If it's one thing I've learned from working at Scholastic for five plus years, it's don't talk to teachers about summer in the winter. One January afternoon a few years ago, I posted something on the Scholastic Teachers Facebook page about teachers and summer vacation. (I believe it was something like, "Teachers! Any ideas for how you'll spend your summer vacation? Share them with us!") Backlash ensued. "Let's get through January first, please!" and "Do not talk to me about summer until AFTER spring break." and "Summer? There's still snow on the ground and we're teaching a unit on arctic animals." You get the point. I got the point. While I was certain at least a few teachers had started to think about their summer plans, I was wrong in thinking it was high on their list of priorities in January, when they had the enormous and important job of teaching, inspiring, and meeting their students' needs every day for the next several months. Mea culpa. (I'm the daughter of two teachers, I should've known better.)
After more careful observation of teacher blogs and social media, and conversations with teachers about their planning processes, I did learn that while teachers may not have their summer plans solidified by late winter/early spring, they are thinking about how to help prepare their students for summer. Especially for summer reading.
Research shows that at the beginning of the school year, many teachers spend four to six weeks re-teaching material from the previous year to students who didn't maintain math and reading practice during the summer months (this is also known as the "summer slide"). At Scholastic, we're very conscientious of the need for kids to keep learning over the summer, and we know many teachers, administrators and parents are thinking about summer learning now, which is why we've launched several programs dedicated to exactly that. And now, for the first time ever, we're listing them in one place. Our Summer Reading Solutions Hub has resources, programs, and discounts for teachers, principals, and schools, all tied to summer reading. On the hub, you'll find information on our Summer Reading Challenge, a free, online reading program for kids, custom Summer Book Packs for students, information about hosting a Scholastic Book Fair before the end of the school year, and more. With plans for summer reading success taken care of, we can all move on to blissful thoughts of summer vacation.
