The work you do to support your readers with the Summer Reading program is a great outreach to the community. But did you know that it also makes a difference in students’ reading abilities and ultimately—test scores?
What is summer loss?
The idea of students slipping in their reading abilities is called “summer loss.” The concept is based, in part, on the research of James Sangil Kim, Ed.D., assistant professor of education at Harvard University. Dr. Kim’s research suggests that while many students’ reading skills diminish over the summer months away from school, students who read a minimum of eight high-interest books at their Lexile level over the summer can achieve similar gains in reading growth as students who attend summer school.
How your actions help
Durham Public Schools in North Carolina have implemented a Lexile program based on Dr. Kim’s research with success. Watch a 4-minute video about how the program boosted their summer reading success. And here’s how the Durham County Library implemented the Lexile-based program with reading lists that could easily be replicated through WorldCat.org lists (rather than having to build a specific page on your Web site.) Continue reading ‘Help Prevent Summer Loss’
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