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player ready...Hinsdale-Clarendon Hills Elementary District 181’s popular Summer Learning Program runs June 11 to 29 with about 90 class offerings from 8 a.m. to noon Monday to Friday at Prospect School.
Courses are offered for students in kindergarten through eighth grade in science and technology, writing, math, language arts, foreign language, art and enrichment classes such as Mythology Around the World, Spend the Summer With Shakespeare and 6th Grade Book Camp.
“We again are offering classes based on suggestions from teachers who want to teach those classes in the summer,” said Rocky May, the summer school administrator, who also is assistant principal at Hinsdale Middle School.
May said the summer program continues to be financially self-sufficient, as there are fees of $175 for one-hour classes and $350 for two-hour offerings that cover salaries paid to teachers and staff.
“We have kids sign up for anywhere from one to four classes,” May said, noting that there have been registrations for about 1,000 student spots, which includes some students taking multiple classes.
“We’ve been fortunate to have repeat business over the years,” May said. “Summer is elective, so we want to have rigor and value, but also something to look forward to.
“There’s always potential for some regression over the summer. I like to think of our summer program as keeping the saw sharp.”
Class size for summer offerings is smaller than during the regular schools year, with most classes having an enrollment in the low teens during the summer, May said.
“Anytime a teacher has an opportunity with a smaller group, it’s great for connecting with kids,” he said.
With June 6 as the final day of the 2017-18 school year for students, there are only four days off, including a weekend, before the Summer Learning Program begins.
May said starting summer classes so soon after the start of the school year offers a couple of benefits.
“From a practical standpoint, it works well with our teacher availability and students plans to wrap up by the Fourth of July,” he said. “And there is kind of a momentum coming right off the school year, rather than maybe doing this later in the summer, after students and teachers have been on break for a while.”