Maximizing Summer School Success with Progress Learning

Summer school isn’t just a time to “catch up”—it’s an opportunity to accelerate learning, close gaps, and set students up for success in the fall. But planning a summer program that’s meaningful, differentiated, and engaging can be a big lift for educators. That’s where Progress Learning comes in! 

Whether you’re running a district-wide program or supporting small groups of students, our tools make it easier to plan, teach, assess, and remediate—all while keeping students motivated and on track. Here’s a step-by-step guide to planning your summer school program using Progress Learning:

Step 1: Identify Needs with Diagnostic Data

Start your planning with data. Use Progress Learning’s built-in diagnostics or import NWEA MAP scores to immediately pinpoint where students are in math and reading. With our Liftoff adaptive intervention platform, students receive personalized learning paths based on their current level—not just their grade level. This approach ensures every student, especially those in Tier II and Tier III intervention, receives targeted support from day one​​.

Step 2: Design a Tiered Instruction Plan

Summer school often includes students with diverse needs. Use tiered instruction to differentiate:

• Tier I (On Grade Level): Use bell ringers, video lessons, and skills practice aligned to your state’s standards. Set a consistent structure to review and reinforce essential content.
• Tier II (Some Gaps): Use Quick Click Remediation to reassign practice based on missed questions or low scores on specific standards. You can assign these directly from progress reports or assignment results​.
  Tier III (Significant Gaps): Activate Liftoff for intensive intervention. Use the Galaxy Star Report and Liftoff Growth Report to track mastery and motivate students with clear, gamified goals​. 

Step 3: Provide Student Activity Options

Engaging students during summer school or summer break requires structure and flexibility. With Progress Learning, you can offer multiple options to support student growth, whether they’re learning at home or in the classroom.

Option 1: Follow a Weekly Schedule

This structured approach works well for classrooms, summer programs, and independent learners:

• Monday: Spend 30 minutes in the Study Plan. K–5 students aim for 3 Galaxy Stars; 6–12 students work to turn yellow/pink dots into green.
  Tuesday: Watch videos for two standards and complete 10-question practice sets. Reflect on what was learned.
• Wednesday: Take a practice test in the Study Plan and review errors in Graded Work.
• Thursday: Focus on fluency in Skills Practice (20 minutes for K–8). Older students can aim to earn tokens and celebrate with Game Arcade time​.
  

Option 2: Empower Student Choice

Give students ownership over their summer learning with a choice board. Each activity targets a key learning goal while giving students flexibility in how they practice. This is a great way to increase buy-in and engagement—especially for older students working independently. Click HERE to download. 

Option 3: Set Summer Learning Goals

Use our student goal-setting templates to help learners define what they want to achieve and how they’ll get there. Whether it’s mastering specific standards or earning a set number of Galaxy Stars, goal setting provides focus and a sense of accomplishment. Click HERE to download. 

Each option can stand alone or be combined to fit your school’s summer model. Teachers can print student ID cards with login instructions, and families can receive brochures to support learning at home​.

Step 4: Support At-Home Learning

A successful summer program doesn’t end at school—it continues at home. Progress Learning provides everything educators need to make that transition smooth and effective.

Start by equipping families with easy-to-use resources:

• Printable family letters and brochures with best practices for supporting student learning at home.
• Custom student ID cards that include login credentials and make it easy for students to access their accounts from any device​.
  

Accessing Progress Learning is simple:

• Students log in via any web browser at app.progresslearning.com/login—no app required.
• If your school uses Clever or ClassLink, students can log in through their district portal with single sign-on. Just click the Progress Learning logo from the dashboard.
  
  

Step 5: Monitor Progress and Celebrate Growth

Summer school might be short, but it’s full of opportunities for meaningful growth. Use our progress monitoring tools to track student performance by standard and make real-time instructional decisions. Reports are easy to access and filter by week, month, or school year, so you can stay focused on student mastery. Recognize growth with classroom leaderboards, Galaxy Star Challenges, or small rewards to keep motivation high​​.

Summer school is a powerful time to connect, inspire, and support students. With Progress Learning, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. We provide everything you need to build a strategic, student-centered summer learning experience—from diagnostics and adaptive practice to engaging instructional content and real-time reporting.