Seasonal Schooling In The Summer!

Summer planning is great even if you typically take summer off. It helps give your days a little direction, and makes getting back into a full schedule easier. The beginning of June is the perfect time to start planning your summer session–from vacations to book lists.

Summer begins about the 21st of June, and ends around September 21st. It starts with wonderful warm days and heads straight to HOT. Check out Cool Ideas For Hot Summer Days if you’re feeling the heat.

So How Do We Plan For Summer?
Summer looks a little different than the other three seasons. Again, start with the holidays, and add any vacations you have planned. Determine if you want a mini learning session on any of the holidays like the 4th of July. I’d recommend keeping it simple. Don’t forget to add any fun holidays you might like to participate in. I mean who can resist Wiggle Your Toes Day?

Before You Move Forward
Again, take time to look at what your kids have accomplished this last session. Is there something you want them to continue working on in the summer? Other things best picked back up in the fall? Add the summer work to your plans, and make a note to add the others back into the Fall session later.

Summer Activities
Now for Summer fun! Summer is a great time to relax and enjoy your family. Consider making a summer bucket list. It doesn’t have to be a long one. Just hit those keys things you’d really like to do while your schedule is lighter. Plan the ones that need planning, and choose to be spontaneous on the smaller things. The kids will love it. Be sure to also include lots of down time to truly feel refreshed by fall. Here are a couple of summer ideas:

Have a water balloon fight.
Camp out in the backyard.
Stare at the stars.
Make a solar oven with the kids.
Do a nature study involving trees, ponds, or lakes.
Do messy art projects.
Have cookouts.
Catch fireflies, and then release them.

There are so many fun, summer activites you can do. Pinterest is a wonderful source. For all seasons.

Back To Academics
The really hot days are perfect to hide inside. Keep your children’s minds sharp with some book work. It doesn’t take a lot to keep learning going through the summer. You’ve already planned the things you wanted them to continue from the Spring session, so go back to your main resource list, and pull a couple more things in. This is also a great time to make a big book list for them to read. Have a mix of fiction vs nonfiction. Light reading vs challenging. Add extras like videos, games and drills. Do those really messy science experiments. Have them build something in the yard. There are so many educational opportunities we can take advantage of during a lighter schedule.

Again, you have 13 weeks to fit in a good blend of fun, vacations, and learning. Don’t overfill because you still want the rest that summer brings. You can always add more once you’ve accomplished your original plans.

Tomorrow, I’ll talk specifics about Seasonal Schooling In The Fall! Fall planning is usually more involved, but still isn’t overwhelming.

In this series:
The What, Why, And How Of Seasonal Schooling
Seasonal Schooling In The Spring!
Seasonal Schooling In The Summer! This post.
Seasonal Schooling In The Fall!
Seasonal Schooling In The Winter!

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