5 Things To Do This Summer to Keep Your Kids Learning
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The summer months are going to be upon us soon, and if you are like me, you will be looking for some ideas to keep the kids learning!
Whether you homeschool or not, summer is a great time to do some of those activities with your kids that you just don’t have time to do during the school year. Or maybe there are subjects that your kids just LOVE and you want to dig deeper with them.
While this is definitely not an exhaustive list of learning ideas, I wanted to take a few minutes to share five with you. My hope is that these ideas will give you something to start with and you and your kids can add more learning fun as you think of them!
#1 – Read-Aloud Time
Yes, Read-Aloud Time! This one thing has been a constant in our homeschool from the very beginning.
But even though we homeschool and do lots of reading during the school year, I always seem to have some books that I never have time to get to. Summer is the perfect time to pull those out!
Read-Aloud Time is simply setting aside some time during the day to gather everyone together and read a book out loud. If you need some help getting started, I wrote this guide that has tons of resources to help!
I also put together these wonderful Read-Aloud Treasury Kindle books filled with classic books to read aloud!
So this summer, plan to set aside some time each day to read a good book together! You and your kids will love it and you just might decide to continue on with it after school starts in the fall!
#2 – Join Epic!
Screen time is always somewhat of a concern for parents over the summer. Our kids are off school or, if you homeschool, you are taking a break for a while over the summer, and the kids tend to gravitate to screens for entertainment.
Well, while limiting screen time is a great idea, why not use that time for learning! With Epic! you get instant access to an amazing digital library of over 35,000 of the best books, learning videos, quizzes, and more.
When you sign up for an account, you can create profiles for 4 children so they can select the books they want to read. The parent account allows you to track what each of your kids are reading as well as create personalized reading lists for each child! And you won’t have to worry about any ads or pop-ups on Epic!
Epic! is available on any device so the kids can read outside, in the car, or wherever. The mobile apps even have a “read offline” feature so you won’t even have to be connected to the internet!
Epic! might be just what you are looking for to keep your kids learning (and reading) this summer! Sign up now and get the first month free!
#3 – Play Educational Games
The summer days seem to fly by for me and I want to add some activities into our days that slow them down!
There are so many excellent educational games available now, so there is no excuse to not buy a few (or pull out the ones you already have)!
Gather everyone around the table and spend an hour or so each day just having fun playing together. Not only will the kids continue to learn through the games, but your relationships will be strengthened as you laugh and enjoy just being together.
Here are some favorite educational games to choose from:
- Passport to Culture
- GeoBingo USA
- 4 Way Countdown
- Sequence Numbers
- Professor Noggin’s History of the United States
- See more here!
So go ahead and do an inventory of games that you currently have and add a couple new ones to the stack. Then plan on spending some time each day having fun playing games together!
#4 – Join Learn Our History
Learn Our History is America’s favorite way to learn about US History. Each month you will get access to 4 videos, printables, and quizzes, that teach US History in a fun and engaging way.
You can choose to just get the streaming option or pay a bit more to get the actual DVDs in the mail as well. We have all of the Learn Our History DVDs and we love them! My kids have learned so much US History just by watching these videos over and over.
Not only is Learn Our History a great way over the summer to keep your kids learning, but you will be accumulating CollegeSave credits that can be applied towards college tuition (see graphic above for details). It is a win-win for both you and your kids!
#5 – Educational Subscription Boxes
Subscription boxes are all the rage right now, but many are finding they love the convenience of having a product delivered to their door each month.
Did you know there are a ton of great educational subscription boxes for kids? Each month, your kids will get a box in the mail filled with all sorts of learning fun. And there are boxes for all kinds of interests — from crafts, to cooking, to science projects, to books….
Below are a few different sites that have subscription boxes you can choose from.
Kiwi Crate has a bunch of different subscription boxes to choose from for all ages, from 1-104! They have a variety of crates to choose from, based on age and interest.
My son would love the Tinker Crate. It has more engineering type projects it looks like and that is totally his thing! My older son who is more artistic would love the Doodle Crate.
Each month you will get a box in the mail that will inspire your kids to have fun learning. You can pause or cancel your subscription at any time.
Go take a look at all the crates they have available and see if there isn’t something your kids would love learning about!
Groovy Lab in a Box – This is another really neat science-related subscription box product. Each month through the Groovy Lab in a Box subscription service, young STEMists will receive fun, hands-on projects and an engineering design challenge – all focused on that month’s STEM topic.
Groovy Lab in a Box, the award-winning educational kits about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is presented in partnership with POPULAR MECHANICS for KIDS. Their STEM subscription box is interactive, hands-on and incorporates scientific inquiry and the engineering design process. Science Made Fun for Kids ages 8+.
Each month, they send out a themed box filled with investigations that are fun and hands on. The investigations culminate into an Engineering Design Challenge, where your STEMists must apply what they’ve learned from the investigations (and use their critical thinking skills) to complete the challenge. The boxes contain everything you need to complete all of the activities, including a groovy retro-themed lab notebook.
The box activities are supplemented with their Beyond…in a Box web portal where your children will find videos, interactive and additional activities. Head over to Groovy Lab in a Box’s website to learn more about this great service!
Plus, right now they are running a special promotion to win a one-year subscription! Go check out Groovy Lab in a Box today!
Cratejoy – This one is a little different, as this is an actual marketplace for tons of different subscription boxes. So you will find boxes for everyone here!
But if you are looking for your kids, go to the Family & Kids or Books section and look for educational boxes that your kids would be interested in.
You can also use the search bar at the very top to type in an area of interest and see what subscription boxes are available.
Here are a few to give you an idea:
- Kake Mail – A subscription box for anyone who loves to bake or decorate. Rather it’s cakes, cookies or treats KAKE MAIL contains a little something for everyone. Each month you’ll receive a box filled with a variety of different tools, supplies, and edibles. Each box has 10+ items that will allow you to create 2-3 different treats.
- KidArtLit – Art kit meets story time — hardback children’s books & themed projects!
- My Garden Box – Creative and crafty garden collections. Includes live plants and everything else you need.
- Knit-Wise – Knit and crochet projects for all skill levels, delivered monthly.
As you can see, there is quite a variety of boxes to choose from. So head on over to Cratejoy and see if you can’t find a box your kids (or you) would enjoy!
I write all about being intentional here on my blog, and I want you to have a summer filled with fun memories, exciting learning experiences, and growing relationships.
Get a plan in place today and decide if any of these ideas are things you want to include in your intentional summer! Happy learning!
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