5 Tips for Beating the Summer Slump
By MARISSA DESPINS, RISSA HANNEKEN, TAMMIE DESHAW, RACHEL JAMISON, JENNIFER MARTINEZ, and RACHEL DEROCHE – Updated June 7, 2024
As summer rolls in, so does the challenge of keeping our students academically engaged. To tackle the infamous summer slump, we’ve teamed up with a group of innovative teachers to bring you a collection of effective strategies aimed specifically at students in grades 4-7. This blog post is packed with a variety of activities to prevent the summer slump, all designed to keep learning interesting and accessible throughout the break. Whether you’re a teacher planning summer sessions or a parent looking to foster educational growth at home, you’ll find these ideas both practical and fun. Join us as we explore these teacher-tested tips to help our students stay sharp and curious over the summer!
Interested in some fun summer themed literacy activities that you can print and use right away? Click on the image or button below to see these fun summer literacy activities in my TPT shop!
Key Ways to Beat The Summer Slump
1 – Complete a Summer Reading Challenge
A summer reading challenge is a fantastic way to keep your students engaged in reading during the summer months. Create a reading list of books with summer themes and challenge your students to read as many as they can during the break. To make it even more exciting, create a bulletin board display to track their progress and offer rewards for those who read the most books. I share tips and tricks for this activity, as well as some additional fun summer literacy activities, in this post.
2 – Brainstorm Ideas to have Ready to Go
As we wrap up another school year, it’s the perfect time to think about keeping the learning momentum going through the summer. Rissa from Teaching in the Heart of Florida has pulled together 30 summer learning ideas that are both fun and educational. These activities are specially designed for elementary students to help them explore new concepts, practice their skills, and even conquer topics they found challenging during the school year. The ideas are simple to set up and perfect for mixing education with enjoyment. They cover reading, writing, and math, ensuring that summer learning is comprehensive and engaging. There’s even a FREE printable full of summer learning ideas that you can send home with parents. It’s a great way to help them pick activities that not only fit their child’s interests but also support continuous learning in enjoyable and meaningful ways. Head over to the blog and check out these fantastic summer learning ideas!
3 – Prevent the Summer Slump with Hands-On Activities
Rachel from Fifth is my Jam knows how hard it can be to beat the summer heat. One of her favorite things to do, whether it is spending time at home with her daughter, or working with a small group of students is to use hands-on summer activities in an exciting way. Giving students an outlet to be creative is so crucial, but beneficial during time off from school. One way she says they do this is by having fun with bubbles and paint. Creating a bubble art beach scene is both exhilarating and radical! Head over to the blog to learn more about how you can imagine having fun at the beach while also enjoying a little downtime with art at Fifth is my Jam!
4 – Practice Key Skills
Is it possible to send summer work home for students that they’ll actually like doing? I’m glad you asked. Because the answer is yes! Students have worked hard this year. They are ready for a break. You are, too. However, you know how important it is to encourage your students to practice their skills over the summer to prevent losing some of what you all worked so hard to achieve this year. The challenge becomes finding work for your students to do that offers practice and reinforcement, but that they’ll actually enjoy doing. Jennifer from everything just so has you covered. Read this post to learn how and download freebies to get you started!
5 – Incorporate Technology
Let’s be real: your students are ready for a VACAY. And, for that matter, so are you! Summer break definitely provides a well-deserved rest after a long school year, but it’s also important to stave off the summer slump. Of course, the question is… How can you convince your upper elementary students to enjoy doing a bit of summer work? Tammy at The Owl Teacher suggests connecting with them in their niche: technology! From WebQuests to Hyperdocs, there are dozens of interactive activities students can engage with over summer vacation. Combat the summer slump by checking out these distance learning ideas over on Tammy’s blog!
Looking for More Information to Help You Beat The Summer Slump?
Check out these related posts!
The Very Best Summer Reads for Teachers
Self Care Activities for Teachers
Beach Scene to Beat the Summer Heat Activity
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