It can be tough to prevent the summer slide, which is when students lose ground on their educational attainment while out of class for summer break.
Especially when it comes to reading.
News 5 has reported on the progress made following pandemic-era losses.
The latest Ohio report cards show gains for Cleveland Municipal schools in several areas, but significant work remains in early literacy for kindergarten through third, with 35.8% of third graders proficient in reading.
RELATED: See how your school scored: Ohio releases 2023-2024 report cards
The Cleveland Public Library is helping parents, grandparents, and caregivers keep their students on track this summer.
Mom of three, India Jones, said she's ready for school to be out for summer.
"Just kind of hanging out and relaxing," Jones said.
She is ready for a break from the hustle and bustle, but not from learning.
"Especially for my oldest, making sure he’s reading every day," Jones said.
That brings them to the Cleveland Public Library.
"We started participating in library programs over at the Rice branch because that’s the neighborhood we live in," said Jones.
Jacqueline Lamb, senior director of youth services and community engagement at Cleveland Public Library, said they want kids of all ages to feel like the library is for them.
"The goal is to ensure that our program is connected to what they’re learning in school," said Lamb. "But it’s fun! It’s a good time. It doesn’t feel like school, but it still continues that literacy support.”
It is going to feel like a party on Friday, April 18, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the recently opened Martin Luther King Jr. campus at 10601 Euclid Avenue. Cleveland Public Library will be celebrating its Book Boogie, which is the kickoff to CPL's summer literacy campaign.
"We're going to have skating, bumper cars, a silent disco with three different DJs," she said. "We’re going to have food. We’re going to have crafts.”
There will also be a gaming tournament, free books, prizes and more!
The program is in partnership with the Cleveland Browns’ "Stay in the Game! Attendance Network."
"It's this awareness that coming to your library is fun, right, and having our sports teams back that is important," said Lamb.
CPL will also be debuting its new, limited-edition Cleveland Browns children/youth library card. It features Browns mascot, Chomps, tackling literacy book by book in his library.
The program is part of the library’s "Cleveland Reads" initiative to close gaps and address inequalities facing the city.
"Families can participate online if they want to by logging their books and the things they’re doing at home," Lamb said about what families can expect from the summer literacy program. "Then, we also have an amazing and important component where they come into our branches and receive support through programming on Tuesdays and Thursdays. All our branches have the same curriculum on the same days.”
Lamb said the more kids read, the more hours they log and programs they participate in, the more points they earn towards special rewards.
For Jones, the best reward is seeing your child become a reader.
"And he can change voices with the characters," she described of her oldest son reading aloud. "It’s really cool to watch him do that!”
Jones and her kids will be at the Book Boogie on Friday, checking out books to read between playground visits this summer. She also encouraged adults to pick out a page-turner at the library.
"When they (her children) see me read they go, ‘Oh, I want to read too,'" she said.
The Cleveland Public Library also has a kindergarten readiness program called Young Scholars. Like the summer programming, it’s free to families.
