Summer Learning

Children from low-income families often do not have the same opportunities to learn and experience enriching activities during the summer as children from higher-income families. Consequently, they can lose ground academically, contributing to the persistent achievement gap between them and their more affluent peers. High-quality summer learning programs offering a combination of academics and enrichment could help.

Browse the reports and other resources on these pages for insights into summer learning.

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Getting to Work on Summer Learning, 2nd edition	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/Getting-to-Work-on-Summer-Learning-2nd-ed.aspx	Getting to Work on Summer Learning, 2nd edition	Guidance for running summer learning programs, including recommendations for early planning, hiring and sticking to firm enrollment deadlines	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Getting-to-Work-on-Summer-Learning-2nd-ed-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Getting-to-Work-on-Summer-Learning-2nd-ed-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	12/4/2018 5:00:00 AM
Afterschool and summer learning: Opportunities to advance local priorities in Oklahoma	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/Afterschool-and-summer-learning-Oklahoma.aspx	Afterschool and summer learning: Opportunities to advance local priorities in Oklahoma	This presentation was delivered as testimony to the House Common Education Committee, at its written request, at an informational hearing of the State of Oklahoma House of Representatives on Oct. 3, 2018.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Slide Presentation	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/ok-testimony-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/ok-testimony-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	10/12/2018 4:00:00 AM
READS: Helping Children Become Summer Bookworms	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/READS-Helping-Children-Become-Summer-Bookworms.aspx	READS: Helping Children Become Summer Bookworms	READS—a school-run, summer read-at-home program that gives children free books coupled with key supports—can help disadvantaged students sharpen their reading skills, rigorous research suggests.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/READS-Helping-Children-Become-Summer-Bookworms-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/READS-Helping-Children-Become-Summer-Bookworms-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	7/17/2018 4:00:00 AM
Summer Learning Recruitment Guide	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/Summer-Learning-Recruitment-Guide.aspx	Summer Learning Recruitment Guide	A website and written guide for school districts that want to recruit students for voluntary summer learning programs offers eight keys to success.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Summer-Learning-Recruitment-Guide-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Summer-Learning-Recruitment-Guide-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	3/6/2018 5:00:00 AM
Governance Structures for City Afterschool Systems: Three Models	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/Governance-Structures-for-City-Afterschool-Systems-Three-Models.aspx	Governance Structures for City Afterschool Systems: Three Models	How are city afterschool systems best governed? This brief describes three possibilities.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Governance-Structures-for-City-Afterschool-Systems-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Governance-Structures-for-City-Afterschool-Systems-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	1/17/2018 5:00:00 AM
The Value of Out-of-School Time Programs	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/the-value-of-out-of-school-time-programs.aspx	The Value of Out-of-School Time Programs	A RAND analysis finds that out-of-school-time programs are generally effective at producing the outcomes that would be expected by their content and design.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/The-Value-of-Out-of-School-Time-Programs-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/The-Value-of-Out-of-School-Time-Programs-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	11/2/2017 4:00:00 AM
Making Summer Last: Integrating Summer Programming into Core District Priorities and Operations	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/making-summer-last.aspx	Making Summer Last: Integrating Summer Programming into Core District Priorities and Operations	Introducing a high-quality summer learning program in a school district requires effort. So does ensuring that the program can last beyond a handful of summers. This report offers ideas on how to achieve that goal.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Making-Summer-Last-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Making-Summer-Last-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	10/23/2017 4:00:00 AM
Strategies to Scale Up Social Programs	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/how-to-scale-up-social-programs-that-work.aspx	Strategies to Scale Up Social Programs	In successfully scaling up social programs through partnerships, 45 diverse nonprofits faced three key choices: their partner, their approach to spreading their work, and their call on the balance between fidelity and flexibility at the expansion sites.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Strategies-to-Scale-Up-Social-Programs-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Strategies-to-Scale-Up-Social-Programs-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	9/19/2017 4:00:00 AM
Learning from Summer: Effects of Voluntary Summer Learning Programs on Low-Income Urban Youth	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/Learning-from-Summer-Effects-of-Voluntary-Summer-Learning-Programs-on-Low-Income-Urban-Youth.aspx	Learning from Summer: Effects of Voluntary Summer Learning Programs on Low-Income Urban Youth	A groundbreaking study finds high-quality summer learning programs benefit high-attending students in math and reading.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Report	<img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Learning-From-Summer-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> <img alt="" src="/knowledge-center/PublishingImages/Learning-From-Summer-a.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	10/26/2016 4:00:00 AM
PowerPoint: Making Summer Count for All Our Children	https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/Pages/PowerPoint-Making-Summer-Count-for-All-Children.aspx	PowerPoint: Making Summer Count for All Our Children	Much must be done before children from low-income families have the same summer-learning opportunities as their more affluent peers, says Wallace Foundation President Will Miller. But some efforts are beginning to pave the way.	54092405-3ed7-43af-891b-ab77fa4f2517	Slide Presentation	<img alt="PowerPoint: Making Summer Count for All Children" src="/News-and-Media/Videos-and-Presentations/PublishingImages/PowerPoint-Making-Summer-Count-for-All-Children-b.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" />	7/21/2016 4:00:00 AM

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