Why Do Kids Need to Do Math and Reading in the Summer
© 2017 – 2019 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved
Studies advise we can prevent summer learning loss by engaging kids in summertime reading, math games, and hands-on STEM activities. But the benefits depend on making sure kids are truly stimulated — and having fun!
Hither are the details, and tips for creating a rewarding, playful, educational summer.
What is summer learning loss?
Some call it "summer learning loss," others call information technology the "summer slide."
Either manner, the thought is the same: Without regular practice, new skills and knowledge fade. And so many school kids experience reversals over the extended summer break.
The miracle has been documented in a number of countries, including Republic of austria, Federal republic of germany, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United states of america (Paechter et al 2015; Meyer et al 2015; Jesson et al 2014; Shinwell and Defeyter 2017).
How much learning is lost?
Studies suggest that kids may lose anywhere from 25-50% of their schoolhouse-year gains in mathematics (Paechter et al 2015; Thum and Hauser 2015; Cooper et al 1996).
Put another fashion, the average child may lose over two months' worth of mathematical knowledge over the summer.
Children can backtrack in language skills, too — including reading, writing, and spelling (Thum and Hauser 2015; Burgin and Hughes 2008; Shinwell and Defeyter 2017)
But overall, losses in reading ability tend to be less dramatic than losses in mathematical power.
Why? It'southward probably a reflection of the "employ it or lose information technology" phenomenon. During the summertime, kids are more probable to continue reading — at to the lowest degree a little. They are less probable to practice their mathematical skills.
Then how exercise we prevent summer learning loss? How practise nosotros terminate summer slide?
Some researchers suggest that we make major changes in our schools. They propose lengthening the school yr, or replacing the long, summer hiatus with several shorter vacation periods distributed throughout the year.
Merely we don't have to wait for such changes to assist our children. Nor do nosotros have to turn the summer into a time of regimented, structured learning sessions.
Here are some suggestions for making the most of the summer — without sacrificing summer fun.
6 testify-based tips to forbid summer learning loss
1. Get started on a summer reading programme, and brand sure your child is reading books that are both interesting and challenging.
Summertime reading is of import, only it doesn't always heave skills.
For example, in 1 study, a summer reading program failed to take any effect on children's literacy skills. Why? The children who participated got to choose their ain books, and they consistently chose books that were too like shooting fish in a barrel for them (Kim and Guryan 2010).
So when selecting books, information technology's crucial to make certain you lot're kid is excited past the content. But you lot also desire reading material that will stretch your child's skills — introduce some new words and ideas.
Need assist finding the right stuff? Visit your local library and talk with the children's librarian.
ii. Set aside some time to review mathematics concepts.
Information technology's unlikely that about kids volition spontaneously practice the sorts of skills that volition prevent learning loss in mathematics. And practice really matters. But don't yous have to hold daily lessons, or turn the summer into a slow series of drills.
Studies show that learners can improve long-term retention when they space practice over multiple days. For instance, in recent experiments on adults, people who were asked to recall a fix of facts for 35 days benefited most when they held review sessions every 11 days (Cepeda et al 2008).
This doesn't hateful that kids shouldn't exercise their math skills more frequently. Simply it suggests that kids can retain specific math facts over the summer without resorting to daily sessions.
What about motivation? Hither, we take the aid of software developers. In that location are a number of educational computer games and apps that brand practice fun.
For instance, opens in a new windowDragonBox Numbers helps children anile 4-8 develop an intuitive agreement of numbers through game play. opens in a new windowDragonBox Algebra five+ is aimed at children 5 and up, and "secretly" teaches children algebra concepts. Apps for more advanced students, like opens in a new windowDragonBox Algebra 12+ are also available.
In addition, try the free app, opens in a new windowBedtime Math. It was tested past researchers, and institute to be helpful when used by families on an everyday ground (Berkowitz et al 2016).
3. Play "unplugged" number games to assist kids sharpen their math skills.
Research indicates that young children tin improve their intuitive understanding of numbers by playing certain lath games. And such intuitions really matter: When kids lack a strong grasp of "how much" different numbers really represent, they perform more than poorly in school (Mazzococo 2011). You can read more most it (and get instructions for making your ain game) opens in a new windowhere.
In improver, young school children tin can exercise their basic addition and subtraction facts by playing the simple — but excellent — board game, "Sum Swamp." The game is a race, with players rolling die and performing quick calculations to determine the number of spaces they must movement. You can cheque the current toll by clicking opens in a new window hither to view the Sum Swamp game on Amazon.
Finally, I've found a number of books for children that assist kids visualize mathematical concepts, and some include instructions for mathematical activities and games. Encounter my recommendations in this opens in a new windowParenting Science guide.
iv. Develop spatial skills through spatial rotation games and structure play
Experiments demonstrate that nosotros can hone strong spatial skills through practice, and better spatial reasoning leads to enhanced performance in math and science.
