Woodrow Wilson School #5

Mrs. Doreen Velardi

Principal

Dear Students, Parents and Caregivers,

Well another school year has come and gone! Summer is now upon us. This is a time for fun in the sun, rest and relaxation, catching up with old friends, and READING!!! Parents here are some tips from the National Association of Elementary School Principals for you that can keep your child learning during the summer.

You’ve got to have the talk.

Sit down with your children and let them know that reading and learning activities will be an important part of their summer. Assure them that they will still have lots of time for play and relaxation.

Find activity books to exercise their minds.

There are a huge variety of activity books available, usually catered to specific age groups. Give your children their own activity book, and let them work at their own pace to finish it. Give them due dates to keep them on track. Any activity book will be sufficient even crossword puzzles!

Set a reading time every day.

Set aside a certain time every day, where everyone turns off the computer, TV, music, and video games, and spends 15 minutes or more reading. (As busy as parents are, it’s important that you participate as well, even if you just read the newspaper.)

Get great recommendations on books for your child.

Summer Reading 09.pdf

Summer Reading 09.doc

Be International.

Set aside one or two nights during the summer to have an international evening. Together, find recipes from a different nation and put together a special meal. Learn a few basic words in that country’s language and find a children’s book or an encyclopedia article that gives information on what life is like that country. Get out a world map or a globe and show them where the country is and talk about what you’d want to visit if you could go there.

Incorporate "thinking" into traveling.

If your family is able to take a vacation during the summer, include stops at a few places that sneak in learning, along with fun. Zoos, children’s museums and historic sites are educational as well as entertaining. For bonus learning, have your children help you plot out the trip using maps or an atlas. Older children can tally up the miles, keep track of expenses, or figure out gas mileage.

Participate in sports/exercise.

With hours of free time every day, there’s always time to build in some physical activity. Even if your child can’t participate in a local sports league or community-based team, there are plenty of ways to get exercise-from jumping rope to family walks.

Wonderful resources to consult for all information, is the library and the Internet. Join our Reading Club at School #5 and get lost in a story. Have a wonderful and safe summer!!

Mrs. Velardi