National Summer Learning Day July 9, celebrate with fun learning activities

July 9 is National Summer Learning Day. This event is sponsored by the National Center for Summer Learning.

I like to promote this event because it reminds all us how important it for kids to keep learning even when school is out. You may be thinking, give the kids a break, it is summer time. And I agree, that learning during summer should not be as structured as regular school but learning can be fun and can occur in many different ways.

Here are some facts from the Summer Learning Center that may change your mind (or if you agree with me, validate your position)

• All young people experience learning losses when they do not engage in educational activities during the summer. Research spanning 100 years shows that students typically score lower on standardized tests at the end of summer vacation than they do on the same tests at the beginning of the summer (White, 1906; Entwisle & Alexander, 1992; Cooper et al., 1996; Downey et al., 2004).
• Most students lose about two months of grade level equivalency in mathematical computation skills over the summer months. Low-income students also lose more than two months in reading achievement, despite the fact that their middle-class peers make slight gains (Cooper et al., 1996).

• About two-thirds of the ninth-grade achievement gap between lower and higher income youth can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities during the elementary school years. As a result, low-income youth are less likely to graduate from high school or enter college (Alexander et al., 2007).

• Children lose more than academic knowledge over the summer. Most children—particularly children at high risk of obesity—gain weight more rapidly when they are out of school during summer break (von Hippel et al., 2007).

• Parents consistently cite summer as the most difficult time to ensure that their children have productive things to do (Duffett et al., 2004).

It's not too late for any program that promotes summer learning to register and participate in this national event. You can obtain a free event planning kit full of ideas and resources to make it a fun event for everyone.

Kids make their own cute "Nutrition is Fun" bookmarks to use during their summer reading.

You can even plan your own at home summer learning program for free! Have the kids learn about nutrition and the importance of being active with nutrition games, nutrition and health worksheets and kids healthy tips monthly page.