Year-round learning, on the other hand, emphasizes the process through which educational development takes place. It is as much about academics as it is about experience. As an adjunct to the 180 days spent in a formal classroom, year-round learning adds time spent in a non-traditional learning environment, such as camp, to practically demonstrate the use of knowledge and behavior. In addition to applying skills learned in school, children acquire skills that will help make them productive and healthy adults, such as self-confidence and team building skills.

Youth development research conducted by the Search Institute, Minneapolis, supports ACA's position. After surveying thousands of children, the Search Institute identified 40 "developmental assets" that, ideally, each young person should experience every day. According to Dr. Peter Scales, senior fellow with the Search Institute, "The biggest plus of camp is that camps help young people discover and explore their talents, interests, and values. Most schools don't satisfy all these needs. Kids who have had these kinds of (camp) experiences end up being healthier and have less problems."

Already, the nation's largest school district is putting year-round learning to the test. In July 1998, the New York City Board of Education inaugurated Break-Aways: Partnership for Year-Round Learning. This unprecedented public school system reform adds up to 28 extra days of non-traditional academic programming to the regular school year. In a structured, supportive camp environment, students and teachers engage in a three-hour literacy based academic component, as well as several hours of traditional camp activities, such as hiking, archery and arts and crafts. According to the pilot proposal, "at the heart of the program is the belief that young people will meet the highest level of achievement if they continue the learning process in substantive ways during the summer and school-year breaks."