Sidestep the Summer Slide

6 TIPS to Avoid Learning Loss Over Summer

Ah, summer. It’s the season to rest, recharge, and have some fun in the sun — when you’re a kid. 

For parents, it’s often a hectic, stressful, and anxiety-ridden three months of tearing your hair out figuring out exactly what it is you’re supposed to do to keep your kids active, happy, and engaged. Oh, and let’s not forget the notorious “summer slide.” (No, it’s not a fun theme park ride. It’s the “slide” back or learning loss over summer months that students often experience when they aren’t actively engaged in traditional “learning” activities.)

OK, now that you’re all good and anxious, take a deep breath, sip your favorite beverage, and settle in to explore our 6 tips to help your kid avoid learning loss over summer and have fun doing it!

Tip #1: Set up daily reading challenges.

Encourage your child to read every day by setting up a summer reading challenge. Get their input on a list of books they’re interested in checking out, or curate a list that speaks to their interests. To add another fun element, make part of the challenge reading in unusual places, like the bathtub, in a fort, or under the covers with a flashlight. Visit your local library together to explore new genres and authors. Ask the librarians for recommendations! They might even have a whole handy list ready for you.

Bonus tip: Set up a family book club or coordinate one with your child’s friends. It’s always more fun to read a book you can discuss with others! Organize in-person or online meetings every couple of weeks. Have some questions ready to facilitate a good discussion.

Tip #2: Go on educational outings.

Take learning outside the home with educational outings to museums, zoos, science centers, and historical sites. These trips can provide your child with hands-on learning experiences that will spark their curiosity and broaden their understanding of the world around them.

Bonus tip: Do some research ahead of time and create a site-specific scavenger hunt to keep your kids actively engaged during the outing!

Tip #3: Conduct science experiments at home.

Turn your kitchen into a mini-laboratory with simple and fun science experiments. Projects like creating a volcano with baking soda and vinegar, growing crystals, or making slime teach scientific concepts in an engaging and hands-on way. 

Bonus tip: Set up a mini science fair with your kids’ friends, and have them present their science experiment. (You can also do this as a Zoom party!) Encourage friendly competition by having the grownups be the “judges,” and have an award ready for each participant — after all, this is all in good summer fun.

Tip #4: Make meals together.

Involve your child in cooking meals for your family. Cooking is a great way to practice math and science skills. Have your kid help with meal planning, grocery shopping, and food preparation. Measuring ingredients, following recipes, and understanding nutritional information are practical applications of their classroom learning.

Bonus tip: Depending on the age of your child, give them a recipe that serves 1 or 2 and have them figure out the recipe for 3 or 4 servings. Conversely, give them a recipe that serves a large group and have them figure out what it would be for 1 or 2 servings (or for your household).

Tip #5: Get crafty.

Foster your child’s creativity with some fun arts and crafts, like painting, drawing, or building models. Integrate educational themes, like creating dioramas of historical events or crafting models of the solar system.

Bonus tip: Encourage your child to write a short description about their pieces and set up an art gallery exhibit for your extended family. Or, coordinate with other families in your friend circle and have the kids create an in-person or online gallery to showcase their work! Set up a “gallery opening” with fun snacks and drinks and have them fill out (positive!) comment cards about each other’s works.

Tip #6: Have fun solving escape room-style games and puzzles!

Escape rooms and games promote critical thinking, teamwork, and problem-solving skills. And they’re a perfect family activity! Look for some kid-friendly escape rooms in your area, or create your own puzzles and clues based on a specific theme using items around your home. 

Bonus tip: Enjoy ready-to-use, hassle-free escape rooms from the comforts of home with our escapED games subscription box! Each box is designed to review social studies concepts your kids learned in school in a fun and engaging way. Your children will love opening their latest delivery and helping our time-traveling heroine Tempus figure out her next destination!

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Summer learning doesn’t have to be a chore. With these six engaging learning activities, you can turn your kids’ break into a time of discovery and adventure. Whether you’re reading together, exploring new places, or solving puzzles with our escape room subscription box, you’ll help your child build a love for learning that lasts a lifetime and avoid that dreaded learning loss over summer.