To help compensate for a year-plus of school closures and disrupted learning due to COVID-19, many states are planning to beef up their summer opportunities. Thanks in part to the $1.9 trillion relief package, K-12 public schools will receive $122 billion in aid, including $30 billion earmarked specifically for summer school, after-school, and other enrichment programs.

For many parents, this is welcome news—particular those who have kids with LD and other learning challenges that have struggled to learn remotely or in hybrid settings. Other major beneficiaries include low-income families that traditionally have not been able to afford summer camp and other enrichment opportunities with high price tags.

During the best of times, kids normally lose ground academically over summer vacation. But testing this past fall showed that more kids are going into summer behind where they should be academically.

With that in mind, many school and community programs (e.g., YMCA, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, etc.) are developing affordable summer programs that combine enrichment, fun, and learning to help kids be better prepared when the school bell rings in September.