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There are three pies and 4 monsters. How a lot pie will every monster eat?

That was the mathematics query earlier than 5 soon-to-be fifth graders earlier this week at Summer time Connections, Denver Public Faculties’ full-day summer season program for elementary college students.

With dry erase markers and private white boards, the scholars sat in a unfastened semicircle on the ground of a classroom at Joe Shoemaker elementary faculty, puzzling out the reply. A scholar named Gael was the primary to unravel it.

“Gael says three-quarters,” the trainer stated. “Why, Gael?”

Smaller class sizes, a mixture of lecturers and enjoyable, and acceleration as a substitute of remediation — which means incoming fifth graders do fifth grade work as a substitute of reviewing fourth grade abilities — are the hallmarks of Summer time Connections, which is now in its second 12 months and serving about 1,860 elementary faculty college students.

Nevertheless it’s laborious to know whether or not this system, which is funded by federal COVID reduction {dollars} and meant to assist college students make amends for misplaced studying, is having the supposed impact.

Preliminary knowledge evaluating the spring and fall studying scores of first via third graders who had attended Summer time Connections final 12 months confirmed they didn’t expertise “summer season slide,” or the lack of tutorial abilities. That was excellent news, provided that the identical knowledge confirmed that college students who didn’t attend Summer time Connections did expertise summer season slide in studying.

However a extra detailed evaluation confirmed no distinction in studying scores between the 2 teams. That evaluation, which matched Summer time Connections college students with non-Summer time Connections college students who have been related demographically and academically, discovered the 2 teams “had statistically similar common fall take a look at scores,” in accordance with a district memo.

A pre-pandemic half-day summer season program referred to as Summer time Academy had the identical end result.

In an interview, Angelin Thompson, the director of prolonged tutorial studying for DPS, identified that the extra detailed evaluation was additionally narrower. It solely checked out college students who took one explicit studying take a look at, Istation English, which was about half of Summer time Connections college students.

DPS researchers highlighted different caveats too, together with that evaluating Summer time Connections college students to non-Summer time Connections college students is imperfect. Not like in medical research the place one group is given a placebo and the opposite is given a drug, there isn’t a placebo on this comparability. The scholars who didn’t attend Summer time Connections might have spent their summer season enjoying and by no means selecting up a e-book or with a personal studying tutor.

And whereas Summer time Connections targeted on math and science along with studying, there have been no fall assessments within the different topics to measure whether or not college students made progress.

For her half, Thompson is specializing in the broader evaluation that confirmed Summer time Connections college students didn’t expertise summer season slide. It might be a key piece of information as DPS leaders determine whether or not to maintain this system, which is costing almost $4 million to run this summer season, when the federal stimulus {dollars}, referred to as ESSER, dry up subsequent 12 months.

“I’m hoping we’ll make the case that this program is so useful and households admire it and youngsters are having enjoyable,” Thompson stated. “As soon as the ESSER {dollars} go away, DPS must make laborious decisions on what we proceed to fund and what we don’t.”

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Some stated the day was too lengthy, whereas others requested for extra

Summer time Connections debuted final summer season as a super-size model of the half-day Summer time Academy. Summer time Connections was nearly twice as lengthy at six weeks as a substitute of 3½ weeks. It provided a full day of lecturers as a substitute of a half day, and it was open to all elementary college students, not simply these scuffling with studying or studying English.

This 12 months’s program is analogous, with a couple of tweaks primarily based on classes realized. Summer time Connections is 5 weeks this 12 months as a substitute of six, a compromise between mother and father and academics who stated six weeks was too lengthy and analysis that claims longer is best, Thompson stated.

It’s nonetheless a full day, although, regardless of some concern from academics. In a survey of final 12 months’s Summer time Connections academics, 54% who stated they wouldn’t return this summer season cited “day too lengthy” as the rationale. “The complete days have been extraordinarily lengthy,” one wrote, in accordance with a district slide presentation summarizing the survey outcomes.

“Children have been having a tough time and sometimes didn’t attend a lot,” one other wrote.

Mother and father have been break up on the problem, with some asking within the survey for a half-day choice and others asking for extra protection, together with little one care within the mornings earlier than 9 a.m.

One dad or mum wrote that the hours have been “very working dad or mum pleasant.”

Thompson, who’s newly answerable for this system this 12 months, stated DPS stored the total day as a result of mother and father and college students needed it, and to slot in all of the enjoyable actions, together with health club and pc science lessons, Lego challenges, and a brand new discipline journey to the Denver Aquarium. To deal with academics’ issues, Summer time Connections added extra student-free time through the day for academics to prep their classes.

Thompson additionally employed extra particular training academics and paraprofessionals to deal with one other concern: a perceived lack of help for college students with disabilities final summer season. Some academics stated they didn’t know till the primary day of this system which college students had particular training plans, and a few mother and father stated academics didn’t observe their youngsters’s plans.

Particular training has been tough. College students with disabilities are overrepresented at Summer time Connections, however this system shouldn’t be particularly designed for them.

Final 12 months, 22% of the roughly 2,000 Summer time Connections college students had a particular training plan, which is twice the district price. Some college students with disabilities are provided a unique summer season program referred to as “prolonged faculty 12 months,” which is tailor-made to their wants. Nevertheless it’s solely a half-day program, and Thompson stated some households opted for the full-day Summer time Connections as a substitute, regardless of makes an attempt to clarify that the opposite program has extra assets.

“At Summer time Connections, we don’t flip away anybody for any motive,” Thompson stated. “For those who register your child when there’s obtainable area, that’s it.”

This 12 months, solely one of many 10 faculties internet hosting Summer time Connections — Lowry Elementary — had a wait checklist. At all the different faculties, all college students who needed to attend obtained in.

Friendships and social development have been a vivid spot

Even when the tutorial outcomes from final 12 months’s Summer time Connections program have been difficult, the survey outcomes revealed one other vivid spot: enjoyable and friendships.

Nearly all the college students surveyed stated they made buddies, and 31% stated it was their favourite a part of this system. (The primary runner-up? Recess.)

“That I made new buddies and I additionally realized easy methods to multiply two digits and one digits collectively,” one scholar wrote in response to what they appreciated about Summer time Connections.

Academics additionally cited college students’ social development as a hit of this system, and 96% of oldsters stated it helped their little one be extra socially ready for the subsequent faculty 12 months.

“I believe it has been a really fascinating social expertise for college students,” one trainer wrote. “Only a few college students knew one another beforehand so it was superb to see how they created friendships in such a brief period of time. I hope that stays with our college students and empowers them to create friendships wherever they go in life.”

That social success was evident on the playground throughout recess at Joe Shoemaker elementary faculty this week. A clump of fifth grade ladies wandered the soccer discipline chatting whereas third graders chased one another up the climbing mountain and throughout plastic toadstools.

An enormous group of boys performed a fast-paced sport of basketball as a recess monitor shouted, “Cross it! Shoot it! Sure, that’s it!” Ladies dangled off the rope jungle health club, their hair floating free.

Not a single scholar sat alone.

Melanie Asmar is a senior reporter for Chalkbeat Colorado, masking Denver Public Faculties. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

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