School's in for summer

Reading, math program helps young students close pandemic-related gaps

- ISABEL TEOTONIO

Students in this Grade 1 summer school class are writing a poem about themselves, painstakingly crafting letters to reveal words such as funny, smart and kind.

Leo grips his pencil, trying to print "I am sweet," but has difficulty with the last word, so the teacher crouches next to his table and helps him sound it out. He listens intently, studies a poster about vowels that's on the wall, then slowly spells it, letter by letter. He gets it right and a smile spreads across his face.

Scenes like this one at St. Maria Goretti Catholic School in Scarborough are playing out at several sites across the Toronto Catholic District School Board, which is running an in-person summer learning program focused on reading and math for kids who have just completed Grade 1.

The program aims to combat the usual summer setback children experience and help address pandemic-related learning loss, which has been acutely felt by younger students.

The Ministry of Education gave a total of $6 million to all boards this year to run a three-week summer learning program to boost numeracy and literacy skills for kindergarten to Grade 6 students. The TCDSB is using its $152,300 in allocated funds to target Grade 1 students in priority schools because it’s concerned about gaps in their foundational skills, which are necessary when learning to read and do math and are crucial for future academic success.

“It’s a great opportunity for us to be able to meet the needs that we see as the greatest for our students,” says Kevin Kerr, supervising principal for the board’s summer learning program.