LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Now that kids are out of school for the summer, researchers and educators are warning against what\u2019s called the \u201csummer slide\u201d, or seasonal learning loss.<\/p>\n
According to the American Educational Research Journal, the average student loses 17-34% of what they learned the previous year in school over the summer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen students go back to school in the fall it\u2019s very easy to tell who spent the summer reading and who didn\u2019t,\u201d said Tori Fleming, a librarian.<\/p>\n
Students who experience the summer slide once are more likely to have a hard time adjusting to the new school year and may find themselves struggling for many more to come.<\/p>\n
Julie Laughlin, the executive director of Literacy Lubbock, said most of the adults she works with struggle because of a lack of continued education in childhood.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour brain is pretty much done with who you are at six years old so you need to enjoy reading, be a reader,\u201d Laughlin said. \u201cYou need to mimic your parents and your parents need to read. It\u2019s important that every generation is improved by reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
Literacy Lubbock currently serves around 500 adults. Laughlin says 19% of adults are illiterate across the United States.<\/p>\n
54% can only read at or below a 6th grade level, according to the National Literacy Institute.<\/p>\n
Parents and guardians are encouraged to confront the problem before it starts. The Lubbock Public Library is offering its annual Summer Reading Program from June 1-July 31 in hopes of making literacy fun.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of kids are behind in reading and so helping to build that positive association with books and build that desire to read makes it so much easier when kids are going back to school in the fall and are having to read books for classes,\u201d Fleming said.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s theme is \u201cUnearth A Story\u201d and will explore the world of dinosaurs, archaeology and geology. The program will have free activities for all ages, including petting zoos, gatherings at City of Lubbock Parks, hands-on archaeology activities, laser tag, musicians, magicians and animal shows.<\/p>\n
\u201cReading needs to be something that\u2019s exciting, something that\u2019s fun, not something that is forced or \u2018work,\u2019\u201d Fleming said. \u201cFinding stories they\u2019re excited about will help long term with their literacy development and will translate to the rest of their academics as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The program is curated for adults, too, includes a reading challenge where participants can win prizes just for reading. <\/p>\n