{"303361":{"#nid":"303361","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech expands kids\u2019 \u2018Horizons\u2019 with summer fun, learning","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESummer is a time of fun, but teachers know it can be a dangerous season for learning. Students often lose reading and math skills when school is out for summer.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis \u201csummer slide\u201d is problematic for all children, but it is especially dangerous for those already struggling academically.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech is working with Horizons National to combat this problem. Nearly 100 rising first- through sixth-graders from Drew Charter School and Centennial Place Elementary School in Atlanta are on campus for a special six-week summer program.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizons Georgia Tech helps children of limited financial means find success in school and develop confidence by successfully completing goals. Students receive lessons in math, reading, science and technology and learn how to swim.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSwimming is key because it is a confidence booster,\u201d said Chris Thompson, associate director of Georgia Tech\u2019s Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics and Computing (CEISMC).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech is among five sites in the Atlanta region and 38 nationwide offering the Horizons program this year. This is the second year Georgia Tech is participating in the program.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe program is geared toward students who come from low-income homes and qualify for free and reduced-price lunches. It focuses on students who are performing below grade level, although others are welcome as well.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSince we are at Georgia Tech we also teach science, technology and engineering,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cWe want students to get excited about learning these topics.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDuring a recent class, rising fourth-graders learned about electricity and magnetism through a hands-on activity that involved a battery, metal nails, copper wire and lots of paper clips.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAjai Brinkley scrunched her face as she worked on the experiment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe are playing games and they\u2019re fun, but then you realize you\u2019re learning while you\u2019re having fun,\u201d said the rising fourth-grader at Drew Charter Elementary School. \u201cAnd we get to swim, which is so much fun.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDown the hall, rising fifth-graders worked on their coding skills. The program teaches all students the basics of computer programming and computational thinking.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELast year organizers saw significant improvements in learning. Students who completed the program last summer averaged a four-month gain in math and a two-month gain in reading, Thompson said. He expects even greater results this year.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA special ceremony officially launching the Horizons Atlanta regional effort is scheduled for June 19 at the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EStudents in the Horizons program return each summer until they complete eighth grade.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ENearly 100 rising first- through sixth-graders from Drew Charter School and Centennial Place Elementary School in Atlanta receive lessons in math, reading, science and technology and learn how to swim.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Horizons Georgia Tech helps children of limited financial means find success in school and develop confidence by successfully completing goals."}],"uid":"27918","created_gmt":"2014-06-16 15:47:16","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:16:37","author":"Laura Diamond","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2014-06-16T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2014-06-16T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"303371":{"id":"303371","type":"image","title":"Horizons Georgia Tech","body":null,"created":"1449244609","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:56:49","changed":"1475895007","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:50:07","alt":"Horizons Georgia Tech","file":{"fid":"199609","name":"horizons.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/horizons_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/horizons_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1551741,"path_740":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/horizons_0.jpg?itok=UMtX6wz6"}}},"media_ids":["303371"],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"11547","name":"CEICMC"},{"id":"46351","name":"K-12 education"},{"id":"167258","name":"STEM"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ELaura Diamond\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr \/\u003EGeorgia Tech Media Relations\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-894-6016\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["laura.diamond@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}