Lots of families are experiencing the summer slide without understanding the long term effects it will have on their child’s education. So, what exactly is it? The summer slide is when children lose what they learned over the past school year during summer break. According to Scholastic, “Kids lose significant knowledge in reading and math over summer break, which tends to have a snowball effect as they experience subsequent skill loss each year.”
The summer slide is an even bigger problem for students this upcoming school year. With summer following the e-learning experience of the spring, most students have not been in their traditional classroom environment since March. It’s unknown how many students will return to brick and mortar schools to start the year. Students are vulnerable to a major slide. Many parents are concerned as learning continues to become more of a virtual experience, as it is believed by many that virtual learning simply can’t match or replace the traditional classroom experience in a brick and mortar school. While it can’t be the same, it can be an amazing experience in its own way. Teachers, students, and parents just need to increase their knowledge and experience and familiarize themselves with the seemingly endless options of tools and resources. One of our favorites is Cohesion Education, which offers a K-5 video library of all the reading, writing, and math concepts a student would see in the classroom. Videos are about 5 minutes long and feature a classroom teacher presenting the concept as a student would see it in the actual classroom. It’s a great way for parents to bring an actual classroom experience into their home.
Cohesion Education’s videos can be used to both review previously learned skills as well as introduce new ones to students. No matter what you’re doing, we recommend that parents and students watch the videos together, and pause throughout to try to solve problems or apply skills. Once the video is finished, parents can create their own sample questions or tasks for students to complete. When doing this, draw connections to your child’s interests and hobbies, as this will serve to keep learning fun, which will help maintain interest and attention. Whenever possible, provide opportunities to learn outdoors and on the go. Keep their spark for learning lit as we all try to navigate through these unknown and challenging times.
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