In an effort to ward off the summer learning slide and enrich the educational experience during the upcoming school year, Niles Community Schools is extending an online program to students at Ring Lardner Middle School.

The program, called Odyssey, was used last year with great success by students at the Ballard, Eastside and Howard-Ellis elementary schools.

Ring Lardner principal Doug Langmeyer is hopeful his students will also reap the benefits.

“It is not a mandatory thing, but it is something we hope that kids will take advantage of,” he said. “It is very engaging and interactive.”

The Odyssey program is available to students grades six through eight at Ring Lardner. Information has been sent to the home of each student, Langmeyer said.

Students that don’t have online access at home can log on to the program at the school’s enrichment lab from 9 a.m. to noon Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays through Aug. 15. An adult will monitor the lab.

Langmeyer said the best thing about the program is that it is personalized, using a student’s most recent NWEA scores to create a unique learning path for each kid.

“That is really good because we are ensuring that kids are being assigned material that they need,” he said. “Our goal isn’t to frustrate kids by asking them to do work they aren’t ready for or have them work on skills they’ve

already mastered.”

Langmeyer said the students would be encouraged to continue to use the program throughout the school year.

To learn more, visit the Ring Lardner page on the Niles Community Schools website nilesschools.org. A link to the Odyssey program is available there.