Summer Learning Meets The LIAS Principles

Source: Learning in Afterschool & Summer

From the LIAS Archives

By Guest Blogger, Katie Brackenridge, Glen Price Group

A child’s need for meaningful learning and enrichment experiences does not end in June when the school doors close for summer vacation. All children need to be engaged and active during the summer months in order to be on track when they return to school in the fall. Whether these needs are being met may boil down to a child’s neighborhood or family income level. Without summer learning opportunities, children—especially children in low-income communities— can fall dramatically behind academically. 

More than 100 years of research about this phenomenon – known as summer learning loss –paints a clear and compelling picture. A longitudinal study from Johns Hopkins University found that low-income children lose about 2 months in their reading levels each summer. By 5th grade, the cumulative learning loss puts them nearly three grade level equivalents behind their more affluent peers. [1] Unequal summer learning opportunities during elementary school years are responsible for about two-thirds of the ninth-grade achievement gap between lower- and higher-income youth. As a result, low-income youth are less likely to graduate from high school or enter college. [2]

Given this data, communities across the country are working hard to build high quality summer learning opportunities. They are quickly discovering that summer is the perfect time to put the Learning in Afterschool and Summer principles into action. Children don’t need or want more traditional school time during the summer. In fact, because summer programming is often voluntary, many children and youth won’t participate unless their experience is fun and engaging. In Making Summer Count, researchers from the RAND Corporation found – not surprisingly – that consistent attendance is a key indicator of a program’s ability to impact participant learning. [3] Summer learning programs have to inspire and motivate in order to succeed.

Besides the imperative around attendance, the time and flexibility in summer programming also lends itself well to the LIAS principles.

• Learning that is Active - Summer curriculum can involve long-term projects that allow students to experiment, explore and discover. Projects that might take too much time or are too complicated for the school year become possible during the summer.
• Learning that is Collaborative – Quality summer learning programs encourage participants to experiment, explore and discover together. Throughout a summer, participants can be placed in a whole variety of different groupings that allow them to learn from each other, practice communication and negotiation skills and feel ownership for their work.
• Learning that is Meaningful - While quality programs plan their schedule and curriculum before summer begins, well-trained staff know how and when to adjust lessons and schedules to respond to participants’ interests and to allow deeper inquiry and the expression of youth voice. This flexibility ensures that activities and projects are meaningful to participants.
• Learning that Promotes Mastery – More time means more opportunity to support participants in building skills, particularly around projects that they want to be doing. Quality programs provide opportunities for participants to showcase their skills and accomplishments.
• Learning that Expands Horizons – Summer is also a natural time for programs to expose participants to new people and places. Visiting artists, lecturers and teachers offer different perspectives, ideas and experiences. Field trips allow participants to visit places – even in their own communities – that they may never have seen and where they are able to return after the program ends. Many summer programs take young people on their first overnight camping trips, which is invariably an awe-inspiring, bonding experience for participants. 

END NOTES:
[1] National Summer Learning Association, 2009.                 
[2] Alexander, et al, 2007.
[3] Sloan, Jennifer McComb, Making Summer Count, RAND Corporation, 2010.
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MORE ABOUT...

Katie Brackenridge

Katie Brackenridge has worked in and with schools, school districts and community organizations for her entire career. As a consultant affiliated with the Glen Price Group, Katie focuses on creating equitable learning conditions for students by integrating whole-child practices, structures and systems into the education system, including schools, districts, county offices of education and statewide organizations. She is particularly

interested in building coherence across education initiatives by helping educators at all levels of the system understand their shared purpose and work through a whole-child lens.

Katie was previously a Partnership Director at Turnaround for Children (now the Center for Whole-Child Education at Arizona State University) where she designed and delivered strategic projects and presentations about the science of learning and development and whole-child design. For the 14 years before Turnaround, Katie was the Vice President of Programs at the Partnership for Children & Youth, a non-profit intermediary organization focused on improving practice and policy for expanded learning and community school initiatives in public education. Katie’s work is grounded in her 9-year experience as Co-Executive Director for the Jamestown Community Center, a grassroots youth organization in the Mission District of San Francisco.

