A recent study by the American Educational Research Journal found that the average first- through eighth-grader lost up to 28% of their ELA learning over the summer break. Given the research showing positive outcomes of summer programs, our mission at Springboard Collaborative is to help districts achieve those outcomes. We focus on a number of key objectives throughout the year, with these three especially relevant to summer school:
- Providing support for struggling readers
- Increasing family-teacher collaboration and connection
- Offering design and management support for districts to get the most value from their summer programs.
We’ve identified some critical components of family literacy workshops to make them as effective as possible and easily fit a summer school curriculum.
The Right Materials for Teaching Literacy
Dr. Annie Ferrell, Springboard’s Senior Director of Program Success, explains that most summer school programs run for about five weeks, which presents a challenge for educators hoping to build and sustain effective learning momentum. To address that accelerated pace, she says that the right material is critical:
“We’re going to provide you with what we think of as plug-and-play materials. They outline what a teacher says and does at every turn of the lesson plan. So you can feel confident that a novice teacher, a paraprofessional, or maybe an experienced teacher that doesn’t have time to plan in the summer, is going to have what they need to teach these lessons. That includes texts they can project and read-aloud books they can hold in their hands, a full package of instruction that is all science of reading aligned. The phonemic awareness is in there, the fluency is in there, the comprehension of vocabulary, it’s all intentionally and systematically included in the curriculum.”
She describes how Springboard’s family literacy workshop is a chief component of the summer school curriculum:
“Over five weeks of instruction, we do a family workshop every week. So in the same way that the kids are coming in for school and feeling part of the community all summer, we want parents to feel that, too. We have some workshops that we recommend as a starter pack, 30 or 35 to choose from, so you can make this specific for the needs of your school. Your parents make it feel like you’re making localized decisions, even though you’re getting this entire program from us.”
Running a Summer Program
Speaking as an experienced elementary school principal, Dr. Ferrell recognizes the administrative benefits of a plug-and-play solution for successful learning on an accelerated timeline:
“When I think about running summer school, I wish I could have had this kind of support and programming.Springboard is going to help coach your teacher leaders to coach your teachers in running this program. We’ve done this many times, and we have a well-oiled machine for getting your folks ready to run the program. Some principals are very involved, some assistant principals are very involved, and that would be a choice you could make.”
She says that coaching is such an important administrative component because so many summer school programs are under-resourced, and the teachers often have to learn as they go:
“We know that not all of our teachers are fully at the level of a reading specialist, and we want reading specialist-level material and instruction going to our kids. And so the detail of the lesson plans, the materials that you receive will set your folks up to implement really strong instruction. You don’t need to worry about reviewing lesson plans or coaching on lesson plans. Those are ready to go.”
The Magic of Family Engagement
Dr. Ferrell shares her enthusiasm about watching families engage with their students’ learning:
“The piece that brings the warmth to your heart, the tear to your eye, is seeing parents and their children, a dad and a little boy, a mom and her little girl. We’ve had babysitters come. We’ve had aunts and uncles, or a community member, come in and sit side by side with the student, and the student points out what they’re working on. They practice together. I’d say that’s where the magic happens that sets us apart from different programming. Teachers have said to me, ‘This feels so different from a report card conference, which is usually when I have families in the room, and there’s an aspect of evaluation to that.’ This is us in true partnership. This is access to ask any question that they have. I can make sure they’re clear about what we’re working on.”
She’s convinced that family engagement is critical for children who need extra help in developing literacy skills:
“In addition to coaching at home, this time together in the room unlocks so much in terms of a parent’s capacity to do strong reading, to feel included in the process, to build rapport with the teacher. This makes for a stronger learning experience and really can shift how families feel about the school, and therefore how students feel about the classroom, and their time at school. The program creates a sense of belonging and empowerment that we’re all so committed to creating for our parents.”
Dr. Ferrell believes that everyone — students, family members, teachers, and school leaders — benefits from the experience of a family-engaged summer reading program:
“Our teachers say they love using the materials. Our students say, ‘I love this program.’ When you visit schools, you’ll see notes in the offices of people who are teaching that say, ‘Springboard is my favorite part of the day. Thank you so much for being my Springboard teacher.’ It’s a really incredible gift to give your teachers, students, and families.”
From Slide to Springboard
“Summer learning loss” or “summer slide,” references an experience where students lose academic skills while out of the classroom during the summer. Summer programs in schools can minimize (or even prevent) this learning loss from occurring. Working on the accelerated schedule of a shorter summer session means that districts need appropriate, easily implemented course materials. Family engagement, a critical component in elementary-grades literacy at any time of year, can make an even bigger difference in summer reading programs. In fact, Springboard Collaborative, which specializes in family engagement, took its name from an early funding pitch by founder Alejandro Gibes de Gac: “Let’s change the summer from a barrier into a springboard for our kids.”
Note: This blog was adapted from a 3/16/23 webinar delivered by Dr. Annie Ferrell, Senior Director of Program Success at Springboard Collaborative.