Keeping Learning Alive during Summer Vacation

by: Angela Bickford, owner, always B designs

Summer is here and kids are squirming in anticipation. No more teachers, no more homework, and no more early mornings. Now, it’s time for sleeping in and spending all day playing in the sun. How can you as a parent keep learning alive over the summer? It’s easy if you find the learning opportunities that are all around you.

As a former elementary teacher, it is a passion of mine to keep learning going through the entire year. I’ve given talks on this topic and written magazine articles about it as well. That’s because I believe that there are opportunities for hands-on learning that you can do with your children anywhere. Whether it’s at the grocery store, on vacation, or just at home, you can educate your child and have fun at the same time. The bonus? You don’t need to bring anything.

Make everything a game
While on vacation, there are lots of new sites to take in. While you’re on the road or waiting in line, play educational games to pass the time.

• Find words that start with each letter of the alphabet.
• Look for things that are real-life examples of shapes.
• See who can solve math facts or spell words the fastest.

Make learning real-life
Food is a great learning item – it’s yummy and educational. You can count the red sprinkles or blue M&M’s. You can do math problems with jelly beans. A great activity that would be easy to do in the hotel is to spell words with whip cream (yes, it can get messy). Other ways to make learning real life include:

• Connect past events to current events to make learning more relevant.
• Stop at a museum or other cultural event to help build their knowledge base.
• Plan your trip around things they have been learning in school.

Give your kids a job
Every kid likes to feel important, but did you know that a job can also be a learning opportunity? Here are some ways to let your children get involved that will also have them learning something.

• Let them help cook dinner or go grocery shopping as you prepare for the trip. Both involve reading and following directions.
• Let your kids help pack. Let them know how many pairs of each thing they need and have them count out the right amounts.
• In the age of iPhones, have your kids find the nearest restaurant or the address of your hotel. You can even play games where they have or track the mileage and determine how much further you have.
• Have your older children write up itineraries or other travel plans.

• Make a map of the places you are going and have your kids identify them. Then look for the signs when you get close to those places and have your kids point them out. Let them help navigate (if you can handle it).

Killing time
If you are driving to your destination, games are a great time passer. And, while they might not all seem educational, anything that uses brain power and gets them thinking works. Reading is also educational, although not everyone can read on a plane or in the car. But, you can still have nightly bed-time stories while on the road.

Follow up
There are many things you can do post-vacation too. Have your children keep a diary while on the road and then write a story about their trip or create a scrapbook with their journaling and photos from the trip. Map out all the states they’ve been to and keep the map in a prominent location in the house. Whatever the activity, keeping learning alive during the summer is easier than you might think.

For kids that need incentive
While always B designs, my business, is mostly jewelry, I do offer scrapbooks, decorated clipboards, and stationery too. So, for those kids that need a little extra motivation, I’d like to offer a *giveaway* as an incentive to do my favorite learning activity of all – write about the vacation. I’ll be giving away one custom decorated clipboard AND a 10 pack of personalized note cards (2 separate winners).  Click HERE to enter!

Simply email me at angela@alwaysbdesigns.com to discuss your order. You can also visit  always B designs for samples and ideas.

For craft tips and gift ideas, visit my Blog at  or find me on facebook and twitter.