Math + Reading = Summer Growth!

Summer learning is not a new concept. Schools have always pushed summer literacy through reading challenges, summer reading lists, and regular visits to the library. But as we push for kids to not backslide during the time away from school, we often neglect a higher area of need for many students: math!

As an educator, I talk with more parents who are tentative about their ability to help their kids with math at home than those who are hesitant to push reading. In most families, parents feel comfortable having an expectation that kids read at home or that kids participate in family reading time. This is largely because parents feel more comfortable with reading than math. Reading is a skill that many students can practice independently, especially as they get older. I would never discourage any parent from having a summer reading expectation for their child. Rather, I encourage parents to make time for both reading and math practice during the summer. Here are some ways you can practice math with you kids during the summer months.

Practice Multiplication Tables and Flash Cards

I do realize that this is will not be the first thing your kids want to do. Furthermore, I do realize that new math standards are asking kids to develop a stronger number sense and deeper levels of mathematical understanding. I also know that one of the key skills that holds kids back as they get into higher levels of math is their inability to do math quickly in their heads. Sadly, I regularly see kids in middle school using their fingers to add, subtract and multiply. While rote memorization of math facts is not a standard in most states, it is something that will help kids succeed as grow. Kids who can do simple math (multiplication, addition, subtraction, division) in their heads, are far more successful and can learn complex math more quickly than peers who still struggle with these basic facts. At home, parents can print out multiplication tables or use flash cards with their kids to practice. This will make a world of difference when they return to school.

Practice Verbal Math Problems

Give kids verbal math problems while you drive or when they are bored at home. For example, on the way to the store you can say, “If I went to the store and I bought 10 apples, then Daddy eats three when we get home, how many apples will we have left?” Just giving them opportunities to practice the skill of understanding these problems and doing the math will help hone their ability to think mathematically in all areas of their lives. Of course, you would need to change the difficulty or complexity for older students.

Solve Home Maintenance and Cooking Math Problems

Have your kids help with home projects and cooking. I have recommended this in previous blogs because it brings math into real world experiences. If you’re planning your 4th or July or end of summer cookout, you can say, “One person would eat 2 hot dogs. We’re going to have 23 people. How many hot dogs will we need. (46). Good! Now, hot dogs come in packs of 8. How many packs should we buy?” There are many examples like this, just try to include your kids when you’re doing home math!

Math Learning Can Be Fun

During the summer, let’s push both math and literacy to keep our kids sharp for the next school year!  Comment below if you have any summer math ideas!

Avoiding the Summer Learning Slump

My brothers and I recently went to breakfast during a week when we all visited my father in our home town. As we usually do when we visit home, we reminisced about our childhood, fun events, and experiences we have reminisced many times. Since we were visiting during the summer months, we talked about summer street fairs, days spent biking around the neighborhood, playing street hockey and basketball at the local park, and cookouts in our backyard. We also discussed my mom and how she organized our summer experience.  We didn’t realize it then, but the experience she gave us is one that I have shared with countless families in my role as a school principal, as it ensured a strong balance of fun, responsibility, and learning.

How Parents Can Structure Time

One of the pitfalls of the summer is the abundance of free time kids have. As parents, we must be intentional about helping kids fill that time when they are young so they build the life habits they need to lead productive lives as teens and adults. My mom had the perfect approach that kept my brothers and me productive, but allowed us to have a healthy balance of fun. She made sure that we had daily tasks or chores to complete. We had limited screen time and we always had time and resources for reading.

The Value of Chores

For chores, we had a list of To Dos that she wrote and had on the counter before we even woke up.  We got breakfast, were able to relax a bit, but then we had to get started on our chores. These included cleaning, organizing, and helping out with all the yard work. Each day was different, but we knew the routine and were able to do the things we wanted to do once the work was done. This was not only effective for running our household, but it also helped us learn the important life lesson of not procrastinating or putting off what needs to get done first.

Coupon Time Rewards

Although my childhood was in the 80s and 90s, and screens were far less ubiquitous than they are these days, we did have a TV and a computer. There was still plenty of entertainment between movies, TV, and games that could easily fill a day, but mom created coupons for us.  When we finished the chores for the day, we earned 30 minutes of screen time. We could earn extra time, up to 90 minutes per day, by doing extra chores or by doing extra reading. She also encouraged us to save our screen time so we could watch a movie as a family a couple of times a week. We often saved our minutes so we could participate in the family movie time.

Reading for Fun

In terms of summer learning, she made sure that we were always prepared to read. Each year on the first day of summer, we would go to the book store and each of us would get to buy a couple of books. We also took regular visits to the library so we could supplement our book collection. This helped if we didn’t make the best book choice at the beginning of the summer, or if we got through our original book selections quickly. As part of our summer requirements, we were expected to read for at least 30 minutes per day.

