The summer slide is real, and its impact on student achievement is both powerful and cumulative. Research has demonstrated that students who lack access to reading and learning opportunities during the summer may lose some of the academic progress they’ve made over the course of the school year. (This is true for all students, but especially true for struggling readers.) Then, when school begins again in the fall, these children are not ready for grade-level material and as a result may lack the confidence necessary to catch up.
So what can families do to help minimize the effects of summer slide? Here are some ideas...
Meet with Your Child’s Teacher
Before the school year draws to a close, speak with your child’s teacher to get personalized suggestions based on your child’s academic strengths and challenges.
Here are some questions you can ask:
- What books should my child read over the summer?
- What skills are most important to work on?
- How can I help my child practice these skills?
- How else can I help my child prepare for the next school year?
Then, make an effort to keep your child engaged in learning by making it a natural and enjoyable part of summer days. Here are some ideas:
Read, Write, and Talk Together
Establish a regular family reading time. This might be a read-aloud, during which family members take turns reading from a book everyone is enjoying together. Or it could be a parallel reading time, in which family members read their own books. Then, as a family, you can talk about what you’ve read!
Read an article together about current events, or about your child’s favorite sports team, actor, or musician. See if your child can summarize what the article is about and tell you the main idea. What did he or she learn? Are there unanswered questions? The key is finding topics of interest so your child is engaged.
Encourage your child to keep writing, whether on a computer or in a journal. If you are going on a family trip, encourage your child to write about it, even illustrate the places and people encountered.
Choose one night a week for family movie night and then together discuss the plot, characters, themes, and so on. Your child will be practicing analytic and oral language skills as you encourage him or her to share ideas and back them up with evidence (that is, explain where their ideas came from and how they arrived at their conclusions). Ask lots of questions to get your child thinking.
Find Out about Community Resources
Look into summer programs in your town or district. There may be programs designed specifically for skill building. Your school administration should have information about available programs. For example, the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge is a free, online reading program lets kids log minutes, unlock stories and earn rewards, and be part of a larger reading community. The parents’ page offers additional summer reading resources and strategies, and advice from experts.
See what’s happening at your local library. Many public libraries sponsor events for students. Some libraries have summer programs in which, as a community, children read a certain book, participate in challenges, or compete for prizes.
Don’t forget that kids can read all kinds of texts, including newspapers, magazines, and articles online. (Audio books are another option that can be great for long car trips!) Check with your local library about summer tips and borrowing options.
Your attitude toward summer learning is key. Be supportive—you can help your child discover the joy of reading! A little effort during the summer means that he or she will welcome the challenges of a new school year, brimming with confidence and excitement. Just as an athlete keeps in shape through practice, learning skills have to be nurtured as well. Practicing academic skills over the summer will add to the richness of a full and rewarding vacation, and help to prevent summer slide.
Have a fun and rewarding summer!
Madeline Boskey, PhD is a developmental psychologist and consultant devoted to literacy. She earned her PhD in Developmental Psychology at the Graduate Center of City University in New York, where she studied language acquisition and cognitive development. In her consulting work, her focus is on finding ways to make learning interactive and enjoyable.
