6 Steps for Summer Learning

Well, a lot has happened in the last few months with my oldest, Princess -- way too much to get into on the internet, but I'm trying to move on and focus on positive steps at least for Kitten who is finishing up 2nd grade.

She made some significant improvements during the school year, and I want to prepare her as much as possible for entering 3rd grade.  If you'd like to join me in keeping the school-year momentum going, maybe you'll find a tip or two to help you plan out your own summer of learning!

1. Get organized.  Isn't this at the core of every project?  I started a folder to collect brochures, printouts from websites, and monthly calendar for June-July-August so I can write out our plans.  Once the calendars get filled in, I'll post them on our refrigerator or family bulletin board.  If folders or binders isn't your thing, simply create a Pinterest board to hold your ideas.  Here's mine!


2. List Target Areas, Needs & Interests.  This seems like a no-brainer, but honestly at this stage of my life I need all the reminders to stay on task that I can get.  I started a list with 4 columns:  Kitten's personal interests, educational weak spots, attention stallers (points I know where she typically loses focus) and attention grabbers (pointers to pique her interest or physical activities to give her the physical stimuli she needs to get her brain focusing again). I have this list taped inside my folder as a visual reminder that I need to stop and think about HER and what will help her learn best.  


3. Create a Writing Center.  I think everyone can benefit from scheduled time to write, not just school-age children, which is why I loved this project. Teri at www.acupcakefortheteacher.blogspot.com created this adorable Writing Center.  I purchased her downloadable PDF for just $3 that included all the components to print, cut & paste onto a standard trifold board.  I wanted something smaller for home use, so I copy/pasted her pieces onto a Word document and reduced the images before printing.  I glued two hanging files together (cutting off the hanging part) to create a smaller trifold display, covered with leftover scrapbooking paper, and adhered all the Writing Center pieces. (Watch future blog posts for before and after photos of a 6-pack beer carrier that I'm turning into a writing basket to go along with our Writing Center.)





Idea & printables available from www.acupcakefortheteacher.blogspot.com



4. Enroll in an online educational program that includes guided lessons, fun activities, and tracking of completed assignments.  I found this one* and spent a great deal of time reading reviews and hopping around their Parent Forums before signing up to test it out. 


5. Create a "Summer Bucket List" -- I'm working with Kitten on coming up with a list of activities that she and I want to do together this summer.  From her perspective, "these will be just for fun," but I am stacking the list with activities that will subtly reinforce math, language arts, science, or creative expression.  LOVED the idea of creating a visual display of your summer bucket list like this one.


6. Introduce new habits.  Taking a look at teens Princess and Bud, it didn't take much thinking for me to see room for improvement in my child-rearing skills.  Not that I need a major overhaul in parenting, just some tweaks here and there.  So I identified a handful of character traits and qualities that we need to work on, and "self-motivation" is at the top of the list.  My summer folder includes notes and visual reminders that I'll use both to remind me to stay focused and guide her towards more independent action.  There are a few others that I'll introduce over the summer leading into the new school year.

I know a lot of parents like the laid-back ease of summer, but it's been my experience with each of my kids that they desperately need and enjoy some structure.  It also helps with the transition when summer comes to an end and they return to school.

What about you?  What do you have lined up to keep your kids learning over the summer?

* Disclaimer:  Time4Learning has invited me to try their online curriculum for 30 days in exchange for an honest review on my blog. My opinion will be entirely my own, so come back and read about my experiences. Visit them for information about lesson plans, homeschool portfolios or writing your own curriculum review.

Menu Plan Monday: Week 13

Note, if you're looking for Meal Plan Monday posts for Weeks 5-12, you won't find them.  That's what happens when life gives you a detour ... some things just get dropped! :-)


Monday -- Greek Style Skillet Supper (love this dish!)
Tuesday -- Jambalaya, coconut pie
Wednesday -- Family on their own cuz Momma's going out!
Thursday -- Lime Chicken and Pasta Salad
Friday -- Leftovers
Saturday -- Hot Dogs
Sunday -- Salmon, rice, vegies

The luck of the Irish

My Mom was part Irish.  We always believed that her dad, McGee, was a leprechaun.  He was small, always had a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye.  "By Ginger!" was how he made a point or added to a conversation.  Whether he had the luck o' the Irish or not truly depends on where you stood.  He was dirt poor, yet he had friends too numerous to count.

I was having a pretty serious pity-party earlier this week.  I'm not quite sure how or why things have fallen apart for my family over the last 5, 6, 8 or so years.  Seems to go from bad to worse every time I turn around.  My mind was drifting down a very unhealthy avenue about being cursed, but as luck would have it (ha!) I was detoured by a little article from an old issue of Journal magazine that helped me get out of my funk.

(Page from my art journal, by Anne Marie Gross)

I don't think luck is something you fall into, under, or out of.  It's really a matter of not only answering the door when opportunity knocks, but going out and actively seeking opportunity.

The more roads you travel, the more people you meet, the more conversations you have, the more likely it is that opportunities -- good opportunities -- will present themselves to you.  Then of course, you have to have the guts to take some risks and go for something that could create good in your life, AND you must be ready and willing to let go and move on if no good ends up coming from your choices.

With the troubles we've had of late, I know my tendency has been to withdraw -- partly out of sheer exhaustion, but also partly from embarrassment.  When our children's peers are excelling in academics and sports (which tends to be the main focal point of conversations as you run into people), it's pretty hard to share that Princess is bipolar, Bud quit high school, and Kitten is struggling with Sensory Processing Disorder.

But I have to remind myself that by openly sharing about Kitten's symptoms and putting myself out there with that story, "luck" dropped the right people in our lap who were able to give the right diagnosis and refer us to the right therapies. If I had talked about this with only 1-2 close friends, chances are that I would still be stressing over her initial misdiagnosis of ADHD.

And by having the guts to follow my instincts about alternatives to high school and asking the right questions and pressing for different answers, it resulted in a much happier Bud who, I dare say, is downright delightful at times now.

It's good to have this reminder that luck is right there in front of us.  Some of us can see it, some of us cannot.  But it's there, waiting for us to find it.

When I was a kid, I used to spend hours combing our grass in search of a four-leaf clover.  And after hours/days of searching, I usually would find one.  But if I just stood on the porch, glancing out at the sea of green grass stretched before me, what do you think my chances would be of finding that four-leaf clover?

Luck comes from a lot of effort, not necessarily hard work.  Effort to engage in life, reach out, and jump in.

I like the way that sounds.

P.S.  I posted a few of the art journaling supplies I use over in the left column, as well as a couple of books I really like for inspiration.  I use watercolor pencils and a water-filled brush A LOT for my backgrounds.  Then I just doodle and collage on top of that.  One product I forgot to add to the list was gesso.  I'm recycling old stationery, which is pretty porous paper.  So I prep each page with a brushing of gesso first.