Aldine ISD School Libraries to be Open This Summer for Student Reading, Learning

Summer reading plays an important role in a student’s academic growth.

Students enjoy a reading activity in the library at Jones Elementary School.

The end of the school year is fast approaching. Parents are busy thinking about summer vacation plans and how they will keep their children engaged while home. What they may not be thinking about is how much educational ground their children will lose if they don’t read during the summer.

Check with your child’s campus or the district website for summer reading requirements for each grade level.

Experts call this the summer learning loss or the “summer slide.” So when children tell parents they feel like they have forgotten some of what they’ve learned — they actually do forget it. Students who experience this are more likely to struggle when they return to school in the fall. A [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]report estimates lost instructional time to be nearly two months or roughly 22 percent of the school year. According to Cindy Buchanan, the stakes are high for students who don’t read over summer vacation. Buchanan serves as Aldine ISD’s program director for library services.

“Research shows that the summer slide affects more students from low-income families,” said Buchanan. “These students fall far behind their peers if they don’t read over the summer. These students don’t just suffer greater loss during the summer. They also experience cumulative effects of greater learning loss each summer.“

Buchanan explained that the few months of loss in reading skills compounds over the years. Let’s take a child in elementary school. Let’s say this child doesn’t spend every summer reading. By the time this child reaches middle school, he or she may have lost as much two years worth of achievement.

Miles and Ari Lindeen enjoy the library at Stephens Elementary School in the summer of 2014.

[icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Sociologists Karl Alexander and Doris Entwisle studied the summer loss and its cumulative effect. Their research showed this to be a primary cause of widening achievement gaps. [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Donald Hayes and Judith Grether also studied this effect. Their data showed that rich and poor students had a seven-month difference in scores at the beginning of second grade. But the learning loss during four summers led to an achievement difference of 80 percent between rich and poor students by the end of sixth grade.

Summer slide affects millions of students each year in the U.S. — but it doesn’t have to. Summer is a great time to help children fall in love with reading. Experts agree that children who read during the summer gain reading skills and do better in school.

“We encourage children to read just six books over summer vacation,” said Buchanan. “This is enough to likely avoid summer reading loss. Aldine ISD is doing its part to encourage summer reading. The district will open campus libraries this summer to make books accessible to students. Reading during the summer months is a great way to help close the achievement gap and help students succeed.“

Information literacy specialist Elizabeth Hensley at Calvert Elementary School.

Students will have the opportunity to check out books at more than 65 Aldine ISD school libraries that will open on certain days of the week. This is the second year that AISD school libraries provide the summer service to students. The [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]first year proved successful. In June 2014, students checked out nearly 30,000 books. Buchanan stated that just like last summer, AISD students can go to any school library opened during the summer to check out books. They can go to a school library even if they are not zoned to attend that campus. Each campus library will open one day a week (see list below).

“Making books accessible to children is the best antidote for the summer slide,” Buchanan said. “Access to books and libraries results in more reading, which, in turn, results in improved reading skills. We want to create a culture of reading. That means parental involvement is key. With parents help, students will return to school in the fall better prepared for academic success.”

Did You Know …

Aldine HS’ Melissa Buruca-Mendoza — National Hispanic Recognition Scholar

[ul class=”list list-search”] [li]Summer reading habits are critical in developing the foundation for later success.[/li] [li]Students who read more, read better. They also write better, spell better, and have larger vocabularies. They also have better control of complex grammatical constructions.[/li][/ul]

[ul class=”list list-search”] [li]Children who enjoy reading will read more and become proficient at the same time.[/li] [li]The amount of reading done out of school is consistently related to gains in reading achievement. [/li][/ul]

Buchanan encourages parents to take part in helping create a reading culture. Children who love to read come from an environment that values reading. Their environment is rich in printed materials. This includes books, magazines, newspapers as well as comic books. That environment also has adults who are reading role models. Studies show that children who come from print-rich environment consistently have higher academic performance. They score better in writing, reading and math skills.

Students participate in a scavenger hunt with a survivalist theme during a Read It Forward celebration.

Parents play an important role in creating enthusiastic readers. In one study, [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]researchers examined 21 kindergarten classes. They wanted to see who displayed high interest in reading and who showed low interest. It became clear that the home environment and parents’ reading habits were crucial factors.

Summer is the perfect time to build a reading culture. It is a great time to start new traditions, rituals, and activities. Parents and their children can read together. Parents can also talk with their children about the books they are reading. Visit your child’s school library to learn more about creating a reading culture at home. For questions about summer reading, contact the information literacy specialist at the school library.

The goal of the district’s Summer Reading Program is to instill the love of reading and to expand students’ literacy during the summer. AISD Library Services Department also offers eBooks that families can download and read offline. The eBooks in English and Spanish are available from [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Tumblebooks and [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Folletshelf. Email Buchanan ([email protected]) for password access to these sites.

“We want to develop students’ literacy and their love for reading,” added Buchanan. “There are so many fun, wonderful books for every student’s interest. If students are unsure of what they might like to read, they can talk to the librarian who can help find a genre they will enjoy.“

Create a reading culture. Engage children in reading literacy. Motivate children to become lifelong readers. And let books inspire children.

Summer AISD Campus Library Schedule From June 8 – July 30

(Check the [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Library Services Department website for any updates.)

Aldine Middle School: Check with the campus.

Aldine Ninth Grade School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Aldine High School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Anderson Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Bethune Academy: Open Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Black Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Bussey Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Calvert Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Caraway Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Carmichael Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Carroll Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Carter Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Carver High School: Open Wednesday, 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Conley Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Davis Ninth Grade School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Davis High School: Open Monday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

de Santiago EC/PK Center: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Drew Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Dunn Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Eckert Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Eisenhower Ninth Grade School: Open Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Eisenhower High School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Ermel Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Escamilla Intermediate School: Open Monday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Francis Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

García-Leza EC/PK Center: Open Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Goodman Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Grantham Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Gray Elementary School: Check with the campus.

Hall Center for Education: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Hambrick Middle School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Harris Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Hill Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Hinojosa EC/PK Center: Open Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Hoffman Middle School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Houston Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Johnson Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Jones EC/PK/K Center: Open Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Jones Elementary School: Open Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Keeble EC/PK Center: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Kujawa EC/PK Center: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Kujawa Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Lewis Middle School: Open Monday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

MacArthur Ninth Grade School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

MacArthur High School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Magrill Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Marcella Intermediate School: Check with the campus.

Mendel Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Nimitz Ninth Grade School: Open Tuesday, 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Nimitz High School: Open Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Odom Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Oleson Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Orange Grove Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Parker Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Plummer Middle School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Rayford Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Raymond Academy: CLOSED

Reece Academy: Open Monday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Reed Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Sammons Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Shotwell Middle School: Open Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Smith Academy: CLOSED

Spence Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Stehlik Intermediate School: Open Monday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Stephens Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Stovall Academy: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Stovall Middle School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Teague Middle School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Thompson Elementary School: Open Monday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Vines EC/PK Center: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Wilson Intermediate School: Open Wednesday, 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Worsham Elementary School: Open Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.