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“School Out: Tips on How to Keep Children Learning”
by FRISE, Gillian, M.Ed. COPE Outreach Coordinator
The words "Schools Out” brings joy to children and often a sigh of relief for parents who are just as eager to take a break from homework. Although taking a complete break from children’s studies for the entire summer can be a high price to pay.
Studies have shown that children forget between 1 and 3 months of school during the summer holidays. It is definitely important for children to have time to play and relax and children should also not be pushed into a high-pressure study schedule over summer vacation. But parents can take steps to avoid erosion of skills.
READING: The main key ingredient
- Go to you local library and ask a librarian or look at the Toronto Public Library’s suggested reading lists (www.tpl.ca and click on Kidspace).
- Forcing a child to read a certain book is a big turn off for them; let your child choose both non-fiction and fiction books.
- The library also has great FREE summer programs to engage children in reading through drama, art and more.
WRITING:
Writing is another skill that often erodes during summer, so
- One easy writing idea is to describe people, places, objects and animals and create lists of favourite or worst things.
STORY-TELLING:
- Create a scenario for a character in the book they are reading – “what would Harry Potter do if….” Create cartoon boxes, draw the first one & let them fill in the rest.
MATH:
Math skills might seem the hardest thing to work in the summer but in fact these can be the easiest.
- Try counting all the feet (counting by 2s) or fingers in a restaurant or park (counting by 5s).
- Find various shapes around the house and then trace them to create yet more complex forms.
- Get the kids involved in cooking and learning about measurements.
- Give the kids a ruler and notebook and tell them to measure various objects around the house.
- Empty out your pocket change and have the kids sort it and create word problems with the coins.
There are lots of activities you can do at home without any expense that will actively continue learning and help keep their school skills sharp. They will not even notice they are learning because they will love engaging with you, playing games and enjoy their success.
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