Students in literacy courses ECCH 222 and EDCH 509 worked this past month with Director of Educational Partnerships Elizabeth Turner and Say Yes Buffalo to create family-friendly literacy activities for local students and their families. These activities were showcased during the October 22 and November 5 Saturday Academy events at PS #59 Dr. Charles R. Drew Science Magnet School, which is attached to the Buffalo Museum of Science.
Several Buffalo public schools host Saturday Academies every weekend, which aim to promote student engagement and curiosity across academic subject areas, including language and literacy. These events are free and open to the public.
The Canisius students’ activities included “Saturday Academy Jeopardy,” which featured literacy concepts and general knowledge trivia, and “The Great Race,” which had students digging for hidden words to build sentences. Not only were these activities fun and engaging – they reinforced key literacy skills for more than 20 students.
Sweety D’Monte, a graduate student in the Western New York Teacher Residency program whose daughter participated in the event, reflected on her 
experience.
“Saturday Academy is a safe place where our children can come together with their classmates and the children from their neighborhood,” she said. “Here, as parents, we are sure that there will be activities that we will approve of, that are fun, yet subtly academic.”
Participation in Saturday Academies is part of an ongoing partnership between Canisius College Center for Urban Education and Buffalo Public Schools.
Submitted by: Christyn Sullivan, graduate assistant, Teacher Education and Leadership
