Avoiding the Summer Slide

Long hot summer days filled with visits to the pool club, hikes in the mountains, and beach vacations on Cape Cod; this is what summer is about in New England. Unfortunately, putting a brain in neutral for ten weeks is not ideal for a child’s learning and academic progress. In a John Hopkins Study, researchers found students lose 2 or more months of progress over the summer – “The Summer Slide”.

Relaxation and play are very important to a child’s growth during the summer; keeping the brain sharp over the long summer months is just as important. In suburban communities math is the subject area most affected by the lengthy summer break. Parents continue to read to their children, and many kids read on their own throughout the summer, but no one seems to sit down and review time, money, basic operations, fractions, and problem solving.

Parents often ask: what can we do to keep our child’s skills from slipping? For parents who are willing to work with their children for 2 to 3 hours a week there are many low cost and no cost summer math programs available online and summer math workbooks available through Amazon or local book stores. Another option is local math classes. There is no substitute for face to face learning and consistent practice.

Many local learning centers and colleges run summer math programs. The best of these programs offer 2 – 3 sessions per week for a total of 2 – 3 hours and are run by certified teachers who are familiar with the local school system.

Avoiding the summer slide is easy when you spend time each week reviewing important math concepts and encouraging your child to engage their brain!