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Why a homework club could work for your child

What is a homework club?

Homework clubs offer a place for your child to work in a supportive environment out of school hours.

Why choose a homework club?

Some children are so self-motivated that they’re able to work diligently on homework and ignore the distractions of normal family life, but not everyone finds it so easy.

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Doing homework requires a quiet space to work at home and support from you. If your job or other children make it tricky to provide those things you might want to consider the option of a homework club.

Who runs homework clubs?

Schools and many public libraries offer them, usually after school finishes for the day. Check what’s available with your school and local authority. The biggest advantage of a school-based homework club is that it’s on the same premises, so children don’t have to travel to the club.  Familiarity with teachers is also a plus point, and your child is in an environment where they are already relaxed.

If your child would prefer a change of location at the end of the school day a library homework club might be the answer. They usually run from 4pm to 6.30pm and sometimes for a few hours on a Saturday morning. “We find that children start getting more homework from the age of nine onwards so our clubs are of most benefit for eight to 14-year-olds,” says Lucy Love, manager for children and young people at libraries run by Enfield Council. “Under-eights can come to the club but a parent or carer must be with them.”

What benefits do clubs offer?

“The great thing about library homework clubs are the homework centre assistants – while they don’t do the child’s work, they have the knowledge and experience to guide them to the relevant books or online resources such as encyclopaedias,” explains Lucy. “We encourage children to use online data, as it’s usually the most up-to-date, and can offer equipment such as protractors and SATs papers. Homework clubs are also a great way of helping the child’s transition to secondary school.”

What to do after homework club

• When you get home, ask your child to explain what their homework is – this will show you they have understood it properly themselves.  
• Help your child to settle down and concentrate by making sure there are no distractions around them when they go over their homework with you.  
• Encourage your child to check their work to reinforce the learning they have done.

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Homework Club

Homework Club 

Sierra Madre Elementary

141 West Highland Ave,  Sierra Madre, CA 91024

Altadena Arts Magnet School

743 E Calaveras St, Altadena, CA 91001

Homework Club's qualified staff offers academic support while working with students in

grades K-5th. We're an after-school program that focuses on homework completion and tutoring.

Students will have the opportunity to participate in STEAM and Enrichment opportunities while learning and playing in a safe and supportive environment.

Completion    

• On SME Campus

for 20+ years

Tutoring 

Socializing  

STEAM &

Activities 

Homework Club's  Main Office Location

183 West Sierra Madre Blvd Sierra Madre, CA 91024

Our Main Office offers homework assistance, tutoring and enrichment opportunities. It's perfect for students who prefer one on one or smaller group sizes. 

During Winter, Spring and Summer break if we are not on Sierra Madre Elementary or Altadena Arts Magnet campuses, our programs and camps will be held here.

What We Offer

Homework Club offers homework completion, tutoring, STEAM & enrichment programs, Winter Camp, Spring Camp, Summer Camp and lots of FUN!

Homework  Completion 

Daily after-school tutoring and homework support for students K-5th grade. 

Safe and Inclusive Environment 

We strive for positivity! Most importantly, we focus on being a safe and inclusive program for students and their family. 

STEAM & Enrichment Programs

Through out the school year, we offer STEAM and Enrichment programs for SME students. During our Winter, Spring and Summer programs, enrollment is open to the public. 

2023-2024 Homework Club Enrollment & Monthly Rate

While signing up, a non-refundable registration fee must be paid for each student. 

How to Enroll:

Download and fill out registration form.

Fill out your student's information for the upcoming school year.

SME Families and Returning Homework Club Families drop off  registration forms and fees   to Kelle Perez and Nikole Maroe at Homework Club on SME Campus or at our Main Office.

NEW SME Families email  registration forms to [email protected] and inquire how to pay the registration fee.

*On the first day after school, all Homework Club parents and families will receive a  hard copy of their August invoice. Since PUSD's '23-'24 school year does not start on August 1st, Monthly Flat Rates will be due later in the month. Invoices will include the due date.

• Monday-Friday After-School Program
• Open to all SME K-5th grade students
• Hours: Monday 12:35pm-6pm Tuesday-Friday 2:15pm-6pm

Homework Club follows PUSD's academic calendar. We will be closed all PUSD school holidays and student free days. In the event of an unscheduled closure parents and families will be notified as soon as possible by a staff member.

