Don’t Prevent Summer Slide—Build Student Strengths Instead

Summer vacation should give students a chance to relax after a busy school year. But the long break comes with a potential downside. When students return in the fall, school administrators often find that students have lost their grasp on key concepts over the summer.

The good news is that there are strategies administrators can employ to not only curb “summer slide,” but prepare students for the upcoming year by building on their strengths. Along with teachers and families, administrators have a valuable role to play in encouraging summer learning across their learning communities. Administrators can make a big impact by helping to motivate students and families to engage in fun activities that will keep them building knowledge all summer long.

The mindset switch from preventing summer slide to building student strengths through summertime engagement might seem simple, but it’s an effective way to reframe the challenges your learning community faces when the dismissal bell rings on the last day of school.

Here are several strategies school or district administrators can use to encourage learning all summer long:

1. Engage families in summer learning

Partnering with families is the most important step to providing support over the summer and continuing student growth. Share with families an array of resources and educational activities that they can do at home. Workshops or informational sessions on the importance of maintaining a learning routine during the summer can equip families with the information they need to support students over the break.

These Waterford Learning Together calendars provide families with home learning ideas throughout the month:

June

• PreK-K (Pre-kínder-kínder)
  1st-2nd Grade (1er-2o grado)

July

• PreK-K (Pre-kínder-kínder)
• 1st-2nd Grade (1er-2o grado)

August

• PreK-K (Pre-kínder-kínder)
• 1st-2nd Grade (1er-2o grado)

2. Promote summer reading programs

Another effective way to foster a love of learning is through reading. Local libraries often have plenty of fun activities year-round, from picture book read-alouds to reading challenges.

Your school could partner with local libraries or launch your own reading trackers to keep students engaged. This Waterford summer reading challenge print-out available in English and Spanish can make for a simple and fun activity! Plus, encourage teachers to compile a summer reading list for students coming into your class next year.

3. Connect families with online resources

Technology opens the door to learning opportunities for all grades. Share online learning resources with teachers so they can recommend educational apps and websites that offer interactive learning experiences in math, science, and reading. Many of these resources are free and can be accessed from home or at the local library, making them an excellent tool for independent learning.

You’ll want to look for online learning platforms that align to your school’s curriculum and are supported by the latest education research, such as Waterford. Waterford offers a wide variety of free reading and math games, songs, and printable activities for PreK and early elementary families to keep learning going over the summer.

You can share the links below with your faculty or create a flyer for teachers to pass out during class. That way, families can make their account and get access to these great resources at no cost:

• PreK families can sign up with Waterford Upstart
• Elementary school families can sign up with Waterford Mentor

In addition, the Waterford YouTube channel features hundreds of educational videos, including sing-alongs for math and reading, and is available to all families year-round.

4. Share local free or low-cost learning activities with your school community

Learning doesn’t have to be confined to the home or classroom. Summer offers a perfect opportunity for experiential learning through trips to museums, outdoor parks, and science centers.

You could create a list of free or low-cost educational activities in your area for teachers to share with families in their classroom. These experiences make learning fun and help students apply what they’ve learned over the school year in real-world settings.

5. Encourage teachers to send home summer journals

Keeping a summer learning journal can be a fantastic way for students to maintain writing skills and practice communication. If your school budget allows, encourage teachers to provide a notebook and journal prompts to help guide students as they write. This list of journal prompts is a helpful starting point for educators, with ideas like:

• What is your favorite memory, and why is it so special to you?
• Share one interesting fact that you learned today.
• If you could be one of the first astronauts to go to Mars, would you go? Why or why not?

If a student hasn’t learned to write yet, families can always help by writing down their answers, or students can draw them instead.

6. Coordinate with your special education team

Families whose children have physical or learning disabilities need access to accommodations and other resources over the summer just as they do during the school year. Make sure to coordinate with your school’s special education team to ensure these students are receiving the necessary support to continue learning over the summer.

With proactive strategies and collaboration, including exciting summer learning programs and strong family engagement, your school can do its part to help students maintain their academic skills during the break and foster a lifelong love of learning.