Lone Star Nannies: Summer Educational Activities
School’s out, but that doesn’t mean all our books are closed! Summer is an opportunity for children of all ages to be students of the world around them, a world beyond the walls and structure of the classroom. As moms, we know how vastly different each child can approach learning. That’s why, in this post, we wanted to share some of our favorite games and activities to encourage our youngest students to be lifelong learners. Our hope is that your child will not even realize what they’re absorbing…and that’s the best part! As adults, we forget that this is one of the most beautiful aspects of childhood. To quote Susie Allison from the popular parenting blog Busy Toddler, “Play is the work of childhood.” You don’t need to buy expensive gadgets or invest in the newest technology on the market. All you need is a few household items and a little inspiration. We’re all lifelong learners! Use this post to be a kid again. Sing phonics in the car, make up stories about the squirrels at the park, and learn fractions while you cook…or while you eat the free pizza you earned from your summer reading program! Educational activities are woven throughout our daily lives, sometimes we just need the eyes to see it.
Whether you’re a nanny or a mom looking for some fresh ideas, we’re on this journey together. Keep reading for some of our favorite games and activities from blogs such as Busy Toddler, Hands on as We Grow, and Teach Mama.
First stop, summer reading programs…
SUMMER READING PROGRAMS
LIBRARY READING CHALLENGES
Libraries across DFW offer a wide range of educational events and themed reading challenges. Check out the links below to learn what your local library has to offer this summer…
Allen
Theme: Color Our World
Notes
Start Date: May 27th
End Date: July 25th
Children, Teen, & Adult Programs
Carrollton
Theme: Summer Reading Challenge
Notes
Start Date: June 1
End Date: August 1
1000 Books Before Kindergarten
Students who complete the program can attend a Summer Reading Party at Rosemeade Rainforest Aquatic Complex on August 1st.
Colleyville
Theme: Reading is Groovy
Notes
Start Date: May 19
End Date: July 22
Children, Teen, & Adult Programs
As part of their summer reading program, the Colleyville library offers free entertainment every Tuesday & Thursday including jigglers, magicians, ventriloquists, science shows, & animal presentations. For a full list of performers, check out the library website.
Coppell
Theme: Color Our World
Notes
Start Date: May 31
End Date: July 31
1000 Books Before Kindergarten
Dallas
Theme: SMART Summer
Notes
Start Date: May 31
End Date: August 9
Children, Teen, & Adult Programs
Denton
Theme: Reading is Groovy
Notes
Start Date: June 1
End Date: July 31
1000 Books Before Kindergarten
Flower Mound
Theme: Blast from the Past
Notes
Start Date: May 29
End Date: July 31
Babies, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
Children, Teen & Adult Programs
Frisco
Theme: The Mayor’s Summer Reading Challenge
Notes
Start Date: May 21
End Date: August 12
Babies, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
Children & Teen Programs
Grapevine
Theme: Color Our World
Notes
Start Date: May 23
End Date: July 31
Children, Teen & Adult Programs
The Grapevine Public Library also has ongoing educational activities throughout the summer. Click the “Services” tab on the library website for children, teen, and adult event calendars.
Grand Prairie
Theme: Color Our World
Notes
Start Date: May 31
End Date: July 31
Children, Teen, & Adult Programs
There’s a lot going on at the Grand Prairie Public Library! You don’t have to be a resident to participate in any of the summer events in their library guide. Check out their Summer Reading Club website for a complete list of Friday Programs, Summer Nights, and a “Wild Wonders” End of Summer Party with nature inspired art activities and something for everyone from toddlers to teenagers.
McKinney
Theme: Celebrate Summer Through Stories
Notes
Start Date: May 31
End Date: August 2
Babies, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
Children & Teen Programs
Pick up a summer reading bookmark at any McKinney library location and start collecting stickers for reading a book in a specific literary genre or attending a scheduled library event. One of our favorite events listed on the website is “Mystery Mayhem”. Read a mystery novel or attend Mystery Mayhem to earn a sticker! At the end of the summer, turn in your completed bookmark for a certificate.
Plano
Theme: Summer Reading
Notes
Start Date: May 31
End Date: July 31
Children, Teen, & Adult Programs
Prizes include a beach themed enamel pin, molding sand, and a hotel keychain
Southlake
Theme: Color Our World
Notes
Start Date: May 23
End Date: July 18
Preschool, Children, & Teen Programs
Adult Book BINGO
Weekly Challenges & Scavenger Hunts
For a full list of educational programs at any local library, check out the events calendar on their website.
BEYOND THE LIBRARY
In addition to libraries, there are a handful of businesses that offer free reading incentive programs for kids. One of the most popular is BookIt!, an app sponsored by Pizza Hut that tracks how many hours kids (Pre-K through 6th grade) read during the summer. Meet certain challenges and earn a personal pan pizza! With free pizza on the line, we recommend spending a few lazy afternoons reading with friends. By the end of the summer, you can all celebrate with a pizza party! Sign up here on the BookIt! website.
