate on a fee-for-service basis. All new families will receive a charter member discount throughout the 2009-2010 academic year. Substantial discounts will be offered to all families. We do not have all of the final information available to determine a daily fee, but we do know that it will be competitive, even with the "latchkey" and daycare services.
Unfortunately, the major supporter of our economically disadvantaged families, the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare is underfunded and cannot provide any support in the near future. Therefore, we will make a cooperative effort with parents to secure local scholarships for as many of these families as we can. We have some time, as the program will be able to provide its own scholarships through calendar year 2009.
We have a special Spanish language translation service to assist our many Spanish-speaking families as needed.
Additionally, we are able to provide formal education opportunities such as G.E.D. work and special classes in life skills such as English language, nutrition, and family finance if we have adequate demand.
PROGRAM BACKGROUND
The K.L.A.S. program began in 2004 with a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. At this time we are a licensed child care center for school-age children. Next year ('10-'11) we hope to serve children up to age 15, but that depends upon the facilities available. To comply with our grant we must carry out the following set of objectives. But, more than that, all of us in the K.L.A.S. community believe that the grant’s objectives are very much like our own. Would they be your objectives?
MISSION
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Keeping kids safe
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Keeping families economically viable
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Helping children learn and grow academically, emotionally, and physically, and having a little fun along the way
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
- To serve at-risk children before we lose the opportunity to do so
- To increase student performance in reading, writing, science, and mathematics
- To provide a safe environment during the time when most child crime is committed
- To decrease risk-taking behaviors
- To improve students’ physical skills and nutrition
- To improve students’ social skills
- To seek community involvement with program children
- To offer activities that stimulate a child’s natural curiosity and interest in learning
- To engage parents in the learning process and in their children’s education
RESULTS FROM THE 2008-09 SCHOOL YEAR
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135 at-risk students enrolled at Stevens (Rec. Center) and Buchanan Elementary Schools’ after-school program, 107 in regular attendance (since October, 2008)
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Multi-culturally balanced population: 27% African-American, 26% Caucasian, 46% Latino
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90% of students are enrolled in federal free and reduced lunch program.
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Nearly 90% attendance daily
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Improvement on 4Sight math, 4Sight reading tests as follows:
Performance from 9/1/08-05/15/09 (based on reported scores): -
55% at Buchanan, 12% at Stevens have improved their reading scores (national 21st Century Community Learning Ctr. average – 42%)
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93% at Buchanan, 54% at Stevens have improved their math scores (national 21st Century Community Learning Ctr. average – 43%)
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30% have improved at least one full grade in reading at Stevens, 35% at Buchanan (card markings 1-3)
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24% have improved at least one full grade in mathematics at Stevens, 37% at Buchanan (card markings 1-3)
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Teachers report that over 50% of program children improved academically
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80% of surveyed parents were “very satisfied” with the program
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Group Leaders report through anecdotes improved social and individual behavior improvement in many children. Those improvements are likely to increase the self-esteem and self-confidence needed to improve academic performance.
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Staff/Student Ratio of 1:7 has been maintained. This ratio fosters one-on-one tutoring situations and individualized assistance regularly.
NUTRITION PROGRAMMING:
AN EXAMPLE OF REAL LIFE LEARNING
As you know, the reduction of childhood obesity and the development of physical fitness have become national priorities, with leadership directly from the White House. Although very few of our students are obese, we decided years ago that nutrition education would be a priority for our own program, and that it would take the form of a free healthy snack, explanation about its composition on any given day, hygiene considerations, treating the snack with respect and dignity, cooking lessons, how to say thank you and mean it, and to take the responsibility for cleaning up the tables and floor before continuing the after-school day, Our local 4-H organization provides food pyramid demonstrations, analysis of portion size and calorie/carbohydrate content, and provides cooking lessons. Note that there are no textbooks for what we do. Children experience the nutrition program in a hands-on manner and learn from a variety of sources. Nutrition education begins with the aforementioned healthy snack. Daily, the snack consists of fresh fruit, a vegetable, or cheese, a granola bar or low fat crackers or chips, and fruit juice or milk. We are able to serve the food we deem appropriate by doing our own shopping. Students help with the distribution of snacks to their classmates.
