Editor’s note: This article was featured in MAPSA’s monthly newsletter.
When it comes to education, the “Three R’s” have always been “Readin’, Ritin’ and ‘Rithmetic.” At Lake Superior Academy, you can add a fourth R this summer: “Rustic.”
As schools and students continue to deal with possible learning loss due to the COVID year, Lake Superior Academy, a K-5 Montessori charter school in Sault Ste. Marie, is hosting a summer reading program that will use the great outdoors as a classroom.
Head of School Susie Schlehuber said that Lake Superior Academy will sponsor a hands-on, fun summer program that will target four components of reading: phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency and vocabulary.
“Students will start their days by hiking to gather natural materials for artwork, work on syllables with plant names and practice rhyming with large letter outdoor creations. Students will also enjoy fresh vegetables from their garden for lunch.”
– Susie Schlehuber, Head of School
As a Montessori school, Lake Superior Academy stresses hands-on learning with everything they do, so the summer reading program follows that model perfectly. The school is managed by Choice Schools Associates and authorized by Bay Mills Community College.
Located in a rustic setting just south of Sault Ste. Marie, Lake Superior Academy tries to get students outside for as many lessons as possible. With the beautiful weather that Michigan’s Upper Peninsula experiences every summer, that should make learning conditions just perfect for the summer reading program.
In 2020, the Little Traverse Conservancy purchased a plot of 40 acres directly next to Lake Superior Academy – land that includes a variety of flowers, vegetation and animals. The Conservancy has now partnered with Lake Superior Academy for student service projects and exploration of the land year-round. The students will be using that outdoor “classroom” this summer as they improve their reading and writing skills.
“We want to introduce our local students to the beautiful environments that surround them and show them how to be good stewards of the resources we have given.”
– Susie Schlehuber, Head of School
While the younger students are working on syllables and rhyming, the older students will be doing a book study with author Paula Range on the book, “I Am Different.”