Schools Out For Summer
Everyone loves the summer. Most of us know it as a time of sunshine, beaches and vacations. But it has an even greater appeal for kids who get an almost three-month long summer break from school. We all know how important good schooling is for our kids, but we must also remember when we were young and how much we looked forward to summer vacation. It’s a time when kids get to play each and every day and concentrate on their hobbies and interests, as well as attend summer camps and engage in other such fun activities.
Summer truly is magical when you’re a kid, there’s no denying that. But there is a very real issue we would like to raise in today’s blog, one which suggests that it’s probably not a good idea to let children forget about school completely during summer vacation. It’s a problem called Summer Learning Loss. Summer Learning Loss is the name given to the loss of academic skills and knowledge that can take place over the course of summer vacation. This perceived loss in learning varies between different age groups and different grades, and also effects certain subjects more than others, studies have shown. On average it has been found that students score lower on standardized tests at the end of the summer than they do at the beginning of the summer break from school (on the same test). Summer Learning Loss for all students is estimated to be equal to about 1 month of schooling, but as we said above it can vary between subjects. Math seems to be worst effected with students losing an average of almost three months of learning over the summer. That’s a lot of math teaching gone down the drain! (Excerpted from http://educationaltoysandgamesblog.com)
I believe it’s a great idea to invest in some great educational products which will easily enthrall your children, leaving you without the constant nagging of convincing your children that learning is the key to their success. There are games that are such fun that your children will be oblivious to the learning experience that they are engrossed in.