what to do to prevent the summer slide..

[loosinas]

thinking ahead with the weeks rushing by what do you all recommend doing during the summer to prevent skills being lost ?

[lovecheese]

10-15 minutes a day. A tiny fraction of their time. Well worth it.

Be back later to elaborate...

[neerg]

I will recognise that all the things we do in our summer holidays are just as important as school work and will enjoy them.

[catinthehat2]

place marking for later.....

[sarahfreck]

loosinas - it depends a bit on the age/stage of your dcs - where are they up to in Literacy and Numeracy?

[IndigoBell]

The 'summer slide' is what schools want you to think happen when they have over marked them last year.

The term summer slide comes from studies in the US where they have 3 months summer holidays. And they found that kids from poorer families slipped backwards over summer, while kids from middle class homes didn't.

But schools here use it as an excuse for last years teacher to inflate their grades (to show that they have made progress) and next years teacher to deflate their grades (again so they can show at the end of the year they have made progress)

Plus for more subtle 'cognitive bias' reasons. ie last year's teacher knows they have made progress so genuinely feel they are doing better than they really are, while next years teacher is making an assessment on very little evidence so doesn't think they are as good.

They won't slide backwards if you do absolutely normal things with them. But school will report they've slipped backwards (especially if they've moved up to Y3)

[sarahfreck]

Actually Indigo - I'm not sure that is exactly (or always) true, particularly for children who are still learning to read, in the process of learning times tables etc or for those children (most often boys ime) who get what I call "holiday brain" where most things they have ever learned seem to fall out of their heads! It does come back after a few weeks of revision but can leave them struggling to make the best of the first couple of weeks of school in September! I don't give "grades" at the end of a school year and have no incentive to "mark up" children, but still notice that there can be a slide over 6 weeks of summer holiday.

[IndigoBell]

OK, Sarah is probably right that kids aren't as hot on their times tables after the holidays as they were before.

But I'm also right that if you're told your child has gone down 2 sub levels over summer be very suspicious.....

[sarahfreck]

Just to add, that of course some schools may indeed inflate the end of year grades so what Indigo says may of course, also be true sometimes.


If your child is still learning to read, I would strongly recommend 10 minutes reading practice of some sort on at least 5 days out of 7. Of course this does not necessarily mean "school reading book". You can use any books at an appropriate level and there are lots of ways that you can turn practising sounds and words into fun and games.

[PaisleyLeaf]

I spend the holidays teaching DD stuff we don't get much time for during term time: how to tie a bow/ride a bike/do a plait and do up a scrunchie/swim better etc
She will do the odd bit of reading and numbers may come up now and again if we're baking/shopping or whatever, telling the time.

[galois]

reading chest for kids still learning to read, libraries for the bigger ones.

[PaisleyLeaf]

Oh yes that reminds me. We did do that Library summer reading challenge last year. That was quite good, with activity days etc.

[lovecheese]

IndigoBell, hi, my DH is a secondary school Headteacher and he says that the summer slide most definitely DOES exist.

[EdithWeston]

Simple stuff. Make sure they keep reading and see it as fun. Get non-fiction books that follow their interests as well as stories. Write postcards to friends and family. Have them do simple sums about stuff that comes up (cost of newspaper plus pinta, how much change), and look at weights and measure eg by cooking and shapes (art).

[LawrieMarlow]

Are you meant to do specific learning over the summer holidays?



Will try and teach DS to tie his shoelaces though I think.

Will be interested to see whether DS (currently Y2) does go down any levels, although of course I don't know exactly what levels he is performing at now. Don't seem to be being worried about DD (reception). A bit of NSC syndrome there I suppose.

[bigTillyMint]

We used to get the DC to keep diaries (in scrapbooks for big writing, pictures and sticking stuff in!) - got them writing 10mins a day. And of course some reading everyday. And a (very annoying) times tables CD in the car - subliminal learning for all the family

[KnobCheese]

I have never done any formal work, be it reading, writing practice, studying projects or anything in my dc holidays.

1 now sitting a levels in english, german, law and business studies

another with year 8 gcses

They need the break, it will do them no harm. Let them be children playing and enjoying themselves. Schoool life gets tough enough later. It is all a bit mean.

Obviously if they want to read/write etc then that is ok, but I wouldn't advise 'getting them' to do anything.

[LawrieMarlow]

Ah yes suppose a bit of times tables wouldn't hurt.

I think maybe I am too lazy

[bidibidi]

I don't do anything special. I do the same stuff I do in termtime. No sign of slide... I don't think it ever existed even in the USA when we had 12 weeks break, and many US schools don't do that any more, anyway.

[WowOoo]

In ds1 case i'll be covering all the things that I think he can do with brushing up on.
Then will do a bit of the next stage. But not too much....Just a little every day as we do now!

[Elibean]

Percy Parker so we all chant the times tables songs for fun, occasionally. dd1 (Y2) makes up her own projects all the time, and reads from time to time for pleasure, so no worries about her not using some level of her skills. I think apart from that she needs the time off - she currently has black circles under her eyes.
dd2 (nursery, starting Reception in September) being a second child, likes to play school and learn her letters anyway, so will play when she wants to.

tbh, I've noticed some sliding with both reading and numeracy over summer holidays with dd1, in the past, but she catches up again very fast. Bit like being de-skilled for a week when on holiday from work for a while - not a real problem, I don't think.

[southeastastra]

i'd like to send my ds(9) to a maths camp to get him caught up

[Bonsoir]

Get your child to read a book a day.

Play board games/get your child to do the shopping etc to keep their maths and number skills up to speed.

And get them to write a holiday diary. Just one or two (age appropriate) sentences a day describing the events of the day will do fine.

[loosinas]

lots of good ideas thanks so much i definitely want to do the scrapboo/ diary idea as he is a very reluctant writer..
i think i'll also join reading chest to have plenty of new stuff to reada bit each day

[letthembe]

I am not going to rise to Indigobell's rather insulting and bitter remarks.

I do bits of stuff with my children; I have bought some Schofield and Sims and a few Andrew Brodie work books - just to keep things ticking over. We also tend to keep a diary and reading most days. I also utilise Education City and BBC bitesize - my poor kids!! But if you don't practise, they do slip back.

[letthembe]

I have to add, they are currently completing Timestables books whilst I try to mark optional SATs!