School’s Starting: Are Students Ready? The Benefits of Summer Learning for Kids’ Physical and Academic Fitness

By Guest Bloggers Patrice Chamberlain, Director of the California Summer Meal Coalition & Jennifer Peck, Summer Matters Campaign Co-Chair   

Patrice Chamberlain

It’s almost time to head back to school– but are students ready? One telling sign of a student’s physical health and academic readiness for the year ahead is whether they had access to a high quality summer learning program.

It is well documented that a lack of summer learning opportunities leads to “summer learning loss” – the loss of skills and knowledge that causes teachers to spend valuable fall classroom time re-teaching students who need catching up. 

According to the National Summer Learning Association, the cost of re-teaching material that students forget due to summer learning loss is four to six weeks of school time, or $1,500 per student. 

Jennifer Peck

It's not just academics that suffer when students miss out on summer learning, but their physical health may suffer as well. Low-income and rural communities often have fewer supermarkets and retail outlets offering healthy food; they may also lack safe places to play. For many children living in those neighborhoods, school’s summer closure means disrupted access to a consistent source of healthy food and fewer opportunities for physical activity. Without that access, children may become sedentary and eat junk food or skip meals. 

A UC Irvine study found that low-income children are more likely to fall into these unhealthy habits due to a lack of opportunity to participate in organized activities. Without access to summer learning activities, students may gain weight two to three times faster during the summer than during the school year. 

As part of a nationwide effort to prevent summer learning loss, a growing number of school districts are recognizing the need to make providing equal access to high-quality summer learning programs a priority because they offer an unparalleled opportunity for children to learn while having fun, with nutritious meals and health and wellness education blended into engaging projects and activities.

In addition to the summer learning activities taking place in schools, there are also community-based organizations across California that are partnering in new and innovative ways – and opening their doors to students and their families – to make sure summer matters. 

In Fresno, Los Angeles, Sacramento and San Diego, for example, local libraries have joined the efforts to keep kids healthy by jointly launching Summer Lunch at the Library programs to combat summer learning loss and summer hunger – offering summer reading programs along with free, healthy lunches through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s summer nutrition programs.

Summertime is an untapped resource; when students are free from homework and other stresses associated with the school year, they are free to learn and participate in new ways. In addition, summer programs can help promote healthy eating and active living by incorporating physical activity and nutrition education. Introducing students to summer’s agricultural abundance through summer programs is a great way to increase consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables (not to mention it helps California farmers too). 

Although the onset of the school year will soon leave summer as a distant memory, we must continue to advocate for a coordinated and year-round approach to student health and learning that includes summer—it’s an investment in our students’ future. Parents, government agencies, community organizations, businesses, and school districts all play a role in setting students up for success. They are, after all, our future leaders and workforce that will help sustain our communities. 

16 Ways to Be Sure Your Kids Keep Learning Over Summer Break - A Recommended Article From One of Our Readers

We received the following message from one of our readers, Allen Miller. He stated:

"We at PartTimeNanny.org, wanted to let you know that we found your blog in one of our recent Google search & would love to share a recent published article '16 Ways to Be Sure Your Kids Keep Learning Over Summer Break' linked below and if liked by you, it could be a fun way to share this announcement with your readers.Either way, I hope you continue putting out great content through your blog. It has been a sincere pleasure to read."

Below is a portion of an article that Allen recommended. You can find the full article by clicking here.

16 Ways to Be Sure Your Kids Keep Learning Over Summer Break

Summer vacation is a time for fun in the sun and enjoying freedom from the drudgery of school in the minds of most children. Making sure that they retain some of the things they’ve learned over the school year and continuing to develop important skills during the dog days doesn’t have to be a chore, even though it can seem daunting. These 16 tips will ensure that your youngsters keep learning, even when they’re not in a classroom.

1. Cook Together – Kids can make a mess in the kitchen, but they can also gain practical mathematic knowledge from the experience. Encourage your kids to handle the measurements when you prepare a favorite recipe, work on doubling or halving the yield and focus on the basic chemistry of baking.
2. Shop as a Family – A trip to the store with all of your kids in tow might not be flirting with disaster, as long as you get them involved in the process. Compare prices, talk about unit pricing and how buying more of an item might be cheaper and work on the percentages during retail sales. When your kids are involved, there’s no room for the boredom that can lead to misbehavior.
3. Take Advantage of Community Programs – Many community centers offer summer classes and workshops designed specifically to help kids retain knowledge over the break in fun, exciting ways. Do a bit of research to see what’s available in your area!
4. Explore Animal Life – Visiting a full-size zoo, a petting zoo or even a local farm can put your kids in touch with animals, helping them learn more about the life sciences while keeping them entertained.
   
