| Worried that your children will forget everything | | | | your child with a library card. University of Florida's |
| they learned over the course of the summer | | | | Richard Allington notes that the best predictor of |
| months away from school? You may have more | | | | summer reading loss is a lack of books at home |
| reason than you think to fear the summer brain | | | | and limited access to library books, so keep a |
| drain according to a study by Duke University's | | | | good selection of high interest, level appropriate |
| Dr. Harris Cooper, a leading expert on summer | | | | books around the house. Schedule a consistent |
| learning loss. He writes that long summer | | | | "reading time" daily for your child. |
| vacations "break the rhythm of instruction, lead to | | | | 2. Attend thematic programs at the library. |
| forgetting, and require a significant amount of | | | | Libraries often host a great variety of summer |
| review when students return to school in the fall." | | | | programs for kids that celebrate reading. |
| According to Cooper's study, students' overall | | | | 3. Talk to your child's teachers and ask them |
| achievement test scores drop by about one | | | | what your child will be learning next year at |
| month, on average, over summer vacation. Skills | | | | school. This way you can tie in family trips with |
| in mathematics and spelling usually take the | | | | next year's curriculum to create a more |
| biggest hits, with math skills suffering almost a 2.6 | | | | meaningful hands-on experience. For example, if |
| month loss in achievement. | | | | your child will be studying a unit on the civil war, |
| Suffering the most are children from lower | | | | plan a visit to Gettysburg. |
| socioeconomic backgrounds, who are presented | | | | 4. Give your child a gift card to a bookstore, or |
| with less opportunities to practice math and | | | | give books as gifts. |
| reading skills over the summer months than their | | | | 5. Check out audio books from the library for |
| more privileged peers. Their reading | | | | your child to listen to stories in the car. |
| comprehension skills suffer the greatest, and their | | | | 6. Consider Summer Tutoring: Tutoring services, |
| losses add up to a 2 year achievement gap by | | | | such as in-home tutoring, can help children catch |
| the time they enter their middle school years. | | | | up or get ahead with one-on-one tutoring in the |
| There are steps that parents can take to help | | | | home. Take advantage of the summer months to |
| their children learn and even get ahead over the | | | | remediate or accelerate your child in areas like |
| summer months. Some "Summer Educational | | | | reading comprehension, mathematics, writing or |
| Tips" will help transform the break from | | | | SAT/ACT test prep. |
| structured learning into an opportunity for | | | | 7. Research has revealed a direct connection |
| students to sharpen their skills through fun and | | | | between learning to play a musical instrument and |
| interactive ways. Follow these tips and send your | | | | an increased aptitude in mathematics. Consider |
| children back to school smarter and more | | | | introducing your child to music lessons over the |
| confident than when they left! | | | | summer. |
| 1. Take frequent trips to the library and register | | | | |