Ready to make this summer toad-ally impactful?
The North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation (NCECF) invites educators, summer program leaders, and community partners to leap into a season of fun with the Summer Learning Toolkit: Leap into Summer Learning – a comprehensive resource designed to help families and caregivers keep children engaged, curious, and learning all summer long.
Created with input from parents, providers, and community partners, our easy-to-use toolkit offers practical resources to help organizations promote meaningful summer learning and prepare children for a strong start when they return to school – because when it comes to learning, summer should never be a time to stand still on the lily pad.
Why Summer Learning Matters
Summer may be a break from the classroom, but learning shouldn’t stop when school doors close. National Summer Learning Week, taking place July 6-10, 2026, is an ideal opportunity to educate, inspire, and rally communities around the importance of keeping children engaged in learning all summer long.
A 2024 Gallup survey showed that nearly half of children in the U.S. lack summer learning opportunities, with cost being a major barrier. NCECF’s Summer Learning Toolkit is free, and includes a customizable proclamation that mayors, city council members, county commissioners, county managers, school district superintendents, and other community leaders can use to officially recognize and declare Summer Learning Week in their communities.
It’s Learning Disguised as Fun
Our toolkit is so much more than worksheets and plans. It’s packed with ready-made resources to help organizations plan, promote, and activate summer learning efforts in their communities. Set your team up for success with tools designed to help staff and providers prepare for the season ahead.
Help families continue learning at home with easy-to-share resources available in English and Spanish.
Included resources:
- Summer Action Plan + Template: A planning guide to help teams map out 12 weeks of summer programming, with both sample and customizable templates included.
- Program Staff Presentation + Talking Points: A brief training presentation that explains why summer learning matters and how providers can support literacy and development throughout the season.
- Communications Tools: Newsletter articles, weekly social media posts, and text messages to share summer learning activities with families all summer long.
- Digital Resources: A digital Linktree and QR code for quick family access.
- Resources to Print: Print out the sticker template, summer reading challenge, and resource/activity flyer to share with families when they come to your events.
How to Use the Toolkit
Whether you’re running a summer camp, after-school program, library initiative, or family engagement effort, the toolkit is designed to be flexible and customizable for your organization.
We encourage partners to:
- Download the toolkit
- Customize materials for your audience
- Share resources widely with families
- Promote Summer Learning Week in your community
- Encourage local leaders to recognize and support summer learning efforts
A Statewide Commitment to Young Readers
NCECF developed the Summer Learning Toolkit in collaboration with North Carolina’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading communities as part of a broader effort to ensure children across the state have the support they need to thrive from birth through third grade.
Since 2015, NCECF has led North Carolina’s participation in the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, a nationwide collaborative effort focused on helping more children succeed in school and beyond.
Working alongside families and partners – including organizations like Book Harvest – NCECF has helped shape resources that reflect what communities truly need to support children’s literacy and development.
Let’s make this a summer full of growth, discovery, and plenty of reasons to leap for joy.
Download the Summer Learning Toolkit: Leap into Summer Learning and start planning for a season of learning, laughter, and literacy.