Summer

High-quality summer programs are critical in making sure that Georgia’s youth have a safe, enriching place to go when school is out. Low-income students often lack opportunities during the summer and actually start the school year off in a worse position than where they finished the previous school year. This is often referred to as the summer slide and accounts for about two-thirds of the achievement gap in ninth grade reading. Quality summer programs can drastically help mitigate these effects for low-income youth. Check out the resources below to support Georgia’s youth during the summer.

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 Summer Learning

Putting Summer to Work: Getting a Head Start on the Common Core

Summer Matters explains how education leaders can use summer programs to stop summer learning loss, and build student and staff capacity to succeed in the new Common Core environment.

Effects of Summer Learning on Low-Income Students’ Outcomes

The Wallace Foundation’s Summer Learning Project is a six-year effort to see if participation by low-income students in voluntary summer learning programs led by public school districts can improve student performance.

ExploraKits

Specifically designed for afterschool and day camp, these activities are educational and encourage kids to dig deeper into learning while also being fun!

Year-Round Learning: Linking School, Afterschool, and Summer Learning to Support Students

This research brief is designed to inform the discussion among policymakers and providers about how to expand learning time for today’s youth. Year-round learning consists of intentional, community-based efforts to connect school, afterschool, and summer learning.

Summer Learning Library

This resource is an online database of resources provided by the National Summer Learning Association. Resource categories include college and career readiness, STEM, funding, summer learning loss, and impact of summer programs. 

Moving Summer Learning Forward: A Strategic Roadmap for Funding in Tough Times 

This roadmap includes descriptions of federal, state, and local funding sources, how to use partnerships and private funding, strategies of funding in action, and examples of how summer learning programs obtained funds.

Summer Learning Guide

This resources provides an overview of summer learning loss and practical suggestions for programs on how to close the “gap” and it provides practical tools and ideas for afterschool staff on how to create and support an environment of learning in summer programs.

American Camp Association Youth Outcomes Battery

This resource offers data-gathering youth self-report measures that focus on common camp outcomes related to skills that build successful contributing members of our society. Questionnaires are statistically tested, camp-specific, age-appropriate, easily administered tools AND they can be customized to any camp.

Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge

This resource offers a fun way for kids, families, and educators to track their reading progress over the summer with opportunities for exciting prizes and activities.

MyON Digital Library

During the summer months, myON makes its digital library available to Georgians for free.  

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 Summer Food Service Program

Developing an Effective Communications Plan for your Summer Meals Program

This recorded webinar from No Kid Hungry will provide a process to develop a comprehensive communications and outreach plan, tools to help you implement your strategy, and examples of effective outreach in action.

Summer Meals Program Media Toolkit

This toolkit from No Kid Hungry will help you get the word out about your summer meals program.

Level Up: Applying Technology to Summer Meals

Join No Kid Hungry and global IT and business firm CGI for a recorded webinar to learn about technology trends and discuss how technology can be and already is being used to modernize programs, increase efficiency and improve decision-making. 

A How-To Guide for Summer Food Sponsors on Purchasing High-Quality Summer Meals

This guide from the Food and Research Action Center outlines a couple key strategies to improve the quality of meals provided including strengthening contract language and improving communication with vendors.