I have some ideas for you for inspiration. My biggest piece of advice is to go with what works best for your family and children right now. Don’t worry about everyone else, or what worked last year. It’s always changing. Enjoy and have a blessed summer.
- Gardening is a great outdoor activity that lasts for many months. Children can learn all about the needs of plants, edible plants, grow veggies and track their progress, plant their own gardens and flowers. The learning opportunities are endless and don’t require special lesson plans. Just get out there and get dirty.
- Get active. Physical activity counts right?! So enjoy all that the seasons have to offer. Biking, boating, swimming, hikes, fishing… try something new and enjoy spending time together as a family. Think of all the wonderful memories you’ll be making.
- Take lessons outside. Okay I’ll be honest in that it really wouldn’t work for me because I’d be too distracted. But my boys really loved me telling stories to them while they played in the sand box. Reading outside on the yard or in a hammock would be amazing. Oh try taking math outside and use rocks for adding or practice spelling words in the sandbox.
- Vacations and field trips offer so many opportunities. You could involve the children in planning, learning about where they will be going, journaling about their adventures and of course being there first hand.
- Traveling by car or plan gives you a chance to listen to audio stories, or get into some lively discussions. There are loads of fun car games, trivia packs and more you can take along.
- Get creative and dive into all those projects you’ve always wanted to do. Take the glitter and paint outside. Look on Pintrest for all those awesome science experiments you’ve been meaning to get to.
- Lighten the load. Think about what is priority for your family. Some keep up with math and reading, others focus on family time or character development. Summer can be a chance to follow your children’s interests and topics they’d like to explore. If you plan ahead and keep this lighter load in mind it will help you not to worry. In fact you might use this time to plan for next year.
So what are we going to do this spring and summer? We plan to explore all the local nature reserves and parks in our area. My boys love going for hikes, listening to stories and drawing pictures of our adventures. They spend hours outside in the forest by our house building forts or playing in the sand box. We have a community garden plot up the road that we visit every few days. My middle son learned to ride a bike this spring so I know we’ll be doing lots of that too! I have a few goals in mind that I’ll be checking on before the end of the summer, but we mostly we will be following the children’s interests. I look forward to an awesome time with my boys!
Meaghan Jackson
I am a Christian; a mom with wonderful young boys and a fabulous husband. I love all crafts, baking, and blogging. We are a homeschooling family and look forward to sharing this journey with you. http://joyfulmudpuddles.blogspot.ca