Little Leaders program begins

Sixty kindergarten students in the Alamance Burlington School System will become Little Leaders this week.Classes of 15 students each at Andrews, Eastlawn, Haw River and Newlin elementary schools will be part of a program developed by the school system, local business and Alamance Citizens for Education. They will remain with the same teachers until they finish third grade.

Besides the smaller class size and continuity in students’ relationship with their teachers, the program involves a year-round schedule, an emphasis on parental involvement and exposure to the arts, technology and other activities outside of school. Students will also interact with community leaders.

We have included a number of interventions in the program that research tells us if sustained over time will help children grow academically. Many of these children come to us having been exposed to several at risk factors. However, we expect them to perform at high levels when they exit this program, said Superintendent Randy Bridges.The success of the Little Leaders program will be measured primarily through the North Carolina ABC’s of Public Education end-of-grade tests in reading and math at the end of the third grade.

EIGHTY STUDENTS

danced and sang during skits Thursday at Hillcrest Elementary School.The skits, which re-created and poked fun at traditional fairy tales, were performed at the end of the two week Artsploration program, an arts day camp for elementary school students.During the camp, students created fairy tale-themed books, painted and drew, and created musical instruments.