Dear Teachers Q & A

How to Plan a Summer with Lots of Learning in It

Parents: It is widely agreed that the pandemic has played a big role in your children’s education. Standardized tests are showing that a lag in learning has occurred. Most children have not learned all they should have, no matter the subject. Although summer should be a fun time, it can also be a learning time. As such, we suggest imaginative activities that expand their horizons, increase their desire to learn about a wide variety of subjects, and teach them new skills.

Some Children Need Formal Instruction in Reading

            Sadly, some children have simply not gotten fully on grade level in a variety of subjects even though they may have had some help toward that end. The most important subject of all is reading. Experts agree that children need to be good readers by the end of third grade because content area subjects, which require reading skills, begin to be emphasized in fourth grade. Some children struggle through school with other subjects simply because they do not have good reading skills.

            If you suspect that poor reading skills are holding your children back from academic success, begin by checking whether they are reading on grade level. We suggest using the reliable San Diego Assessment Test, which is on our DearTeacher.com website. If your children are significantly below their grade level, formal instruction would be very beneficial. This help can come from a summer program at your children’s school, a tutor, a learning center or from a college that has a reading clinic (usually free).

Reading Skill Helpers Parents Can Use

            If your children’s reading skills are not quite up to grade level or you would like them to become stronger readers, you can find many programs online that will help them upgrade their skills. On our website under “Skill Builders,” look at “Improving Children’s Skills with Techniques That Work at Home.”

Creating a Love of Reading

          So much of what older children are reading today is just on social media. While it is good that they are at least reading for quite some time each day, it probably isn’t engendering a love of reading, greatly expanding their vocabularies or even helping them learn more about literature. Here’s where parents come in. Read to your children—even middle schoolers—every day. Just 15 minutes will do. Discuss what you have read with them. With younger children, it could be: Tell me what the main character in the story is like. For older children, it could be: Do you agree or disagree with the author’s view on some subject and why? And if your children show an interest, have them participate in library reading programs.

Solidifying Math Skills

            Nothing keeps math skills current or builds upon them like using them frequently during the summer. Games can keep math in the forefront for children. There are solitary games like solitaire and Sudoku and games families can play like Yahtzee. Then there all the math puzzles and games online that your children are likely to try—especially if you play them together.

Expanding Social Studies Knowledge

            We must admit that not all children are big aficionados of social studies. You may be able to increase their interest in this subject by visiting historic sites they may be studying about in the future and taking informational tours:

• City Hall and the State Capitol
• The homes of presidents and historical figures and mansions of the past hundred years
• National and state parks
• Prominent monuments

You may also increase their knowledge of times past through riding steam engines and visiting museums like those of automobiles, trains, race cars, toys and film. Another way for children to become fascinated by history is to introduce them to genealogy. Have them research their ancestors. They may discover some were soldiers, inventors or politicians. Once they have the name of a relative, they can Google that name and find out a lot more about this person’s life.

Building Children’s Interest in Science

          An interest in astronomy could evolve from a visit to a planetarium. Besides a look at what’s in outer space, youngsters may have the chance to look through a telescope. Then there are museums devoted to natural history where children can see plants and animals past and present and dioramas of how early people lived. Just think what a visit to a place like the La Brea Tar Pits in California would let them find out about animals that once roamed the earth.

Here’s to a Wonderful and Educational Summer

            If you take a day each week or even just one weekend day a month to have an educational adventure, your children will reap educational dividends—and it will be a fun time for everyone in the family.

Parents should send questions and comments to DearTeacher@DearTeacher.com and visit the DearTeacher.com website to learn more about helping their children succeed in school. ©Compass Syndicate Corporation, 2023

As always, please consult your healthcare provider with any questions or concerns.