Summer is the time to relax, play and enjoy the sun, but it can also be a time of anxiety for parents. After all, many kids are away from school and are likely to spend a lot of their time in front of the TV, computer, or on their phone. And for parents, that’s a lot of wasted time that could be spent learning. 

Learning doesn’t stop in the classroom, and it doesn’t stop with summer vacation. All parents want to make sure their kids are learning and growing during their time off from school. To help make the most of summer, parents need to provide opportunities that stimulate their children, allow them to have fun, and generate new experiences. 

A new study in the journal Child Development offers some hope. Researchers found that children ages 6 to 8 who attended a summer program that encouraged them to play and explore for hours a day made significant progress on a standardized math test. The results suggest that kids need plenty of time to play, explore and make up their own games — and that parents should be wary of overscheduling their children this summer. 

It can be easy to get caught up in the excitement of the summer season, but parents should make sure to create opportunities for learning and growth during the summer months.

The best way to make learning fun and engaging for your children during the summer is to take advantage of the many opportunities to keep learning going. You can use school materials to review math concepts and vocabulary, such as practice problems and flash cards. Past projects and assignments can be discussed to reinforce the lessons learned and create a sense of accomplishment. Similarly, you can use educational toys to keep your child interested in learning. For example, you could use dinosaur figurines to reinforce the lessons learned.

Dedicate time to learning

Make it a priority to dedicate a set amount of time each day to learning. This doesn’t mean that you have to dedicate hours each day to your child’s education. Instead, consider dedicating just 15 minutes each day to learning. Even if it’s only 15 minutes, this can really help your child develop a love of learning.

You must devote time to your child’s education. You can’t expect them just magically to get smarter during the summer. You have to have a plan. Having kids read is one of the finest ways to do this. The best thing about reading is that it is kind of like a time machine. They can go anywhere and anywhen. Not only does reading provide a lot of knowledge, but it also provides a lot of entertainment.

Develop math and reading skills

Summer is the season where kids have a lot of time to sit back and relax, but this also means that there is a lot of time for them to become bored. Fortunately, there are many ways to keep kids busy throughout summer. One way is to develop their reading and maths skills. One of the easiest ways to do this is to assign them easy summer reading. Summer reading is a great way for kids to develop their reading skills and also give them something to look forward to. It also keeps them busy and prevents them from getting bored throughout the summer. And practical math problems have the same effect. Look for problem workbooks that don’t look like homework but a fun way for kids to spend time.

Join a summer camp

One of the most effective ways to ensure your child continues to learn throughout the summer is to send them to a summer camp. Summer camps can offer a wide variety of activities, ranging from sports to arts and music. Summer camps are an excellent way to ensure your child stays engaged with the world around them and their studies.

Summer camps are popular among kids and parents. A summer camp offers a combination of fun and education. Many have a theme and corresponding activities. Some camps like STEAM Summer Camps promote educational activities such as art, music, sports, science, and computers. Camps also specialize in certain activities such as horseback riding, swimming, or even circus arts! Summer camps are an excellent way to help children learn new things and have fun at the same time.

Help kids to build specific skills 

One of the biggest challenges of summer is finding ways to keep your kids sharp and engaged during their break. If your kids are still in school, summer is a great time to work on any areas of weakness they might have. It’s always a good idea to talk to their teachers before the summer starts. To make sure you’re helping them in the right areas. Some of the most common skills to focus on are reading, writing, Spanish and math. If your child is a bit younger, you can make sure they have fun while building their basic skills. Games like Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, and Rummikub are great ways to work on number recognition, matching, counting, and basic addition.

Read More: 5 Indoor Play Games for Kids in the Summer 

The best way to help your child learn and keep up with their schoolwork during the summer is to help them hone specific skills. What skills? Well, that depends on what your child’s interests are.  If they are into reading, for example, find a book about medieval times or Greek mythology and have your child summarize it.  While reading, have them make connections to what they are reading and have them explain. What they are learning to you. If your child is into arts and crafts, encourage her to draw and make sculptures of what she is learning about. If she is into sports, play a game of chess in the park and have your child explain the rules and strategy of the game to you.

End Up

See a garden develop and improve your research writing, reading, and reading skills through the spring activity at ReadWriteThink. The children are asked to write down observations and questions in their summer garden journals. Check out our Kids Gardening website for a wealth of ideas and tools for families (and the school) gardening. There are also interactive activities. We have on our site for summer activities, Start with a Book within the category Nature We live in a Green World.

Create cool things. Explore a myriad of hands-on projects at Begin with a Book. Choose from any of 24 themes (art music, dinosaurs, music and bugs and more), detectives, flight the planets, sports, as well as the night skies plus many more) and begin exploring.

Help parents plan for autumn. Work with the teachers at a level higher. Than to create a list of the things their new students can look for as they start school. For instance, if third graders are studying ancient civilizations recommend parents look into educational movies. TV and local museum that could give valuable background information about that subject.