Preventing the "Summer Slip"

Summertime is a time for relaxation, fun in the sun, and spending time with friends and family. But it is also a time where most children experience an educational setback, often called the "summer slip." Basically, children go from reading, writing, and mathematizing on a daily basis during the school year, to swinging in trees, swimming, and watching TV. While a little brain rest is good, a lot of brain rest is not. In fact, research has shown that students can lose up to 2.6 months of progress over the summer.

Have you ever heard how it takes a teacher approximately six weeks to get her class on the proverbial "same page"? Well, this is in part due to summer slip - the teacher has to review the last few months of the previous school year to prepare children for new concepts, skills, and information.

As a parent, how can you prevent summer slip? Follow these simple guidelines and you'll be helping your kids keep those neurons firing all summer long.

Children should

• read at least 20 minutes a day. Whether they are true readers or not, exposure to high quality literature and informational texts is extremely important. You can partner read (you and your child share the reading), read aloud to your child, or have your child read alone.
• write on a daily basis. Have your children invent stories, write letters to far-away friends and family members, or help you with tasks such as writing recipes on index cards, and creating grocery shopping lists. Workbooks have some educational value too, such as helping kids practice basic skills in novel ways.
• mathematize frequently. Mathematize simply means "do math"! Younger children can help count the utensils needed to set the table, the pairs of socks in a drawer, or make equal shares of strawberries in bowls to enjoy with friends. For older children, there are excellent online math programs that are inexpensive and educational, as well as summer camps that offer enrichment math programs.
  

If you are looking for inexpensive ways to keep your kids connected this summer, check out your local library, museums, and parks . Many libraries offer educational computer programs, free summer workshops, and a plethora of books with fun reading, writing, and math activities. Museums provide context for topics your child may be reading about, such as native peoples, and parks often have camps and activities that are free or charge nominal fees.

Just keep the activities fun and simple and you're bound to have well-prepared kids when school starts at the end of summer.

Happy reading, writing, and mathematizing!