College Access and Affordability

College is something students at Rainbow Ridge start learning about in Kindergarten in order to create a strong college-going culture. We also ensure that alternative pathways are always depicted alongside college, and students understand that they have many options for their future adventures!

Here are some of our favorite Rainbow Ridge College-Going Culture Activities and Projects

  • “Future Me” Drawings and Discussions: Students draw pictures of what they might want to be when they grow up and share what kind of learning might help them get there. This can lead to discussions about different jobs and how people prepare for them.

  • “College Colors Day”: A fun day where students and staff wear the colors of their favorite college or university (even if it’s just because they like the colors!). This can spark conversations about different school names and mascots.

  • Alumni Guest Speakers: Former Rainbow Ridge students who went to college talk briefly about their jobs and how their education helped them

  • “College Pennant Project”: Each class creates a pennant representing a different college or career path. These can be displayed around the school.

Image Source: Google Gemini. (2025).

COLLEGE RESOURCES

An Elementary School Parent's Guide to Paying for College by Mary Purcell

College-Themed Books for Elementary Students:

  • "What is College?: College and Career Readiness for Elementary Students" by Mr. Henry Kopia Keculah Jr.: This book uses dialogue between young students to explore the concept of college.

  • "Mahalia Mouse Goes to College" by John Lithgow: A fun story about a mouse who unexpectedly finds herself at college.

  • "I Will Go to College" by Yes! Our Kids Can: This book aims to inspire young children with the idea of going to college.

  • Any books that feature characters in interesting careers and mention their educational paths would work.

NYC Public Schools’ “We Teach NYC” Early College Awareness Resource List

“My Future, My Way” is a college-planning workbook designed for middle school (MS) students from the U.S. Department of Education. There is also a MS Online Checklist to prepare for college.

College Board’s, “CollegeEd Middle School Student Workbook” gets kids thinking about the path to college and is accompanied by an educator guide.

College Board’s, “Big Future” page includes additional resources for college-planning workshops with students, including handouts, presentations, lessons plans, and case studies: bigfuture.collegeboard.org/ 

Kids2College (K2C) brings early college awareness and a college-going culture to your community. The Sallie Mae Fund provides the national curriculum and training free of charge to schools and community groups.

The DOE’s Office of Post-Secondary Readiness annually updates its College Handbook. It is a comprehensive guide to the college application process. Though targeted primarily at high school students, you may find excerpts to be helpful and appropriate for your middle schoolers. 

Source: resources adapted from the Oregon GEARUP program.

Parent Resources

Below are links to articles, information and resources that will help prepare students down the road with the knowledge needed to confidently select, apply, enroll and succeed in college.

Source: pta.org