The healthy snack experience is about much more than the distribution of food to hungry students after the long school day. It contains the basic elements of real learning: It involves such important issues as understanding the characteristics of healthy food and portion size, body awareness, personal responsibility, measuring nutritional contents, good manners, and appropriate hygiene. The learning process involves the use of the classic learning model: introduction of theory, attempted application of theory, mistakes, problem solving, mentoring and guidance, repetition of behavior, and, ultimately, mastery of the given skill.
THE NOT SO SECRET SECRETS OF OUR SUCCESS
Our program exhibits many of the characteristics of success deemed important by leading research organizations. Here are some highlights from the Harvard Family Research Project and Southwest Educational Development Laboratories:
Here’s what the Harvard Family Research Project has to say about KidzLit, our academic and enrichment curriculum, as they examine its academic and youth development parameters using research statistics:
Academic
Second graders showed significant increases in their sense of reading efficacy and in the amount of reading they did, though they showed significant decreases in both liking reading and enjoyment of read-alouds (p < .001 for each).
There was a significant positive correlation between second graders feelings of reading efficacy and the number of books read in KidzLit (p < .05). Implementation quality and hours of KidzLit exposure were not strongly correlated with reading-related attitudes.
Fourth graders showed significant increases in their sense of reading efficacy and amount of reading they did (p < .001 for both), but did not show increases in liking reading. They were more likely to show increases in the amount of reading they did in programs with lower quality implementation (p < .10), with exposure to fewer books (p < .05), and with fewer hours of KidzLit exposure (p < .10).
There was a significant, positive correlation between the number of books fourth graders read during KidzLit, and the degree to which they reported enjoying reading (p < .05).
Youth Development
Fourth graders showed significant increases in concern for others and altruistic behavior (p < .001 for both). The higher the implementation quality, the more they increased in their concern for others (p<.05). According to KidzLit staff, the biggest benefits youth experienced as a result of KidzLit, on a scale of 1 to 5, were deeper engagement with connection activities (art, drama, music, etc., 4.17); greater ability to think critically and express ideas out loud (3.92); and greater understanding of self and others (3.85).
Our curriculum stimulates a child’s natural curiosity, creating a string of activities that lead to improved academic achievement, social behavior and a love of learning. Here is a comment from SEDL on the types of enrichment activity we employ after school every day.
It’s not easy keeping a child’s attention, but inspiring his or her creativity can help. When students are making or creating things that incorporate content from other subject areas, they are better able to integrate and retain what they are learning. For example, asking students to create a travel brochure using design software integrates geography, language arts, technology, and economics. Research shows that by expressing themselves through art, students may develop skills and self-confidence that they can apply to other areas of learning, thereby boosting overall academic achievement.
Finally, this comment is used by the Contemporary School of the Arts, a Hagerstown, MD program with which we are associated. We expose our kids to the arts frequently and in different ways throughout the program.
The emphasis on standardized testing in the public schools has nearly eliminated arts education Yet, research has shown that recent cuts in arts education are detrimental to the education of our children. Social development of our children has suffered, with a resulting negative influence on our communities. Research has also shown that among the positive effects of arts education are enhancement of creativity, boosts in reading readiness, help in social development, assistance in general intellectual development, and fostering of positive attitudes toward school. It is clear that the study of the arts enhances reading and math development, thus helping raise the very test scores that are so cherished by our local school leaders.
Beyond all the research lies the primary reason for our success after school. It’s something you simply cannot measure. You can equip your program with computers and internet access, expensive curricula, and extensive facilities, but never help a single child.
The main reason for success is the attention afforded each child by a very low student: staff ratio and an experienced staff that genuinely cares. We do. Stop by any afternoon. You’ll see caring in action.
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