5 Ways to Build Executive Function Skills During Summer Break
Would you rather sort digital files or make dinner? Summer break offers a great opportunity to build executive function skills in a low-stress environment. Executive function includes a set of mental skills, including planning, organization, time management, emotional regulation, and flexibility, that are essential for learning and living. With the right strategies and encouragement, middle and high school students can use the summer months to sharpen these skills and prepare for a strong school year ahead. The launching years with teenage children are the perfect time to teach them to cope with the challenges around them. Let’s explore five key areas of executive function and practical at-home suggestions to support growth in each. 1. Planning Setting goals and figuring out steps to achieve them. Without a plan, summer can slip away. Older students can benefit from helping to structure their time, balancing responsibilities, and relaxing. At-Home Ideas: Weekly Goal-Setting Journal: Encourage your child to write two or three goals each week and identify action steps for each. Reflect on progress every Sunday. In the beginning, this may take more input from parents or tutors. Summer Project Plan: Choose a summer-long project (learning an instrument, planning a small business*, organizing…
My Affordable Summer Reading Strategies
How can you get your child to read more this summer? Many parents are searching for summer reading strategies that are practical and affordable, yet many families do not set aside time to read for pleasure. How about your family? Do you have books sitting out in your living room? Do you take regular trips to the library or bookstore? Do you read for fun? Recent research highlights significant benefits of children reading for pleasure, linking it to enhanced vocabulary, improved reading skills, and overall cognitive development. You can make a few easy changes to your summer and help your child improve their reading skills and reading enjoyment now and in the future. Long-Term Academic Advantages Children who engage in reading for pleasure tend to perform better on cognitive tests and achieve higher academic success in adolescence. This correlation emphasizes the role of early reading habits in long-term educational outcomes, and summer is the perfect time to put this into action. Despite the clear advantages, there’s a concerning decline in children’s reading for pleasure. A 2024 survey by the National Literacy Trust reported that only 34.6% of children aged 8 to 18 enjoy reading in their free time—the lowest in…