SHARP Students Read and Write!

“It is my hope that you will find it in your budget to support this program, so I can support my students’ hope for a life toward which they want to work.”

Betsey Folsom, Urban Day School

Program Information

The literacy program is tailored to help first- through fifth-grade students with research, reading and writing by using the visual arts and art history as tools for learning. Teachers and presenters work with the students through visual arts, art history, workbooks and reading materials provided by SHARP Literacy. Each lesson corresponds with Wisconsin state-mandated curriculum and the Milwaukee Targets.

• First grade – Science - The Life Cycle of Growing Things
• Second grade - Science - Weather, Water and the Environment
• Third grade – Social Studies - Communities
• Fourth grade – Social Studies - Wisconsin
• Fifth grade – Social Studies - Building a Nation

In a recent assessment, students in each grade level of the SHARP Literacy program scored significantly higher than the control group on the total post-test score. Students in the SHARP Literacy program displayed a higher gain (40% – 70%) in vocabulary acquisition.

THE EIGHT BUILDING BLOCKS OF SHARP

SHARP Literacy achieves its literacy goals in a year-round program that includes:

• Teacher Summer Workshop (June)
• Teacher In-Service (September)
• Student Workbooks and Teacher Guides (October)
• First-Semester In-School Presentations for each grade level (October to Mid-December) and Second-Semester In-School Presentations (January/February)
• A Field Trip to the Milwaukee Art Museum (Mid-Year)
• An end-of-the-year Writing Challenge (March)
• A Family Achievement Recognition Event for each grade level (May)

OTHER PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS

When SHARP Literacy has extra funding, the support is used for programs and projects such as:

• Artist-in-Residence Program
• "A Book In Every Child’s Hand"
• We Love to Learn Books