Can You Stop Summer Brain Drain?
June 2, 2009 by Linette Gerlach
Filed under Educational Stuff
Did you know kids lose a month or two of what they learned the previous school year through the summer? When they return to school in the fall, many have forgotten some of what they learned the year before. According to studies, brain drain affects math skills the most, but other subjects can fall victim to brain drain.
How can you help your child keep what they’ve learned through the long summer months?
- Participate in the summer reading program at your local library. Challenge your children to read all summer long, and have fun with the summer reading activities your library offers.
- Take a couple learning day trips to local historical sites, museums, or the zoo.
- Use a summer program like “Summer Bridge Activities,” a book series for each grade that features daily activities your child can do between grades. It helps prevent brain drain, and prepare your child for the next grade at the same time. Look for the series on Amazon, or at your local book store.
- Let your child help you do the measuring when you’re cooking.
- Play counting adding and other math games while you’re driving in the car, or have a few minutes of down time.
How do you prevent summer brain drain at your house?
Oh goodness. I know far too well about the summer brain drain. When I was teaching, the first few weeks of school were pretty rough trying to review and get the kids to remember the things they had done the year before. I think the beginning of first grade was the worst one.
I plan to read with my kids this summer and do some phonic lessons. We also plan to utilitize some of the educational game websites.