Dear teacher,
I truly understand how important it is to have my children engaged in summer learning activities so they’ll start the next school year successfully. I have them enrolled in a variety of programs in our community. How can I be sure that they are in good programs that will stop them from suffering a learning loss this summer?
Dear parent,
All educators will applaud your efforts to keep your children involved in learning activities this summer. The Summer Matters campaign (www.summermatters2you.net) has highlighted the following 10 ways for you to know if your children are in a great summer learning program. If your children are in a quality program, you should see:
• Kids who are happy and engaged.
• Kids who feel safe.
• Kids learning by doing.
• Kids being creative.
• Kids moving and playing.
• Kids showing off their learning.
• Kids engaged in a wide array of meaningful activities (the arts, sports, science, service, learning, etc.) that are purposeful about learning, complement (but don’t repeat) school-day learning, and leverage community, city, and school district resources (nonprofits, parks, libraries, museums, universities, etc.).
• Staff who are positive and involved.
• Staff welcoming parents.
• Summer camp spirit.
You should definitely try to give them more summer learning opportunities through enriching experiences. According to the Summer Matters campaign, this means:
• Reading to your children or encouraging them to read books recommended by their teachers, your local library, and online summer reading lists. And signing them up for your library’s Summer Reading Program, which offers incentives for summer reading.
• Visiting free local resources that are both entertaining and educational, such as libraries, parks, museums, universities, and community centers.
• Playing fun math and word games that turn everyday activities into learning opportunities.
• Asking your children’s teachers, if possible, to recommend online educational worksheets and activities that can be downloaded for free.
• Turning off the TV (or at least limiting the amount of screen time). And keeping your children moving with activities that encourage learning as well as physical activity.
The checklists are reprinted with permission from the Summer Matters campaign.
Encouraging reading through play
Dear teacher,
I’d like some suggestions about ways to encourage my young children to read through play.
Dear parent,
Rachel Payne, coordinator of Children’s and Family Services for the Brooklyn Public Library, has these great suggestions of activities and books to accompany each activity: Playing with your child is not only fun, it’s one of the most important ways you can encourage development, she claims. As your children’s first teacher, you are helping him develop literacy skills. You don’t need expensive toys, just imagination and your children’s favorite playmate — YOU!
A recent study of 1- to 2-year-olds found that those who played with blocks with their parents for 20 minutes a day scored 15 percent higher on language-development tests and were 80 percent less likely to watch television. The more a child plays with the shapes found in blocks, Play-Doh, and other materials, the better able he will be to understand the shapes of letters and words. Below are some fun activities and books to help get you started:
Cereal box blocks: Use empty cereal and food boxes by stuffing them with newspaper and taping the flaps closed. Line them up like Dominoes to knock down or build a tower. You also can talk about the pictures and letters on the boxes.
• Book pairing: “Not a Box,” by Antoinette Portis
Let’s go shopping!: Use empty food boxes to set up a grocery with children who are ready for pretend play. Get shopping bags or baskets, play money, and a shoebox for a cash register. Take turns being the cashier or customer.
• Book pairing: “Feast for 10,” by Cathryn Falwell
Edible Play-Doh: Mix one part flour, two parts oatmeal, and one part water in a bowl. Give your child a small piece to explore. Label the shapes your child is making (“You made a circle …”).
• Book pairing: “Clay Boy.” by Mirra Ginsburg, Jos. A. Smith (illustrator)
Teaching measurement without a ruler
Dear teacher,
My first-grader’s teacher said that students will not be using rulers this year. I am definitely puzzled about how my child can learn to measure without using a ruler.
Dear parent,
When people first measured objects, they used non-standard units of measure, such as the length of a king’s foot or the span of a person’s hand. Your child could learn about measurement by counting the steps across his bedroom or the number of paper clips long a pencil is.
Parents should send questions and comments to [email protected] or ask them on the columnists’ website at www.dearteacher.com. © Compass Syndicate Corporation, 2013. Distributed by King Features Syndicate.
