5 WAYS TO PREVENT SUMMER LEARNING LOSS School is out for the summer and your kids are ready to toss the books and have some fun in the sun. As much as you want them to relax and recharge you’re worried about them forgetting everything they learned during the school year.
Summer learning loss is real and it is significant says College Nannies Sitters and Tutors. The first four to six weeks of a new school year is spent bringing students back to where they were when they finished. CNST say students score lower on standardized testing at the end of summer rather than at the beginning. High school students who take the PSAT, ACT and SAT tests in the fall are the most affected. Which is why students seek CNST for summer tutoring for these critical tests.
If your child struggled during the school year summer is a great time to focus their attention on a specific subject. So, what can you do to keep them learning. We asked Sue Eggers, a Glen Ellyn mom, Differentiation Specialist and Hinsdale Teacher.
1. Read, read, read! Continue the routine of reading before bed. Bring books to the pool, on car rides and vacations. Take trips to the library or bookstores. Make sure reading is not just considered a "school" thing to do. Make it enjoyable and part of a routine which will create life long readers.
2. Summer journal writing. Practice narrative writing by describing your favorite summer days and summer vacations. You can even do this electronically by making your own books. My students love to write books on an app called Book Creator. It's so easy to use and they can draw their own pictures or use camera roll pics. Worth purchasing the app!
3. Math can be fun! Practice math facts while using sidewalk chalk. There are plenty of apps like Xtramath, a free facts practice app. Don’t "worksheet" them to death in the summer, but keeping up on facts and computation once in a while will help. Don't pre-teach what next year will bring; instead review the skills they need to have mastered for their next year to be more successful.
4. Let them cook with you! Learning to read recipes and measure ingredients is a great skill to teach. Talk about the various units of measurement we use daily in our kitchens, and how fractions help us measure correctly.
5. Learn at the zoo! Go to the zoo or a museum and have each kid think of a question or two they want to find the answer to while there. Once home see if this new knowledge leads to more "research!" They might be asking to go check out more books after their first set of questions lead to more inquiry.
Want to know more about how to prep for ACT or SAT this summer? Check out your local office (www.collegenanniesandtutors.com/locator) for more information!
ABOUT THE BLOGGER Glen Ellyn Mom’s Village is a local blog that was created by resident Alicia Donovan. She is devoted to being a mom who inspires others and loves connecting and creating a sense of community for all. She keeps herself busy with her active family, two dogs and surprises people when she says she’s a beekeeper. www.glenellynmomsvillage.com