Meals and Snacks

All students will be offered meals and snacks daily after-school from SME's cafeteria. Students are welcome to bring food from home. 

Homework Club reserves the right to refuse or discontinue service at anytime.

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Middle Township Elementary School #1

Middle township elementary #1 preschool.

UPCOMING BOARD MEETING

Concerned citizens of whitesboro, inc. rainbow homework club, when: monday – thursday from 3:00pm – 5:30pm (during the school year), where: 100 e main street, whitesboro, nj 08252.

Educational development is promoted through the  Concerned Citizens of Whitesboro, Inc. (CCWI) Rainbow Homework Club , an after-school academic assistance program designed to assist school-age children in achieving greater success at school.  The homework club provides a supportive environment to complete homework and sharpen skills. CCWI is a proud member of the National Afterschool Association and the Afterschool Alliance.  

CCWI is a non-profit organization dedicated to the social and economic development of the residents of Whitesboro (Middle Township), New Jersey.

For more information: www.concernedcitizensofwhitesboro.com/about-us

The Mayor of Middle Township stops in to get vegetable gardening tips from the CCWI Rainbow Homework Club students. (Credit: CCWI Website)

Making School Fun at Home

This article was previously published on 7/30/2019.

12 Ways to Make School Fun at Home for Students of All Ages

Back to school will look different this year as families and schools continue to navigate the uncertainty of COVID-19. Getting kids to enjoy (or even accept) doing their homework can be a struggle at any age, especially in the fall when students adjust to smaller classes, alternate schedules and a continuation of virtual learning that began in the spring.

For some families, new ways of learning are further complicated by parents’ work schedules and a lack of technology access. According to the Afterschool Alliance, 1 in 5 kids are unsupervised after the school day ends. And millions of families don’t have internet access at home.

During challenging times and busy parenting schedules, there are still ways to make learning at home fun, safe and constructive for students. Over the years, our trained youth mentors and program facilitators have developed lots of strategies and ideas to make homework more fun. Get tips on how to make virtual learning and homework fun in high school, middle school and elementary school so you can help your kid succeed at every age.

Ideas to Make Homework Fun for Elementary, Middle and High Schoolers

Many kids find homework assignments boring or simply get restless when asked to sit down and study – but that doesn’t mean they all need the same kind of motivation. Avoid a one-size-fits-all approach to homework help by using these age-appropriate tips.

Elementary School Homework Tips

Little kids frequently have trouble focusing on virtual learning and homework, especially when there are so many distractions and fun things to play with at home. The solution? Make learning more like playtime.   

• Create fun focus spaces. Kids often work on homework in their rooms or wherever there’s a little spare table space – but kids’ rooms and common areas are usually filled with distractions. Before this school year starts, create a special “homework zone” in part of the home that’s more peaceful. (A “homework fort” is always a hit with young kids, as long as it’s well lit.) Stock this area with lots of colorful school supplies so there’s no reason to leave until their homework is all done.
• Beat the clock. Young kids love racing to the finish. Make homework more like a race by setting up timed challenges. For example, count how many words they can spell correctly or math problems they can solve in the span of 5 minutes. The next day, challenge your kid to beat their own record. (A little competition can work great with siblings, too.)
• Try learning apps. Support the subjects your kid studies in school with apps that make learning about it more fun. This tip is especially helpful for subjects that you or your kid struggle with. Some of our favorite educational apps include DragonBox for math, Spelling Stage for spelling, and DuoLingo , which offers learning-based games in Spanish, French and many other languages.
• Team up with tunes. Just like the Alphabet Song teaches kids their ABCs, there are plenty of songs out there to help specific subjects stick. Search YouTube to find songs covering a range of subjects, including the planets in our solar system, the days of the week and months of the year, U.S. states and capitals, how to add or subtract, and pretty much any other educational topic you can imagine. If you can’t find a song on a given subject, try making one up together.

Middle School Homework Tips

In middle school, students gain more independence to work alone or with peers. Encourage their developing maturity with a little structure and loads of support.

