Children’s Therapy TEAM’s Literacy Camp was designed to empower young readers and build confidence. Paige’s vision for the camp was to offer a unique blend of intensive literacy instruction and exciting, camp-style fun.

The inspiration behind the Literacy Camp stemmed from a desire to provide a dynamic camp experience program for children already engaged in TEAM’s Take Flight Dyslexia Program. “We wanted to do something for our literacy kids that was fun and engaging,” explains Paige.

The goal was to keep kids actively learning and enthusiastic about reading throughout the summer break, preventing the “summer slide” often experienced by students with and without dyslexia. The camp integrated the core components of the science of reading into a lively and immersive environment. Activities included crafts, daily snack preparation, and water games, ensuring that learning felt like play. 

Invitations to Literacy Camp were extended to children currently participating in the Take Flight Program at Children’s Therapy TEAM. These are typically children diagnosed with dyslexia, receiving speech-language pathology services focused on their written language challenges. While some children also have articulation or oral language disorders, many are supported primarily for their dyslexia diagnosis. The camp served a diverse age range, from first to seventh grade, with students grouped by age and ability level to ensure personalized attention.

Children’s Therapy TEAM’s program is an intensive curriculum designed to provide explicit, systematic, and cumulative instruction in reading. Starting with foundational alphabet knowledge and progressing to complex Greek etymology, the program helps children overcome reading deficits. Paige recounts incredible transformations: “We have kids who start out with us not knowing their alphabet, then progress to reading chapter books and comprehending.” 

Beyond the academic gains, the program significantly boosts children’s confidence. “A lot of these kids come in, and they have no confidence because they have learned in school that they are already behind their peers,” says Paige. “We have to recognize that there is that emotional piece and that confidence piece. This is why it is so critical to give them the tools that they need to succeed.”

The Literacy Camp brought together 15 students to create a supportive peer environment. One heartwarming outcome was the opportunity for older students more advanced in their Take Flight literacy curriculum journey to become leaders. Paige describes one older student who particularly embraced his role as a reading buddy. “In this environment, he was able to use the skills that he’s learned to help younger readers.” This peer-to-peer interaction fostered a sense of empowerment and enhanced reading fluency, often without the older children even realizing they were learning. The younger learners benefited as well with reading buddies who truly understood their struggles.

The camp was supervised by four therapists leading individual groups and Paige overseeing the entire program and providing additional support. The feedback from both children and parents was overwhelmingly positive. In the words of one parent, “My daughter had the best week. She cried because it was the last day!”

Children’s Therapy TEAM plans to continue offering the Literacy Camp next summer with potential expansions to the Bentonville clinic and considerations for offering multiple weeks with smaller, level-specific groups. The success of this inaugural camp underscores the vital role specialized literacy programs play in empowering children to overcome reading challenges and build lasting confidence.