Newswise — On Thursday, July 13, 21 cities will celebrate the third annual National Summer Learning Day, dedicated to the importance of high-quality summer learning opportunities to prevent K-12 students from succumbing to the "summer slide."
Summer programs send young people back to school each fall ready to learn, with less need for review of what they learned the previous school year, said Ron Fairchild, director of the Center for Summer Learning at The Johns Hopkins University, which sponsors the observance.
"The overarching goal of Summer Learning Day is to celebrate the importance of high-quality summer learning opportunities in the lives of young people and their families," Fairchild said. Festivities include:
* In Baltimore, Coldstream Park Elementary School will host "Books: They're Full of Drama!," featuring the integration of reading material with drama and history. The school will also offer theatrical performances depicting heroic Americans like Martin Luther King Jr., Maya Angelou, and President John F. Kennedy.
* In White Plains, N.Y., Morry's Camp will host Education Expo, an evening of fun and learning to showcase projects and activities campers have completed so far during the summer.
* In Sorrento, Fla., the East Lake County Library will host Special Guest Storytime, with guests reading stories and attending a party with children and their families.
* In Columbia, Ky., Casey Elementary School will showcase student-produced plays, puppet shows and music videos before an audience of school district employees, families and the community.
And in Washington, D.C., Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will host "Creating Opportunities for High-Quality Summer Learning," at noon in 138 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Obama and Fairchild are expected to speak.
Fairchild is available for interviews to share summer learning suggestions, such as those found in this online tip sheet:
http://www.jhu.edu/news_info/news/home06/jun06/learning.html
To learn more about Summer Learning Day, visit http://www.summerlearning.org
List of participating cities as of July 6:
In Maryland: Baltimore, Annapolis, Waldorf, Hagerstown, Manchester
Washington, D.C.
In Virginia: Richmond
In Illinois: Chicago
In Kentucky: Ashland, Columbia
In Mississippi: Booneville
In Pennsylvania: Philadelphia
In Washington: Bellingham
In Florida: Leesburg, Clermont, Fruitland Park, Englewood, Sorrento, Astor
In Louisiana: Shreveport
In Nevada: Fernley
RSS