Whether summer has officially begun for the year, or is approaching full-steam-ahead, there is no denying that it can be a hectic time of year. As a senior at Bloomsburg University studying to be a speech-language pathologist, this kind of summertime mayhem is something I am very familiar with. Some grade school students may be thinking about how they wish school never had to end, while many others have been counting down the last day of school to the last second. There is no doubt that the summer can be a riveting whirlwind of vacations, appointments, and running around. While students might be focused on leaving school for the year, many may not realize how much learning they are also leaving behind. Studies have shown that there is a summer learning loss, known as the dreaded “summer learning gap”, of about one month of instruction every year (Cline, 2018).Without continued instruction and review over the summer, students lose a whole month’s worth of new knowledge.
I am fortunate to have parents and many family members who are involved in the education system. After speaking to my mother, a second grade teacher, she confirmed that the effects of this summer learning loss are clearly seen in the first few weeks of school. She says that she has spent up to a few weeks in the beginning of the school reviewing necessary materials that were learned the previous school year. My father, who has worked in special education and learning support, believes that the only true way to eliminate this learning gap would be to switch to a full-year learning schedule. My mother also brought up this same point and talked about the vast benefits of continued schooling throughout the entire year. While all year school may not be a current reality, there are ways in which students can continue and maintain learning throughout their three months of break. Keepings students’ minds engaged, challenged, and intrigued in learning throughout the summer is easily just as important as it is during the school year. Keeping up with reading, writing, and math are crucial to learners. Learning can look different to each individual. Here are some summer-friendly ways to encourage your students to keep their wheels turning amidst all the summer hubbub:
Summer Reading Programs: Most public libraries offers summer reading camps, clubs, and programs. Libraries often offer prizes or other incentives to keep people reading all throughout the summer. I always view reading as a “work-out” for your brain as it engages the mind to figure out new words, main ideas, and other reading concepts. Barnes and Nobles also offers a summer reading challenge for students in first through sixth grade. By reading at least eight books and recording them in a journal, children can receive a free book!
Reading at home: My mother said that from a teacher’s perspective, setting aside even 15 to 30 minutes of reading a day could benefit students tremendously. Encourage your student to come up with an activity based on a book to expand their learning even further. Some ideas could include writing a play, making a game, starting a book club with friends, and even allowing them to come up with their own ideas. When given the opportunity, kids can come up with some creative and unique ways to show you what they learned.
Summer Camps: Summer camps are a valuable way to get your students interacting with peers. Children can learn a lot from social interactions that they will carry all through their lives. Summer camps often include field trips, games, crafts, learning new skills, and many more factors that will help fuel your learner. Northampton Community College provides opportunities for children to take classes during the summerthat are geared towards their grade and interests. Lehigh Carbon Community College also hold summer camp opportunities for students to learn. Any other types of summer camps are great methods for getting kids out and about, and to keep their mind motivated.
Encourage playdates/hangouts with peers: Social learning is an invaluable experience that promotes communication and development. While some students may interact with their peers at school during the year, that interaction may be different in settings outside of the school walls. For some children, it may benefit them to talk about expectations for a playdate and to even brainstorm topics to talk about or games to play. Social get-togethers provide a chance to make social skill learning a functional reality. They are even chances to teach your child how to be a good host/hostess!
Vacations/travel: Traveling always poses excuses to create situations perfect for breeding learning. Whether it is having your student help to plan, pack, and organize a vacation or visiting museums during the trip, there are endless ways to have fun learning. Writing a postcard to family or friends is also quick and easy to do on your trips. Even while physically traveling, there are games to play in the car that will help stimulate the brain. Some games the whole family could play include games like I Spy, 20 questions, the alphabet game, and memory games. One of my family’s favorite memory games is called “I’m going on a picnic…” In this game, one person starts the sentence and lists something they are going to bring on a picnic. Everyone goes around adding one item each time to that list after recalling everything else already listed in order. As the list becomes longer and longer, players need to remember and organize these items so they don’t forget by their turn! There are many games that can be played in the car, many which; students may not even realize they are actually learning along the way!
Limit time spent with technology: Getting outside and playing is one of the ways kids learn best. Visiting the local park, going for a walk, going on a picnic, planting a garden, having a lemonade stand, and swimming are all activities that propose endless situations to learn from. It can always be fun to hatch butterflies and watch them transform!
Cooking: Cooking was always one of my favorite activities to do with my father, and still is. To maximize learning, this process could start all the way from buying groceries. Teaching your children how to make a grocery list, clip coupons, and compare prices in the store are all great ways to involve them and to save some money! Once you figure out what you need to make dinner, you and your child can cook together. Planning out what you need for a meal, and keeping in mind what foods everyone likes to eat, can help with organizational skills and awareness of others. Ending this activity with a nice family dinner that your student helped to plan and prepare could bring them a great deal of pride. It also gives everyone the chance to take a break from all the summer mayhem to enjoy each other’s company!
Get out and about: Taking advantage of fun learning opportunities in your community is something you can try to do! Whether that is going to a farmers market or the Da Vinci Science Center, there are plenty of places to explore. Some other ideas include going to carnivals, amusement parks, flea markets, and the Crayola Crayon Factory. Taking a trip to local state and national parks to go hiking or swimming are always fun and free ways to spend your time. You could even try a fun, and almost worldwide, scavenger hunt activity called Geocaching. Geocaches, little things that people hide, are all around in places you may even pass every day. People hide these and then add clues to an app that will give you hints of how to find them.
Learning at home: Rainy days or even those needed “lazy days” at home can still be productive. Have your children plan a game night, put on a play, go on a scavenger hunt, or make crafts. If there isn’t a game that you want to play, have your child create their own board game. Days at home can be opportunities to review sight words and math facts that were learned the previous years. Pinterest is one of my favorite ways to come up with new and exciting ideas. Simply search Pinterest for key words such as “rainy day activities” or “summer fun.”
Just because school is out does not meaning learning should stop. One of the best ways to learn is from experiences. Communication and language skills can be integrated into all of these above listed activities. Tweak anything you do to meet the needs of your unique and individual child. There is so much around us to take advantage of. Learning over the summer doesn’t have to mean workbooks or flash cards. Go out (or stay in) and have some fun!
It has been a privilege to learn from my experience at Carol Walck & Associates and to share some of my findings with you all. I wish you all a happy, safe, and educational summer!
Sources:
Cline, Seth. (2018, June 7th). Is Summer Breaking America’s Schools? Retrieved from https://www.usnews.com/news/education-news/articles/2018-06-07/summer-exacerbates-the-divide-between-rich-and-poor-students.
Kira Silimperi
Senior, Communication Sciences and Disorders Major at Bloomsburg University