Does Summer Learning = Summer?

Summer evokes a sense of freedom and joy. When you think about summer, maybe you think of barbecues, swimming pools, and family vacations.  Summer learning opportunities may be the furthest thing from your mind. But they shouldn’t be. Here’s why the Princeton-Blairstown Center’s Summer Bridge Program should be the first thing you think about when you hear the word “summer.”

Students in the Summer Bridge Program enjoy learning outdoors at the Center’s Blairstown Campus.

Summer Bridge is a one-week transformational learning opportunity for students from historically marginalized communities. The week-long program has a STEAM, Literacy, and SEL-based curriculum and devotes three hours a day to academics. In addition to focusing on lessening summer learning loss, Summer Bridge also provides students with essential social-emotional skills that will help them succeed in school and life.

Statistics from our Summer Bridge Program show that students improved on team building, leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills after their 5-day session and more than 80% of teachers and chaperones agreed that they could apply the learning gained at the Center to their own school or organization.

Summer learning opportunities are extraordinarily beneficial to students.

According to a study by the Rand Corporation and commissioned by the Wallace Foundation, youth who participated in a high-quality summer program performed better in reading and math during the subsequent school year and had improved social-emotional skills. The study concluded that for maximum impact each program should include no more than 15 students per adult, no fee to families for participation, free transportation, voluntary, full-day programming combining academics and enrichment including at least three hours of instruction (language arts and mathematics) per day, small class sizes, and meals.

Summer Bridge is an award-winning summer learning program provided free of charge by the Center for students from Trenton, Camden, and Newark, NJ. Many elements highlighted by the study as most effective are also elements of Summer Bridge, including voluntary, full-day programming combining academics and enrichment, at least three hours of instruction per day in STEM and Literacy, work in small groups, free meals, and no cost to the families for participation.

Right now, you may be thinking that summer learning may be worth the hype and that Princeton-Blairstown Center’s Summer Bridge Program sounds top notch. But does it match your definition of summer?

During Summer Bridge, when students aren’t involved in quality academic experiences, they are participating in team-building activities that are engaging and fun. They enjoy outdoor experiences that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to. Does canoeing, rope-courses, and outdoor adventure sound more like summer to you?  At Summer Bridge, students get it all!