Mind.SpringSpirit offers a variety of educational support programs for neighborhood kids ages 4-18. Depending on their age and current school performance, kids are placed into different programs to improve academic achievement. SpringSpirit's educational programs are part of our "Whole Child" approach which is designed to address the needs of each participant's mind, body and soul.
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Reading Intervention
SpringSpirit members in grades 1 - 5 are eligible to participate in twice a week ZOOM sessions to practice reading and work on comprehension to help increase their reading level. Students read out loud in small groups staffed by volunteers on Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday at either 3:30 or 4:30 pm. To sign your child up, please contact carin.thorn@springspirit.org (English) or michael.kidd@springspirit.org (Spanish).
Los miembros de SpringSpirit que tienen hijos en los grados 1-5 son elegibles para participar en sesiones de ZOOM dos veces por semana para participar la lectura y trabajar en la comprensión para ayudar a aumentar su nivel de lectura. Los estudiantes leen en voz alta en grupos pequeños asistidos por voluntarios los lunes y miércoles o martes y jueves a las 3:30 o 4:30 pm. Para inscribir a su hijo, póngase en contacto con carin.thorn@springspirit.org (Inglés) o michael.kidd@springspirit.org (Español).Early Literacy Program
SpringSpirit kids in PK4 and Kindergarten get foundational literacy support - sound, letter and word recognition, writing, parts of a sentence, and dictation recognizing the first and last letters of a word. There are three phases to this program that children pass through on their way to reading success. We do this in both English and Spanish because some students are still getting their literacy instruction in Spanish in their bilingual classroom at school.Pathways to T-2-4
We support our Juniors and Seniors at SpringSpirit with individualized help in identifying their college and career pursuits and applying for those pursuits and the necessary financial aid. We want every SpringSpirit child to graduate from high school with a plan to attend a technical school, a 2-year or 4-year college, or to start a military career (T-2-4). We are in the process of extending this support to participants as young as 6th grade through programming that makes them aware of the various career options and helps them identify their own interests and dreams.Tutorials
After collecting and tracking the report cards of our competitive athletes, we invite those who are failing or at risk of failing to come to study hall or tutorials. We have regular high school volunteers who come to assist these students when needed. We also provide occasional one-on-one tutoring for those students we identify as needing more intensive support.
STEM
This group of kids formed in Fall ‘18 with the help of an amazing volunteer. The kids used STEM materials donated from the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation to compete in the Ripken STEM Challenge. They got first place in the challenge! We have continued their STEM programming into the Spring semester, exposing them to various STEM concepts and activities. The goal is to wet their appetite for STEM but also broaden their vocabulary and framework of knowledge.Kids' Reading Room
We partner with the non-profit Kids’ Reading Room once a week. Kids’ Reading Room has donated almost all of our early literacy books. They come once a week with volunteers to read books that our SpringSpirit kids select. They also do a craft once a month and have story time. This option continues to support graduates of our Early Literacy programming in their pursuit of literacy.
