The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Summer school classes show learning can be fun

Small class size, less use of books and worksheets,  allow middle-schoolers to grasp subjects.

Staff photo by Gary Stelzer Breanne Everhart, who will be entering the ninth grade, attends a summer school class Tuesday, June 22, in Middletown.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Middletown police blotter
New 22 min. ago
Event helps vet’s children
Updated 23 min. ago
138 at Monroe earn diplomas
New 24 min. ago
Alliance to fight Warren drug flow
New 26 min. ago
Local Focus: Cincinnati for May 25
12:37 a.m.
> More headlines

By Marie Rossiter, Staff Writer 1:16 AM Friday, June 25, 2010

MIDDLETOWN — As dark clouds hung low and thunder rumbled outside Middletown High School this week, nearly a dozen students in a middle school science class worked to create their own version of lightning.

The students used balloons, combs, hats, puffed rice and other items to demonstrate how static electricity is created and discharged.

“This is so cool!” a student shouted out on Tuesday, June 22, as she picked up the cereal with a balloon to show her classmates.

The reaction isn’t what many people might expect from students who are taking summer school classes. But that was exactly the goal of the middle school’s revamped summer program, said Mark Lotspaih, program principal.

“This year, more than ever, we wanted to focus on engaging the students more,” Lotspaih said. “I’ve had students come up to me after class saying ‘I never realized math or science could be fun.’”

Approximately 125 students in grades six through eight enrolled for the middle school summer program, which is free for the first time this year thanks to a grant. There are two, three-week sessions in core subject areas such as math, science and language arts. The next session runs from today, June 25, through July 14. Registration information is available on the Middletown City Schools website.

Class sizes are no larger than 15 students to one teacher, which allows instruction to be more hands-on and fun for the students, said science teacher Kristi Joseph .

“It’s a good way to try out new activities and lessons to see what really connects with the students,” Joseph said. “In many ways, we, as teachers, are learning as much as the students during summer school what works well in the classroom.”

Incoming freshman Breanne Everhart said activities like this have helped her be more successful in the classroom than in the previous school year.

“I had a lot of trouble turning work in on time because I just wasn’t interested,” she said. “In this class, though, we don’t just focus on textbooks and worksheets. Here, I can get into the material and really understand it.”

Joseph said what may look like fun and games is an effective way to reach struggling students.

“Everyone learns in a different way and this approach taps into those styles,” she said. “The activities may be fun, but at the core is the subject material they must know for the class and for state assessments. Ultimately, that is the point of all of this: to find ways to help students learn and retain in a better way.”

Contact this reporter

at (513) 705-2551 or mrossiter@coxohio.com.

Share this article