Summer school?

The school year officially ended for us near the beginning of June.  But learning is not just a school thing, it is a lifestyle.  Or at least it can be.  I hope I pass that attitude on to my kids.  I use very few rewards for their academic pursuits and accomplishments.  Affirmation and praise?  Yes!  Time to relax and play after the work is done?  Absolutely.  A prize box or treats?  Not so much.  Learning is the reward!

The results?  "Mom, can we do math today?  Can we have a whole day of school, please!?"  Who can say no to such a request?  I'm not really prepared, haven't planned anything, but I pull out some books and the kids learn.  And they have fun!

I figure I better do a little planning.  During the school year, we tend to focus on what big sister is learning.  Little brother tags along and picks up on all the science and history, but he can't keep up with all the math that Anna can do and especially not with the reading and writing.  Now is a good time to tailor the learning to him and make it fun for her, too.

Arik is reviewing letter sounds.  He is practicing saying the sound of each letter, tracing the letters, and recognizing upper and lower case letters.  Dried beans, glue, and shaving cream turned these tasks into bunches of fun.  I traced sentences into the shaving cream for Anna to read to me.  (Thank you to my friend Stacie for these ideas!)  You can check out other activities she writes about at http://learningtimewithmom.blogspot.com/