Horizons just concluded its best ever, action-packed summer at SFFS! For the first time, this summer the program served children at six grade levels, including middle schoolers on their way to 6th grade. Horizons' students filled the San Francisco Friends School building with their curiosity, enthusiasm, and a sense of adventure throughout the program's six weeks. By creating a culture of respect and high expectations and providing ample support, Horizons' excellent staff inspired students to do their best work, take good care of one another, and create joy wherever they went. We are grateful to everyone who makes Horizons at SFFS possible with their participation, commitment, and generous support!
Parent and family involvement is key to Horizons at SFFS' success and to students' learning, healthy development, and well-being. They joined us at the pool, on field trips, in the classroom, and at community events to celebrate their children's achievements and learning.
An Experiential and Holistic Approach

For six weeks this summer, our students participated in meaningful learning opportunities designed to improve their academic achievement, build on their social and emotional skills, and support their readiness to learn. Experienced t eachers taught strategies, encouraged collaborative problem solving, and explored various interdisciplinary content areas alongside our students. A multimedia presentation about insects, a hands-on project based on sound, Rube Goldberg machines, family recipe books, and a quilt made up of family stories are just a few examples of Horizons' engaging project-based learning in action.
"These kids deserve every opportunity. Sometimes opportunities aren't always available unless people open up the door and share all the things they know. When you set kids up for success, you're not just changing their lives, you're changing everyone's lives who they interact with." 
Ashli Duncan, 2019 Reading Specialist
Learning to Swim

From Kinder through fifth grade, Horizons at SFFS’ students had a fun, safe, and structured opportunity to overcome their fears, develop critical water safety skills and discover the joy of swimming, which they will carry with them into the future.​  Many of the program's parents shared their pride in their children's progress, noting that they had never had the opportunity to learn to swim themselves, while many teachers noticed that swimming helps shy students gain self-confidence and fosters a growth mindset. Across the program’s six grade levels, Horizons’ students listed swimming as one of their favorite activities of the summer.

“I think swimming is by far the most important and enriching part of the program. It is always awesome to see how students' confidence levels grow in swimming and then to see how that translates to other aspects of the program.”
Audrey Sachleben, 2019 Program Assistant
Building Bridges to Academic Year Success

Field trips spark children's excitement about learning, build vocabulary and background knowledge, and support academic motivation and skill building. Horizons students enjoyed weekly field trips to local institutions such as the Exploratorium, Academy of Sciences, Roxie Theater, and Precita Eyes. Younger students visited the San Francisco Zoo and Mission Science Center, and older ones saw Hamilton at the Orpheum Theatre, toured an exhibit at the Jewish Contemporary Museum, and visited Rayko Photo Center, where they experienced the magic of developing film. Our oldest students also got to do several adventure trips -second and third graders went rock climbing at Mission Cliffs, third graders visited Pt. Bonita north of the Golden Gate Bridge, and fourth and fifth graders kayaked on the bay with Environmental Traveling Companions and participated in a ropes course at Fort Miley.
Thank You, Volunteers !

We are so grateful to our 16 volunteers, 11 of whom are SFFS alums and 10 of whom are returning volunteers from prior Horizons' summers. These committed, capable, and compassionate young people supported Horizons students and teachers for three to six weeks during the summer. As friends, teachers, mentors, and chaperones, they kept Horizons' children safe at the pool, led reading groups and science projects, and brought smiles to their faces every day. Some of these young volunteers are aspiring teachers themselves, and every one of them made a positive impact this summer with their presence, kindness, and care.
Enrichment Opportunities that Challenge and Inspire

Horizons students had a chance to discover something new and have fun at the same time in their arts and STEM electives classes each afternoon, including dance, coding, drama, photography, chorus, chess, and art. At our annual Back to Program night, Kinder through Third graders performed a dance for their families, while the brave Fourth graders sang songs from their choral elective. At the End of Program Celebration, every grade showcased their learning with an interactive presentation to their families, including an impressive photography exhibition by Horizons' 5th graders that is still up in the SFFS art gallery!
Thank you all for being a part of our community and for sharing your stories with us.
We wish every Horizons student a successful start to the 2019-20 school year and we can't wait to see everyone throughout the year for tutoring, family workshops, special activities, and field trips!