Keep reading and math skills strong with these fun summer learning games! Ensuring your child is keeping his or her brain active during the summer months is important. This is because students can lose a month’s worth of learning skills over the summer. Just because school is out for summer doesn’t mean that learning should stop!
Summer learning games are an easy way to help your child build learning skills by playing. There are a number of activities that encourage learning and creativity at each grade level and, most importantly, are fun for your child.
10 FUN SUMMER LEARNING GAMES TO KEEP STUDENTS ENGAGED ALL SUMMER LONG
- Sort it With Stickers: Practice identifying and sorting skills by having your child match stickers with colored pieces of paper. Incorporate math skills by counting the number of stickers on each piece of paper. You can also switch it up by using stickers of different shapes and sizes and sorting them.
- Outdoor Memory Game. Practice words, math problems, matching, and more with this giant outdoor memory game. Gather up some paper plates and draw items on each. These can be shapes, colors, words, or numbers. Make sure you draw two of each item so you have a pair. Spread the plates face down on the lawn and challenge your child to find the matches. To add an extra challenge for older children, play this game with numbers and ask them to add or multiply each of the numbers together. You can even make cleanup a learning exercise by having your child pick up the plates in pairs.
Fun Summer Learning Games to Build Reading Skills:
- Word Hunts: Create a word list, writing each of the words on a sticky note. Hide each sticky note somewhere in the house. Help your child use the word list to search for as many of the words as he or she can find. Each time your child finds a word, ask him or her to read it out loud. You can also build advanced skills by having your child use the words found to create a sentence or short story.
- Word Ladders: Practice reading and spelling skills with a chalk word ladder. Write out a word on each empty space of the ladder, and have your child start at the bottom. Each time he or she moves up the ladder, ask your child to sound out the word he or she lands on. When he or she reaches the top, turn around and do the ladder backward.
- Outdoor Alphabet Match: Gather up some plastic letters and chalk, and write out the alphabet with chalk on the sidewalk. Ask your child to match up each of the plastic letters with the chalk letters. For kids who are a bit older, write out words, and have them match the plastic letters for each. Fill up a kiddie pool and challenge your child to fish out the letters with a net to add some extra fun!
- Create a Vocabulary Word Jar. Improve vocabulary skills with your child by creating a word jar. Fill a jar with words on pieces of paper. Let your child draw a word from the jar and ask him or her to define it. Challenge your child to use that word in his or her conversations throughout the day. You can adapt this activity for your child’s grade level, and help him or her build vocabulary skills by adding more challenging words each week.
Fun Summer Learning Games to Build Math Skills:
- Dice Math & Match: Wrap a square tissue box in paper, drawing dots, letters, or shapes on each side. On a separate piece of paper, write or draw each of the items you included on the die. Have your child roll the die, find the matching item on the list, and cross it out. If you have an older child, you can create two dice and turn it into a math game by adding, subtracting, or multiplying the numbers each time the dice are rolled.
- Jumping to Better Math Skills. Cut out some puddle shapes from blue construction paper, writing a different number on each “puddle”. Have your child jump from one puddle to another in order, counting out loud as he or she goes. Then, do the same thing backward. For older children, practice mental math skills by having them add, subtract, multiply, or divide numbers and jumping to the puddle with the correct answer. The exercise your child gets with this activity is an added bonus!
- Decode Math Messages. Help your child improve his or her math skills by writing a secret message he or she has to decode to read. First, decide what your message will be, assigning a number to each letter in your message. Create math equations that match the answers needed to reveal the message. Then, create a decoder list that includes each letter of the alphabet your child will use to decode the message. You can even give your child a bit of extra incentive by making the secret message the wifi password for the day!
- Count with Ice Cream: Make math more fun by incorporating something kids love — ice cream! First, gather small pom poms of different colors and create numbered paper triangles. Have your child stack “ice cream scoops” onto each cone according to its number, counting as he or she goes. You can also practice identifying colors and making patterns once your child has mastered his or her counting skills.
Make Learning Fun This Summer!
Summer is a time for your child to relax and recharge, but it’s important to make sure he or she is keeping an active mind. By incorporating summer learning games and activities into your child’s day, you can have fun while helping him or her get ahead for success next school year!