5. Limit Screen Time – Educational videos and software might teach your kids a thing or two, but they also encourage the kind of sedentary lifestyle that leads to childhood obesity and all the related health problems. Video games and television with no educational merit steal time that your kids could be using to actively pursue new knowledge. Putting realistic limits on screen time will help you encourage kids to keep learning while also being active.
6. Encourage Summer Reading – There’s a reason why so many schools used to have summer reading lists. Take advantage of your local library or make regular visits to the bookstore to keep your kids stocked with books so they can sharpen their reading and comprehension skills.
7. Choose Vacation Destinations With Educational Value – Summer break is often a time for family vacations, which can be great learning opportunities if you choose the destination wisely. Instead of spending a week at an amusement park or resort, why not explore sites of historical significance?
8. Put Kids in Charge of Navigation – In a world where technology is king, kids that have been raised with GPS systems in every pocket may not have the slightest idea of how to actually read a map. Invest in an atlas and plan an imaginary road trip with your child as the navigator. He’ll be so wrapped up in his fantasy vacation that he may not even realize that he’s learning something new!
9. Spend Evenings Stargazing – If you live in an area with a relatively low level of light pollution, take advantage of the warm summer nights by stargazing as a family. Point out constellations and learn more about the stars together.
10. Explore Nature – One great thing about the long, sunny days of summer is that going outside to get up close and personal with nature doesn’t require a heavy coat and mittens that can make little hands a bit clumsy. Slather on the sunscreen and reinforce natural science lessons by exploring the great outdoors.

To read the full article, click here.

How Summer Learning Strengthens Students' Success

By Sam Piha

Sam Piha

We know from research that summer learning loss suffered by kids who do not have access to engaging summer programs is significant. Public Profit, an evaluation and technical assistance firm, has just released their findings on the benefits that children accrued by participating in pilot summer programs across the state. This publication also identified features of quality programs, which are well-aligned with the learning principles promoted by the Learning in Afterschool & Summer project. 

Below is a partial list of benefits that were found and a citing of quality program features. As positive evidence about the effectiveness of summer learning programs mount, so must our advocacy efforts to increase young people's access to these programs. To read a full copy of the executive summary, click here. To access the full report, click here. 

Key findings include:

• Students ended the summer with vocabulary skills much closer to their grade level, increasing their instructional grade level by over 1/3 of a grade. 

• English language learners demonstrated significant increases in their grade-level vocabulary, a gateway to English language fluency. 

• Parents reported that their kids improved their attitude towards reading (68%) and reading ability (62%). 

• Overall, 86% of parents reported the summer programs gave their kids opportunities to develop leadership skills. 

• Parents and educators emphasized summer learning programs’ critical role in providing students with new experiences and opportunities – such as field trips and community service projects – that they do not have during the school year. 

• Students in Fresno and Los Angeles summer learning programs reported improved academic work habits and reading efficacy, both key contributors to academic achievement. 

Elements of high quality summer learning:

• Broadens kids’ horizons – by exposing them to new adventures, skills and ideas. These could be activities like going on a nature walking, using a new computer program, giving a presentation, visiting a museum or attending a live performance.  

• Includes a wide variety of activities – such as reading, writing, math, science, arts and public service projects – in ways that are fun and engaging. 

• Helps kids build skills – by helping them improve at doing something they enjoy and care about. This could be anything from creating a neighborhood garden, to writing a healthy snacks cookbook to operating a robot. 

• Fosters cooperative learning – by working with their friends on team projects and group activities such as a neighborhood clean-up, group presentation or canned food drive. 

• Promotes healthy habits – by providing nutritious food, physical recreation and outdoor activities. 

• Lasts at least one month – giving kids enough time to benefit from their summer learning experiences. 

To learn more about the Summer Matters initiative, click here.