Keeping your child entertained during the summer can be a major hassle, and keeping them entertained with something enriching is even more of a stretch. However, there are some easily accessible activities and events that you can participate in with your child that will help bolster their educational development and not put you out of too much money or effort.
At the Brightside Academy in Toledo, Akron, Cleveland, and Columbus, we give the children of Northern Ohio a place to go for child care that recognizes their needs as a person and not just a student. Part of this means taking a diverse approach to our activities and subject matter, and you can use that same philosophy at home to make sure you’re providing your child with the opportunities and stimulation that they need to grow.
Low Stress, High Fun Activities to Help Kids Learn
When it comes to children and their development, one of the biggest challenges that they’re starting to face is the rigid structuring of their time. Especially during the school year, children don’t have time to play as often as they used to. At least in the summer, that should be a little bit of a relief to parents who worry their child is getting enough educationally. Simple games and activities without a demand for some type of results or for things to happen on a timeline are enough to help stimulate your child’s intellectual development in a positive way.
Math and Counting Games
If your children are toddlers, or even older children trying to master multiplication and division, then number and counting games can be a good way to keep them occupied with something beneficial. Traditional fill-in-the-blank games and the like should be enough for toddlers, while you could encourage older children to embrace games that hide puzzles, brain teasers, and building tasks. Games that involve building or constructing something are particularly good for the development of math skills. If you can get your child to sit down with legos for an hour, you can be sure they’ve done something conducive to their development.
Free Play
The concept of free play is simply to let a child play as they wish. It can sometimes be hard for adults to see the point of play, and keeping an eye on them is obviously important, but play helps children imagine and play out experiences that they can one day apply to the outside world. Some even call it the, “work of the child,” and more and more studies are starting to suggest that it helps adults stay sharp as well. So, if you can find a place where you can keep a close eye or even get in on the fun yourself, you can’t knock yourself for just letting your child get their “work” done.
Local Events
Local art and cultural events are a great way to help your child learn new cultures and explore interests they may have not known they had before. While some of these may require a small admission fee, there are sure to be some low-cost and free opportunities for you and your child to visit events put on by local museums, cultural centers, the city, and charitable organizations throughout the summer. Even just visiting local co-ops and farmers markets during the summer can help your child see elements of life they may not see at home or in the classroom.
Outdoor Learning Games
If you want to incorporate some more structured learning into your child’s summer, then there are a number of outdoor learning games that you can use to teach your child basic grammar and math as well as to encourage memory retention. Even if you don’t have a ton of space around you, there are some fun games that could be played on pavement or a nearby park, such as a variety of sidewalk chalk games, water balloon phonics games, and even just more traditional outdoor games that involve counting.
Summer Camp
One way to make sure that your child has a variety of different learning experiences throughout the summer without constantly worrying about what they’ll do next or when you’ll find time to work on other tasks, is to send your child to summer camp with the Brightside Learning Academy, or another reputable summer camp if you live outside of Toledo, Columbus, Cleveland, or Akron. Summer camp is a great way to ensure that your kids are having educational experiences as well as social interaction and physical activity.
Enroll Your Child in the Brightside Program Near You
At the Brightside Academy, we aim to support your child’s growth and development with a well rounded approach. Throughout the summer, and throughout our programs at the Brightside, we help educate your child with traditional subjects as well as their emotional recognition, social interaction, and physical wellbeing. With a safe environment and a modern approach, we’ll help your child gain skills, confidence, and self awareness. Enroll in our summer camp today to enrich your child’s summer experience!
