Why is summer camp so important to beat summer slide in special education students?

Why is summer camp so important to beat summer slide in special education students?

Only 48% of parents with school aged children have ever heard of summer slide while only 38% of lower-income parents have heard of it. The old saying “if you don’t use it, you lose it” is a real thing when it comes to retaining education. Summer slide refers to the loss of learning that takes place in a child when a school break occurs. When brains are “turned off” for the summer months children don’t retain what has been taught and can regress. This is specifically a concern among special needs students as many struggle with working memory, executive functioning, and retainment of education in general. So statistically what can be lost over a summer? For the average student research indicates 2 months of reading skills and 2 1/2 months of math skills are lost over a single summer. Plus, summer slide is cumulative, so those lost months add up over time. So now that we know there is a problem what can be done to help target this issue?

 Academic Summer Camp is offered at Crossway Academy in the month of July from the 6th to the 30th Monday through Thursday from 9:00am-2:00pm. Camp at Crossway Academy is designed to allow students with unique learning profiles a structured opportunity to grow in academic areas including reading, math, science, handwriting, social skills, and extracurricular. This will occur in a unique venue adapted for small and large group integration. Students will learn to become more independent and self-confident in their skills while socializing and making new friends through themed activities each week.

Crossway Academy’s summer camp targets the special needs population to engage, expand upon, and increase academics while thriving in a fun and therapeutic environment. Not only can we help to prevent summer slide but we can help your child prepare for kindergarten as well. With a 1:5 ratio of students to teachers ranging in ages from 4-10, the camp uses research-based methods, progress monitoring, and individualized curriculum to target each student’s needs and gaps in academics, communication, and social skills. But wait… there’s more! Not only do we focus on academics but we use a bi-weekly theme to include hands on fun to include outdoor water play, gardening, a talent show, indoor carnival, field day, arts and crafts, a daily extracurricular activity and more!
​
For more information about summer camp at Crossway Academy contact Amanda Lippard, Head of School, at amanda@crosswayacademy.com or 704-654-2352. 

---