Ways to Ensure Your Child Continues to Learn During the Summer

With school just letting out for most children across the country, it is a needed break for students, teachers, and even parents. But don’t make the break last too long. Summer learning loss is a real thing. For those of you that are unaware, summer learning loss occurs when a child is away from learning activities for an extended period of time. In fact, experts have noted that a student can lose an average of two to three months of reading skills during the summer. Plus, for some of those junior high and high school students out there, all of those new equations and math concepts that were learned during the school year can fade away from memory by the time summer is over. However, it doesn’t have to be this way.

There are numerous learning opportunities for kids during the summer as long as you know where to look. This could definitely prevent the academic backward slide. And if you want your child to hit the ground running when the new school year begins in a few months, consider adding these activities to their summer routine.

Library Reading Program

Almost every library has some sort of reading program in place for children during the summer. And if your’s does not, there is a good chance you simply have to request one for them to start one up. Way too many kids don’t even pick up a book during the summer. Just think on how that could affect not just their reading fluency skills, but also their comprehension. As a Reading Specialist that works with struggling students, I have witnessed students come back from summer break and be up to a grade level behind from where they had been. Joining a library reading program will hold them accountable to keep on improving their literacy skills.

Hire a Tutor

There is nothing wrong with hiring a tutor to work with your child even if they are not struggling currently with their academics. In fact, some of the most gifted students are ones that are constantly working with a tutor every week regardless of grades. But not all tutors are created equally. If you are unsure of where to go to find a qualified tutor for your child, let iAchieve help. We offer the best tutors around for practically every subject you can think of.

Visit Educational Places that Interest Your Child

If you know that your child loves animals, taking a summer trip to the zoo would be a perfect educational getaway. Planning a weekly educational excursion somewhere is easy to do if you think about it ahead of time. A trip to the local museum, a national park, historical monuments and sites, aquariums, and even the state fair would interest most children.

Keep a Summer Journal

There is one guaranteed way to make a child a better writer. They just have to sit down and write. With a few tips every now and then by a parent, even the youngest kids can not only write complete sentences in no time, but they can compose whole paragraphs. In a world where more and more people are only writing through shortened words and symbols in text messages, it would be a good idea to strengthen your child’s writing skills as often as possible when given a chance.

Research with Google

The days of having to crack open a dusty encyclopedia to write research papers have passed. Work with your child on how to research topics properly by using internet search engines. Teach them what are correct sources to use and which ones you just shouldn’t waste your time on. Assign them a new topic every week to research and then either have them write a short paper on it or even have them compose a presentation of some sort. These skills will pay off quickly when the school year begins again.

Written by: Ryan Crawley

Learn more!

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