Summer Reading Loss
By the time students are in high school, there is up to a four-year achievement gap between the affluent and the poor. Practically the entire gap is attributable to summer reading loss.
Summer reading loss refers to the backslide in reading development that occurs during summer vacation time. While middle-class kids tend to make modest growth over the summer, kids from high poverty homes typically slide 2-3 months backward.
The best way to mitigate this problem is to ensure that kids have access to books they can and will read over the summer. In fact, when kids have access to books over the vacation, they not only avoid the summer slide, they actually make growth in reading. Read about a 2015 study that reversed summer reading loss by giving kids books to take home over the summer.
