It's hard to believe that the school year is winding down and summer is quickly approaching, but this doesn’t mean that learning and staying active should ever stop. Studies have shown that being physically active increases mental and physical health, cognition, concentration, and self-esteem (Shafer, 2018). There are multiple ways for kids to get involved in staying active during the summer by going to local parks, beaches, splash pads, joining a recreation softball/baseball team, playing musical instruments, or signing your student up for camps being held by Benton Community coaches and sponsors. To find out more about upcoming camps and clinics check your child’s bag for fliers, stay tuned to upcoming Friday Notes, sign up for the Benton Community App (app store or google play), or check the Benton Community Website (www.benton.k12.ia.us).
Keeping one's brain sharp is something that should take priority to avoid the dreaded “summer slide”, especially in the areas of math and reading. During the summer students can lose up to two months of what they learned in reading and math (Knopf 2015). Staying engaged in educational activities over the summer is a sure way to avoid the summer slide. Here are some simple ideas that are at little to no cost to help avoid learning loss.
First, visiting a local library is a way to keep kids engaged in learning. Setting time aside to read, either individually or as a family. For older children who struggle with reading, having the whole family read and discuss the same book could help. Reader’s Theater stories that can be acted out build on fluency and comprehension. There are multiple activities that can be located on numerous websites. With reading and writing working hand in hand children can write stories about what they read. For younger readers drawing pictures is always an alternative that expresses creativity.
When focusing on math skills children can take their math talents to the kitchen. Measuring ingredients and serving what has been made is a great way to practice and maintain skills that were learned during the school year. Flashcards are an easy way to stay sharp on math facts. If done properly, technology can be a big asset in your child’s learning of math skills. There are many math learning opportunities when considering keeping your child’s brain sharp. OOODLE, Cool Math Games, XtraMath, and Math Playground to name a few. Setting time limits is important to not overuse screen time. I hope these suggestions are useful in helping keep your child’s body active and keeping their brain sharp over the summer.