After two full years of pandemic training, districts across the country are tackling the problem of learning regression. Many strategies involve leveraging additional summer classes, but what do experts say about where parents should start?
First off, summer learning doesn’t have to be 100% academic. Parents and schools can be successful by emphasizing children’s interests, suggested Aaron Dworkin, CEO of the National Summer Learning Association.
“Number one is finding your students’ passion,” Dworkin said.
Summer camps can build social skills and independence, and provide access to key mentors. For older teens, Dworkin said, a summer job is one of the best forms of hands-on, real-world learning.
“Think of summer as that chance to work on your game. What do you want to become? Better at singing, better at playing the piano, better at driving — you’ve got a chance,” Dworkin said.
Dworkin recommended that parents use their city’s free program. Public libraries, parks and recreation departments, and other organizations offer a range of free activities.
Related:Summer camps are back for 2022! Check out our huge list of ways to keep kids busy during recess
This summer is a prime opportunity as America’s bailout plan earmarks $30 billion for after-school and summer programs over the next few years.
Learning in the school setting
Knox County Schools are again offering a summer boot camp for some students.
The four-week program caters to both elementary and middle school students, with a credit recovery program for high school students. Eligibility depends on school performance and economic circumstances.
The camps include free bus transport and free breakfast and lunch. The camp is suitable for both elementary and middle school four hours of reading, writing and math classes; one hour intervention; and an hour of play or physical activity.
Registration deadline for eligible families for the camps is Friday. Eligible families should have received an email with registration instructions.
Dworkin said it’s important to remember that all students regress in the summer – this is known as the “summer slide” and can be worse for low-income and students of color.
The summer slide data shows that at-risk students lose a few months of school each summer, and these losses are cumulative.
“As time went on, five years in a row, the kids really fell behind. It shows up in different ways. You have to spend a lot of time relearning what you did last year,” Dworkin said.
Most of the time, the “tap” of public education turns off in the summer. The gaps are widening because higher-income families can afford to shell out thousands for summer enrichment.
“Low-income children don’t have these and cannot afford or access these opportunities,” Dworkin said. “So this subset of the population doesn’t get the chance to practice the math and reading skills and also to accelerate learning by learning new things.”
New data confirmed fears that the pandemic would exacerbate the summer slide, Dworkin said.
“People tend to underperform in math because, at least for reading, families feel more comfortable practicing reading and reading to their kids at home,” Dworkin said. “Math is something people don’t work on in the same way, so that’s a little bit worse.”
This balancing act is exacerbated for families who depend on schools for services like meals. Hunger is also a summer learning topic.
Differentiate according to interests and age
Enrichment is not a one-size-fits-all. Different age groups and school levels require different programs.
Younger children may do best with local programs at the library or park. Older kids are more suited to dormitories or programming on a college campus.
The City of Knoxville is offering camps for children ages 6 to 12 in June. These camps have a $20 registration fee and a $20 weekly fee.
Knox County Public Libraries host free summer activities for all ages at various locations. They have daily story time for babies and preschoolers, craft sessions and visits from the Zoomobile.
The University of Tennessee hosts Kids U summer camps for students in grades 3-12. ACT prep courses for high school students are free. Tennessee Athletics also hosts athletic camps.
For more summer ideas, check out the Knox News list of summer camps in the Knoxville area.
And learning should be adapted to children’s interests.
“It really doesn’t matter what you read as long as you read 30 minutes a day,” Dworkin said. If a child likes bugs, let them read about bugs. If you like space, reach for books about space.
The most important thing, Dworkin said, is to be enriched by a child’s natural curiosity.
“Ultimately, all education is about empowering students to take responsibility for their own learning,” Dworkin said.
At all ages, timing is everything. Dworkin recommended targeting “built-in life transitions” such as the summers between elementary and middle school, middle and high school, high school and college.
“If you’re running a program aimed at preparing kids for the next step, it’s proven to be extremely powerful in terms of data,” Dworkin said.
form connections
If summer fortification is to fill some gaps caused by the pandemic, restoring personal connections is a top priority.
“All the things that we’re doing to help kids connect are the things that COVID has removed,” Dworkin said.
To reconnect, Dworkin recommended setting a common goal or project.
“Community service is an important thing to do in the summer that allows connections and can be fun… and a sense of something bigger than yourself,” Dworkin said.
Any activity that is team-based or ties the group to a goal can both strengthen connections and grease the rusty wheels of socialization.
Mentoring can be tremendous for children, especially older teens. This is an unspoken part of summer camps, Dworkin said, because they have access to college-age role models who lead by example as counselors.
Relationships are even more important in responding to a mental health crisis in adolescents.
“It can’t just be that we just have to respond to the math and reading to catch up,” Dworkin said. “We really need to bring people together.”
Real world applications
Summer is a time for hands-on learning and career exploration. With the growing partnerships between schools and companies, schools should take advantage of these relationships for summer jobs.
“The holy grail of learning is the paid summer internship,” Dworkin said. “Not the unpaid summer internship, which is one of the most unfair forms of summer learning.”
A summer job can help older teens enhance the intangibles that prepare them for the world of work and give them a better idea of their preferred career.
Children are tech-savvy enough for hands-on projects.
“Don’t just be on apps, learn how to make an app,” Dworkin said. For example, creating a podcast of family interviews can improve technical skills, listening skills, planning, and self-initiated goals.
spoon of sugar
Summer school in the US has a reputation for being a punishment, a mandatory and boring recitation of remedial education. Good summer learning programs should be the opposite – engaging and fun.
Dworkin said the summer enrichment should use “learning in disguise” — using games and creative methods to present the curriculum in a way that feels like playing, not learning.
Veiled learning is the practice behind online games that teach children how to code, or even the age-old practice of “checkout” that teaches children to count money.
This is how summer enrichment can be. It’s not just about what students missed, it’s about learning new skills and discovering intangibles presented in an engaging way.