• Use power hours. Power hours challenge kids to focus for a certain amount of time. Once the timer goes off, they can take a quick break before diving in again. Offering little rewards after productive power hour sessions is a great incentive at this age, too.
• Plan study dates. If your kid struggles in a certain subject or has trouble focusing in a quiet, empty room, let them invite a friend or two over to study. Just remember to follow current safety and social distancing guidelines. If another kid is too much of a distraction, set the tone by working alongside your child. While they do homework, you can pay bills, make dinner, reply to emails, or even work on a crossword puzzle or another brain game. Doing “adult homework” creates a sense of companionship without being too overbearing – and it can help kids learn that work is a part of life, not just a part of school.
• Make a routine. Lack of routine can be stressful for kids. Setting a regular schedule for homework, or the school day for kids learning at home, can help reduce resistance and improve consistency. Beyond planning time for homework, come up with other little rituals that can help your kid focus, from putting on their current favorite album in the background to using prizes and other incentives to reward good work, like a small treat for every complete assignment.
• Stay positive. Your attitude has a huge impact on how your kid sees the world, especially in the formative middle school years. Keep tabs on your own attitude toward your kid’s homework. If you see helping your kid with homework as a chore, your kid will probably feel that way about it, too. Instead, try to see homework help as a fun, productive time when you both can learn and hang out together.

High School Homework Tips

When students reach high school, having parents hanging around to nag them about homework doesn’t always help. Instead of implementing these homework strategies for high schoolers yourself, show this list to your teenager and help them come up with a plan they can stick to. Then, take a step back. Check in with your teen every week or so to see if their plan needs tweaking.

• Get organized . High school is the perfect time to start preparing for the life you want to lead after you leave home. To achieve your goals, you have to make plans and stick to them. It’s the same with homework. When you get your assignments for the week, month or semester, take some time before jumping in to sort through the deadlines and requirements. Then, come up with a schedule and a realistic plan of attack. Use a day planner, calendar app, or time management app like Asana to make to-do lists for yourself – trust us, it feels great to cross stuff off your list.
• Reward yourself . It’s easier to work hard when you know there’s a reward at the end of it. Set a study timer, and if you’ve focused on homework until the timer goes off, reward yourself with a favorite snack, a funny video, an epic solo dance party or a little social media time.
• Upgrade your workspace. Spruce up the place you do virtual learning and homework to fuel your productivity, imagination and problem-solving skills. Keep tools and supplies on hand to help you work through challenging assignments, like colorful pens, highlighters, sticky notes, and cool notepads or notebooks. Decorate with art and other objects that inspire you, and use calendars, whiteboards, chalkboards, corkboards, or even just paper and tape to help visualize and keep track of everything you have to do.
• Turn up the beats. Spotify has tons of playlists dedicated to productivity, from ambient noise to instrumental hip-hop. Find a few go-to playlists that help keep you focused and put one on whenever you have to zone in. Explore movie soundtracks and other kinds of instrumental music to avoid distracting lyrics.

Homework Help from BGCA

Every day, thousands of kids and parents rely on Boys & Girls Clubs of America for homework help and out-of-school support, especially in the crucial hours after school lets out and during the summer months. Explore our website to learn more about our programs , find your nearest club or support BGCA today.

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Community Service Office offers virtual homework help for local students

Lehigh’s Community Service Office’s homework club program has made virtual accommodations for students amid the pandemic. 

Lehigh students have fostered a relationship with the Bethlehem Area School District, working to provide local students with homework help and tutoring services. 

The homework club is available for students who attend Fountain Hill Elementary School, Donegan Elementary School and Broughal Middle School.

Due to the pandemic, the Community Service Office’s operations are now conducted virtually, allowing elementary and middle school students to still receive the extra help and support they need from Lehigh paid and volunteer tutors. 

Gaby Montes, ‘20, ‘21G, oversees the office’s tutoring program and homework club. She said students are able to access pre-recorded videos that go over topics from homework assignments in addition to other subjects requested by students. 

She also said, however, it is hard to gauge how often students are using the videos on the platforms. 

Montes said limited synchronous office hours are offered through Zoom for homework help. Students can bring their homework assignments and share their screens in breakout rooms with the tutors. 

“In terms of the homework club aspect, there are only 20 to 30 students enrolled, but the biggest benefit from it being virtual is that every student has access to it,” Montes said.

Jon Leight, ‘23, is a community service officer who is not currently living on campus but is contributing virtually from home.

