Summer is an exciting time for kids. Sleeping late, swimming and watching TV whenever they want is something my kids look forward to every year. But as a mom, it’s my job to help teachers out during these long breaks. Because many teachers see the affect of the ‘summer slide’. Even if the ‘summer slide’ doesn’t exist, it’s still a good idea to keep our little ones’ minds strong. Here are some of our activities for summer learning.
Create a Routine
It’s so easy to fall into days where the TV stays on all day, and tablets are in the hands of kids just as much. Creating and sticking to a routine makes a huge difference in the attitude of your kids. In addition to that, days run smoother and you might find your kids playing together more than arguing! I love using calendars, incentive charts and chore charts during the summer to keep our routine in check. Use my FREE Fun at Home Calendar to plan out your activities each week to hold everyone accountable.
Read Everyday
This might seem like a no brainer, but from experience, remembering to read everyday is HARD. If you have a home full of kids, you definitely understand. But when you expose your children with fun, authentic books, it makes a world of difference. One of my favorite summer reads is “When Grandma Gives You a Lemon Tree”. It’s a great summer themed book, but also has a great message. Check this book out from your local library or purchase it! You’ll love it. Then grab these free resources to go along with the book.
Write Every Day
Your next year’s teacher will thank you! I promise! Writing is probably the last thing parents think about when thinking of activities for summer learning. For non-writers, don’t fret! Drawing is just as affective as writing. My kids love to draw and then write about their drawings. We like to do summer journals. My kids journal a little bit every day about their day. It could be drawing, writing or both! Use my free journal template to create your own summer journal!
Play Educational Games
Include the whole family in educational games! There are so many ways you can turn learning into games. Playing cards are great for addition and subtraction games. Items around the house can be turned into sorting games. Your kids can make their own memory game and pass it to a sibling to complete. One of our favorite games is Star Words. This game is perfect on a rainy day or at night when the house is completely dark! Just grab these free sight word cards and a flashlight and you have a fun, simple game of learning!
Take Learning Outside
Um..it’s summer! Of course you’re going to be outside. Take a break from swimming for some outdoor learning, or head to the park for a scavenger hunt. We love ice cream and popsicles during the summer. This ice cream experiment is a quick activity you can complete while you enjoy a cool snack!
Hands on Learning
If you live in the south like we do, summers can get brutally hot. When it’s too hot to go outside, hands on learning is the next best thing! I love bringing science to our hands on activities. One of our favorite activities is our liquid rainbow! It’s a great way to introduce density, even to the youngest learners. You probably have everything you need already in your kitchen too!
Crafts Are Still Fun!
I set aside some time each day for crafts and creating. I got a few groans at first, but I stuck to our routine. And crafting and creating turned into one of their favorite parts of the day. I like to go to Michaels and Hobby Lobby for inexpensive crafts, but they can also just use what you have on hand! Before it gets too hot, we like to use sticks and leaves to create our name for name practice. Sight words and spelling words work well for this too!
There are so many ways you can bring learning to your summer vacation! These activities for summer learning are easy and affective. Turn the electronics off and get to learning and having fun at the same time!
