Do you have kids home for the summer ? Do you know how you will engage them? Are you considering learning at home? Whether you answered yes or no,this post will speak to you both as non-homeschoolers and homeschoolers.
WHY Learn in the summer?
Whether you homeschool all year or not, summer is an excellent opportunity for you to explore learning at home to avoid summer learning loss. Summer Learning Loss is when students’ achievement scores decline upon returning to school after a summer break of no learning. This can be true for homeschooling children as well. More research is to be done to explain the achievement gaps caused by summer learning loss, but there is certainly evidence that demonstrates that the gap in learning during summer can be a contributing factor. I’m sharing a few resources I came across if you are interested in reading on this topic.
Reading Rockets – https://www.readingrockets.org/article/summer-loss
NWEA – https://www.nwea.org/blog/2021/summer-learning-loss-what-we-know-what-were-learning/
The San Diego Foundation – https://www.sdfoundation.org/news-events/sdf-news/examining-summer-learning-loss-achievement-gaps-in-2021/
Despite what research shows or does not show us, our kids are home for 12 waking hours in a day (or longer), and what I see is an opportunity to engage them in meaningful learning for a few hours.
The National Summer Learning Association also provides a lot of great resources and ideas to engage your child in the summer if you are out of ideas.
Where to start?
If you are new to home education, know that there are a lot of great learning resources out there for you to consider. But before you start looking into it, take some time to think about what will benefit your child and then set some goals.
- Do they need extra help in math?
- Do they have trouble writing at school?
- Are they struggling with science?
- What are they passionate about?
Talk to your child and ask them questions so that you can better understand their interests and needs.
You may determine that your child requires some explicit math instruction or that they may have an interest in history. It is an excellent time for them to be reading books that will expand their awareness of these subjects. Once you know the opportunity, you can find ways to engage them meaningfully in the summer.
You can navigate my homeschool page for more on what curricula we use and enjoy in our homeschool.
Tips for Homeschoolers
Most homeschoolers continue to learn in the summer. I think it comes from genuine interest, habit, and passion for learning. If you do choose to homeschool through the summer, here are a few tips for you to consider.
- If you are anything like me, you are probably keen to try those programs you have been eyeing for a long time. My first tip to you is to try not to create new objectives or start new programs just for the summer that don’t align with your learning plan for your child. This does not include interest-based learning. Last summer, I was so excited to try out Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman. It was a mix of science and geography, but it never aligned with how we learned those subjects. I now have the book and its workbook (which I bought just for the summer) in a box, incomplete.
- Revisit curricula that you may have boxed up, and spend some time on subjects you don’t get to do much of throughout the year. I recently took a poll on Instagram and found that 80% of homeschoolers don’t spend enough time on Science and would like to do so. 10% of them said they would like to make time for a second language.
- Most importantly, avoid the FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) trap. Yes, there are so many great resources that you have not explored that you see other homeschoolers talking about. It looks exciting and intriguing, and all you want to do is get it. Keep in mind that your summer may vary from 8 to 12 weeks depending on when you start, and with all the summer activities piled on, it will not leave you with much time. Stick with what you planned and know that it is plenty.
Set expectations
Now that you have determined the goal, set expectations with your kids. Take some time to be intentional about structure and routine of the day. We all know that life can quickly get out of control, with kids at home 24/7 and routine can give your child a seamless flow to the day and can minimize meltdowns, unwanted stress, and teach your children self-discipline and self-control.
Here are a few tips for you to consider as you set expectations—
- Do not break existing routines such as bedtime, morning time, etc
- Pencil-in quiet time & reading time into the day. It is a great way to build discipline and good habits. Don’t forget to claim some quiet time for yourself
- When you start your day, talk to your children about what they can expect and keep them informed of common activities so they will know when they are expected to be present (meals, chores, planned outdoor activities, etc.)
- It is never too early to teach time management. Introduce time management tools so that your kids will own and manage their day to some extent (free resource coming soon)
- It is a great idea to make a list of fun things to do in the case that your child complains of boredom. (I am offering a free resource of 20 things to do this summer with kids with instructions. See Below for details.)
Use Time Management Tools
This topic needed its own space because it is so important to tackle with children. If we can teach our kids to be purposeful with their time, it will go a long way in life. I love the time blocking tool because it teaches our kids time management skills early in life. If you are not familiar with this tool, it essentially requires you to block chunks of time in the day for certain things. For example, 9-10:30 is for learning, 10:30 – 12:00 is personal time, 1-2 is reading time, etc. Keep in mind that the chunks do not have to be specific at all. When I homeschooled my oldest full-time, I gave her a time blocking tool that she had to manage during the day. You can introduce these tools to children as young as kindergarteners. Some kids may need more hand-holding than others, but if it works, keep at it. You can include to-do’s and priority lists as well and offer stickers to check them off.
FREE RESOURCES FOR THE SUMMER
I am so excited to share a few resources that I have created that I hope will beuseful. Join my email list for access to these free resources and make sure to follow me on Instagram as I share our summer learning journey. Here’s what you will get by the end of the week.
- Daily & Weekly Time Block Template in three colors
- List of 20 Simple Kid Friendly things you can do this summer with instructions and templates
- Scavengar Hunt Checklist
- Mini Nature Journal template
