Summer Learning Loss
June 22, 2013
This post is for parents…
On average, American students lose about one month of learning during the summer when all the disciplines are factored together. In mathematics, students generally lose 2.6 months of learning during the summer. This means that it’s important to engage your child intellectually to help prevent/off-set the typical learning loss.
Here are some ideas for you to consider:
- Talk to them about current events.
- Ask their opinions on matters, it doesn’t need to be those difficult, open-ended questions (especially if you have a teenager).
- Take them to a museum, to the library, or to a park.
- Encourage your child to be creative. Challenge your child with a project (like a puzzle or a snow structure).
- Place boundaries on television and computer time.
- Encourage your child to read a book and then discuss it with them.
I am not saying summer needs to turn into school. You and your child(ren) need some down-time from school. I am challenging you, though, to think about the opportunities you have to enhance their learning and growth this summer.
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Scot Graden's Blog 
I guess one way to frame this is that there is “learning loss.” But another way to frame this would be that they learn other things. My kids have never learned to fish or put up a tent in school. Their swimming improves with all the practice they get in the summer. Etcetera. I sometimes wonder if we should reframe this not as learning loss but as learning other things.
Having said that, I think it’s great in the summer to put boundaries on television and computer time and encourage reading for enjoyment’s sake.