Ready Set Go 2019: Summer Week 4
Hello families!
Last week I shared some ideas of activities to get your scholar ready for the upcoming school year. This week I am sharing a few activities that are just for fun. All of these ideas involve being outside and using as little technology as possible.
Nature Art
Cleveland is a city with a lot of opportunity to explore nature. There are about 18 parks with walking trails, bike trails, exercise areas, etc. These parks offer a great opportunity to gather supplies for nature art. Gather piles of twigs, pinecones, flowers, and leaves. Let your child use their imagination and turn their found objects into works of art. Using twigs to make a nature mobile is an easy project and—voila! —new home décor! Check out the Cleveland Metropark website at https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/parks/visit to find a park near you.
Animal Tracking
Part of the Cleveland Metroparks the Cleveland Zoo is best known for having the largest collection of primates in the United States and for its Rainforest exhibit, which features a thrilling simulated tropical rain storm. Mondays are free for Cuyahoga County residents and is a great opportunity to explore the zoo. Make your visit interactive by bringing a notebook and pencil and having your child draw the tracks of all the animals you see at the zoo. You can take their art work home and put it on display.
Scavenger Hunts
Another fun activity to do at the Metroparks is a nature walk. Turn a simple walk through the woods into a game or scavenger hunt. Ask your child to find five different kinds of trees and then tell you what kind they are or what kinds of animals might live in them. Have them hunt for an unusual bug. Look for animal tracks. Find a cloud shaped like a cat. You can have everyone work together or make it a friendly competition. If you can’t get outside, you can modify this game and play indoors.
Have a safe and happy July 4th
Kareemah
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Kareemah Williams
Parent of Two Breakthrough Alum
Former Board Member of Citizens Academy
Former Board Member of Breakthrough Schools
Current Director of Enrollment & Engagement
Office: (216) 367-5720
Email: kwilliams@breakthroughschools.org
Upcoming Summer Events
Family Coloring Day
Saturday, July 6th
Cleveland Public Library South Branch
Coloring books are not just for kids anymore they are for everyone! Join us in discovering the relaxing benefits of coloring at the library. Enjoy these family oriented coloring program and relax while you color as a family. Coloring books and supplies will be provided, but participants are welcome to bring their own materials from home.
Kindergarten Club
Monday, July 8th
Cleveland Public Library South branch
K-Club prepares your child (ages 4 to 6) for Kindergarten and builds support their first year of school. Enjoy fun family learning activities, giveaways, free school supplies, and a free meal for the family at each session. All children in the family are welcome to attend, regardless of age. Se habla español! Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 216-623-7115
Movies from Books
Wednesday, July 10th
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Branch
Did you know that some of your favorite movies were books first? Join us movies along with a discussion of the books they're based upon….and, of course, popcorn!
Summer Reading Ideas Week 4
Kindergarten or ages 4-6
Saturday
by Oge Mora
Today is Saturday and for Ava and her mother that is the best day of the week because her mother doesn't work on Saturdays and they get to spend the whole day together. They've really been looking forward to this Saturday because they have a special plan. Together they will go to the library for story time and they'll go to the salon to get do's and they'll go to the park for some peace and quiet and finally they'll go to the best puppet show ever. It's going to be an amazing day. Then, well, you know... life happens. Things don't go exactly as hoped and planned. So what do you do when that special day takes a turn in its own very unexpected direction? This is a gorgeous story of a mother and a daughter who are so lucky to have each other. Glorious.
2nd grade or ages 6-8
Actual Size
by Steve Jenkins - (Houghton Mifflin, 2004) 34 pages
There are many books about animals for children, but none that provide information about their relative sizes in such a meaningful way. Caldecott-winning author Jenkins uses his unique cut- and torn-paper illustrations to show readers the “actual size” of a collection of animals. Smaller creatures like the atlas moth fit comfortably on the page, but the head of the saltwater crocodile requires a fold-out, and the head of the Siberian tiger extends off of two large pages! Text is minimal, usually restricted to statistics about the size of each of the creatures illustrated, but there are additional notes about each of the animals at the end of the book.
Ages 9-12
Last Last Day of Summer
by Lamar Giles
The Hardy Boys meets The Phantom Tollbooth, in the new century! When two adventurous cousins accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets hidden between the unmoving seconds, minutes, and hours are not the endless fun they expected. Otto and Sheed are the local sleuths in their zany Virginia town, masters of unraveling mischief using their unmatched powers of deduction. And as the summer winds down and the first day of school looms, the boys are craving just a little bit more time for fun, even as they bicker over what kind of fun they want to have. That is, until a mysterious man appears with a camera that literally freezes time. Now, with the help of some very strange people and even stranger creatures, Otto and Sheed will have to put aside their differences to save their town—and each other—before time stops for good.
Get Involved
If you are interested in getting involved at your school specifically, or with me at the citywide level, let me know. We always welcome parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents interested in volunteering and getting involved in several ways. Email me here or call me at 216 367 5720 and ask for Kareemah. I look forward to hearing from you!
Spread the Word
If you know someone you might want to enroll their child/ren in our schools, please let them know we would love to have them. We have seven campuses throughout Cleveland and currently still have openings for next year in most grade levels.
NEW SCHOLAR ENROLLMENT NIGHT
July 18th, 5:30pm - 6:30pm
at all schools!
Please share this link below with any interested parents/families.
Scholar Spotlight
This week’s scholar spotlight is Teon Smith! He is a Citizens Academy graduate, Citizens Leadership Academy graduate, and St Edward’s graduate who is now on his way to Boston College! Teon has been with us since the early days, and is a total inspiration to us all. He was recently named MAN OF THE YEAR by St Ed’s and featured on the news!