Summer has come to Seattle and for some newly arrived refugee youth, summer means participation in the IRC’s Newcomer School Readiness Program. It is a unique school readiness program that helps prepare refugee children as they enter the U.S. school system for the first time. The program reaches out to refugee students within their first few months of arrival in the U.S. and targets areas such as classroom conduct, academic skills, and participation. Now in its third year, the Newcomer School Readiness Program serves nearly seventy children from Burma, Bhutan, Sudan, Eritrea, and Iraq.
While the program prepares kids for success in the classroom, the summer program also emphasizes cultural and practical customs. The program introduces proper classroom conduct, school staff hierarchies, appropriate social behaviors, facility usage and participation in assemblies. Participants learn how to say the Pledge of Allegiance, use school bathrooms, form lines, the importance of homework, and how to work well in teams.
The summer program replicates many parts of a typical school day. The daily routine highlights “lunch learning” which includes becoming familiar with recyclables, American foods and their packaging such as squeezable ketchup packets, and healthy eating. A portion of the program is dedicated to the Community School Collaboration’s Smile Partner, a dental team who offers dental cleanings and take-home supplies. Outside the classroom, the IRC organizes activities such as fieldtrips to the library, museums, the police department, and holds workshops on how to ride the bus.
The Newcomer School Readiness Program started in 2008, initially serving 6 students. In 2009, the program reached its full capacity of 30 by the first day. Due to the high demand, the program’s capacity was expanded. In 2010, the Tukwila School District committed additional classroom space and the program was expanded yet again. Even with the additional space, there are still more newcomer youth participants than the program can accommodate. In order to try to incorporate all the newly arrived youth, the students who are more school ready are “graduated” from the program. The Newcomer School Readiness Program holds weekly graduation ceremonies attended by parents as well as IRC staff and volunteers.
This summer, upon graduation from the program, one enthusiastic student was incorporated into the volunteer team and trained to assist other students. For students like her, the IRC program is not only about academic readiness, but also building self-confidence, leadership skills, and giving back to the community.
The program’s impact extends beyond the participating students. As a result of the program, refugee parents have become more involved in their children’s education. Furthermore, working in this bi-cultural environment has better equipped school staff to bridge the cultural gap between the schools and the parents. The Newcomer School Readiness Program has proved to be a valuable service to newly resettled refugee youth, their parents, and the Tukwila School District. The IRC is working on expanding the program in order to serve newcomer youth during the academic year as well as during the summer months.
Return to the IRC in Seattle
