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Curriculum

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Integrated Reading Curriculum (IRC)

The Freedom School Integrated Reading Curriculum (IRC) is designed to foster a love of reading and learning through a culturally relevant lens. It emphasizes critical thinking, creativity, and student empowerment, using books and activities that reflect the students' backgrounds and experiences. The curriculum supports conflict resolution and social action, encouraging students to become thoughtful and engaged community members.

Afternoon STEAM Actitivities

The afternoon STEAM activities in the Freedom School program engage students in Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics. These hands-on, interactive sessions are designed to spark curiosity, encourage critical thinking, and develop problem-solving skills. Activities are tailored to complement the integrated reading curriculum and inspire interest in STEAM subjects through creative and collaborative projects.

Book Lists

Level I - Grades K-2

Week 1: I Can Make a Difference in Myself
  • The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
  • The Best Part of Me by Wendy Ewald
  • My Heart Flies Open by Omileye Achikeobi-Lewis
  • I Am Me: A Book of Authenticity by Susan Verde
  • What I Tell Myself First: Children's Real World Affirmations of Self Esteem by Michael A. Brown
Week 2: I Can Make a Difference in My Family
  • Me and My Family Tree by Joan Sweeney
  • The Remember Balloons by Jessie Oliveros
  • Far Apart, Close in Heart: Being a Family When a Loved One is Incarcerated by Becky Birtha
  • Be Strong by Pat Zietlow Miller
  • My Hands Tell a Story by Kelly Starling Lyons
Week 3: I Can Make a Difference in My Community
  • Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard
  • Anywhere Farm by Phyllis Root
  • Maddi's Fridge by Lois Brandt
  • Sallie Bee Writes a Thank-You Note by Courtney Sheinmel and Susan Verde
  • Harlem Grown: How One Big Idea Transformed a Neighborhood by Tony Hillery
Week 4: I Can Make a Difference in My Country
  • Ruth and the Green Book by Calvin Alexander Ramsey
  • Right This Very Minute: A Table-to-Farm Book About Food and Farming by Lisl H. Detlefsen
  • I Color Myself Different by Colin Kaepernick
Week 5: I Can Make a Difference in My World
  • Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier
  • Bucket Filling from A to Z: The Key to Being Happy by Carol McCloud and Caryn Butzke
  • Giant Steps to Change the World by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee
  • More Than Peach: Changing the World One Crayon at a Time by Bellen Woodard
  • To Change a Planet by Christina Soontornvat
Week 6 - I Can Make a Difference with Hope, Education, and Action
  • Ron's Big Mission by Rose Blue
  • All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold
  • Lift as You Climb: The Story of Ella Baker by Patricia Hruby Powell
  • Stacey's Extraordinary Words by Stacey Abrams
  • Ambitious Girl by Meena Harris

Level II - Grades 3-5

Week 1: I Can Make a Difference in Myself
  • Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes
  • Follow Your Breath: A First Book of Mindfulness by Scot Ritchie
  • Bessie the Motorcycle Queen by Charles R. Smith, Jr.
  • Stacey's Extraordinary Words by Stacey Abrams
Week 2: I Can Make a Difference in My Family
  • qbal and His Ingenious Idea: How a Science Project Helps One Family and the Planet by Elizabeth Suneby
  • Our Story Starts in Africa by Patrice Lawrence
  • 111 Trees: How One Village Celebrates the Birth of Every Girl by Rina Singh
Week 3: I Can Make a Difference in My Community
  • Maddi's Fridge by Lois Brandt
  • Dream Street by Tricia Elam Walker and Ekua Holmes
  • Changing Our Community by Ben Nussbaum
  • Sadiq and the Community Garden by Siman Nuurali
Week 4: I Can Make a Difference in My Country
  • The ABCs of Black History by Rio Cortez
  • Kids Speak Out About Immigration by Rourke Educational Media
  • Opal Lee and What it Means to Be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alicia Faye Duncan
  • Because of You John Lewis: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Week 5: I Can Make a Difference in My World
  • The Banana-Leaf Ball: How Play Can Change the World by Katie Smith Milway
  • Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family's Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh
  • More Than Peach: Changing the World One Crayon at a Time by Bellen Woodard
  • Citizens of Planet Earth by Monika Davies
  • 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy
Week 6 - I Can Make a Difference with Hope, Education, and Action
  • Bonnie's Rocket by Emeline Lee
  • Lift As You Climb: The Story of Ella Baker by Patricia Hruby Powell
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: The Courage to Dream by Frederick Joseph
  • Midnight Teacher: Lilly Ann Granderson and Her Secret School by Janet Halfmann