“Communication and planning in general gets a little harder when nobody is on campus, and our only source of communication is on Zoom,” Leight said.

Caroline Mierzwa, ‘23, a sophomore student coordinator, said her biggest priority is keeping the Bethlehem community safe. 

When engaging with the Bethlehem community, Community Service Office tutors want to make sure they don’t put anyone they’re working with at risk.

Mierzwa said in a normal year, tutors would work with students at their school’s homework club after school. Given this year’s constraints, however, tutors have had to create videos with various lessons. 

Virtual instruction comes with a set of challenges that the Lehigh tutors and Bethlehem students alike have encountered.

“The challenge is trying to keep that connection with Lehigh students and the elementary and middle school students at Broghal and Donegan,” Mierzwa said.

She said another challenge has been trying to spread the word about the Community Service Office to interested Lehigh students. 

Due to the inability to hold events on campus, the office does not have as much interaction with students who are interested in exploring the different areas of community service within Lehigh.

“Typically we have events where students can sign up, but because we don’t have that, a lot of the first-year students don’t know that the Community Service Office exists, so trying to reach out to that demographic on campus is important,” Mierzwa said.“We are working through these challenges.” 

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HOMEWORK CLUB

Student life.

In response to the need of many of our students to have some structured time for homework between school and an after-school activity (e.g., music lessons, sports, etc.), we offer an after-school study hall (Homework Club).

Peabody faculty members supervise Monday through Thursday from 3:15 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. each week that school is in session (unless parents are notified otherwise), beginning the second week of school. Teachers provide a quiet, supervised environment in which children can work and are also available to provide assistance with homework to any child who needs it. A small fee is charged when students attend and parents are billed monthly.

Students who attend Homework Club work on school assignments. At the conclusion of Homework Club, students are picked up or escorted to the After School Program. Students who complete their assignments in Homework Club prior to 4:15 p.m. proceed to the After School Program (if registered) and remain in its supervision until a parent or authorized adult arrives. Students who wish to attend the After School Program after Homework Club must be enrolled in the After School Program.

John Duncan

John Duncan is a graduate of the University of Virginia and holds expertise in corporate development, national security, and   personnel and facility security.  Across a 25-year career in defense and intelligence that encompassed public and private sector roles, Mr. Duncan has overseen a broad range of US defense efforts, from large-scale IT initiatives to intelligence and counter-terrorism support operations. He has directed   programs with worldwide applications, designed   and managed   corporate deployment strategies, and personally directed   staff operations in a variety of foreign theaters. In June 2019 he successfully exited Intrepid Solutions and Services, Inc.; a company that he co-founded in 2009 and served in a variety of senior leadership roles, including Chief Executive/President. During his tenure, the company received industry-wide recognition and awards including multiple-year rankings as one of the fastest-growing companies in America and designation as Small Business Federal Contractor of the Year in 2012. In 2020,   John formed   Heahmor, a Charlottesville-based real estate investment and development platform focused on community collaboration-driven projects with synergistic stakeholder outcomes.   He   is a proud parent of two Peabody graduates and one current Peabody student.

Gary Fox has practiced law for more than 45 years, first in the private sector, and then as a trial attorney within the Office of General Counsel at a federal agency.  He received an A.B., with a concentration in political science from Brown University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.  A number of years later, Gary returned to school on a part-time basis, ultimately earning a Master of Theological Studies from Boston University.  During that time, he served for two years as a teaching fellow for Nobel Peace Prize recipient Elie Wiesel, assisting in the development and presentation of four academic courses.  Mr. Fox’s daughter has taught at Peabody for several years. 

Will Mayo holds a B.S. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech and an M.B.A. from University of Colorado-Boulder. Will is the Chief Revenue Officer of WillowTree, where he leads sales and revenue functions for the company. Prior to this role, Will was a Director of Business Development at Twitter, where he led partnerships for Twitter’s data services business. Will spent 9 years in management consulting where he provided commercial, government and non-profit clients with strategic planning and financial advisory services and spent the first couple of years out of college working for Lockheed Martin as a Satellite engineer. Will and his wife, Carol Lynn, have two Peabody students. He spends his free time running, fly fishing, and traveling with his family.

