Many of these snapshots capture four interns from Springfield’s Putnam Technical-Vocational Academy and one from the University of Massachusetts as they engaged children during WGBY’s 2018 Summer of Fun & Learning. Throughout the summer, WGBY interns and staff visited Pre-K classrooms at the YMCA and Head Start where we read with children, played PBS KIDS digital games with our mobile media lab and participated in other fun, hands-on learning.
During our weekly visits we were also able to bridge classroom to home with resources from PBS Parents and PBS KIDS. In addition, children received books for their home libraries, thanks to our partner station WGBH in Boston and their work with the Krueger Charitable Foundation, which also provided books for children who came to WGBY Tuesdays at the Springfield Museums. On these Tuesdays, interns had time to explore the Museums at the Quadrangle, and we even fit in a visit to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.
WGBY is grateful to its interns and the New England Farm Workers’ Council YouthWorks Program, who provided intern stipends, and to all of our partners who support our mission to educate, enrich and improve the neighborhoods that make up our community — especially over the summer when gaps in children’s learning can grow.