Summer is for learning, too
Vielka McFarlane, long-time educator and founder of Celerity Educational Group, offers six tips for keeping children busy this summer.
“You have to motivate and stimulate their minds and bodies. You have to provide them with choices and opportunities to expand on the classroom knowledge they gained during the year,” McFarlane said.
McFarlane said how children are kept busy depends on their developmental stage and grade level.
McFarlane’s tips:
— Build. Have children build a kite, bird house, boat or LEGO structure. Building accesses spatial temporal reasoning and improves fine motor skills. More importantly, most kids get absorbed in the process of creation.
— Cook. Have children help in the kitchen or become chefs for the day. Cooking utilizes reading skills, math skills and basic judgment. The finished product will produce pride and self-confidence. It also gives parents a mini-vacation.
— Chess and Scrabble. Chess accesses math and sequencing skills. It’s an excellent way of keeping your child’s mind active and quick. Many public libraries have chess clubs that meet so children would have the opportunity to compete. Scrabble is an excellent way of building a child’s vocabulary and perfecting their dictionary skills. Parents can also compete with their child to keep their skills agile.
— Art. Summer art projects can be great for keeping children busy. Get them outside have them work on landscapes paintings or drawing. Have them work on a found art project. Looking for components for their project can become a treasure hunt. The art supplies parents provide can be minimal. The point is to give them ideas for their creation.
— Write. Activate a child’s story telling abilities by reading them a portion of a story and having them finish the story in their own words. Younger children can also illustrate their stories. Writing flexes the entire brain and is beneficial for a child’s development and success in school.
— Take a tour. Taking tours can be fun and educational for children and parents. Contact a newspaper or television station and ask about arranging a tour. Learn about the inner workings of the media industry. Go to a museum or see an art exhibit find out exactly how art imitates life. Take a trip to the zoo and take in the sites and sounds of the wildlife. Spend a day in another world while experiencing life first hand.
McFarlane said the aforementioned ideas may seem basic but they utilize key mental and physical skills.
“The best way to keep a kid busy is to get them absorbed in a task and to almost trick them into learning. These six tips, with some preparation on your part, can keep a child active all summer and get them primed for the school year,” McFarlane said.
Brian Sargent
Staff Writer
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