Summer Learning Fun!

Summer is knocking at our door, literally!  We are on the downward spiral, countdown....to SUMMER VACATION!!!  

Who is ready?

Wait...put the BREAKS ON!  We have spent the past 9 months learning, listening, working on behavior, our manners, and learning how to read...and now we are going to halt all that FUN for the next two months: UGH! 


Parents dread this, losing ground on our kids education. But: keeping your child's brain sharp doesn't require thick packets, boring drills or block walls.  



 


Below are BOREDOM BUSTERS that help offer a great way to work in some skill-building during the exciting Summer Break!!







Hold a YARD SALE!
Kids get a MATH WORKOUT when you have them price items, give change, and calculate the costs of everything sold, by say....3 PM by offering a 25% discount.  For younger ones, they get to learn about the value of a dollar and they will simply LOVE using the Calculator or adding machine.

BONUS: Your child will also be able to discover the value of recycling and hopefully be able to gain a new perspective on shopping when he/she see the toys they put in selling for 75 cents!




Keep 'Em READING!
Check out Scholastics website to discover the Scholastics Summer Reading Challenge (login at Scholastics.com/summer) to get kids reading!  They can also unlock one story out of a series of 12 by authors like R.L. Stine.  Each of the illustrated tales features a read-aloud option. 

BONUS: While your child waits for the next story, they can pick out great reading prizes and win prizes!  You can also introduce the library programs in your area to get them excited to READ!!!















 
 
Work the CAMERA!
Recognizing patterns is a skill that kids need for spelling and math.  Challenge your child to spot images in unexpected places, like faces in tree bark, and SNAP A SHOT!  They can then email the finds to Nana, or turn the pictures into a cool collage!

BONUS: This will allow a child to focus on an object/subject despite other distractions.



Make a MOVIE!
Have your child tell or write a simple script. Then, using LEGOs or Action Figures (Barbies work too!), they can pose the characters and shoot them in sequence. Upload the photos into an app like STOP MOTION STUDIO (iOS, free) or Stop-Motion Lite (Android, free) and there you go! They just created a stop-motion animation!

BONUS: Kids pick up storytelling tricks, which improve their writing skills, too!



Get into GARDENING!
Let your kiddo have a spot in the yard (or a cool Garden Box). Let them pick out what they want to grow. Take them to the library to research how to grow what they pick out, how much space those plants need to grow and how many plants (or seeds) to plant. Get them started and remind them (or put a spot on their charts) to water and tend to their garden daily!

BONUS: This will deepen your childs understanding of where healthy foods come from and they will also have a sense of pride for caring for their plants!




 

Tiny Tid-Bit!
70% of kids ages 6 to 17 look for something that makes them LAUGH when picking out a book. [source: Kids & Family Reading Report: 5th edition, from Scholastic's] 





HERE are some GIGGLE BOOKS to introduce to young readers:



The Pre-Reader: 

  

Llama Llama Sand & Sun by: Anna Dewdney

The Beginning Reader: 

  

Monsters love Underpants by: Claire Freedman

The Independent Reader: 

 

The Tapper Twins Go To War (with Each Other)  by: Geoff Rodkey