Eric Bundonis

Eric Bundonis received a B.A. in history from Middlebury College and an M.B.A. in finance and management, with honors, from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is a managing director at UVIMCO, with responsibility for Absolute Return and Credit investments. He serves as a member of UVIMCO’s investment committee and is involved in all aspects of the investment process and portfolio risk management. Prior to joining UVIMCO, Mr. Bundonis served as Head of Research at Artivest in La Jolla, California, where he was a member of its investment committee and oversaw the identification, sourcing, due diligence and ongoing monitoring of alternative fund managers across multiple investment strategies totaling approximately $4 billion.  Before joining Artivest in 2009, Mr. Bundonis served as an associate at OneCapital Management Partners in New York and began his career at Auda Hedge, LLC in New York. He previously served as the Treasurer of the Bird Rock Foundation. Eric and his wife Jaylene are proud parents of four Peabody students.

Marie Bourgeois

Marie Bourgeois holds an A.A. in Interior Architecture and Design from the Intercontinental University of London and a B.A. in the Arts from Tulane University. Originally from Charlottesville, Marie has worked in design in New Orleans, Charlottesville, London, Gibraltar, and Sotogrande, Spain. Following graduate school, she worked on multiple projects in the London offices of Joanna Woods and Tim Gosling, including Gosling’s redesign of the Goring Hotel.  From London, she relocated to Gibraltar to work with Patricia Darch Interiors, with offices in Gibraltar and the south of Spain.  Her work has been featured in LPA, La Revista, and Casa y Jardin.  She returned to Charlottesville in 2014 and is the principal and owner of Marie Bourgeois Design.  Marie has been in involved in several local charities, including the Women’s Initiative and the Music Resource Center, which she helped design for its initial opening in 2004.  Marie and her husband Pat have five children at Peabody and one Peabody alumna.

Nettie Lovet

Business and Operations Manager Nettie Lovet received a B.S. in Business and Accounting from the University of Phoenix. She has worked for small businesses as well as larger corporations for nearly 20 years, and has both accounting and operational experience. Ms. Lovet moved to the mountains of Virginia with her daughters in 2018. In her spare time, Nettie enjoys gardening, country living, dancing, and visiting the lake with her family.

Lauren Elliott

First Grade Lauren Elliott holds a B.S. in Elementary Education with a minor in French from the University of Virginia. Before beginning teaching first grade at Peabody in 2022, she student-taught and interned in schools in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. She is passionate about responsive social-emotional teaching and learning and cultivating positive, interesting, and challenging learning experiences. In her free time, Ms. Elliott enjoys playing guitar and piano, playing volleyball, and spending quality time with friends supporting UVA Athletics!

Teaching Assistant/PreK After School Teacher

Ms. Li earned a Master of Teaching degree in Elementary Education from the University of Virginia and holds a K – 6 teaching license in Virginia. She completed her student teaching at Stone- Robinson and Jackson Via Elementary Schools, and worked as an assistant teacher at the University of Virginia’s Child Development Center. Ms. Li also has a Master of Science in Material Science and Engineering from Beijing University of Chemical Technology. With her bilingual and science background, Ms. Li is passionate about creating a curiosity-driven supportive learning environment. 

Music (PreK – grade 3, grades 6-8)

Ms. Stees earned a B.A. in Music Education from James Madison University and an M.Ed. in Special Education from Indiana University. Mary is certified in both vocal and general music K-12. Mary has most recently been the music teacher at Rogers Elementary School in Bloomington, Indiana in addition to teaching two after-school programs (Musical Beginnings and IU Children’s Choir) with the Indiana University Jacobs Academy.  Her previous employment experience includes working for the IU Auditorium as the educational outreach specialist and at Brown County Junior High School as the performing arts director. She has also led the Rogers Elementary School Equity Committee.

Jessica Harrison

Fifth Grade Humanities

Jessica earned a B.A. in Anthropology from Louisiana State University, an M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Illinois where her graduate work focused on the ancient Maya, and a Master’s in Teaching from LSU, where her graduate work focused on teaching history through primary sources (her action research project was titled, “Exploring Indigenous History through Historical Inquiry: Filling the Gaps with Primary Source Documents.”) She is joining Peabody after four years of teaching 6th-12th graders in public schools in Louisiana and Illinois, including 6th Grade Social Studies, and AP Human Geography and European History. In her free time, Jessica enjoys reading, gardening, cooking, and spending time with her two dogs.

