What You Should Know About Summer Learning Loss and How to Combat It

We’re here to talk about how you, as a parent, can start to combat summer learning loss without resorting to summer school. Read on to learn more.

What Is Summer Learning Loss?

Every year, when school ends for the summer, children are excited to have fun in the sun and leave learning behind. They’re ready to relax and let their brains rest until autumn arrives and they’re back at school.

There are benefits to summer vacations. Students are able to recuperate and spend time with friends and family members. They can develop non-academic skills (such as social skills and motor skills) that teachers may not prioritize.

With that in mind, the biggest downside of summer vacation is summer learning loss. Summer learning loss is what happens when children aren’t being academically challenged every day anymore. They forget important academic information and skills while they’re having fun.

Students lose an average of one month of learning, which might not seem like much, but that’s one month that teachers need to spend on remedial information. Some studies report that students lose up to 37% of the past year’s learning. This sets back children who didn’t suffer from summer learning loss as well because they’re unable to progress.

Children who are in more vulnerable positions, such as low-income children, are at a greater risk of summer learning loss, but it’s a real problem for all children (and thus, all parents).

How Can You Combat Summer Learning Loss?

So what can you do to help your child retain information during the summer? It’s tempting to let your child do whatever they like during the summer. After all, they’ve spent the entire school year working hard!

If you want your child to continue thriving in school, however, it’s in your best interest to help your child keep up with their education throughout the summer break. Remember, this doesn’t have to be as intense as “real” school; it just has to be enough to help your child retain information.

Here are a few tips that parents can use to help their children combat summer learning loss.

Send Your Child to a Summer Learning Program

This is a fantastic option for working parents who may not have the ability to stay home with their children and teach them one-on-one during the summer. Look for a summer learning program or camp for your child.

Summer learning programs are full of fun enrichment activities that will encourage children to learn while they have fun. Your child might not even realize that they’re learning new things because it doesn’t feel like work.

This is also a great way to get children to socialize. During the school year, children get to see their friends every day because they’re in classes together. This isn’t the case during the summer.

Children may see their friends on play dates, but otherwise, they’re stuck with their family members. There’s nothing wrong with this, but it’s not as helpful for their social development.

Summer learning camps are like new and improved daycare. Make the most of your child’s summer vacation!

Consider Summer Tutoring

If you want your child to learn or retain specific skills, consider hiring a tutor. During the summer, many educators offer tutoring because they’re also on summer break. There may also be local high school and college students who are offering tutoring sessions for young children.

Even a single tutoring session every week can make a big difference.

You could also try non-academic tutoring. Art tutoring, music tutoring, and any other type of “hobby” tutoring will keep your child’s brain working all summer long, even if it’s not working on academic content.

Do Fun Summer Educational Activities

When you think of learning activities, you probably think about flashcards and worksheets, right? While you can (and should) incorporate those things (more on that later), you can also do fun learning activities that won’t feel like work.

For science, why not go on a hike with your child? Print out photos of local plants, bugs, fungi, and animals and turn a hike into a scavenger hunt. Help your child identify local flora and fauna and encourage them to take pictures.

Turn reading practice into making a play. How can your child turn their favorite picture book into a script? Make sock puppets and let your child put on a show.

There are plenty of learning activities that make education fun.

Assign “Homework”

Education isn’t always going to be fun, however. It’s also a good idea to assign weekly homework for your child. Don’t make it too difficult or time-consuming; one or two worksheets per week is enough for most children.

Find simple math and reading worksheets for your child’s skill level (or make your own). You can also have your child do writing activities, like journaling about their day.

Incorporate Learning Into Everyday Life

Learning doesn’t always have to happen during scheduled activities. You can incorporate learning opportunities into your normal tasks.

When you go grocery shopping, bring your child with you. How can you turn this into a math opportunity? Here’s an example.

You want to make sure that you buy an equal number of hot dogs and buns. Buns come 8 to a pack, and hot dogs come 6 to a pack. How many packs do you have to buy?

This is somewhat of a complex math problem for small children, but because they’ll have a visual representation in front of them (and your help), they’ll be able to figure it out.

How would you turn an everyday activity into a learning opportunity?

You Can Combat Summer Skill Loss

Summer learning loss is a real concern for parents, but it’s manageable if you take the right steps. Between educational summer camps and fun DIY learning games, your child will be able to have fun all summer long without setting back their academic development!

At The Learning Experience, we offer summer camps, daycare, preschool, and more. If you’re ready to enroll your child, contact us for more information today.

The Learning Experience – Orlando – Lake Nona
11800 Narcoossee Rd
Orlando, FL 32832
(407) 313-0791
https://thelearningexperience.com/center/orlando-lake-nona/