It’s time to enjoy the nice weather and get outdoors. Kids can continue building on new skills learned throughout the community and everywhere they travel.
Build Reading Skills >
Stay active while reinforcing reading skills by doing fun activities like scavenger hunts, hopscotch spelling games, nature letter or word hunts, and reading trails. Observe animals from your favorite children’s stories in your local park or your own backyard. Going for a drive? Play a license plate game to build literacy and geography skills at the same time. Discuss signs in the environment and what they say or mean.
Build Math Skills >
Count everything, birds, bugs, bubbles, socks. While doing laundry, discuss how two socks make a pair or how many shirts would be included in a few. Include kids in meal preparation and teach them how to measure the ingredients. Have older kids? Give them a budget and let them buy the ingredients for dinner. Collect rainwater in a container and measure the liquid collected. Host a lemonade stand to save for something.
Build Science & Engineering Skills >
Build a fairy fort or frog house out of materials in the garden and track how well it stands up to the weather. Identify native plants, animals, and insects in the garden. Take a sensory hike. Plant a mini vegetable and herb garden and observe how plants grow from seed, then use what’s grown in cooking. Visit local farms and learn about how eggs are laid or how animal fur is used to make clothing.
Delve Deeper into History & Community >
The season of concerts, festivals, farmer’s markets, and historical re-enactments is upon us. Find one that appeals to your family and connect with others in your community. Discuss how the past influences who we are, what we think, and how we behave today. Find a local service project to promote loving compassion and respect for others. Encourage everyday acts of kindness.
Apply Creative Thinking Skills >
Identify a challenge in need of a creative solution. Discuss potential underlying causes for the challenge and potential solutions to the challenge. Explore ways others have approached the challenge in the past. Identify similarities and differences between the approach you’ve identified and what others have tried. Modify your approach based on learning, and put your solution into action.
Enjoy the Best of Spring and Summer
The best part of spring and early summer is breaking free from the habits that keep us indoors during the colder months. Get outside. Get fresh air. Observe the world around you. Maybe even try a little geocaching or letter boxing if you’re up for a treasure hunt!
