The Facts about Summer Learning
In the two months of summer, your child will no doubt have a lot of free time on their hands. How that time is utilized will play a significant role in your child’s success in the upcoming year of school. According to studies, students will lose approximately 2.6 months of grade-level equivalency in math skills during the summer months. Not only that, but teachers typically spend between 4 to 6 weeks re-teaching material that students have forgotten over the summer.
Since the quest for good grades is more competitive each year, it is important to take a little time over the summer to help reinforce the concepts your child has already learned. If you are concerned about your child losing ground over the summer, make an appointment with their teacher(s) to discuss what areas your child should be working on over the summer. Teachers are more than happy to impart their year’s observations of your child.
To find out what topics will be covered for every subject your child will be taking in the upcoming year, visit www.ontariocurriculum.ca. The site is completely user-friendly and allows you to search by subject and grade for both the elementary and secondary levels.
Summer Education Tips
- Limit the amount of television and video games.
- Set aside time for reading. Take your child to the bookstore or library and have them choose books that they can look forward to reading over the summer.
- Visit museums, zoos and/or science centers to make education fun.
- Cooking and baking are greats way to incorporate measurement and following instructions Have your child pick out their own journal.
- Encourage them to record their thoughts and feelings about notable summer experiences. Volunteering over the summer is a great way for your child to contribute to the community and learn new skills at the same time.
- Overseas programming is a great way to gain new experiences and see the world.
- When you go see a movie, ask your child to summarize the movie and discuss the plot with them.
- Consider summer school or tutoring. Struggling students can get a lot of different kinds of help from these programs.
- Summer school can also enrich and accelerate learning in areas where children show a special interest.
