Keep their brains learning over the summer break
June 18, 2008 by Sherry Osborne
Filed under Parenting
Although most kids are looking forward to summer break, they still need to keep their brains busy. Parking them in front of the television or Wii isn’t going to cut it. The nice thing is that kids are naturally curious and it doesn’t take a whole lot of effort to help them keep learning even when they’re not in a formal learning environment. They can learn about nature and insects by going for a walk in the woods or the park. They can learn about weather by watching the sky change over the course of a day or week. They can learn about physics just by playing outside.
If you want to have a bit of a guideline on how you can help your kids keep their brains in shape, check out Camp Weary Parent over at Weary Parent. All summer they’ll provide five activities you and your kids can do together that will allow them to learn new things while still having fun – I’ve bookmarked the lesson on how to make rock candy with them to be used on the first rainy day!
While I wouldn’t want to sit and teach my kids for 8 straight hours like my oldest gets in school, I love these simple ways to slip some education into fun activities!
What are you teaching your kids this summer?
I’d love to teach my daughter how to vacuum and do laundry this summer, but I’m afraid I’d end up with two very frightened dogs and a pink tee shirt collection. There’s always next year, I guess.