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The Summer Reading Program (SRP) has become a model of what F65 can achieve by funding and incubating teacher-initiated projects. The program supports students who have received supplementary reading support in first grade.
The Summer Reading program has been in effect for the past 12 years. It was developed by District 65 Reading Recovery teacher, Linda Shusterman, in response to the considerable summer reading loss that she witnessed in her students over the years, also known as “summer setback” or “summer slump.” The program effectively supports summer reading growth for students who have received supplementary reading support in first grade (Reading Recovery or Guided Reading). Research has shown that the reading level of struggling readers decreases during the summer months and students lose the progress that they have made during the year. Compounding this is that often these students are low-income with limited access to print media in the home. The goal of the program is to help these emergent readers maintain the reading growth they had attained during the school year.
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Learn more about the research behind summer reading loss.
Bridging the Summer Reading Gap
Solving the Problem of Summer Reading Loss
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How It Works
In the spring the teacher leaders identify, purchase, and display books for the participating teachers to use in selecting books for their students. Participating teachers conduct parent meetings to explain how the program works and to share suggestions for keeping children actively engaged in reading over the summer months.
During the summer (June – August), students receive from their teachers six packages with four books, for a total of 24 books throughout the summer. The books, which are carefully selected by the Reading Recovery teacher or reading specialist who has worked with the student throughout the year, are a combination of fiction and non-fiction texts that reflect the special interests of each student and matches the student’s end of year reading level. In each package of books, the students receive a personalized letter from the teacher, some writing materials, and a stamped envelope so they can mail a letter back to the teacher. This is an authentic way to keep students actively engaged in both reading and writing throughout the summer. Students are allowed to keep the books they receive.
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Outcomes
Each participating student takes a reading assessment in May/June of the school year and again at the beginning of the next school year (September) to measure his/her growth in reading.
Past results indicate that approximately 90% of the students maintain the reading level that they achieved at the end of the school year. The exciting finding has been that of this 90%, a significant number (approximately 40%) of participating students actually increase their reading level when they return to school in September.
Foundation 65 is actively working with Linda and other community partners to expand the Summer Reading Program so that ALL struggling readers bewteen 1st and 2nd grade have access to this vital program.
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