Programs & Partnerships

Lawrence Family Development Charter School is open Monday through Friday beginning the last week in August through June from 7:45 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. The core academic day is 7 hours for grades 5-8, 7:45 a.m.-3:30 p.m., grades 3-4, 7:45 a.m.-3:20 p.m. and grades K-1 to Grade 2, 7:45 a.m. - 3:10 p.m. An extended day academic and enrichment program runs right after school until 6:00 p.m. for grade K-2 to grade 6 and until 5:00 p.m. for grade K-1 The following programs are integrated into the school day providing essential skills for high academic achievement and expanded opportunities and enrichment to foster the development of the whole child.

The K-1 program, which is located at The Academy for Early Academic Preparation at 7 May Street along with K-2, and is comprised of six classrooms with fifteen students, each staffed by one certified teacher and one paraprofessional. These students advance in their second year to K-2, where class size is twenty students per group. Extensive language development, phonemic awareness and number sense are complemented by learning and play centers, music, art, fitness, Social/Emotional Learning and Spanish. A secure welcoming environment builds strong foundational skills for transition from K-1 to K-2.

Students who complete K-1 advance to K-2, a full-day academic program aligned with the Massachusetts Common Core Curriculum. Ready to learn at an accelerated pace, K-2 students are introduced to many technology and text-based programs in order to advance in oral fluency and reading. A full program of English and Spanish language instruction, supporting our dual-language mission, as well as mathematics, art, music, Social/Emotional Learning and physical education continue the advantages of a coordinated two-year program. Students are grouped in classes of twenty, each with a certified teacher; paraprofessionals are available to assist teachers as needed.

LFDCS joins schools across the country the first week in March to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss (Massachusetts-born children’s author, Theodore Geisel) and to foster a love of reading to students. This tradition, organized by the Student Services Coordinator and the leadership team, invites community volunteers to visit LFDCS to read to individual or small groups of children, sharing their love of reading and its importance in life. Elected officials, police and fire officials, board members, bankers, business leaders and friends and families of LFDCS volunteer to read in assigned time blocks—energizing our school community with their presence and enthusiasm for reading. Grade eight students travel to the Academy and read Dr. Seuss books to the K-1 students. Each child in K-1, K-2, grade 1 and grade 2 receive a hard-bound copy of a Dr. Seuss book.

The school utilizes several resources in mathematics to meet the needs of each grade level. LFDCS uses Eureka Math which is aligned with the Massachusetts Common Core Standards. IXL Interventions provide support for students who are identified through Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments which is given three times annually. Based on this data, through our RTI (Response to Intervention) process, students may be grouped for specific attention to gaps in mathematics. A Title 1 Mathematics teacher for grades 3-4 provides support for these critical years when students are learning the basics upon which the understanding of mathematical processes are built.

LFDCS enrolls a student population that is 98.8% Hispanic. The overwhelming majority of students enrolling in kindergarten rank Spanish as their first or home language, necessitating a significant investment of personnel, resources and study in English Language Acquisition, particularly vocabulary development. Staff provides vocabulary-rich instructional support enhanced by visuals to increase vocabulary, comprehension and confidence. LFDCS is committed to the dual-language priority of our school (see above) and the mandates of English proficiency from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Our program for English Language Learners (ELLs) is staffed by certified educators. Federal and state laws require that ELL students be assessed annually to measure their proficiency in reading, writing, listening and speaking English as well as the progress they are making in learning English. In fulfillment of these laws, ELL students are required to participate in ACCESS testing, which is based on the WIDA (World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment) English Language Development standards. Our goal is to provide support as long as a student needs it, and only when a student reaches a proficient level of English is support discontinued. LFDCS is in 100% compliance for all ESE ESL requirements.

LFDCS recognizes the importance of preparing our students for their future through the integration of technology in our school and curriculum. Since our founding, computer labs and the skills they foster were foremost in our priorities. Multiple carts of Chromebooks enable 1:1 use in grades 1-8, and our youngest learners in K1 and K2 share multiple carts of iPads to use in class. All classrooms and resource rooms are equipped with short throw projectors and whiteboards. LFDCS is committed to Blended Learning by integrating technology into all parts of planning, assessment and instruction. LFDCS has a Digital Instructor to work with teachers to effectively integrate technology into instruction. To learn more about instructional technology and digital learning, please visit Digital Learning. Our students and teachers adapted to remote learning when necessary with high-level instruction because the technology and digital apps needed were already familiar.

LFDCS invests in the futures of our graduates through our Opening Doors program. The Secondary School Coordinators work with every student in grades 5-8 and their families to understand the process of making the transition from LFDCS to high school and the many options and opportunities they may pursue. Workshops in SSAT prep and partnerships with area private secondary schools and youth organizations help connect our students to individuals and interests to broaden their experiences and vision. Connections to after school and summer enrichment, coordinated by the Secondary School Coordinators, introduces students to journalism, robotics, fine arts, theater, private schools and college campuses. Intensive attention to applications, essays and interviews are completed in early fall of eighth grade. A High School Fair for eighth grade students and their parents provides on-site information to all area schools including many of the top secondary schools in the United States. Application and acceptance rates of over 50% consistently send our graduates to bright futures. Some of the high schools that our students attend are: Academy at Notre Dame, Berkshire School, Bradford Christian Academy, Central Catholic High School, Clark School, Concord Academy, Darien High School, Deerfield Academy, The Derryfield School, Fryeburg Academy, Glastonbury High School, The Governor's Academy, Lowell Catholic High School, Maine Central Institute, Miss Hall’s School, Noble and Greenough, Notre Dame Cristo Rey High School, Pentucket High School, Pingree School, Phillips Academy (Andover), Ridgefield High School, St. John’s Preparatory School, St Mark’s School, The Academy at Penguin Hall, White Mountain School, Greater Lawrence Technical High School, Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School, Lawrence High School and Methuen High School. After graduation, our Secondary School Coordinators support LFDCS graduates by tracking student progress to ensure positive experiences and retention. These services help to create outreach mechanisms and gatherings to reunite alumni in age-appropriate groups. By re-connecting alumni to LFDCS, it provides participation opportunities that build allegiances and support for the school. Many of our alumni are invited to speak at special events such as at the LFDCS graduation and fundraisers and invited to become trustees on the LFDCS Board of Trustees.

LFDCS was founded with a mission for high expectations for student success including the important lessons of life and leadership which are learned through service to others. Building a better community through the efforts of individuals at all ages is an important goal for our school. Keeping our school, neighborhoods and parks environmentally clean and free from graffiti, gathering food for hungry families, tutoring younger children with reading and math, maintaining the school gardens, and helping senior citizens study citizenship are some of the valuable projects our students participate in at LFDCS as part of community service and service learning. Grade 8 students are now required to do a Civics Project which is to develop civic knowledge, skills and dispositions as defined in the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Frameworks.

LFDCS provides special places for reading and literacy throughout its facilities. A library for grades 3-4 in the Lower School contains thousands of donated and purchased books, kits for classroom and home lessons and space to work quietly on special projects. The Alekal Library at the Upper School provides fiction and nonfiction middle-grade literature, reference books and an internet-connected computer center to support student research, writing and learning. A Librarian/Media Specialist works out of the Upper School Library to support students’ in the Lower and Upper School use of technology in content, reading, research and digital citizenship.