BIDDEFORD — On Tuesday, after a 30-minute recess at the end of the school day, approximately 60 Biddeford Primary School students went back into the classroom and listened to teachers talk about clouds.

Students enthusiastically raised their hands, ready with the answers to their teachers’ questions on the subject.

The second- and third-grade students are participants in the Biddeford Learns After School Together after-school program.

The majority of the program is funded by a grant from the 21st Century Community Learning Centers.

Not only is the program fun and interesting for the students, teachers said, but data shows it is also having a positive impact on learning.

Jennifer Boislard, whose daughter, second-grader Lauren, is enrolled in the BLAST program and also took a summer version of the program, said she feels the program has helped her daughter.

“The structure for her is so much more helpful,” said Boislard. “She’s catching up very quickly with reading, which is so nice to see.”

Initially, when her daughter was invited to the program, said Bollard, “I thought of not having her in it, because of the long day, but she just loves it.”

The Biddeford School Department operates two BLAST sites ”“ one at the primary school for second- and third-grade students and another at the Biddeford Intermediate School for fourth- and fifth-grade students. Each site can take up to 70 students. The after-school program is held Monday through Thursday from 3-5:30 p.m.

The program is voluntary, and invitations to participate are based on academic need, which is determined by test scores, such as scores from the Northwest Evaluation Association and AIMSweb tests.

“The main goal of the program is to deliver fun, engaging STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) curriculum to students who are in need of academic support,” said Marci Dionne, the Biddeford site supervisor for LearningWorks, a nonprofit organization that is the fiscal sponsor of BLAST.

LearningWorks compiled data that shows how students who attended the BLAST program for at least 100 days performed on the NWEA standardized test. They compared the data with students who were eligible and invited to participate in the program but chose not to.

Students who attended the after-school program scored four times higher in reading and two times higher in math than those who did not.

Biddeford also offers a BLAST summer program.

LearningWorks collected data that shows how those who took this year’s summer program scored on the NWEA math and reading tests compared to those who weren’t enrolled in BLAST. They compared the spring test scores at the end of the last school year with the scores from this fall’s tests.

Often students lose ground in the summer when they are on vacation, school officials said.

In reading, the BLAST students started higher than the other students, and over the summer, their scores improved by an average of about six points. Those not in the program saw their scores drop by approximately three points.

In math, the difference was more significant because the BLAST students started with lower test scores than their non-BLAST counterparts. The BLAST students’ scores increased by an average of an estimated eight points, while the non-BLAST students’ scores dropped approximately three points.

Student improvements are based on the 10 extra hours of instruction they get during the school week, said Dionne.

“I think that translates into higher math and reading scores,” said Dionne.

In addition, she said, “What’s being taught is fun, it’s engaging. (The students) are interested in what we’re teaching.”

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.