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75-80%
of the students receive free or reduced lunch
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ise and Shine Starting the Day with Student Choice Proves Successful
t East End Community School in Portland, 7580% of the students receive free or reduced lunch, student mobility is about 50%—there are almost 150 new students that leave at the end of the year, with that same amount of new kids coming in the following school year. In the middle of November, seven new students started their first days. The challenges in building relationships and getting students to continue to come to school are great. The solutions though for this diverse school are built into the way it educates—the learning model at East End is based on relationships that start at the very beginning of the school day. “I like starting my day with jump rope, soccer drills, and basketball. It starts my day in a good way. It also gives me energy,” Ali wrote about his experience with the school’s Rise and Shine program. Rise and Shine offers students as many as 85 choices, from finger knitting to sock monkeys to basketball to STEM and poetry, students choose how to start their day. The schedule is built into the beginning of each school day, so every
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Maine Educator • December 2018
student gets to participate in some way. Students make their own choices for their activities and then participate in a different one each day of the week for a total of 12 weeks, then new activities are chosen. The concept seems simple enough—let students choose what they want to do at the very beginning of the school day and they’ll be more successful throughout the day. For Dean of Students and Rise and Shine Coordinator, Dan Nogar, the program allows the school to swing away from a deficit model and what students need help with at the very start of the day and instead focuses on the idea of success for each student. “No matter what happens in their school day, I can go up to them and ask them about Rise and Shine and we find success. Rise and Shine was never intended to be about intervention, but the days that there is basketball or piano or kickball—the students get here because those are their choices and they don’t want to miss it. We had some of the best attendance in the district last year,” said Nogar.
150 new students that leave at the end of the year, with that same amount coming in the following school year
85 activities that Rise and Shine offers
PICTURES
1. Students can take beading, and make their own jewelry. 2. Bodies moving allows kids to be active. 3 & 5. Creating a maker space gives time for STEM activities. 4. Drums and other instruments are always offered.
