
Education is not intended to end the first week of June! Think of summer education as an opportunity to implement some activities at home and help your children thrive in the coming school year. Here are 5 easy ways that can fill the educational void that often enters your children’s lives in the summer.

1. Go to The Library
Attending the library on a regular basis will keep the kids thinking about books and will also feed their imaginations. Reading is easy summer education and keeps children from losing an interest in reading, comprehension skills, and vocabulary. Libraries always have fun, free summer events for kids. Check your local library events calendar and put as many on your schedule as you can.

2. Plant a Garden
Find a space in your yard and add a raised planter bed, or get a few small plants you can grow in a pot on the window sill. You can use gardening teach your kids about sustainability and other summer education topics. Gardening also teaches children about the importance of a healthy diet, the life cycle, the importance of caring for our planet, and even build a love for all that nature has to offer when it is nurtured. Kids love watching their own plants grow and it’s always better to eat food you grow yourself.

3. Take Advantage of Vacations
Look up educational places nearby to take the kids when on vacation. Use summer education as an excuse to a museum. Check out a local visitors center and learn how that town became an established community. Or, stay close to home and take a hike or bike ride with your kids. Use natural setting as opportunities to learn about local wildlife, rocks, and plants along the way.

4. Give a Daily Assignment
Try to keep summer homework to about twenty minutes. Have your child read to you as part of their summer education or read to them if they are still learning. You can also give kids an educational book or worksheet and help them strengthen a specific skillset. This will boost their confidence when they start the next year at school.

5. Take Regular Walks
Walks help you bond with your kids. Summer education can be as simple as finding time to talk, relax, and be in nature. It’s a great way to give everyone a reset and get ready for bed before the sun goes down. When you give your kids the time they need from you, they are more likely to reciprocate. They’re also more likely to cooperate when you hand them that math workbook or ask them to do their daily reading!

Share Your Ideas
If you have any other great ideas, let us know! Please leave a comment below sharing any summer education ideas that have worked with your kids. This is definitely a topic that can benefit from community input.
Just found this blog with some great ideas for teaching your younger children to read! Definitely worth a try! http://blogs.babycenter.com/products_and_prizes/5-books-to-teach-your-child-to-read/