Heather Miller

Fifth Grade Math Ms. Miller received a B.A. in history from Dartmouth College and an M.A. in Curriculum and Teaching from Columbia University Teachers College.  She has taught several different age groups but has a particular passion for teaching math to students in the upper elementary grades.  Ms. Miller has taught at private schools in Connecticut, Ontario, Manhattan, Charlotte, and Barcelona.  She has served as both a homeroom teacher and as a learning support specialist.  When not teaching, she spends time with her children, who are young adults, and she enjoys hiking, reading, yoga and relaxing with her two cats.

Kathryn Reese

Mary katherine prehn.

Director of Educational Technology & Technology Teacher, grades 5-8 Amy Brudin has been teaching and learning with technology since she graduated from UVA in 1994. She spent 10 years in the Washington, D.C. area, teaching at the National Cathedral School and consulting privately with families looking to set up networks and computers at home. She and her husband and fellow UVA graduate George moved to Batesville in 2003 and are proud parents of Lune, Peabody class of ’21.

Emmie Wright

Middle School Spanish Emmie Wright holds a B.A. in Spanish with a minor in Anthropology from Washington and Lee University. She earned her M.A. in Spanish from the Middlebury Language School, finishing her last summer in Guadalajara, Mexico. She has spent a number of years teaching both middle and upper school Spanish in Charleston, SC, New York City, and Charlottesville. She took time off from teaching to stay home with her two children, both of whom attend Peabody. In her free time, she loves to travel with her family (especially to Menorca, a small island off the coast of Spain), garden, read, and run.

Mykel Paige

Teaching Assistant/After School Teacher

Mykel Paige earned a B.S. in Communications from Kaplan University in 2009 and A.S. degrees in Teacher Assisting, Gourmet Cooking & Catering, and Nutrition, Diet & Health Science. Mykel’s professional experience includes becoming Trauma-Informed Certified and working as a Residential Counselor in a group home for abused teens, as well as being trained in behavior management and crisis intervention. Mykel is currently working toward a degree in Early Childhood Education.

Kasha Viets-Wood

PreK After School Teacher Kasha Viets-Wood graduated from Guilford College in 1989 with a B.A. in Early Childhood Education and Art.  She has worked with children in a variety of capacities for more than 35 years in public and private schools, daycares, preschools, and after care programs.  Outside the classroom, Ms. Viets-Wood enjoys spending time with her her husband and three dogs, in addition to swimming, watching a good mystery series, socializing at the dog park, growing flowers, going for walks in the woods, and spending time with family and friends.  She is thrilled to return to Peabody’s After School program.

Eric Anderson

Community Connections Coordinator Eric Anderson earned his undergraduate degree from Rutgers University and a Master’s degree at Columbia University in cognitive biopsychology with certification in conservation biology. He has worked in urban education and environmental non-profits, and both taught in and led independent schools in New Jersey and Charlottesville. A Peabody parent, Mr. Anderson will work to build bridges both within the school and to the broader community in his role as Peabody’s new Community Connections Coordinator. A middling birdwatcher, soccer and ultimate frisbee player, and outdoor enthusiast, he is currently trying to learn guitar to help drown out his oft-unwelcome singing.

Hope Sikora

Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Grade Math Hope Sikora received a B.A. in Mathematics and a MAT in Secondary Education from the University of Virginia. Ms. Sikora loves math because it encourages problem solving and helps us understand the world. In her free time, Ms. Sikora enjoys cooking, exercising, and cheering on the Hoos!

Jillian Wilde

Third Grade Jillian Wilde earned her B. A. from the University of Connecticut in Political Science and her M.A.T. from Goucher College in Elementary Education and Special Education. Mrs. Wilde holds teaching licenses in both Elementary Education and Special Education. She taught preschool for four years, followed by four years of teaching third grade in the Montgomery County, Maryland Public School system, before coming to Peabody. In her free time, she enjoys reading and traveling, as well as antiquing and thrifting. She also loves a variety of outdoor activities and is a certified scuba diver.