For instance, when young school children were asked to practice mental rotation tasks – tasks that required them to predict how ii geometrical shapes would look when stuck together – these kids went on to show improvements in their ability to solve basic algebra problems (Cheng and Mix 2012).
For ideas on how to encourage spatial play, run across my testify-based articles near opens in a new windowtangrams, opens in a new windowblocks, and opens in a new windowother activities for boosting a kid'south spatial skills.
v. Take trips to museums, zoos, and nature sites. But don't merely attend. Help children enjoy hands-on experiences, and engage in family conversations.
Kids learn more from museum experiences when they engage in easily-on activities. They as well do good when parents ask them to interpret what they come across.
For example, in 1 report, kids visiting an anthropological showroom learned more when their parents asked them open-ended questions about the artifacts they encountered (Jant et al 2014).
What do you call up this tool was used for? What do you lot call up it is made of? How exercise you think it would feel to sleep on this mat?
In another museum-learning study, preschoolers showed more spontaneous focus on numbers and counting after their parents had engaged them in playful number talk and counting games (Braham et al 2018). How many dinosaurs are here? Permit's count together.
And after you leave? Help kids consolidate what they've learned by asking kids what they recollect.
Every bit I explain elsewhere, one of the best ways is to encourage children to explain what they have learned. And a contempo study reports links betwixt parent-child conversations and retentiveness: The more than kids talked well-nigh a scientific discipline lesson with their parents, the more they remembered afterwards on (Leitchman et al 2017).
To learn more near the fascinating effects of explaining things to others, read my article, opens in a new window"How kids learn math and science: Stimulate learning by asking kids to explain."
six. Choose STEM summer camps that emphasize informal, easily-on learning.
Research suggests that summer camps in Stalk (science, engineering science, engineering, and mathematics) tin stoke children'southward involvement in STEM fields.
What makes a great plan? Hands-on, activity-based STEM activities — similar building, coding, robotics, or scientific discipline labs — that allow kids to tinker and solve problems themselves. This isn't the time for lectures and passively sitting by. Kids acquire by doing (Roberts et al 2018).
To find an breezy summertime learning plan almost you, look online, and effort contacting local schools, public libraries, museums, and zoos. Can't afford to pay? Don't assume you lot'll take to. Ask about gratuitous and low-cost programs.
7. Tin can't discover an affordable summer camp? Create your own.
The nonprofit organization Reading Rockets offers materials for a 5-24-hour interval DIY program called "River Rangers," which helps kids learn about everything from the formation of rivers, to riverine ecosystems and the direction of homo drinking h2o. You lot can access these gratuitous materials, and other ideas to battle summertime learning loss, opens in a new windowhere.
In addition, you volition find links to many educational resources in my article, "Suddenly homeschooling? Hither's help for getting started."
And if you're looking for ideas for preschool science activities, see these opens in a new windowParenting Scientific discipline pages.
8. Let kids explore interests that don't fit into the standard, school-year curriculum
This is my personal suggestion, but it'due south consistent with experiments: Personal marvel is a major driver of learning (Gruber et al 2014).
How many students have been bored by school, and so–one lucky 24-hour interval–they discovered an academic subject field they were actually passionate nigh?
Such discoveries can change lives, but many people never make them. When I was a kid, extended summer breaks were a take chances to indulge my curiosity well-nigh all sorts of things that never fabricated information technology into the standard school curriculum–paleontology, astronomy, rock collecting, the geology of Mars, the search for extraterrestrial life, ancient history.
How would I have turned out without these opportunities? I don't know, just I'thou sure I would have been worse off. And for some kids, these extracurricular investigations lead to large things. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson traces the beginnings of his career to childhood experiences with a telescope.
Looking for some interesting topics? Hither are some suggestions:
Animal behavior. David Attenborough has produced many outstanding educational programs nigh animals. These, combined with reading and easily-on activities can help your child develop a lifelong interest in biology. What to do? Get kids outside, and show them how to locate wild fauna. Meet these Parenting Science tracking activities for more information, and don't forget to opens in a new windowlet your child photo what he or she sees. Nature photography doesn't just help kids certificate their discoveries. It too encourages them to larn stealth and patience!
Figurer programming. Researchers at MIT have developed a visual programming environment called opens in a new windowScratch. It permits kids to larn computer programming concepts — and create coded projects — fifty-fifty before they learn to read. Best of all, it's costless to apply. All you demand is a computer with an internet connection.
Dinosaurs. Come across my opens in a new windowguide to resource near paleontology and dinosaurs for kids.
Infinite exploration. In boosted to finding books on the subject field, check out the local planetarium and opens in a new windowVoyage to the Planets and Beyond (2004) , a fun BBC production that presents realistic (but imaginary) imaginary missions to Mars and other destinations. If you've seen Walking with Dinosaurs, the approach is similar. In improver, don't miss NASA'south interactive website for kids, including their opens in a new windowpages about Mars.
