From Ann Logsdon,
Your Guide to Learning Disabilities.
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As schools recess for the breaks across the country, we can almost hear the collective shouts of glee as students take to the pools and hang with friends. Working on academics may be the last thing on their minds, but work we must to avoid regression. Did I see some eyes rolling out there?

What is regression, and how can it affect your child?

Regression is the loss of basic skills a student had previously learned. It usually happens after breaks in instruction, such as after summer vacation. All students will experience some regression over long breaks. This is normal and to be expected. This is why the first few weeks of a new school year are generally spent in review of material covered in the previous year. Students without disabilities are often able to quickly recapture concepts that were forgotten during this review. For students with learning disabilities, however, recovering those skills may be more difficult.

How to Prevent Your Child from Forgetting Skills Learned

Teachers agree that preventing skill losses in the first place is the best way to go, hands down. There are several options to help reduce the possibility of regression. Some schools and community organizations offer summer learning programs. Contact your school district’s central office and local community agencies that typically have summer programs to see if such services are available in your community. Private companies that specialize in tutoring may also offer individual or small group tutoring to keep skills fresh in students’ minds and even to give a competitive edge in some cases. In choosing a program there are several things you should consider.

What Help is Available to Help Kids Remember Academic Skills Over Summer?

Some students who are formally diagnosed with learning disabilities and who participate in special education programs may qualify for summer services, including specially designed instruction, based on students’ Individual Education Programs(IEP) The decision as to whether a learning disabled student qualifies for Extended School Year (ESY) is made in a formal meeting at the student’s school. The type of services, frequency, and amount of time that SLD students receive will vary, depending on their needs and their IEPs.

ESY services usually involve fewer hours of instruction than are typically given in a regular school day because they are focused specifically on IEP goals and objectives and other important parts of the child's IEP. ESY services are provided in small groups or one-on-one situations where students receive more individualized attention than they would generally receive in a classroom setting where there are more students present.

Programs and Strategies to Teach Your Child at Home During School Breaks

If there are no ESY services available to you, or if you simply want to provide good learning experiences at home, there are other ways you can provide instruction for your child.

Commercially produced programs are available in workbook, video, and computer game formats. Many are provided by subject and estimated grade level for your convenience. You can find these programs at public libraries, local book stores, and teacher supply stores. Reviewing your child's latest report cards or progress reports can provide you with information you need to select a program focused on the skills in which your child needs the most help. Your child's teacher and school librarian can also provide helpful guidance on materials and programs.

At home, there are great ways to help your child exercise her skills during break. Be creative and look for opportunities in your every day routine. Even the seemingly humdrum activities of every day life, can be transformed into learning experiences. There are many ways you can do this using these simple strategies given here and tools you probably have around the house.

You can adapt the challenge level for any of these activities based on the student’s skill levels. Where possible, pull in your student’s special interests and talents by creating activities around a theme. Treasure hunting, mystery solving, and role-playing are always winning techniques. Frequently, you can get more mileage from activities by targeting several different types of skills in each activity. Most importantly, make it fun! This is summer break after all, and it offers a wonderful opportunity for kids to develop a playful appreciation of learning.

Here are some ideas to get you started: