POULSBO — “Santa will come if you be good.”
On Monday morning 13 NKSD rising second grade students attending summer school at Poulsbo Elementary spent a portion of their three-hour day writing sentences.
Each little learner was diligently bowed over their paper with pencil in hand, chicken scratching away.
The sentences had to include a use of the words, good, did, do, eat, four and a handful of others. In addition to an appearance from the winter time favorite, perhaps the most creative sentence was, “Have you ever seen a llama eating pajamas?”
“Yes I like summer school because I’m learning,” said 7-year-old Vinland Elementary student Bronson Miller, who’d learned how to do a word search and write sentences that day. “And I pretty much like doing both.”
Approximately 120 preschool through fifth grade NKSD students and 25 special education extended-year students are enrolled in summer school at Poulsbo Elementary. Wolfle and Suquamish elementary schools also host summer sessions.
Primary level summer school administrative coordinator at Poulsbo Elementary, Claudia Alves — Gordon Elementary’s principal during the regular year — said the majority of the kids attend because a teacher or parent has advised they need some extra academic help.
The focus for the five-week course, which began on July 7 and runs 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Thursday, is reading, writing, math, science and social studies.
Alves said the benefits of summer school are paramount for the students.
“Almost all children fall behind a little bit during the summer and most of the children are here probably at the urging of a teacher so they don’t slip behind even further than most would,” she said. “It keeps them going with their academic program.”
Summer school first grade teacher Joan Kidder, who’s Suquamish Elementary’s art teacher during the school year, has taught summer school for six years. Kidder said the biggest benefit the summertime students reap is receiving a lot of one-on-one attention, and she’s noted the student’s academic growth.
“I’ve seen almost all of the students get really close to grade level with reading in the five weeks,” Kidder said. “They have fun. They love to come to summer school.”
Alves said eight to one is the highest student to teacher ratio at summer school this year.
Approximately 176 sixth through 12th grade students are doing some summertime learning at Poulsbo Middle. An additional 65 secondary students are enrolled in traffic safety education or are extended school year learners.
And it’s not just NKSD students flocking in for a few extra credits — 33 Bainbridge Island students are enrolled, as Bainbridge doesn’t offer summer school. There are students from Central Kitsap, as that district’s classes are full. There are even students from New York and Idaho Falls.
Barbara Pixton, who teaches fifth grade at Poulsbo Elementary, is the secondary level summer school administrative coordinator. The students she must keep from using cell phones, iPods or wearing caps during class are there solely for WASL preparation or graduation credit retrieval. And, yes, some of the students enrolled this summer are 12th-graders who need to graduate.
“Most of them have homework every night in the summer,” Pixton said. “They can’t believe it either. It’s just an extension of the school year.”
The older students attend class from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., four days a week for five weeks. Pixton said science, English and history are the big offerings this year. She tries to keep the class size to 15 students for more personalized learning, but this year, due to demand, one English class has 19 students and she has three history teachers conducting two sessions.
She’s even had to turn away a few students because the classes were full.
Pixton said, despite the homework, most students are pleased to be in school right now.
“Most are happy to be here and have this opportunity to ensure they’ll graduate on time,” Pixton said. “They know why they’re here: Because they didn’t do what they should have during the school year.”