Nicole Dreyfus

Third Grade Nicole Dreyfus graduated from Bard College with a B.A. in Literature and Creative Writing, and earned her Master’s of Science in Education from Bank Street College of Education in New York City. She holds a teaching license for grades PreK-6 in the state of Virginia, and is also a certified and licensed teacher of Meditation, Hatha, Kundalini and Raja Yoga. Ms. Dreyfus loves learning new things, chess, crossword puzzles, reading about everything, yoga, jogging, skiing, camping, snorkeling, creative writing, history, poetry, chemistry, art history, painting, travel, zoology, psychology, anthropology, volunteering, philosophy, theology, Halloween, mycology and pugs.

Sarah FitzHenry

Online Learning Coordinator Sarah FitzHenry holds a Masters in Library Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh, as well as a B.A. in English and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education, both from Bowling Green State University. Ms. FitzHenry brings experience from both public and independent schools, having taught a diverse range of subjects from elementary literacy to computer science. Additionally, she is an experienced educator coach and presenter, and is passionate about helping teachers and families shape the next generation of leaders and citizens. Ms. FitzHenry lives in Charlottesville with her family, and is pretty much always reading a book or asking someone a question.

Tara Montgomery

School Nurse Tara Montgomery holds a BSN from the University of Virginia.  Her experience includes nursing in the inpatient setting (Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital), outpatient clinic (UVA Cancer Center), and most recently, Telehealth nursing. Ms. Montgomery’s goal as Peabody’s school nurse is to provide a safe environment for students to learn and play as well as to promote health and wellness in exciting and proactive ways.

Rita Taylor

Ayesha ahmad, geneva mommsen.

Lehigh University's homework club for Bethlehem students reaping success

• Updated: May. 31, 2015, 12:03 p.m. |
• Published: May. 31, 2015, 11:03 a.m.
• Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com

When the South Bethlehem Neighborhood Center closed during the economic crisis,  Lehigh University knew it had to keep the after-school homework club alive.

The center and Lehigh were partnering to serve  Fountain Hill Elementary and  Broughal Middle schools students. Lehigh took over the program in March 2008 and hasn't looked back.

The university hosts the club at three sites throughout South Bethlehem , serving a total of about 60 kids Monday through Thursday. Over the years, the club has grown into much more than a tutoring support service.

"It is really about the whole kid and the whole family," said Carolina Hernandez, Lehigh's director of community service.

Lehigh sends participants home with snack packs so they have food over the weekend, Greek students feed them dinner once a week and kids go on outings. The university's upcoming annual Great South Side Sale, a giant yard sale of student and staff belongings, benefits the homework club. It raised $19,500 last year.

"We stretch those (proceeds) out as much as possible," Hernandez said.

Hernandez is passionate about the success of the program. But even she was shocked by an analysis that showed the strides participants are making.

Of the 28 Fountain Hill students consistently participating in the club during this school year, 93 percent improved their reading scores. The other two students remained the same.

Seven students who were reading below grade level at the start of school were reading on grade level mid-year. Another seven that were below grade level improved by an entire grade level, although they weren't yet on grade level.

"That is a huge leap," Hernandez said. "That is pretty drastic for our kids. it is data we are really proud of."

The United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley agrees.

Both Broughal and Fountain Hill are United Way community schools and the organization is now looking at ways to replicate the success with other schools, said Jill Pereira, director of education.

"It is absolutely remarkable," Pereira said. "...We are looking to fund programs that can demonstrate they have a positive impact on reading."

There is still more analysis to be done with the data but on first blush it looks very promising, she said. The United Way had created a higher education commission with Lehigh Valley colleges and is now working to find how to model Lehigh's success so it can be replicated.

"There is some special stuff happening with the homework club," Pereira said.

Students receive one-on-one tutoring with Lehigh students, many who are volunteers, and spend part of the session doing academic enrichment. Participating students are often recommended by the community school coordinators at Fountain Hill and Broghal.

Once a Bethlehem student joins, families often enroll siblings.

"We are really lucky in that we have been able to stay connected with the kids for many years," Hernandez said. Lehigh's fraternities and sororities rotate, providing dinner for the students once a week. They serve meals to the kids and play with them. The Greeks also send home snack bags for the students.

The club participants come on campus once a month for a parents' night out. The students get a fun themed night on campus while parents get a break. Some nights there are more Lehigh students than Bethlehem kids, Hernandez said.

