Summer is not often a time that our children want to think about learning. Parents often would prefer that their children continue learning than some of the other activities they could get involved with during the summer. The problem is finding a good compromise that parents and their children can all live with. Thinking outside the box is essential. Look for ways to have a blast learning in fun and interesting ways.
Take the time to sit down with each child and ask what is important to them. If a topic is interesting then learning is not such a chore. The child's idea of a good summer may be hanging out with friends, keeping mom and dad busy running them all over town, and not opening even one single book during their time off. Parents may be thinking more along the lines of reading or playing catch up on subjects that they struggled with during the school year. Believe it or not, there is still room for compromise.
If a child struggles with math, look for real life ways to incorporate math lessons into their daily lives. Cooking, scorekeeping, and even computers are all ways that math can be incorporated. There are several websites that offer free math practice both online or as a printout. Many of these websites are offered free or at little cost. Cooking utilizes fractions. If the recipe needs to be adapted to a different number of servings, then addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division may be used. Keeping stats of their favorite team or keeping score at a sibling's ball game enables the use of math without the math being so overwhelmingly evident. The trick is in matching the task with the child's interests. If your child is more comfortable at home than at a ball field, then keeping stats may not be for them. If they are hands on and athletic, then reading a book and writing a book review may not be for them.
If your child hates to read, check out the material that they have been reading. Is the material too difficult for them or is it simply the topic is too boring. Whether they read cereal boxes, newspapers, cartoons, or classic novels, the important thing is that they find an interest in reading. If sports are their thing, then books on history of the Revolutionary War may not work as well as a book on the history of their favorite sport.
It may not be a matter of finding more interesting ways to learn. It might just be that they are too busy for learning. Take a look at their schedule. If they need a personal assistant to keep up with all of their activities, then see what can be let go. Allow them time to simply have fun. If they are always running to and from some sort of activity, then the idea of spending their “free” time learning will not be a pleasant one. See if you can guide them towards activities that will allow for educational opportunities while still having fun.
Check out group activities that allow them to be involved in a variety of experiences. Making a bird house or bird feeder requires that they learn about the needs of the birds that they plan to aid. Helping in the community requires that they learn what needs to be done and how they can help. If they join a sports team, have them read up on the history of the sport or research some of the greats of the sport.
Allow for the opportunity to be creative. Is there a group of friends that could work together on a play or project? Research would be necessary for the planning of the project or play. Practice would be involved in performing a play or time would be needed to practice doing the tasks needed for the project. If they like to draw, give them art materials and let them explore their house and yard while honing their skills of drawing what they observe. If they prefer to paint pictures with words, buy a notebook, provide pencils, and allow them an amount of quiet time each day to work. Encourage them with honest statements regarding their efforts. Do not offer empty praise. They will recognize the difference. Honesty is still the best policy.
They know that their parents want them to learn. There is no use trying to hide that fact. It will only cause problems as they are sure to see through any sort of disguise to the learning. Just sit down with them to discuss different topics they are interested in. They may be different than what you would have expected. Explore the topics that are suitable for their age along with them at first. Then guide them to exploring the topic a little more in depth on their own. Allow them to grow in their abilities as they learn. Although commercials have told us for years to wish that they could stay little, allow them the freedom to grow and learn how to be solid adults that are able to stand on their own, even in the world of learning. Keep it fun. Keep it interesting. Keep them learning all summer long.
