Read and Roll Books in your box: two summer school alternatives

1. Read and RollBooks in your box:two summer school alternatives Ellen Denny and Kelly Wheeler, McHarg Elementary

2. Why change summer school? • Summer slide still evident after summer school • Short duration (3-4 weeks) • Difficulty finding willing qualified teachers • Reaching all at risk readers, not just ones whose parents will agree to send them to summer school

3. What was the spark? • Teacher-Directed Professional Development through TALK(Teachers as Learners Krew) group • Teachers planning what they will read to improve themselves professionally • Discussion: “I need to see what I say to know what I think.”

4. The spark igniting an idea RTI in Literacy: Responsive and Comprehensive, edited by Peter H. Johnston Reading Teacher journal articles

5. Read and Roll Improving student interaction with books over the summer months Picture from http://blogs.roanoke.com/theburgs/news/2013/07/28/where-students-read-to-adults/

6. McHarg’s Read and Roll Summer Program • Program Logistics: • 1 Bookmobile bus equipped with reading supplies • School system bus for transporting participating students • Routes/pick up areas/times • Schedule/Parent Communication: • Start date/end date • Two sessions daily, Monday through Thursday • 8:30-10:00 (Session 1) • 10:15-11:45 (Session 2) • Monday/Wednesday route • Tuesday/Thursday route

7. McHarg’s Read and Roll Summer Program • Adult Reading Volunteers • McHarg teachers • Beans and Rice volunteers • Materials: • Good Fit books, - Levels A-P • Unleveled books • Books for read alouds • Lawn furniture • Technology equipment • Food • Snacks • Lunch

8. Read and Roll Preparation • Meet with: • Asst. Superintendent • Food Services • Transportation Director • Beans and Rice Director • Identification and coordination of eligible students • Title services – who needs reinforcement? • Student residency – who lives on bus route?

9. Read and Roll Prep and Management • Collaborate with the Director of Transportation • Determine reading locations • 4 different sites • Create bus routes • economical • serve the greatest need • Coordinate (major spreadsheet!) • drop off/pick up • 2 daily sessions • 2 different routes a week • Which students are going home • Which students going to Beans and Rice afternoon sessions

10. Read and Roll Prep and Management • Teacher Volunteers: • Create spreadsheet of time/ setting options • Recruit teacher volunteers • Communicate with parents on: • Participation in the program • Participation in 1st or 2nd session or both • Participation in Beans and Rice Summer Sessions at sister school (12:00-3:00) • Coordinate food preparation and distribution

11. Read and Roll Costs • Transportation ($2,000-$4,000): • School bus/fuel/driver – funded by RCPS Summer School allocation and Beans and Rice, Inc. • Book Mobile – donated by Radford University • Materials ($2,000-4,000): • Good Fit books – funded by McHarg Elementary, the Radford City Public Library, and RIF • Wifi Hot Spots – funded by McHarg Elementary • Baskets, portable tables, read aloud books/CDs, headphones, lawn couches, and blankets – funded and provided by McHarg Elementary • Snacks/lunch (National School Lunch Program): • Snacks were provided by Radford City Schools • Lunch was provided by Radford City Schools • Cafeteria personnel responsible for prep/Bus driver responsible for loading

14. Books in your Box Improving student access to books over the summer months . . .

15. Giving books to students -- a history • Summer 2012 • Title I gave 10 leveled books to their students (they chose) • Held a parent training session in May, well attended • Children dragged their parents there!! So excited!! • Reading logs, with prize to be given in fall • Result? Out of over 120 Title students, only three returned the log for the prize • Bottom line: Significant summer slide still evident

16. So, “Books in your Box” • Still student choice of books within a range of levels • Still providing books to at risk readers • What did we change? • Mailed to Title students at their home address • 2 books a week • 8 weeks • Strategy reminder card in each mailing • Served as a weekly reminder to read, with the necessary materials included, no need to look for them!

17. Children choosing their books

18. Two books and a strategy card

19. CAFE strategy cards

21. Books in your Box • Budget: • $3500 for books (approximately 140 children, 16 books per child) • $1500 for postage (8 weekly packages) • $150 for ziploc baggies (zipper pull kind)

22. End of the summer survey • Books in your Box • Survey sent home in September, after school started again • 47% surveys were returned • 100% parents and students liked getting books in the mail • “It raised the interest level for my child and reminded me of his correct reading level.” • “They were great books. They also served as a good reminder to practice reading as it is easy to forget to do and before you know it the summer is over!”

23. Survey comments • “Yes, who doesn’t love to get mail? Unless someone wants your money and then you don’t! ” • “He loved getting the books in the mail and enjoyed reading the books to us. He loved going to get the mail to see if he got his book for the week. Just really excited ” • “It made her feel special to get mail like the adults.” • “The books were fun and that made it easier to get him to read them.” • “At first she didn’t like getting the books in the mail because I would make her read them.”

24. Survey comments – strategy cards • “As a parent, I don’ t always know how to help my child read. I didn’t go to school to learn to teach. These strategies helped me help my child.” • “I could help her in reading without giving her the answer.” • “It helped me to help him and to be more patient with him.” • Only one suggestion: a reading chart to turn in for a prize

25. Preliminary Summer Reading Initiatives’ Data, rising first graders

26. Preliminary Summer Reading Initiatives’ Data, rising second graders

27. Diminishing the summer slide . . . Read and Roll Books in your Box Questions? kwheeler@rcps.org