How can you make a difference to your child’s summer learning?
Ah, the endless lazy days of summer! Our children’s lives often seem to be timetabled from breakfast to bedtime during term time. It’s great to have a change in routine, let them sleep in (if they ever will!), take a break from the schedule, and just relax. However, young brains still need stimulation. If you don’t want them to slip backwards and lose the progress made over the previous academic year, you need to keep them thinking and doing during the long summer break.
Momentum and progress in your child’s learning can be kept firmly alive over the summer, if you as parents can keep them engaged with the love of learning. Your child doesn’t have to know they are learning, they just need help to stay curious: about the world around them, about books, or about a favourite topic such as dinosaurs.
Learning fun
Join your local library and make visits there a regular part of the holiday routine, go to the theatre or cinema, listen to audio books whilst travelling (ideally with your child reading along from the book) and read to each other every day. You could also practise maths concepts whilst having fun baking at home, such as using ratios to increase and decrease quantities of ingredients when baking for a different number of people than a recipe states.
Make sure you encourage your child’s curiosity about their surroundings – discuss the natural environment, history, architecture, and the people you meet throughout the summer. Perhaps create a pin board where you can plan activities together, pinning up notes, leaflets or drawings of the things you would like to do, such as trips to the beach or museums. If you’re travelling at all, in the UK or further afield, encourage them to create a holiday journal or project book based on all you do and see. They can sketch what they see and perhaps even borrow your mobile phone to record sounds or take photographs of the things that most fascinate them. A holiday journal will become a treasured record of family travels and outings, whilst keeping young brains active and enquiring.
Ask for help
In addition, if your child has been struggling with any aspect of school work during the year, the summer might be just the time to consider some gentle short-term tutoring. This could provide some literacy or numeracy support during the summer and help them gear up for a new school year.
Enjoy!
Boosting academic confidence alongside family fun will ensure a wonderful summer – and if your children are tired from their learning adventures, you may even get that lie-in after all!
Lorrae Jaderberg is joint founder and Managing Director of education consultancy JK Educate. Before founding JK Educate in 2010 Lorrae was a Lorrae was a dedicated teacher, Deputy Headteacher and Senco.
