Summer ABC’s

If you are in the same boat as I am, the thought of keeping young children busy all summer is a bit overwhelming.  I am going to try out an idea my sister-in-law Deb had a few years ago that is fun as well as educational- bonus points for mom!  The idea is simple and you can build on it as much as you want.  For each letter of the alphabet, have a day centered on a specific letter.  “A” day can include going to an aquarium (or reading about one if there isn’t one close by).  Point out whatever you see that starts with the letter as you drive and look for the letter in signs, license plates, etc.  I was telling my kids about this idea and giving some examples like going for a bike ride for the letter “B” and before I had even finished saying bike ride my five year old was shouting out all kinds of other ideas like hunting butterflies and building with blocks.  The key is to get your kids involved and see where their imagination can take you.  If you really want to amp it up, you could make a letter book with pictures of the places you go or have your kids draw a picture of what they see and learn about.  Since there are obviously more days in summer vacation than letters in the alphabet, you could stagger them or do the same letter twice.  I am going to work this in on days we aren’t at swimming lessons and soccer.  This should be a fun and productive way to fill up those sunny hours!