Creating Meaningful Summers

Finally, and possibly most important, we were not allowed to say we were bored. We had chores, earned screen time, enjoyed a room full of books, and explored the wonderful outdoors. If she heard us say we were bored, even if it was not said directly to her, she would fill the entertainment void with more chores. We learned quickly to find new adventures outside, or to enjoy more relaxation time reading our books.

I am eternally grateful for the summers my mother designed for my brothers and me. As I now try to create meaningful summers for my daughter, I realize the effort and planning my mom had to put in to make sure our summers were time well spent. I appreciate the life lessons she taught us without my brothers and me even being aware of the lesson at the time. I encourage all parents to think about how you can structure summers for your kids. And as you design what works best for you and your family, remember to always include summer reading!

Collaborating with Teachers

As a new teacher, I believe collaborating with other teachers and leaning on veteran colleagues is crucial to surviving your first year as a teacher or your first year at a new school.

Be Curious About Your Environment

• Approach everything with humility.
• Absorb as much as possible about the school culture, especially the language they use for students schoolwide (follow the ABCs, follow the 4C’s).
• Get to know your neighboring teachers.
• Get to know your grade level team. Ask how they work together and understand their collaboration style. Are they open to meeting anytime? Do they prefer to plan on their own and only meet together to discuss assessments?

Ask a Lot of Questions

• Don’t be afraid of asking questions.
• You will have colleagues that welcome you warmly and extend a hand for any questions you may have.
• Learn about the routines for the first day of school, or the pathway to walk students to recess and lunch.
• Throughout the year, ask for various teachers’ perspectives about their approach to bathroom usage or their rules for online games.

Meet Together with Your Induction Mentor Weekly

• Prepare for these meetings. Write down questions about procedures and classroom management challenges.
• Share your successes and challenges when implementing curriculum from various subjects.
• Ask for specific resources to enhance teaching specific subjects.
• Bring examples of student work that include both successes and challenges for added support.
• Build a portfolio of student work with the mentor’s feedback.

Seek Support from the Principal

• Build a healthy rapport with the principal during staff meetings and individual check-ins.
• Seek guidance when peers and the induction mentor recommend that you reach out to the principal for added support.
• Support and implement the recommendations that the principal gives during classroom observations.

Share Resources and Ideas

• It is better to collaborate than to reinvent the wheel every single time.
• Collaborating with other teachers allows for novel activities to be created that meet the needs of specific classes.
• Take initiative with the team in sharing unit ideas and helping develop them into teachable modules. Examples might include locating digital resources, assembling templates, and creating art projects that teachers can use with students.

These are examples of successes in working together with colleagues to create a purposeful learning environment that inspires the students to reach their highest potential.

First Year of Teaching 4th Grade

As the summer break begins and my first year of teaching in the classroom closes, I am reflecting on all the experiences I’ve had and the opportunities I’ve gained in the past year. With a goal of a healthy school environment in mind, I have implemented a lot of strategies in order to ensure the most nurturing and structured classroom that I could provide. Summarized below are some of my greatest successes during my first year as a 4^th grade teacher.

Attention Getters

• “If you can hear me clap once” or “If you can hear me say”
• Clicking together two sticks to get their attention allowed me to use my music background to introduce different beats. This also worked on their muscle coordination and sense of timing!

Table Points

At the end of the week, the table with the most points would each get a sticker and select a classroom plushie for the group desk. Tables with the most points often were:

• First to give me their attention.
• First to clean their desks.
• On task all together.

Tables would lose points if they were off task, not being collaborative, or respectful. However, they all had chances to gain these points back. Class points earned through collective teamwork would gain a free choice period on Friday.

Bathroom Use

• Students received a reminder to use the bathroom before school, at recess, after completing the daily mile, and during lunch.
• Two tickets a day were initially distributed to students needed to use the restroom during class instruction.
• Bathroom partners for outside door access were monitored by the teacher.

Tutoring Methods to Reinforce Differentiated Instruction

• More advanced students helped others once they finished their own work.
• Other teachers used these advanced students to guide challenged students to complete their assignments before working on their own assignment.
• Students who needed more support would sit at a semicircle desk and tutor each other as I worked with an individual student.

Students with Behavior Challenges

• I engaged the staff for assistance and evaluation. The school principal and school psychologist were instrumental in providing added support and resources.
• It is important to take the time to understand what motivates each student to feel empowered. One emotionally challenged student found that poetry provided the outlet to self-regulate and for self-expression.
• I established respectful relationships with families so that students felt safe with consistent expectations. Some teachers established relationships with families prior to the start of the school year through phone calls.
• Follow-up with parents continued with Back to School Nights and Goal-Setting Conferences.

