Are you worried about how to help students maintain math skills in summer?! (Especially since you won’t be with them!) During the summer months, it’s much harder for students to maintain their math skills than it is in the school year. This is because there are fewer opportunities to practice and reinforce math skills, which can lead to students falling behind.
In the warmer months, many children get restless and bored, and are tempted to play instead of study. Parents and teachers may be tempted to just give up, but there are SIMPLE ways to prevent the summer slide in math.
HELP MAINTAIN MATH SKILLS IN SUMMER:
1. PLAY MATH GAMES
Don’t worry about getting super techy or fancy. Good old cards and dominoes will do the trick!
Some math game ideas for summer:
Cards (War is always fun!)
Dice
Dominos
Math board games (there are so many amazing options on Amazon for all ages!)
Check out ideas for teaching parents how to use manipulatives in Math Manipulatives at Home Made Simple.
2. PRACTICE MATH FACTS
Grab a Math shark from amazon to let them play in the car on long trips!
Practice basic multiplication facts with this Summer Code Breaker
NEVER TRIED A CODE BREAKER BEFORE to practice basic multiplication facts?
3. EXPLORE MATH IN THE REAL-WORLD
What better way for students to maintain math skills in summer than by using real-world math skills?
Try these real-world math ideas:
Have children help cook family dinner and plan out the food for the summer barbecue. Check out 37 Easy Recipes That Kids Can Help Make This Summer for yummy ideas!
Check out the highs and lows of gas prices from June to August and have students graph it.
When driving on a family trip, have your child help figure out miles traveled throughout the trip. You may want to peek at 16 Affordable Family Vacations To Take This Summer
Speaking of trips-help them plan and budget for hotel cost, meals and activities during the trip.
Lay out a detailed plan of the budget for any summer birthday parties and help shop.
4. DOWNLOAD MATH APPS FOR THE TABLET OR COMPUTER
Kids LOVE technology. Technology can be great for learning, as long as children aren’t sitting in front of an ipad all day everyday over summer. When they have some downtime or are riding in the car, check out this great list of Math Apps from Common Sense Media for Parents.
5. FIND A SUMMER STEM CAMP
Check out websites in your area for local STEM camps. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. STEM activities are great for all ages but especially 4th, 5th and 6th graders!
Can’t find a summer stem camp? Check on Pinterest or Google to find tons of at-home ideas!
KEEP CHILDREN’S MINDS ACTIVE IN SUMMER
Keeping your students’ minds active over the long summer break can be a challenge. Thankfully, there are many ways to help your students keep their minds engaged and their math skills sharp over the summer months! Most importantly-make sure they are having fun and learning!
Want more math ideas for the summer months?
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