It’s summertime for most students. Up in Canada they have about a week left. Here in the USA, we have been done for about a month.
My mom is a tutor for children up in Canada. I have noticed that parents keep her very busy over the summer teaching their children. Some of the reasons are because the school district is not teaching them the basics that these parents want their children to learn. Other times, it sounds like a glorified babysitting service so the parents have a moment or two to themselves. While I do not believe this is wrong, I think of the poor children who just want to run and play. Instead they are stuck at a table learning yet again more facts.
My mom handles all this well, though. Having been a teacher for almost all my life (well over 40….okay 50 years), she has come up with some pretty clever ways to keep the kids learning without them thinking they are learning.
This is how I have tried to raise my children in the summer months as well.
So what has Melanie been learning this summer?
In part, she has been learning fractions. She is spending a good portion of her time in the kitchen baking and cooking. Melanie seems to have taken this skill up with much joy and wants to try many different recipes. She is getting pretty good at them, too. Occasionally she has a fail and that makes her sad. Sad because of the “waste.” I try to teach the kids not to waste their food. However, I am also teaching her that all great chefs and bakers had many fails before great wins. It is just a time to push on and try again!
She has been honing in on her critical thinking skills as she and I watch a detective program in the evenings. Melanie tries to solve the case. She is able to think and figure out the “bad guys.” Critical thinking in a world gone mad is an important skill to have.
Melanie is also learning how to win graciously and lose humbly as she plays board games with her sister. She recently picked up some different Monopoly games and has been enjoying those.
We haven’t read a lot this summer together (more on that in a later post). She and I have been practicing ASL for interpreting on Sundays and Wednesdays. Melanie has been a huge help to me as I give her songs to sign while I play the piano at church. She is growing and improving in leaps and bounds.
If you ask Melanie, she will say she is not in school right now but I beg to differ all while wearing a smile on my face.