Academic Summer Camps 2012
Academic summer camps or accelerated academic summer programs increases academic performance, resiliency, critical thinking, and problem solving skills. Academic summer school is not a new concept, but it has been out of bounds for poor and at-risk students. At-risk students that attend academic summer programs outperform their peers in all academic content areas, and attend college at far greater numbers. Giving all students a leg up is critical if we want to remain a first world nation not slide into a third world nation.
The most popular academic summer camp is SuperCamp and is run by the Quantum Learning Network (QLN). “The SuperCamp program aims to teach students skills which will make studying any subject a faster, easier, more enjoyable and less stressful process. The camp's life skills curriculum focuses on developing communication skills, building stronger personal relationships with family and friends, developing teamwork and leadership ability, boosting creativity and problem-solving ability, and setting clear goals. The camp uses metaphors such as an outdoor ropes course and board-breaking to help students develop strategies for overcoming barriers to success.” Wiki All students need to learn the skills that are taught at SuperCamp or for that matter any academic summer school that is designed to cultivate future leaders. We need to find a way that all students have the opportunity to attend summer camp or “SuperCamp” not just a very small percentage of children. The new Common Core Standards are designed to help bridge the academic achievement gap and prepare US students for the increasingly complex information age, but they are just words until educators transform them into success or failure. If we are going to sentence our children to 16 years of school we should have the decency to make it a truly amazing 16 years not just testing factories. We all know what we should be doing so lets get going!
Reading Boot Camp is a free teacher designed academic enrichment program designed to give at-risk student the academic summer camp experience. The lessons are fun, fast, and focused on building academic skills in a fun novel way. The only program cost is the teacher or free if done buy parents of volunteers. I have tried to make Reading Boot Camp a true camp that boosts a love of reading, learning and reasoning. Many school districts including my own are tied to the silver bullet treadmill, buying every new summer literacy programs or computer program that promises success. You can’t package nor can summer camp, and you can’t experience on your computer screen. Sean Taylor
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