Finding Your Way This Summer
It is hard to believe that the school year is coming to a close and summer is right around the corner! A little bit of planning can help ensure your child avoids the “summer slide.”
Below, find some ideas to help your family live in harmony over the summer!
Structure and Routines
Children thrive with a consistent routine and structure to their day. It is helpful to display a monthly calendar as well as a daily routine to provide your child with scope and sequence. Maybe there is a vacation planned for the second week of July or a zoo camp the week before school starts that is marked on a family calendar.
In addition to the monthly calendar, a daily schedule for days at home is helpful. Making a schedule with your child in which there is time allotted for playtime, exercise, meals, snacks, rest, free choice time, and academic enrichment can firm up a long day at home. While it is beneficial to have a schedule, there is always room for flexibility!
Play, Create, Experiment!
Being away from the busyness of the school year and in the fresh outdoors provides time for creativity to explode! Providing your children with time to create will unfold into other opportunities or projects.
When you hear, “I’m bored,” it is helpful to have a bin at the ready in the event your child is unable to come up with an idea on their own. Make a bin or two of craft supplies, watercolor paints, chalk, and junk art. Having glue, scissors, and paper in the bins can help your child find independence.
Experiences
Learning is woven into many activities that take place at home. The slower pace of the summer provides time to focus on that learning. Finding a balance between outings and unstructured time can create a sweet spot for each. Some ideas to create meaningful experiences include:
Plant a garden that your children can tend to (and eat from) this summer.
Make bird feeders for bird watching/bird observation journals.
Cooking is rich with academic skills- fractions, measurement, temperature, following step-by-step directions.
Hold a lemonade stand in your front yard.
Keep score during a game of basketball with mental math.
Field trips! The Zoo, Science Center and Library are full of learning opportunities. There are many parks open for exploration, too!
Authentic writing: grocery lists, letters to friends and family, and journaling
Vacations cultivate curiosity. Ask your child to participate in research and things to do in the place you are traveling. Study the city on a map. Learn the history.
Family game nights; Scrabble, Monopoly, and card games all encourage learning and connection between family members!
Skill Reinforcement
Studies show that, on average, students lose about 30% of learning over the summer months, some closer to 50%.
Talk to your child’s teacher before the school year closes. Often, they will know just what is needed for a summer focus for your child. One other simple idea is rather than recycle the unfinished journals that come home on the last day of school, save them! Have your child complete an unfinished page each day of the summer as a review.
Healthy Snacks
Children reach for things that are easily available to them. Put healthy options at eye level: lower drawers in the refrigerator and in a basket on the kitchen countertop. Ideas of healthy snacks that will keep children full and avoid a sugar craze include:
Smoothie cups, Granola, Blueberries, Cherries, Honey sticks, Baby carrots with hummus, Pickles, Cheese and pepperoni, celery and peanut butter, Apple slices, Raisins, Bananas, Yogurt, Hard boiled eggs, Edamame, Energy bites (my boys’ favorite- recipe linked)
Help Your Community
Encouraging kindness through community service is a wonderful way to help over the summer months. There are many places in Louisville that lovingly welcome family support. Our family has fostered for the Kentucky Humane Society every summer. We are all animal lovers so this works perfectly for us. Find a place that matches your family’s interests and reach out to see how you can help! Some ideas include:
You can always just bake cookies for an elderly neighbor!
Most importantly, lean on others. Schedule play dates or picnics at the park to help break up the day and give you some time to socialize with other parents. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Make time for self-care so that you can be your best self for your children. Even an hour away can help you recenter.
Wishing everyone a wonderful summer!
