Summer is prime time… for knowledge slide
Ah Summer! Warm weather, vacations, relaxation and rejuvenation :).
But also forgetting math skills, reading skills, historical events, scientific concepts, time management and pretty much everything that happened before the last school bell. It’s such a thing that it has its own name – the dreaded Summer Slide.
“Summer Slide” should be called “No Practice Slide”
Summer get’s a bad rap it doesn’t deserve. Summer is ripe with opportunities for learning. Being out in the real world is probably a better way to learn than butt to chair in a classroom.
But, and it’s a big butt, when school lets out, the built-in structure that helps kids to practice and keep engaged with what they are learning goes away too. And you know what happens. If you don’t use it, you lose it.
Tag on some -tion to fun over the summer
So what to do if you don’t want the kids to head into the fall having to painfully crawl back to where they were in late May? Keep all the summer fun AND make it function!
Summer may mean the academic routine is out the window, but kids can constantly be engaged in activities that reinforce their learning. This week, we have 3 tips on always accessible (and free!) ways to stretch summer fun into function for keeping skills fresh.
1. Turn road trips into podcast time
“Are we there yet?” will be the last question when kids are captivated by a podcast that is blowing their mind.
Which sounds better? A)The entire family enthralled by an adventure that makes the kids too busy to remember to bicker. B) The entire family fighting over whose music selection to play or C) The entire family (except for driver of course) staring at their own devices.
It’s not a trick question. Pick A! For podcast recommendations, check out the Digital Gem of the week where we routinely hail podcasts for their genius at being screen time without screens.
2. Dance party music can drop knowledge as it drops a beat
It’s not all about Taylor Swift folks. There is plenty of music that the kids love that also reinforces their learning.
How does a 4 year old know the word ‘preposterous’? Well it’s because they jammed to a tune about a preposterous well-dressed rhinoceros. If you have a smart speaker, ask it to play music from your favorite educational show like Odd Squad or StoryBots. You’ll be surprised at the variety of songs and you’ll be jamming too. No smart speaker? No worries! Check out the Don’t read like a robot blog post for some recommendations from YouTube.
3. Take summer exploration to new heights with online experiences
Summer is ripe for kids to explore IRL. But let’s be real, sometimes, all you have to offer the kiddos are the yard or local park.
Digital experiences blows those limitations away and lets you introduce kids to a wide variety of experiences that wouldn’t otherwise be possible.
Where else can a 6 year old take a cooking class, an interior design class and a stock market investing class? The catch is these experiences aren’t free but there are plenty of classes in the $10 or less range. Check out Outschool.com Sign up and pick some options and have them handy for those days when the kids need something to do.
So there you have it. Three ways you can stretch summer fun into function and keep those school year skills fresh without losing a step. Play riveting podcasts on road trips into of your old mix tape; jam to music that engages their minds as it engages their bodies and, give new meaning to summer exploration with out of this world virtual experiences.
The kids won’t thank you but you’ll know you did good.
