Nine Tips for Creating an Effective Extended School Year Program for Students With Disabilities

Abstract

Extended school year (ESY) is a summer program available for students with disabilities who meet specific qualifying criteria. Teachers are often hesitant to accept the position of the ESY teacher due to the ambiguities and demands of the position. The purpose of this article is to briefly share the impetus and focus of ESY and give special education teachers nine tips to create and execute an effective ESY program. When implemented correctly, ESY programs have the potential to help students maintain learned skills and master targeted skills.