Keeping the Students Engaged

As the school year progressed, students became more motivated to work together as a team when I consciously created units of learning that were project based and loaded with creative crafts and activities. Some activities included:

• Collaborative social studies units were created with poster summaries and student illustrations.
• Nature scene painting was developed by making paints with natural resources such as grass crushed from rocks, turmeric, charcoal powder, fresh roses, and butterfly pea flower tea.
• A ruler and protractor were used to showcase knowledge of lines and angles as students designed an abstract piece of art.
• A narrative story was written by each student that was inspired by a standards aligned historical fiction book.
• Comics were created by students based on a reading assignment. A sample comic picture was projected on the screen and the students would collectively summarize what the passage picture represented. Then the students would create their own comic picture with their own summaries.

As I reflect on my first year of teaching, I am excited about how much I learned along with the students as they mastered their reading, writing, math, science, and social studies projects.

Grandparenting Summer Play with Our Tween Twins

Summer is a wonderful time to spend extended quality time with our tween twin granddaughters. In previous years, our days were filled with planned outings, free-play games, and art projects. Now that the girls are shifting their focus toward friends, we are adapting by inviting their peers along for the ride. Thankfully, our car is large enough to play “chauffeur” for the whole crew!

Summer Activities and Outings

Below is a summary of our plans for a summer full of growth and adventure:

• Volleyball & College Life: The girls love volleyball, so we’ve enrolled them in a skill-building camp hosted at a local college. Beyond the sport, they’ll learn about campus life from student-athletes who lead the training. Tours of the bookstore, performing arts buildings, and athletic fields offer them an early, inspiring glimpse into their potential futures.
• Individual Mini-Vacations: For the first time, the twins have agreed to take separate trips with us. One will visit a bustling city, featuring a stop at a Jellycat Diner; she’s already doing extra chores to save up for a collectible. The other twin has opted for a beachfront city to enjoy the surf and local attractions.
• Family Thrills: We are heading to the local beach boardwalk so the twins can enjoy unlimited amusement rides with their older brother.
• Daily Playdates: We’ll keep the momentum going by taking the tweens and their friends to various parks, museums, and nature walks.
• Games & Art: Every summer, the girls learn new games and spend hours on art projects, such as handmade greeting cards and seasonal decorations.
• Academic Play: We provide opportunities for reading, journaling, and math. Grandpa even challenges them with upcoming grade-level concepts! They especially love “playing teacher” by using these skills with their younger relatives.
• Future Sitters: They adore babysitting their younger cousins under our guidance. On their next birthday, they plan to become officially certified through the American Red Cross.
• Digital Connection: When staying with us for several days, we ensure they have dedicated time to visit friends online and share their adventures with their parents.

Tips for Grandparenting Tweens

Caring for tweens requires a blend of high energy and thoughtful strategy. Here are a few tips we’ve picked up:

• Stay Flexible: Even with a plan, tweens may get tired, feel under the weather, or simply need a “day off.” We only prepurchase essentials like camps and trips to keep the rest of the summer stress-free.
• Balance is Key: Mix structured activities with plenty of downtime so the kids stay relaxed and excited rather than burnt out.
• Sneak in Learning: Integrate literacy and math into fun tasks. Our granddaughters love recalculating recipe ingredients for dinner or tracking mileage and reading directions for road trips. Games like Family Feud are great for reading and score-keeping!
• Share Your Roots: Tweens are often fascinated by family history. Look through old photo albums together or visit living history museums to compare modern life with the cooking utensils, appliances, and tools of the past.
• Explore Science Through the Decades: Science and tech museums offer hands-on STEM education through interactive exhibits and maker labs, showing just how far we’ve come.
• Know Your Limits: Grandparenting tweens is active work! If a roller coaster sounds too intense, bring a teen along to handle the “wild” rides while you cheer from the sidelines.
• Celebrate Individuality: When planning, consider each twin’s unique interests. Dividing your time can provide that much-needed undivided attention they still crave.

Value the Journey

A summer spent with tween twins is a rewarding journey of balancing their growing independence with meaningful family traditions. By embracing their social circles and honoring their individual interests, you create an environment where they feel both respected and supported. Integrating subtle learning opportunities and family history ensures the season is as enriching as it is entertaining. Ultimately, the flexibility to pivot between high-energy excursions and quiet downtime is the secret to a stress-free experience. These shared adventures build a lasting bridge of connection that will carry your relationship forward into their teenage years.