Summer Learning

Discover more about student learning during the summer, including summer school and summer camps
Reading & Literacy Spotlight Spotlight on K-12 Reading Intervention
This Spotlight will help you learn how to better support struggling older readers, strategies for boosting reading proficiency, and more.
August 26, 2024
Special Education Video Creating a Space for Students With Autism to Succeed
Educators at a camp for students with autism offer advice for teachers looking to support this population of students.
Lauren Santucci, August 13, 2024
3:40
Baltimore City School students harvest cucumbers to make pickles with during a week at Great Kids Farm and Forest Camp on Tuesday, July 25, 2023, in Catonsville, MD.
Students from the Baltimore City schools harvest cucumbers to make pickles during a week at Great Kids Farm and Forest Camp on July 25, 2023, in Catonsville, Md.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Student Well-Being Can Schools Meet the Demand for Summer Learning as Funding Runs Out?
A Gallup report found that 45 percent of kids didn't attend a summer learning program in 2023.
Lauraine Langreo, July 26, 2024
3 min read
Alaysia Kimble, 9, laughs with fellow students while trying on a firefighter’s hat and jacket at Estabrook Elementary during the Grizzle Learning Camp on June, 26, 2024 in Ypsilanti, Mich.
Alaysia Kimble, 9, laughs with fellow students while trying on a firefighter’s hat and jacket at Estabrook Elementary during the Grizzly Learning Camp on June, 26, 2024 in Ypsilanti, Mich. The district, with 70 percent of its students coming from low-income backgrounds, is struggling with how to continue funding the popular summer program after ESSER funds dry up.
Sylvia Jarrus for Education Week
Education Funding Inside a Summer Learning Camp With an Uncertain Future After ESSER
A high-poverty district offers an enriching, free summer learning program. But the end of ESSER means tough choices.
Elizabeth Heubeck, July 2, 2024
5 min read
Teacher Monica Villegas, an exchange teacher from Mexico, instructs students at the Twin Falls School District's migrant summer school at Oregon Trail Elementary School in Twin Falls, Idaho, on June 1, 2016. A migrant summer school helps fill education gaps while keeping children out of farm fields.
Teacher Monica Villegas, an exchange teacher from Mexico, instructs students at the Twin Falls School District's migrant summer school at Oregon Trail Elementary School in Twin Falls, Idaho, on June 1, 2016. A migrant summer school helps fill education gaps while keeping children out of farm fields.
Stephen Reiss/The Times-News via AP
Student Achievement What the Research Says How to Get Summer School Right (Hint: It’s Not Just About Academics)
A new study finds a blend of remedial and enrichment activities may improve summer programs' attendance and their effectiveness.
Sarah D. Sparks, June 11, 2024
6 min read
Young girl reads a book with cat in the garden. Summer holidays illustration.
iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being Opinion What Should Students Do Over the Summer?
Educators share tips for keeping kids off their screens and mentally engaged over the long break.
Mary Hendrie, June 11, 2024
3 min read
Arsenio Romero, secretary of New Mexico’s Public Education Department, addresses the audience at the Albuquerque Earth Day Festival on April 21, 2024.
Arsenio Romero, the New Mexico secretary of education, speaks at the Albuquerque Earth Day Festival on April 21, 2024. Romero is leading a statewide effort to improve literacy.
Courtesy of New Mexico Public Education Department
Reading & Literacy Q&A A New Plan to Raise the Lowest Literacy Rates in the Nation
Daily summer reading instruction for thousands of students is part of a bigger plan to improve literacy in New Mexico.
Elizabeth Heubeck, May 23, 2024
5 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion How to Make Summer School Effective and Engaging
Along with offering meaningful academic lessons, these educators advise incorporating fun so that students want to come to summer school.
Larry Ferlazzo, April 5, 2024
6 min read
four kindergarten age students sit on lawn, with hands raised in excitement
Photo provided by Scholastic
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4 Ways Districts Can Achieve Targeted Summer Learning Outcomes
It's no secret that summer reading is critical to a child’s academic success and that educators play a pivotal role in driving learning outcomes
Content provided by Scholastic Education Solutions
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion Do I Really Have to Go to Summer School? How to Get Students to Change Their Minds
Students often view summer school as a punishment. Schools can take steps to shift that perception.
Larry Ferlazzo, February 14, 2024
9 min read
Multi-ethnic preschool boys playing with blocks.
E+ / Getty
Student Well-Being How Districts Can Keep After-School and Summer Learning Alive After ESSER Dries Up
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent some of their federal COVID relief funds on after-school or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, December 4, 2023
4 min read
Adrian Mims
Adrian Mims, courtesy of the Calculus Project
Mathematics Q&A How to Support Black and Latino Students to Tackle Calculus
The founder of the Calculus Project speaks about how high school math pathways shape students’ postsecondary options.
Sarah Schwartz, November 28, 2023
11 min read
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Alex Slitz/AP
Student Achievement What the Research Says The State of After-School and Summer Programs, in Charts
New federal data show most schools offer extended-time academic programs, but small percentages of students use them.
Sarah D. Sparks, November 8, 2023
1 min read
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an afterschool literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta-based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Alex Slitz/AP
Student Well-Being Districts Make Tutoring a Top Priority in After-School Programs Funded by COVID Relief Aid
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent part of their federal COVID relief funds on afterschool or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, October 25, 2023
3 min read