10 Ways to Stay Ahead of the Academic Summer Slide

As summer break approaches, students are preparing for the season with little thought for the academics they will be leaving behind when their backpacks are put up for the year. Parents and teachers, on the other hand, are frequently concerned about the loss of critical skills over the summer months, which must be retaught once school resumes. There are a lot of strategies to keep kids' brains in the game when they are looking forward to their break from the classroom for parents who want to avoid the academic summer slip.

Continue to Keep Them Reading

According to studies, children can lose up to 25% of their reading skills during the summer, which can have a substantial influence on their ability to return to school in the fall. According to a survey published by MLive, income discrepancy expands the reading gap even more over the summer. Children from low-income families routinely lose more than two months of reading ability during the summer, but children from middle- to upper-income families may maintain or even improve their skills.

According to Scholastic Novels, reading only six books during the summer can go a long way toward keeping pupils on track when they return to school.

Regular excursions to the library are one strategy to ensure that your children continue to read during the summer. Many libraries provide summer reading programs that push people to read a set number of books before the end of the summer.

Additionally, Scholastic offers the following suggestions for incorporating reading into a regular summer routine:

• Every day, find something to read. Encourage kids to read the comics in the newspaper or online resources while playing computer games every morning.

• Look for books that your children will enjoy. Request recommendations from your local library's librarian depending on your child's age, reading level, or hobbies.

• Look for books that your children will enjoy. Request recommendations from your local library's librarian depending on your child's age, reading level, or hobbies. Booklists can be found on the Scholastic website or at your child's school. Children who enjoy what they're reading are more likely to read more.

• Read it out loud. In the evenings, ask your child to read you a paragraph from his current book, or read it to him before bed. Children of all ages, including teenagers, can benefit from hearing books read aloud to them, particularly those who are having difficulty with their own reading abilities.

Keep Math Facts in Mind

Another topic that gets overlooked in the summer hustle is math. According to studies from the National Association for Summer Learning, students lose about two months of math abilities during the summer if they don't participate in some form of educational activity. According to research, math losses are even larger than reading losses, causing math teachers to devote a significant amount of time at the start of the year to review rather than new subjects.

Fortunately, kids who wish to keep their math abilities over the summer have a variety of possibilities. Texas Instruments is a fantastic resource that provides kids with a variety of opportunities to improve their math skills while having fun with games and activities. Texas Instruments also offers the following suggestions for parents who want to incorporate math instruction into their summer activities:

• Encourage children to accept jobs in math or science that will help them improve their academic capabilities while also teaching them crucial career skills.

• Search for summer camps that use math skills, such as robotics or space camps.

• Encourage a student to tutor others in math disciplines in which he is proficient.

• Assist struggling students in locating remedial summer assignments that will help them improve their skills.

• Calculate the volume of water in the city pool as an example of how math may be used in daily activities.

• Allow kids to participate in trip planning by establishing a budget, calculating gasoline requirements, or calculating the distance between destinations.

On the website, Holly Larrson, a math subject matter specialist from Texas Instruments, noted, "Summer learning should not be distinct from summer pleasure." "Activities can be fun while still providing educational value for a teen's summer."

Maintaining Mental Sharpness During the Summer

Additional ideas are provided by Colorado Education to help children continue to exercise their thinking muscle, the brain, during the summer months. Heather Lovell, a former teacher, and current LearningRx employee have some suggestions:

Make a list of the places you'll be visiting this summer.

This project encourages kids to read and study while getting them excited about planned travels, from finding humorous laws to understanding the geography and culture of the location.

Every day, set aside time to improve on academic abilities.

Set out a one-half hour each day for your family to read, solve arithmetic problems, or engage in entertaining activities like brain teasers or crossword puzzles. If the entire family participates, the youngsters may not mind as much the thinking portion of the exercise.

Gather books or activities for the kids to play in the car.

Instead of using technological devices, use Mad-Libs, comic books, and games made expressly for road journeys to attract kids on road trips. Use the time in the car to converse with your kids or play old-fashioned games with them, such as the license plate game.

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