Reading, writing, biking: A summer spent helping students recover from pandemic

BICYCLES TYPICALLY AREN’T allowed on the blacktop at Verde Elementary School in Richmond. But this year, scooters and bikes are a key feature of the school’s summer program aimed at getting students reacquainted with both in-person play and learning.

As schools pivoted to distance learning during the pandemic, school enrollment in California plunged. But even the students who had steady access to the internet and managed to keep up in an all-new online environment still lacked the same quality instruction and emotional supports they have in a typical year.