Summer is just around the corner, which means kids are itching to be done with school. Research shows that kids lose the connection to what they learned during the school year in the summer. Yet, it is difficult to quantify what exactly the impact of that will be in the future.
You don’t have to be a “Tiger Mom” to want your child to come out of their summer vacation with an advantage over the students that do nothing over the summer.
How to Pick a Summer Program – Ideally, you want a program that’s challenging but engaging enough that your child is motivated to go. You want their summer to be fun, but educational as well! Does the program have a schedule that it follows most days? A lack of structure suggests a disorganized program. Pick a program that not only fits the educational needs of your student, but is flexible enough to work around summer vacation plans.
Want to make a big impact on your child’s education? In the past, teachers have spent the first part of the semester re-teaching old skills; the new common core curriculum will change this! There will not be time to remediate past skills; the new National curriculum is more advanced and more in-depth. Teachers will be focused on applications and more advanced material with less time to go back and review.
Planning for Fall – “If kids have heard the words they are going to hear or have some prior knowledge about the subject waiting in their brains, they will be more likely to make a lasting link,” explains Judy Willis, M.D., a neurologist turned schoolteacher. Without the introduction to the new concepts it can take longer for the knowledge to stick.
Keep It Personal – As the parent, you are in the best position to understand what gaps are present in your child’s learning. Your interest and participation in your child’s math activities can also make a real difference in the summer losses in these areas. “You don’t want to hand your kid a printed math worksheets and walk away.”
Find out more about the big changes in mathematics due to Common Core this summer. Math Support Services offers WASC Accredited transferable math and science courses for 7th to 12th grade students, preparation for next year’s math and science, PSAT, SAT and ACT workshops, preparation for AP courses, fun workshops through the city of Santa Clarita, and much more.
Please call us at 661-255-1730 or visit us online at www.mathsupportservices.com.