While summer offers a much-needed (and much-anticipated) break from your usual routine, it’s also easy to get lost in the unscheduled days.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of rest. Everyone needs it, especially homeschool parents after a school year. But at the same time, you don’t want all your hard work put in during the semesters to go to waste and for your child to forget what they have learned. To keep their mind active, they must continue to practice. And as a homeschool parent, you ought to know better than anyone else that learning is not just something for weekdays of the school year, but for any time, including the summer!
7 Summer Homeschool Activities
To help you and your family ensure this summer break will not also be a brain break, here are several engaging homeschool activities you can engage your student this summer:
1. Make Time to Read Every Day
Reading and writing are two of the most valuable activities to ensure the brain stays engaged. And the summer is the perfect time to spend hours in front of a page, whether individually or together as a family.
Many homeschool families enjoy read-alouds in their summer months, taking turns narrating an easy-to-read novel like The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe or The Hobbit. Or, each member in your family could just read the dialogue from a specific character, acting out the story like a play. For example, many Classical Conversations families enjoy using the app ActorsBible, which provides immersive teleprompter scripts of Bible scenes so that families can act out the story of the Scriptures!
To find book ideas for your student, whether to read aloud with the rest of the family or to read on their own this summer, have a look at our summer reading list. Or, check out these best books for homeschool parents if you’re looking for some recommendations for yourself.
2. Continue to Write Throughout the Summer
Writing is one of the best ways to keep the mind active this summer. And if you have younger students, then be sure to practice writing, drawing, or painting to keep those fine-motor skills developing correctly.
Of course, your student’s writing during the summer months doesn’t have to be research papers and book reports. Instead, make this a time for them to write about whatever they are interested in. For some, that may be researching and writing about science and technology, while for others, that might mean composing creative short stories or poems. Just encourage your student to write this summer, even if that’s a few minutes of journaling each day!
3. Memorize a New Bible Verse Each Week
You don’t want to stop memorizing just because it’s summer break. Memorization exercises are another fantastic way to ensure the mind stays active. And what better memorization exercise to do than to memorize Scripture!
Depending on what level your students are at, you can memorize just one or two Bible verses or commit to a whole passage. If you’re unsure what Scripture to memorize, a great place to begin is with your favorite Psalm. Of course, having your students memorize Bible verses not only keeps their brains engaged, it also equips them with the knowledge of the Scriptures so they can better aim to know God and to make Him known.
4. Study Nature by Spending Time Outside
Seize every opportunity this summer offers to experience the wonder of God’s creation with your child. Get outside on those hot, clear days and go for a swim, plant in your garden, or walk around your local nature park! Summer is a beautiful season to get out there with the Nature Sketch Journal and draw and attend to the plants, flowers, bugs, and animals your student comes across. It’s also a great time to start a leaf collection from the plentiful trees!
5. Travel and Explore
With days off, summer is the time to travel and explore the world around you! But this doesn’t have to be to a country overseas or even to another state. Instead, you and your family can take small day trips to the mountains, the beach, and nearby cities or towns. Often, there are many close-by places that we have yet to set our eyes upon.
And just because you’re a homeschooler doesn’t mean you always have to school at home. For example, you and your student can go learn about the world around you at your local museum, park, zoo, and even your farmer’s market!
6. Get Physical Exercise
It’s not just the physical exercise that helps keep the mind active; it’s also the confidence and creativity that come along with exercise that are essential to the learning process.
On these hot summer days, let your student go swimming, play baseball or soccer, ride bikes, or just generally run around somewhere. Especially for younger students, getting physical exercise is necessary to develop their gross motor skills. And as they run, jump, and climb, they will become more confident in their abilities. How can this confidence not translate to the schoolroom?
7. Join a Summer Camp
Sign your students up for a summer camp in your area! Many churches offer Christ-centered summer camps like Awana and VBS for children to have fun together and learn about God. This is a great, healthy way for your student to socialize, learn about God and the Bible, get exercise, and, of course, keep the mind active and engaged this summer.
Create a Summer Homeschool Activities List
Even at young ages, children possess definite ideas about what constitutes a perfect summer. Whether it’s going out for ice cream, spending all day at the pool, or playing mini-golf, allow your child a say in how they spend their days off.
A great way to do this is to create a list together as a family of all the things everyone wants to do this summer. Then, when you find that your family is getting into a summer slump, choose to do an activity on your list. Your summer homeschool activities can include some of those listed above to help keep the mind active during these months, some fun field trip ideas, or any activities you and your family come up with. We hope your family has your best summer yet!
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