"The relationships of our tutors with our homework club kids is something that is truly deep and meaningful," Hernandez said. "We care about our kids. We are invested in seeing our kids succeed."

Hernandez loves that the proceeds of the sale, which is Saturday, June 6, this year, is invested back into the community.

Sara K. Satullo may be reached at [email protected] . Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo . Find Bethlehem news on Facebook .

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Elementary After-School Activities

After school programs for elementary/6th grade, homework club (grades 2-6), elementary after-school c.a.m.p. (grades 2-5), sixth grade athletics.

• Fall Season: Girls Volleyball, Co-ed Cross Country, Co-ed Soccer
• Winter Season: Girls and Boys Basketball
• Spring Season: Boys Baseball, Co-ed Track

The Details

• Register for After-School C.A.M.P.
• Register for Homework Club

• High School Sports

Homework club makes difference for elementary students

High school students act as academic role models.

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SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. — When Aaron Gouw, now a junior at Scotts Valley High school, dropped in to visit his fifth-grade teacher at Vine Hill Elementary last September, he noticed the names of about 20 students pinned to the wall.

He asked the teacher, Mary Dettle, why the names were posted. Dettle told Gouw the singled-out names of students who hadn’t completed their homework.

After thinking about it for a day, Gouw came up with the idea of organizing the Homework Club for the fourth-graders and fifth-graders after school. Now, Dettle said the club has made a big difference for her students.

The Homework Club has been active for one school year, and some days the tutors, all of whom are students are Scotts Valley High school, are helping full classrooms of kids, Gouw said.

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Gouw rounded up about 15 tutors from his high school who meet after school at Vine Hill Elementary to help kids in a variety of subjects, he said. Dettle oversees the program and signs off on community service hours that some of the high school tutors receive for their help.

The Homework Club meets twice a week on Wednesdays and Thursdays for an hour and a half, Gouw said.

“It’s a really great feeling and it helps everyone,” he said.

Dettle said the Homework Club has been an incredibly valuable resource for her elementary school students.

“This really does make a big difference in their studies,” she said, referring to her students at Vine Hill. “It motivates them because the tutors are doing more than just helping them with homework. They’re acting as role models. They’re all really cool and smart and funny.”

With the economy the way it has been, a lot of parents have become more occupied working, Dettle said, and sometimes they have less time to work with their kids on homework.

“Aaron really recognized a need for the extra help,” she said.

The program has grown significantly, Dettle said. Some days there are up to 25 tutors in the classroom helping her students, which means they’re getting a lot of one-on-one attention and making some great bonds.

When the tutors finish their homework they play card games and hang out with the kids if there’s still time, she said. The kids really look up to these high-schoolers.

Gouw was nominated “Youth of the Year” by the Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce last winter and was also recognized for his contributions by state Sen. Sam Blakeslee, Dettle said.

“He’s a very understated, modest young man,” she said. “Very smart and a great personality.”

Gouw hopes to expand the Homework Club to Brook Knoll Elementary School, Scotts Valley Junior High school and possibly to an elementary school in Santa Cruz, too, he said.

Gouw will be a junior this fall.

• Carpe Diem & Sonoma Mountain High Schools
• Casa Grande High School
• Grant Elementary School
• Kenilworth Junior High
• Mary Collins at Cherry Valley School
• McDowell Elementary School
• McKinley School & Petaluma Accelerated Charter
• McNear Elementary School
• Penngrove Elementary School
• Petaluma Adult School
• Petaluma High School
• Petaluma Junior High School
• San Antonio High School
• Valley Oaks Independent Study School
• Valley Vista Elementary School

Growing a Community of Learners

Homework Club Dates/Times & Sign Ups

Time: 2:45-3:45

Sign-Up: Stop by the office to add your child's name to the sign-up sheet OR email Ms. Pratt,  [email protected] , and she will add your child's name to the list

• Participating students go straight to Room 19 after school.
• This is for homework help only. If your child does not have homework, they can not attend homework club.
• Students must be picked up promptly at 3:45. Ms. Angie will bring them to the front of the school for dismissal.
• Students who finish homework early can read a book, or draw a picture until it's time to go. Everyone will stay with Ms. Angie until 3:45.

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