How We Do It
Good Things Happen at
Rise & Shine
The curriculum and services encompass extraordinary depth and breadth. Not only do students receive academic tutoring; they also participate in numerous activities related to cultural enrichment, the arts, and digital literacy. Older students learn youth empowerment and give back through peer mentoring and servant-leadership training.
“When I think of Rise & Shine, I think it means to rise above your difficulties and to reach your potential. It also means to never give up, and to encourage others and do your best.”
- Our Guided Reading program teaches kids to become independent, strategic readers with in-depth comprehension. Lesson plans sharpen decoding skills, expand vocabulary, increase fluency, and call upon higher-level thinking skills. Our scholars' teachers often write to thank us for the difference they see in students' performance.
- The Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) program exposes students to hands-on lessons, from outdoor ecological adventures to examining fingerprints; from designing, developing, and editing digital movies to building and launching model rockets; and from dissecting owl pellets to nurturing their own crops in the community garden.
- With the carefully structured academic focus of our after school program, scholars participate in 10 hours of schooling a day.
- Homework Coaches assist with questions and problems and help scholars review their completed assignments in Reading and Mathematics.
- Far from simply being tutors, our volunteers cultivate meaningful cross-cultural relationships. Building these connections fosters understanding between genders, among races, and across generations.
- Our Racial Equity program confronts racism head-on. Working with the local school system, we train teachers and administrators and foster long-term, institutional transformation. R&S staff and volunteers participate in multiple anti-racism trainings throughout the year.
- The Rise & Shine Parents Organization fosters involvement in and commitment to children's healthy development. Parents meet monthly and volunteer many hours of service each year.
“Because of Rise & Shine, my three children, spanning from kindergarten to 9th grade, get the opportunity to be exposed to new ideas that help to positively shape their world. They experience what life is like outside a small town through the educational field trips, and I have seen my oldest daughter develop leadership skills that will take her far in life.”
