CEDAR SPRINGS, Mich. — Students across West Michigan are either on summer break or will be very soon. While that is great news for them, educators are encouraging parents to keep their kids engaged academically during the summer months.
Some people may be wondering why it is so important to keep children engaged. According to the National Summer Learning Association, nine out of 10 teachers spend at least three weeks re-teaching lessons at the start of the school year.
It's called summer slide, the learning loss students experience during their summer vacations because they're not in a classroom.
Officials with the Cedar Springs School District said this can be avoided, if parents turn simple things into learning lessons.
"We want them to have some structure still in place, and some learning to engage their brain,” said Jen Haberling, the assistant superintendent of academic services of CSPS. "Kids are curious and inquisitive and want to learn about the things that are around them and the things they are experiencing."
"So, that can be just as simple as going to a park and talking about what you're seeing," Haberling added. "It doesn't have to be sitting with a book or a workbook, you know, in a pencil, it can be something more experiential for kids.”
At Cedar Springs Schools, on the elementary level, they are offering a targeted intervention program at the elementary level. It will consist of teachers with small groups of students focusing on math, reading levels and keeping students on track over the summer break.
For more information on keeping school-aged children on track during the summer, click here.
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