Senator Tom O’Mara is calling on Southern Tier and Finger Lakes families to make reading a top summer priority, warning that too many students risk falling behind without it.
In his weekly column, O’Mara said the annual “summer slide”—the academic backslide students experience during school breaks—is a well-documented challenge with lifelong consequences. “Students can lose up to 25 percent of their reading level over the summer,” he wrote. “By the end of the sixth grade, children who lose reading skills during the summer are, on average, two years behind their peers.”
O’Mara is promoting this year’s statewide reading initiative, “Color Our World,” in partnership with the New York State Library and hundreds of local branches. The campaign encourages young readers to choose their own books, join library programs, and read at least four titles over the summer.
He cited Scholastic’s “Kids & Family Reading Report,” which shows a sharp decline in reading frequency as children age, yet underscores how “access to books and a community of reading role models can bolster excitement for reading.”
Parents and students can also join the State Senate’s summer reading challenge by visiting O’Mara’s website at www.omara.nysenate.gov and clicking the “Summer Reading Program” icon.
“Building a reading list is one of the most important and impactful ways of all,” O’Mara concluded.
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