Extended School Year Program Embraces Olympic Theme
This summer's extended school year (ESY) program in the Penn Hills School District took on an exciting new change by incorporating an Olympic theme to make the program more engaging for students. Traditionally, the ESY program runs Monday through Thursday for four weeks, but this year Fridays were included to accommodate themed activities.
During the first week, each of the 12 classrooms chose to represent a country, with two classes selecting the same country. To symbolize their country, students crafted their country's flag, made tie-dye shirts, built an "Olympic Torch" and made symbols for their own "Olympic Games." The week concluded with "Opening Ceremonies" held in the Penn Hills Elementary gymnasium, where students paraded in their tie-dye shirts, waved flags, and "lit" the torch.
In the second and third weeks, students embarked on a global adventure, learning about different countries and cultures while engaging in various country-themed activities during "Passport Travel Days." Their itinerary included crafting rain sticks in Brazil, constructing marshmallow Eiffel Towers in France, creating dragons in China, making macaroni necklaces in Kenya, crafting mini sombreros from paper plates in Mexico and making play-doh scented with maple syrup in Canada.
The final day of ESY was dedicated to a Penn Hills version of the Olympic Games. Students participated in various stations and activities inspired by Olympic events including standing long jumps, hula hooping, and basketball. Each student made a "medal" and marked each Olympic station they completed as they rotated through the events.
The successful incorporation of a theme into the ESY program has set a new standard for its approach that will continue with future programs. If the students' positive reaction is any indication, this combination of focused academic and behavioral learning with engaging, themed activities has proven to be a winning formula.
View all photos from the ESY program on Facebook.