Summer
Students begin their Breakthrough experience immediately after fourth grade with our intensive six-week summer program. They attend classes in math, literature, writing, science, and social studies, reading great literature, solving challenging word problems, and tackling enticing subjects like Immigrant History and Environmental Science. Students also take part in extracurricular activities such as debate and dance, build community, and meet with their advisors. Our 4:1 student to teacher ratio guarantees individual support and enables students to develop the academic skills, self-confidence, and social capital to enroll and succeed in rigorous, college-preparatory middle and high schools, and, ultimately, four-year colleges.
Their teachers are outstanding high school and college students, recruited from across the country. We select young people who demonstrate academic excellence, a strong commitment to service, an unfailingly positive attitude, and the ability to lead others. They participate in an intensive week-long orientation prior to the start of the summer, and, with the support of professional Mentor Teachers, take on an authentic teaching experience. Breakthrough’s success as a teacher training program – in particular, its ability to draw students of color into the field of teaching – has earned national acclaim.
School-Year
Breakthrough’s school-year program continues the investment in students’ educational success. One to three afternoons per week, students travel to the Day School for tutoring, enrichment classes, and community building, all characterized by inspired instruction, small class sizes, and supportive peers. Students also gather one Saturday per month for college visits, community service, and museum trips, and attend workshops on the middle school application process, time management, and other crucial topics. Seventh and eighth graders from the Day School join other local students in tutoring and mentoring their younger counterparts.
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Breakthrough tutor Sarah Albert with (from left to right) students Otto, Linda, and Mauricio.
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