Summer Reading Program

The Holyoke Rotary Club, in partnership with the Holyoke Public Library and the Holyoke Public Schools, developed and piloted a summer reading program at Kelly School.  With input and guidance from the National Summer Learning Association we developed a reading program for K – 3 grade students that can be completed at home, at the library and in other learning programs held throughout the city during the summer. 

This program involves outreach to parents and families to provide them with opportunities and resources to help their children become proficient readers by the time they complete third grade.  The program is designed to provide a platform for the Holyoke Public Library and the Holyoke Public Schools to partner with families and children to stop summer learning loss. 

With pre and post testing, we hope to demonstrate that students that continue to be nurtured in literacy and are provided reading opportunities throughout the summer will return to school in September at the same reading level they left in June. 

The first year of the program got off to a late start.  While we did see improvement in student testing, the number of students and families involved in the program was small.  We will be starting recruitment of families much earlier for the 2013 summer reading program.