Many parents have asked me for advice for keeping their scholars engaged in learning over the summer... here is a copy of the letter I sent home with report cards today. This has been a fantastic school year and I feel so proud of all of the growth I saw in your children. I hope you all enjoy your summer!!!
Dear
Room 8 Families,
I believe that summer should be a
balance of unstructured play time that allows kids to be kids as well as some
academic guidance to prevent the dreaded “brain drain.” Having a gifted child presents a special
challenge as they tend to have so much energy and curiosity, especially at this
young age. I would like to offer some
suggestions for how to keep your child academically engaged this summer.
*Visit
museums, zoos, & aquariums. You can
have your child choose a particular animal or artifact in a book beforehand and
they can make it their mission to find it and learn all they can about it
during their visit. The Discovery
Science center is always a fun choice!
*Spend
time outdoors. We are so lucky to live
in a place with beautiful beaches and parks nearby. Check out the Bolsa Chica Wetlands, Irvine
Regional Park (in the city of Orange), or the Crystal Cove tide pools for a
family day that will help your child to “think like a naturalist.”
*Keep
a journal. Writing every day (or a few
times a week) will help your child practice their handwriting, writing skills,
and summarizing. Drawing pictures is an
important part of journaling, too. They
will enjoy having a collection of summer memories afterwards.
*Write
letters to a pen pal. These letters can
be handwritten and mailed or typed on the computer and emailed. Do you have a friend with a child the same
age? There’s your instant pen pal! As a challenge, they could write letters from
a stuffed animal’s point of view like we did with Curious George this year.
*Read,
read, read. Ask your child questions
about the books they are reading. Let
them see you reading, too. Your children
admire you and the example you set.
*Practice
math applications in everyday life.
-Shopping? Have your child add up the cost of a few
items. Ask them how much change you will
get back.
-Practice
identifying two and three dimensional shapes (ex/ a baseball is a sphere)
-When they ask what
time it is, remind them that they know how to read the clock.
-Give them simple
equations to practice their mental math (ex/ We have 4 plates. There are 10 people coming over for
dinner. How many more plates do we
need?)
*Use
www.swunmath.com or google “math
magician” and click the first link to practice math facts. If your child did not have a “4” for addition
or subtraction facts they need to practice these facts every day. Gifted students often resist this type of
drill, but it is a necessary skill that they must master for success in the
upper grades. There are also flash cards
in the dollar bins at Target if you prefer.
*Practice
identifying depth and complexity in real life.
Look for patterns, details, big ideas, trends, etc. Don’t forget about our theme of ORDER this year, or next year's theme of relationships. Some examples are cause
and effect, opposites, and families.
Help your child to identify the relationships around them to relate
their own lives to the theme.
*Join
a club, organization, or take lessons. I
know many of your children attend Vietnamese school, Sunday school, and
instrumental lessons. Those are all
great choices, but don’t forget about the valuable character skills and all the
fun that can come from being part of a sports team or club. 2nd grade is a great time to get
involved with an organization like sports or scouting. Many of our scholars can use help building
their social skills and establishing strong friendships. These types of organizations provide a
structured, fun, environment that can contribute to a well-rounded child. I especially recommend this for children
without siblings who need to spend time with other kids and get some of their
energy out.
*Be
artistic. Many of your children have
great artistic talent (far beyond mine!) and can channel their energy into
beautiful art. Provide them with
opportunities to draw, paint, make collages out of old magazines, even sculpt
out of clay or playdough. They can write
a story to go with their art like we’ve often done in class.
*Practice
typing skills. With the new set of
Common Core standards, students will be expected to type more work and even
take tests on the computer. Have your
child practice proper typing by keeping their fingers on the home row. This is a very valuable skill that takes time
to develop. They can use the free “dance
mat” typing site or you can have them practice typing into a word document. Again, they can benefit from watching you
type correctly.
*Give
your child an independent research topic.
This year we researched many topics including butterflies and ecosystems. Choose a topic and have them use varied
resources to learn about it. Some ideas
for topics are famous people, countries, and weather.
*Practice applying the reading comprehension
skills to real life. The 5 main skills
are:
-Predict
& Infer (ex/ We’re going to Grandma’s house. What do you think we will do there?)
-Question (ex/ What would you
like to learn about that animal?)
-Summarize
(ex/
Tell me about your day. What did you do
first, next, and last?)
-Monitor
and clarify (ex/
Do you understand what he said? If not,
how could you find out?)
-Evaluate (ex/ Did you like
that movie? Why or why not?)
I have enjoyed getting to know all of you
this year and I hope that you will come back to visit. I am so happy to be able to send your
children to two truly amazing teachers, Mrs. Wells and Mrs. Fox, to continue
their learning next year. Enjoy this
wonderful time with your brilliant, creative, imaginative, sweet children.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Smith
lgravessmith@ggusd.us
