School may be out for the summer, but that doesn’t mean your kids should stop learning. In fact, taking a long break is a quick way to forget all that they worked so hard to learn all throughout the school year. The question then is, how can you keep your kid’s minds working until school starts up again?
– Get them reading. Books, magazines, shampoo bottles, anything. Reading not only keeps the juices flowing in your brain, it will also help you learn new things too.
– Require video games. Not just any video game though. I mean require educational video games. For example, Math Playground has math video games for grades 1-8 and even has games for calculus, algebra and geometry. To help with science there is the Science Game Center that is a general hub for some of the best science video games online. Head to your favorite search engine and just search a subject and “video games” and you’ll find loads of free resources for video games in for things like grammar, reading, math, science and more! You could even require your kids play a different subject for each day of the week!
– Have them start a blog. Set up a free blog on Blogger or WordPress and have your kids update all summer. This will pump their creative juices and help them with writing, reading and communication skills.
– Summer camp. Summer camps will keep your kids in the motions of being attentive “in class” while also helping them to continue interacting with their peers while learning new skills.
– Have them cook, clean and run errands with you. This is about more than just getting help with chores. Have your kids help you cook dinner to learn measurements, timing and following directions. Take them with you to the grocery store and talk about budgets and ask them to help you see how much things cost and how much money you will have left after you purchase certain items. You could also tell them what products you need and have them find those items in each aisle.
This is of course far from an exhaustive list. Just remember, the goal is to keep your kids’ minds working, so if you have a better idea and think it will help them, use it! Here’s to their success!