One Philadelphia Charter School Gets Jump On New School Year
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Enjoying your summer vacation? For some kids, it's already back-to-school time.
The kids at First Philadelphia Preparatory Charter School started school this week.
"We're usually the first school to go back in the whole entire city," notes Kim Stokes (standing in photo), a second-grade teacher.
So why are kids already back to school in the beginning of August?
"We find that the kids lose a lot less over the summer," says Kristine Magargee, director of curiculum and instruction, "and if we wait until September, that's a lot more time for them to lose everything that they've learned the year before."
(Kuznits:) "What do your fellow teachers tell you? You know, the ones who are still on summer vacation."
(Stokes:) "They're just like, 'Oh are you sad to be going back?' and I'm, like, 'No -- by the time you're going crazy in the beginning of the school year after Labor Day and trying to get everything organized, basically I'll be up and running and everything will be smooth and relaxed for us!' "
Magargee says in the ten years that this charter school has been in existence, the model has always been to start school in the beginning of August.
Reported by Hadas Kuznits, KYW Newsradio 1060
