News Release
For Immediate Release: May 28, 2013
Contact: Charles Pyle, Director of Communications, (804) 371-2420
Julie C. Grimes, Communications Manager, (804) 225-2775
The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is providing parents and other caregivers with a collection of activities, resources and tips to promote summer learning. The information is available on the new Virginia is for Lovers … of Summer Learning page of the VDOE website and includes learning opportunities in reading, mathematics, history and science.
“Students who read for pleasure during the summer and engage in other fun learning activities are less likely to lose ground while school is out and are more likely to be ready for success in the fall,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Patricia I. Wright said. “All of our Virginia is for Lovers … of Summer Learning resources and activities are from trusted sources and can be easily adapted for family vacations and summer child care programs.”
Virginia is for Lovers … of Summer Learning includes links to free activities and resources developed by respected organizations, such as the Library of Virginia, the Public Broadcasting System, the Smithsonian Institution, the Virginia General Assembly, the Virginia Tourism Corporation, the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and MetaMetrics, which provides the Lexile and Quantile scores on students’ Standards of Learning (SOL) test score reports.
Parents and other caregivers can use Lexile scores to create custom summer reading lists based on children’s reading levels and interests. Quantile scores can be used to register rising third-, fourth-, fifth-and sixth-grade students for a customized, six-week, email-based mathematics-skills program to build their current achievement level.
The Virginia is for Lovers … of Summer Learning webpage also includes a downloadable flyer and bookmarks for use and distribution by parents, schools, summer camp programs and child care centers.
“The Virginia is for Lovers … of Summer Learning webpage is a great place to start planning activities for national Summer Learning Day,” Wright said.
This year, Summer Learning Day is Friday, June 21. The annual observance was created to raise awareness of the role of quality summer learning programs in improving student achievement and outcomes, especially among at-risk children.
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