Summer Fun and Learning

I believe in year-round learning. Still, when June comes around, I give a little sigh of relief having made it through another traditional school year. And while I do get a feeling of getting the summer "off," I like my children to continue their education no matter what the season.

In summer, we like to play a lot of games. A warm evening is a good time to brush up on chess or checkers strategies. Yahtzee or Boom-o (a great little card game) travel well and are terrific to take on a picnic. Most games use math or language arts skills and help keep young (and older) minds working.

Summer gives us more time to enjoy special local spots like museums, our science center, and national parks. About the time we think we've seen all there is to see in our area, another treasure pops up. Recently we visited a one hundred year old grist mill just thirty minutes from our home. We never knew it existed until another homeschooler planned a tour. Ask around. You may be surprised at what you find.

On vacation there are always new treats to enjoy. Writing ahead for tourist information or searching the internet for city sites generally points the way to fun and educational opportunities. We discovered a few years ago that memberships to our local zoo and
science center get us free admission to most other like attractions throughout the United States.

Visiting beaches, parks, and wildlife centers provides science education naturally as children hunt for tadpoles or dig for sand crabs. Bring a camera (or sketch pad) and make scrapbooks or nature notebooks to add valuable memories.

Warm weather is great for all types of physical education, of course. Now's the time we bring out bikes, dust off skates, and try to remember how to play croquet. We usually like to purchase some type of new summer toy. This year we're thinking of a tether ball set.

Gardening is also a good learning tool and one of my favorite ways to spend time in the sun. The last two years we have tried without success to grow mammoth sunflowers in a box shape to make a sunflower play house. Maybe this year we'll start earlier, prepare the soil more, and have better luck. We also hope to grow a pole bean teepee, with vines growing up poles tied up into the desired shape.

Summer is a wonderful time when we all deserve time to rest and renew. After all, it won't be long until it's time to plan for the new homeschool year!

Enjoy your children and your summer,
Jan