Kids forget how to learn over summer

Every year students take up to six weeks to get back into the swing of learning after their summer break. With summer learning, they are ready to go right at the beginning of the school year.

(PRWEB) June 30, 2004 -- Every year the cycle gets repeated. After a summer spent swimming, working or just plain lazing about, September rolls around and kids file back into schools - ready for a new year. Or are they?

Dr. Nick Whitehead, president of Oxford Learning, the leading Canadian supplier of supplemental education, reports that a teacher friend of mine tells me we have to allow at least a month for everyone to get settled and back in a learning mood. That puts us into October for most and some students are still not ready by then."

Whitehead adds, When you consider this information, for at least three and a half months, learning can be haphazard to say the least."

It may even be worse considering many childrens learning experiences in June each year. Tests, exams, field trips and other events consume most of that months schedule adding another month to the let down period.

Considering the average school year includes only 195 days of instruction and almost half of those days are spent in less than ideal conditions, there may an explanation as to why many schools struggle to meet the educational expectations of parents and society.

Help your kids stay sharp over the summer and there will be no let down - no big gap in the fall. Kids who are focused and ready in September, will learn, integrate and understand new material right away. This will allow them to make the most of each school day instead of only half of them.

There are many ways to help kids remain on top of their school skills, says Dr. Whitehead. Reading and writing are the best ways. It is all about mental activity. Both reading and writing require students to stay focused. Students should keep a daily journal of their thoughts and feelings. Twenty to thirty minutes per day is sufficient but it must be every day.

Make sure they spend about 30 minutes reading magazines, newspapers and novels and on alternate days have them read from materials that pertain to next years school work. Depending upon your level of connection with your teen, discuss the material. Passive minds just read without comprehension. Active minds chew the material and integrate it. They understand what they read. Discussion with active minds is fun and keeps kids on track. Encourage mental activity but make it fun.

Its not so much the memorized material that students forget over the summer," says Whitehead of Oxford Learning. Its learning how to learn that is forgotten each summer. Students who develop good learning and thinking skills will be ready for success in September."

Oxford Learning, a proud Canadian company, has locations across Canada, and is now expanding to the United States. Its unique curriculum offers students the chance to learn how to learn. Visit www.oxfordlearning.com for more information