To add a sweet treat to those reading rewards, check out the “Books and Bundts” program from Nothing Bundt Cakes. Not every franchise participates, so you’ll need to contact your local bakery to see if they accept reading hours.
Other companies offering summer reading incentives include Barnes & Noble and Half Price Books. At Barnes & Noble, students who complete a certain number of books and a reading journal can pick out a free book at the end of the summer! In July and August, kids of all ages can visit their local Half Price Books with completed reading logs and receive $5 in Bookworm Bucks. For more information, check out the Barnes & Noble website and Half Price Books’ Summer Reading Camp
EDUCATIONAL GAMES & ACTIVITIES
ALPHABET
ABC Letter Hunts
Hide plastic refrigerator or foam bathtub letters around the backyard. This can be a scaffolded activity, where you make the letters in the morning, hide them during naptime, and find them in the afternoon. For a variation, you could even find things in nature that look like letters (such as tree branches, clouds, or pebbles). The goal is for the learning to happen “organically” (pun intended) as you dig in the dirt with the ones you love. For a more detailed description of this activity, visit the “Kindergarten Summer Reading Readiness” post from Teach Mama or search ABC Letter Hunts on your favorite parenting blog.
ALPHABET SCOOP & TRANSFER
As the author states at the beginning of her post, this activity is loaded with “a little bit of everything” - literacy, sensory, life skills, and sorting. You most likely have all the materials at home, and water is free! Check out the full description here.
SAY IT, MAKE IT, WRITE IT
While not only limited to writing letters, “Say It, Make it, Write it” is another fun game that develops language. Use this free printable template from You Clever Monkey to make your own mats. The author describes how to use them in six different ways. For younger learners, you can make a similar template for “See It, Say It, Make It”. This blog is definitely worth checking out! Read more here.
PHONICS
HEARING SOUNDS
We all know that kids pick up on everything we say, but this pre-reading activity caught our attention because it’s a fun and easy way to identify the initial sounds of words. Simply write letters on index cards and find objects throughout your house that start with the same letter sounds on the cards. Save the index cards in a bag and play this game with a nanny, on a rainy day, or while you’re cooking dinner. Visit this post on Busy Toddler for a more detailed description.
SIGHT WORD GO FISH
Learning sight words isn’t always connected to phonics, but like many games in this blog post, there’s a lot of overlap! Kids will have so much fun playing this popular childhood game that they won’t even realize they’re connecting sounds with words or letters. The author of Teach Mama makes it easy for you by providing free downloads of printable playing cards that include letters, numbers, and early emergent words. Check it out here.
SWAT IT!
Also known as “Slap the Letter,” this game is perfect for high energy boys! Match the sound to the letter or word by being the first to slap it with a fly swatter. Read more on this post from Hands on as We Grow.
MATCHING WITH POST-IT NOTES
Busy Toddler wins again! Matching numbers, shapes, letters, or phonetic sounds with post-it notes could be your next go-to activity when you need a few minutes to gather your thoughts or wash dishes. Once your toddler or preschool age child gets the hang of it, you can use post-its to match everything from pictures of animals to vocabulary words. Check out the full description with pictures on the Busy Toddler website.
STORYTELLING
Imagination is such an incredible gift! As parents, we smile as we watch our son throw a baseball in the backyard to win the World Series or follow our daughter into her bedroom (a.k.a. Beauty Salon) to get our hair done. We live in stories, which is why it’s so important that we learn how to tell them. In fact, the art of storytelling isn’t just an ancient tradition, it’s an important part of our development. Make your own story cards or check out these options from eeBoo and Etsy.
MATH
INTRODUCING ADDITION
With all this talk about reading and storytelling, we can’t forget activities for all the math lovers out there! For little hands, we love this “hands-on” approach to basic addition. The author points out that instead of memorizing ways to solve a problem, this activity helps even the youngest learners build an understanding of what is happening behind the math. By “joining” toys together on plates, kids learn the concept of addition. You’ll find pictures and more detailed instructions on this post from Busy Toddler.
MATH TWISTER
If you grew up in the 90’s, you’ve probably played Twister at least once in your life! Imagine covering those colored dots with numbers and reading out math problems for kids to solve before relocating their hand. In Math Twister, “Left hand on red” becomes “Left hand on 3 + 2”. The active learners in your life will thank you. Check out this blog post from Happy Numbers for a full description of Twister and a handful of other math games for kids.
GAMES WE LOVE
Looking for some new games to play with your kids this summer? Check out some of our favorites…
Skills: Vocabulary, Memory, Matching
Skills: Phonics
Skills: STEM, Pattern matching, Spatial reasoning, Problem solving
Skills: Addition
Skills: Math strategy, Addition
Skills: Basic Math
Fun Fact: Sleeping Queens was developed by a 6 year old and is based off of one of her dreams!
Skills: Logic, Crime solving, Critical reasoning
Skills: Logic, Crime solving, Critical reasoning
This summer, we’re learning right along with you! Everyone on our team at Lone Star Nannies is in the trenches of motherhood, and we love sharing activities with moms and nannies across DFW. Want to know how we can come alongside your family before the start of school next year? Read more about our story here.
With care,
Lone Star Nannies