More than ideas. Bank check out my opens in a new windowrecommended children's books.
References: Summer learning loss
Bell SR and Carrillo Due north. 2007. Characteristics of Effective Summer Learning Programs in Exercise. New Directions for Youth Development 114: 45-63.
Berkowitz T, Schaeffer MW, Maloney EA, Peterson L, Gregor C, Levine SC, Beilock SL. 2015. Math at home adds upwardly to achievement in school. Scientific discipline 350 (6257): 196-198.
Braham EJ, Libertus ME, McCrink Thou. 2018. Children's spontaneous focus on number before and afterward guided parent-child interactions in a children'southward museum. Dev Psychol. 54(eight):1492-1498.
Burgin JS and Hughes GD. 2008. Measuring the Effectiveness of a Summer Literacy Program for Unproblematic Students Using Writing Samples. Enquiry in the Schools, xv(2): 55–64.
Cepeda NJ, Vul E, Rohrer D, Wixted JT, and Pashler H. 2008. Spacing effects in learning: a temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychol Science nineteen(11):1095-102.
Cheng Y-Fifty and Mix KS. 2012. Spatial training improves children'southward mathematics ability. Journal of Cognition and Development. Published online alee of print doi:10.1080/15248372.2012.725186.
Connor CM, Morrison FJ, Fishman B, Crowe EC, Al Otaiba Due south, and Schatschneider C. 2013. A Longitudinal Cluster-Randomized Controlled Written report on the Accumulating Effects of Individualized Literacy Instruction on Students' Reading From First Through 3rd Class. Psychology Scientific discipline. 2013 Jun 19. [Epub ahead of print].
Cooper H, Nye B, Charlton 1000, Lindsay J, and Greathouse S. 1996. The effects of summer vacation on achievement test scores: A narrative and metaanalytic review. Review of Educational Inquiry 66: 227–268.
Jant EA, Haden CA, Uttal DH, Babcock Eastward. 2014. Chat and Object Manipulation Influence Children's Learning in a Museum. Child Dev. 85(5):2029-45.
Jesson R, McNaughton S, and Kolose T. 2014. Investigating the summer learning effect in low SES schools. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy. 37(1): 45–54.
Kim JS and Guryan J. 2010. The efficacy of a voluntary summer book reading intervention for low-income Latino children from language minority families. Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol 102(1): 20-31.
Kraft MA, and Monti-Nussbaum M. 2017. Can schools enable parents to prevent summertime learning loss? A text messaging field experiment to promote literacy skills. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science [Internet]. 674 (i) :85-112.
Leichtman Md, Camilleri KA, Pillemer DB, Amato-Wierda CC, Hogan JE, Dongo MD. 2017. Talking after schoolhouse: Parents' conversational styles and children's retention for a scientific discipline lesson. J Exp Child Psychol. 156:1-15.
Mazzocco MM, Feigenson Fifty, Halberda J. 2011. Dumb Acuity of the Approximate Number System Underlies Mathematical Learning Disability (Dyscalculia). Child Dev. 82(4): 1224-12377.
Meyer F, Meissel K, McNaughton Due south. 2015. Patterns of literacy learning in German chief schools over the summertime and the influence of dwelling house literacy practices. J Res Read twoscore:one–21.
Paechter M, Luttenberger S, Macher D, Berding F, Papousek I, Weiss EM, and Fink A. 2015. The effects of 9-calendar week summertime vacation: losses in mathematics and gains in reading. EURASIA J Math Sci Technol Educ 11(6):1339–413.
Roberts T, Jackson C, Mohr-Schroeder MJ, Bush SB, Maiorca C, Cavalcanti Thou, Craig Schroeder D, Delaney A, Putnam L, Cremeans C. 2018. Students' perceptions of STEM learning after participating in a summer informal learning experience. Int J Stem Educ. 5(1):35.
Sandberg Patton KL and Reschly AL. 2013. Using Curriculum-Based Measurement to Examine Summertime Learning Loss. Psychology in the Schools fifty(7): 738-753
Shinwell J and Defeyter MA. 2017. Investigation of Summertime Learning Loss in the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland-Implications for Holiday Club Provision. Front Public Wellness. 5:270.
Thum YM and Hauser CH. 2015. NWEA 2015 MAP Norms for Educatee and School Achievement Status and Growth. NWEA Inquiry Report. Portland, OR: NWEA
Content of "Preventing Summer Learning Loss" last modified 6/2019
Epitome of boys on embankment past opens in a new windowSherif Salama / flickr
Image of girl reading past opens in a new windowTre Nguyen / flickr
image of child in hunter-gatherer shelter at Mitchel Museum exhibit by opens in a new windowsea yamaha / flickr
Image of children playing with shapes by Nicholas Wang /flickr
epitome of male child with albino alligator by opens in a new windowOlaf Gradin / flickr
Source: https://parentingscience.com/summer-learning-loss/
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