Isn’t it great that slides are no longer the old metal heaps that we, the adults on the playground, used to burn ourselves on as the metal soaked up the heat? Slides are fun. Some curve, some have water, and some have unique surfaces, but all allow the joy of climbing to the top and enjoying the ride down. It is the logistics of the slide that do not make sense. Ultimately, we climb and reach the goal of the top, only to come back down again. This is where the term “Summer Slide” originates. Students work incredibly hard all school year to reach where they need to be, only to coast during the summer and slide back down.
When children do not actively engage in learning activities over the summer, studies show they can drop 2 reading levels, just in that short time. This is no more apparent as our children struggle to recover from “Pandemic Learning.” With UCPS having a longer summer break this year, it is even more important to keep your child’s brain active and working on key skills during the summer months. Here are tips to overcome the “summer slide:”
- Find a book series your child likes and that is on his or her independent reading level. Read them together and create your own family book club. There are many resources online to help with this.
- Take advantage of your local library. They have multiple programs and resources many families do not know exist.
- Spend time cooking together, read directions to your child or have them read to you, and help them with the steps and measuring.
- Use online math resources/applications to keep your child’s brain active.
- Take field trips to local places. Bonus points for researching and reading about these places prior to the field trip.
- Listen and read audiobooks on car trips during summer vacations.
- Limit screen time. We know, we know, this can be a hard one to resist as summer can be long and parents need their sanity!
Most important way to beat the summer slide?! Read every day for at least 20 minutes! :)
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Still need help, reach out to Huntington Learning Center, Weddington. Huntington has been the nation’s recognized leader in educational services since 1977. Our mission is to give every student the best education possible. At Huntington Learning Center - Weddington, we offer children, ages 5 to 17, tutoring in Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Study Skills, Phonics, Vocabulary, Science, and SAT and ACT Preparation. Our individualized instruction is developed from comprehensive academic evaluations completed at the center. We are committed to the success of each student through this personalized instruction with our certified teachers. Each program is uniquely designed to develop the skills, confidence, and motivation for the student. We are seeing great strides every day!
