Excited to have been on Let’s Talk Live earlier this month! Research shows that kids lose about 2.5 months in language arts and up to 3 months in math when they don’t practice their skills over the summer, so it’s important to keep them engaged in order to avoid the slide. You can still have a summer full of relaxation and family trips while weaving in summer learning.
Here’s a quick excerpt from the show:
What are the hot books for kids this summer?
Dragons Love Tacos (preschool, early elementary)
This is a New York Times Best Seller about dragons who love tacos – they eat buckets, and buckets of tacos. The problem is they can’t eat spicy salsa and if they do, boy oh boy, watch out!
Wonder (middle school students)
One of my favorite books of all time, Wonder is a #1 New York Times Best Seller that has captivated over a million readers. It is about a boy who was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to school, but in fifth grade he starts at Beecher Prep and wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid. The story is told from the perspective of the main character but quickly switches to his classmates, his sister, her boyfriend and others. These perspectives converge how young people struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance. A great read for older elementary students, middle schoolers for sure, and even high schoolers and adults!
Paper Towns – high school students
Written by John Green, the wildly popular author of The Fault in Our Stars, this book’s movie adaptation is coming out this summer, meaning it will be a huge hit with teens. It explores topics such as growing up, graduating high school, and has a sense of mystery to it.
Now here’s the hard question. How do you get your child to actually read?
There are a few things you can do. The first is to dedicate time after dinner for DEAR (Drop Everything And Read). Put those phones down, TV off, so that everyone is reading their own book. Another idea is to have the whole family read the same book, kind of like a book club. Be sure the book can be read by the youngest child.
And lastly, most kids will want to read before bed. It’s relaxing. If your child is adamant about reading a book that his friends are reading, but it’s just a little too hard for him, get the audible version, too. Research shows that when students listen to a story while they read along with the hard copy (they can’t be staring into space!), they actually improve comprehension and fluency more than if they read alone.
What about writing? How do you get your child to write?
Girls are more likely to keep a diary or write captions in a scrapbook, but boys are often reluctant writers. “Through the Mail” is a method that encourages children to write to their favorite sports team in exchange for autographs. You can find the team addresses on MLB.com for baseball and NFL for football. The website Cardboard Connection has a step by step approach for how to write a letter for your best chance of getting those autographs back!
Worried that you don’t want to be the summer learning slide enforcer in your home this summer? Give us a ring to learn about how a weekly tutor can set up a the structure to keep your child engaged without stress on your end.
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