FOR KIDS : Summer Learning a Hot Trend : Classes--from preschool math to chess--help children brush up on basics or acquire new skills.

While summer was once a child’s cherished escape from the rigors of the classroom, more and more parents are using the off time as an opportunity to expose their kids to fresh challenges or time-honored basics.

In response to the growing demand for such course work, many classes are available this summer at local community colleges and through private firms that specialize in computers, math and reading.

At Los Angeles Pierce College in Woodland Hills, one of the nine Los Angeles community colleges, courses range from preschool science, phonics and math to beginning chess. There is even a class that teaches memory skills for elementary and junior high students.

For some parents, the classes give their children extra exposure to a subject that interests them. For others, the courses approach reading and math in ways that are increasingly difficult to find in many schools.

“Public schools often do not teach simple computation and phonics anymore,” said Kathy Main, director of the extension program. “Enrollment in these courses is very high.”

Math, reading and phonics courses are full every time they are offered, Main said. But courses designed more to provide enrichment than basics are also in demand.

Christine Jordan--whose three children have taken many summer classes at Pierce--will teach “Discovery Time,” geared to 4- to 6-year-olds. She uses classic children’s stories to teach concepts in architecture, math and geography.

For example, Jordan reads the students “The Three Little Pigs,” then has them carefully construct houses out of different materials, testing various structures. “We talk about textures, weights and materials, and why, if something isn’t built right, it might fall down,” Jordan said.

Jordan, who has a background in performing arts, is a fan of out-of-school experiences because she says they allow children to zero in on an individual fascination or to expand their horizons in a way that they cannot in the average classroom.

Lisa Marlow, who teaches “Math Is Fun” for preschoolers, said many parents want their children to have a leg up for kindergarten.

“Classes are so large in public school, the parents want to make sure the kids have a head start,” said Marlow, an elementary school teacher.

Marlow said she finds parents specifically signing up their girls for math and science courses. “There’s a real push to expose girls from the start to these subjects.”

For Father James Blantz, teaching chess through the Pierce program gives children exposure to a game that builds logical thinking and calculating strategy--and is an alternative to video games. “Chess is strictly a game of the mind,” he said. “The kids who come to my class are real serious about learning it.”

While the subjects may be serious, the style of the courses is essentially lighthearted. Blantz, a chaplain at Rancho San Antonio in Chatsworth, begins his chess class by asking the children if they want to learn mean, nasty, sneaky, trap-setting chess strategy. At first, there’s no movement, but slowly, the hands all go up--and then he starts his first lesson.

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WHERE TO GO

What: Summer classes for children at Pierce College. Location: 6201 Winnetka Ave., Woodland Hills. Price: Varies from $23 to $45, depending on the course. Call: (818) 719-6425.