Without summer school, low-income and English-language-learning students can fall years behind their peers. Monday, administrators of a program in Burlington’s Old North End were celebrating the procurement of $43,000 in federal money that has helped expand a summer program that could help those students.

Integrated Arts Academy summer school at H.O. Wheeler offers Summer Opportunities Academics and enRichment, which expanded from four half-days to five full-days for five weeks thanks to money obtained by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a member of the Senate Education Committee.

Of the 230 elementary-school-aged students enrolled in the summer program, 148 pupils are from the Old North End, and the program has a strong focus on increasing language skills for children learning English as their non-native language.

“Without the academic portion these kids can be up to three years behind their peers,” school administrator Jim Drown said. “There’s a definite link between behavior and academics because often kids would rather act out then let their peers know that they’re behind.”

Due in part to Sanders’ efforts to increase funding, the program has expanded hours, with classroom learning from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and enrichment programming, which takes the students on field trips and focuses on hands-on learning, from 1 to 4 p.m.

“What you see here are kids enjoying themselves,” Sanders said. “What we don’t want to see is a nation of children falling through the cracks. It’s pretty tough to survive in this world as a high-school drop-out.”

Burlington School District Superintendent Jeanne Collins said 35 percent of the children enrolled at the academy during the school year are learning English. She said the proportion of those children attending summer school is much higher. She added that about 90 percent of summer-school attendees qualify for free or reduced lunches, compared with about 80 percent during the school year.

“These programs are crucial,” Collins said. “Kids here have opportunities to have language-rich experiences. They go camping, see art shows, visit Shelburne Farms to learn about the ecological system, and see a community garden. These experiences are expanding their vocabularies. We need to give these kids those tools as well.”

The summer school employs three interpreters and keeps others on call as part of its $137,580 budget, Drown said. He said similar programs in Bennington and Rutland received financial assistance as part of Sanders’ effort, amounting to $150,000 for Vermont summer schools.

Teacher Aziza Malik said the academic portion of the day is about repetition and reinforcement.

“They’re here practicing the skills they’ve already learned, because these are the kids that don’t get the extra support that they need,” Malik said. “We keep it light, though. There’s no homework because this is the summer and they need to be able to play outside.” She added that in her classroom, where she teaches mostly fourth graders, there’s a mixture of native English speakers and English language learners.

Shag Urumg’s 7-year-old son, Adip, was born in Bhutan and began to learn English at Champlain Elementary. Urmg said the summer-school program is helping his son refine the skills he covered during the school year.

“His speaking and reading have improved,” he said. “And also his outdoor activities, like soccer. And it saves us a lot of money. I don’t know how much child care costs, but it’s a lot.”

Some students, most of whom are enrolled in the academic and enrichment programs, were present during Sanders’ presentation Monday and were invited to participate in the discussion by sharing some of the things they’ve learned. They agreed that visiting a community garden and interacting with animals at Shelburne Farms were highlights of the summer.

“For five weeks these kids are involved in meaningful, constructive activities,” Sanders said. “This is a model for what we should be doing all over the country.”