School’s out! It’s a perfect time to get outdoors, explore and learn outside the classroom. Here are suggestions to make summer days fun learning days for children from pre-school through high school.
Reve Pounds,
Christ Episcopal School
• “Children learn best by doing and by exploring. In the summer, I tell parents not to be so worried about flash cards. Not that those are not important, but the summer is a great time for kids to explore. We live in such a wonderful area for that. Nature is the best classroom. I tell parents to make nature educational.”
• Do nature scavenger hunts. Begin with a certain letter, or look for certain colors or shapes. Kids love to use cameras. Let them take photos and create a photo journal.
• Start a collection, like a leaf or rock collection. Make it educational by having kids identify what type of flower or stone it is. Teach them the parts of a flower and what is needed for a flower to grow. Have them chart a plant’s growth, like a lima bean or red bean. Plant a garden.
• For little ones, collect flowers or leaves and do crayon rubbings in a journal. Have a special basket for kids to put their “findings” from nature in. Get them a magnifying glass and other tools for exploration.
• “You just need to get out there and start exploring!” says Reve.
Ann Habisreitinger Barré, Huntington Learning Center
• “Kids need a wide range of knowledge, and you want kids to build their own ‘bank’ of knowledge. Parent encouragement is huge for kids. Read out loud with them, no matter what their ages are. Kids learn from example, so read books in front of them and encourage them to read independently also. Have a variety of books on hand, always! Encourage them to watch TV, but make it educational. Better yet, watch with them!”
• Take day trips to museums and incorporate books into that by getting books that relate. For example, take a trip to the WWII museum in New Orleans and check out a copy of I Survived: The Bombing of Pearl Harbor from the I Survived series by Scholastic Books.
• Journal! No matter what your kid’s age; young kids can just draw in it. Have them journal twice a week. More often is ideal. They’ll write about their summer camp or a sports game they played in, etc.
• Older students can prepare for college by volunteering. “Colleges are recruiting students who volunteer on their own time. Summer is a great time for this,” says Ann. It is also a good time to prep for ACT/SAT exams.
• For juniors and seniors, summer is a time to focus on college. Juniors, start looking at what the admissions qualifications are for the colleges you are interested in. Seniors, visit colleges. Now is the time!
• Establish a daily time for reading. “My mom used to plan that hour during the hottest part of the day to keep us inside and cool,” says Ann.
• At home, in addition to reading, do crossword puzzles, Sudoku and word searches. It keeps kids engaged and also builds their critical thinking skills.
• Encourage your kids to do independent learning projects in science or whatever interests them. Figurethis.org is a great website for ideas. “It’s so simple. All you have to do is buy the material!” says Ann.
Beverly McQuaid,
Planet Kids Academy
• During the summer, plan outside play time between 9-11 a.m. and 3-6 p.m. The hottest time of the day can be put aside for inside reading, puzzling and board games. A good daily shield of sunscreen is truly important! Keep your little gals and guys hydrated, as the heat is tough in our climate,” says Beverly McQuaid of Planet Kids Academy in Madisonville.
• Take advantage of outside play time with your children. Give them the opportunity to create an imaginary situation by offering non-structured props and modeling how to use them. For example, take old bed sheets outside and help hang them around low tree limbs or outside furniture to create a child’s camp site. Be a catalyst for your child in play. Give them ideas, and then take their lead. Engage with them, but don’t take over their make-believe situation.
Kathy LeBlanc, Cedarwood School
• “Summer can be a time for creating fun by experimenting with food. These activities can even be done outside on the back patio on a picnic table or in the garage. Most of what you’ll need is already in the pantry!”
• Salt Clay
What you need: 1 1/2 cups of salt, 4 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups water
What to do: Mix all ingredients together until the dough forms a ball around the spoon. Knead the dough well, adding water if it is too crumbly. After forming the dough into your desired shape, set the oven to 150 degrees and bake until hard. Keep an eye on it in the oven. This can be painted and decorated. Allow to cool first.
• Happy Face Sandwiches
What you need: Bread, peanut butter, raisins, alfalfa or bean sprouts or shredded coconut, squeezable cheese, other small food items
What to do: Spread peanut butter on one side of bread—open faced. Have child make eyes, nose, mouth and hair from other items provided. Encourage kids to be creative and eat what they create.
• Milk Explosions
What you need: Milk, small container, food coloring
What to do: Pour a small amount of milk into a shallow container and drop food coloring around the edges. Drop one drop of dish soap in the middle and see what happens! Extension: Pour a thin layer of white glue on a small paper plate and repeat the experiment for each child. Let it dry and you have a wonderful sun catcher.
• Cheese Robots
At snack time, cut cheese into different sized chunks. Provide kids with pretzel sticks and let them put the chunks together to create “cheese robots.” For added fun, provide red and green grapes for “muscle arms.”
Sherri Hansen, Culinary Kids
• “With a family of four young boys, we love to get messy outdoors during the summer!” Homemade bubble solution is fun and cost-effective, and it goes a long way! Fill a recycled gallon jug with water; add 2/3 cup of liquid dish detergent and 3 tablespoons of glycerin (found in the first aid section of the pharmacy). “My boys love making their own bubble wands with pipe cleaners…creativity and science all summer long!”
Jay Bennett, Bennett Water Ski and Wakeboard School
• “Keeping kids actively engaged is very important during the summer. Learning new physical activities not only keeps the muscles engaged but also keeps the brain working. Ski school provides a safe environment for kids to learn a new sport and make new friends from all over the world.” Bennett’s offers a wide variety of activities for kids of all ages and ability—from beginner to advanced water skiing, wakeboarding, knee boarding and tubing, stand-up paddle boarding, swimming, ping pong and pool tables.
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