Spring break school in Surrey

April 16, 2007

The Literacy for Learning and Life in the Urban Classroom (L3UC) module in the Faculty of Education's Professional Programs created a Spring Break School for 180 students in Surrey. The idea was to help students see that literacy is a part of everything in our daily lives through interesting activities and experiences during spring break.

Dr. Seuss' book "Hooray for Diffendoofer Day" was the catalyst behind the idea to create a school for four days during spring break. At the Spring Break School, students made literacy connections through a variety of activities including cooking, painting, drama, physical activity, crafts, travel, learning about the world of animals, fairy tales, and photography. A "sharing assembly" marked the last day of activities where students presented their projects to others in the school.

"This was also a unique and engaging learning experience for the 32 student teachers in PDP who were involved in delivering the Spring Break School," explained faculty associate Lise Schrag. "Our student teachers were able to see the importance of commitment and collaboration in creating performance opportunities for the community."

Lise, along with fellow faculty associate Gina Wong, approached the Surrey School District's Superintendent John Ormond with the original idea and coordinated efforts to get the school off the ground. Funding for the district was jointly provided by the Surrey School District and the Faculty of Education.

Students at the Spring Break School said they had fun and were actually looking forward to going back to school. Their parents were equally appreciative and expressed interest in seeing the Spring Break School come back next year.

For more information about the Literacy for Learning and Life in the Urban Classroom module (also known as Language & Literacy in the Urban Classroom) in the Faculty of Education's Professional Programs, go to: http://www.educ.sfu.ca/pdp/pdp/modules.htm