Summertime is a time for fun, sun and playing outdoors. Unfortunately, it’s also a time where many kids lose a lot of educational ground. Without any proper schooling during the summer months, many kids go back in the fall having to relearn a lot of the skills they mastered the year before. Luckily, there are things you can do to help your child retain the information he has already learned – and perhaps learn a few new things.
Make time for learning. Actually schedule it on the calendar. Right now. Go ahead, we can wait. It is important to make sure that your child does school work over the summer. If you schedule the time to study, it’s much more likely that you will remember to do it.
Read daily. Make a point of reading each day. Make it fun by discovering new books at the library or the bookstore. If your child is younger, read to him. Even if he can read on his own, you may still want to read to a beginner reader. Hearing you read, listening to the information, will help him become a better reader. Older children should have a little quiet time and read on their own.
Talk about the reading material. Discuss with your child what they read or what you have read to them. Ask basic questions such as what the story was about and who the main characters are. Also ask open ended questions such as what they liked about the story and what they didn’t like.
Write daily. In addition to reading, have your child write. This is especially important for beginner writers. They can write anything they want. Make up stories, write letters to friends and family, write in a journal each day. My daughter is writing about what she did each day this summer. It’s not difficult, and it lets her practice her spelling, sentence formation and punctuation.
Review past assignments. If your child came home with a bunch of assignments that were completed throughout the year, spend a few minutes reviewing them each day. You can use the worksheets as guidelines to make up something similar, or just go over the concepts with your child.
Sign up for academic enrichment. There are many types of classes offered each summer. From summer school, to art classes at the local art museum, there are many ways for your child to get his learning on. Or learn more about academic enrichment.
Go on field trips. Learning doesn’t always have to happen in the house. Take your learning to other locations. Like science? Check out a museum or take a nature walk. Like math? A trip to the grocery store can be turned into a math lesson. There are many ways to incorporate learning into everyday life as well.
Use learning apps. While we don’t condone letting your child play on a device all day long, there is something to be said about educational apps. There are literally hundreds of them, on just about any subject. Educational apps can turn learning into a game and sometimes kids don’t even realize they are learning! Download a few and give your child a little special technology time.
Hire a summer tutor. Even if it's just a few months, hiring outside help to review subjects with your child will really help his chances of retaining the information and skills he's mastered this past year. A tutor can go over old concepts and introduce new ones to better prepare your child for the upcoming year.
Many kids return to school after the summer having forgotten a lot of what they learned the previous year. Don’t let this happen to your child. Use these tips to prevent your child from losing ground over the summer and send him back with an advantage.
Call Chicago Academic at 773-466-0101 and learn more about our Academic Enrichment programs.
