Book drive helps halt `summer slide’ for Stanislaus students
Parents, volunteers, librarians, and the whole community need to partner to fight “summer slide,” when students lose up to three months of learning before the school year starts. They must work hand-in-hand to stop this negative impact on reading for children in Stanislaus County.
Growing up in a rural area of Mexico, Marlen Valencia had minimal opportunities to receive education. Due to her family’s financial constraints she was only able to reach 11th grade. After some time, Valencia immigrated to the United States with her husband where they started their family.
Although many years had passed, Valencia was still determined to get her diploma and pass down that hunger for education to her children. “[I want to] become a good example for my children and to show them that it’s never too late to learn,” she said.
One of the biggest obstacles is that time between the school year when the dreaded “summer slide” occurs. The COVID-19 pandemic increased the impact of the summer slide by having children leave school almost two months earlier than planned, making parents immediately become their child’s at-home teachers.
Valencia, a student at LearningQuest-Stanislaus Literacy Centers, is on the path to earning her High School Equivalency diploma and uses the skills she’s learned to help her children stay on track with reading. She said, “It makes me feel good because I now have the capability to help my child with things I was not able to before.”
Many organizations are providing even more opportunities to support child literacy levels. Valencia is one of many parents who have signed up for the Giving Tree Book Drive where new books are given to the children of LearningQuest students, to support bonding through reading and building a foundation of literacy in the home.
Valencia said, “To receive books as a gift for my child means expanding their knowledge and their understanding of literature.”
Friends of the Modesto Library will hold an online Scholastic Virtual Book Fair where families can choose their own books, something that children may have missed due to early release from school. And the proceeds of their purchases support the mission of the Stanislaus County Library.
To make reading and borrowing books easier on families, the Stanislaus County Library is offering their Summer Reading Challenge, online reservations, smartphone app book catalogue, extended loan periods, virtual reading activities, and curbside pickup to keep children and adults engaged in literacy.
Stanislaus County Librarian Sarah Dentan said, “Children may need encouragement to practice and some of the best encouragement comes from reading with a parent or caregiver.”
Valencia said, “You are a step in the ladder of success for my child. Literature feeds the brain with knowledge and with knowledge comes power. Each book is a new tool for each child and it motivates them to keep reading.”
Books are tools to put the brakes on the summer reading slide. Consider the alternative: kids falling further and further behind classmates during this COVID-19 era. Make a difference and buy a book. Or two, or three.
For more information about summer slide research and prevention, visit bit.ly/stansummerslide. To donate new children’s books by Aug. 7 or learn more about the LearningQuest Giving TreeBook drive, visit www.LQSLC.com/books or contact Yvonne Downs, ydowns@LQSLC.com.