last summer, i shared on facebook how we put some fun + educational structure into our boys’ summer to help keep that dreaded summer slide away. it all started with a giant dry erase board combined with my very favorite crafty things that let me channel that ever-so-little-bit of the teenage girl that still lives in me: washi tape + sharpie markers.

this year was going to follow along the same path. after we got the disney trip + no. 1’s week at LEGO robotics camp out of the way + VBS, we finally started our little bit ‘o structure that we try to keep up during the summer. i’ve said it before, and i’ll say it again: the draw of electronics makes me crazy in the summer! (i know i can’t be the only one!) and, with working full-time outside of the home, we really rely on our boys’ caretaker to be totally on board with us + our summer philosophy for keeping the learning going! (we’ve been soooo lucky with caregivers for our boys!)

our summer 2019 learning board is very similar to last year’s with a couple of additions, especially for no. 2 to keep up his prep for first grade. here’s a quick rundown of the day-by-day along with some of my faves that we incorporate to keep the learning fun!

monday: this is “wow in the world” day. i’ve raved about this podcast hosted by mindy thomas and guy raz and how much my boys absolutely go bonker balls over it! new episodes are uploaded on sunday nights, so we make this a fun way to ease into the week of learning!

tuesday: we’ve dubbed tuesday as math day. this doesn’t mean the boys are slogging through multiplication factor worksheets and flash cards. no. 2 might work on shape recognition, shape patterns, or yes, addition problems. no. 1 loves working in the book, “this is not a math book,” published by usborne books, which works in so many math concepts that make this mama so very happy!

wednesday: this is get your hands dirty day. or, “get crafty day!” it should come as a shock to no one that this is a super easy one for my boys to get into. they’ve done shrinky dinks, made sculptures out of popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners, and made a new cement decoration for our (hopefully) new house.

thursday: we’re calling this a free day. they can bake. they can make something. they can set up an obstacle course. they can build with LEGOS. basically anything but be on their electronics.

friday: this is their journaling day. they get to write about what they did during the week, who they saw, what they learned…basically anything to get those writing skills working!

and, of course, they have some everyday musts…they each need to read everyday, and they also practice their piano and guitar. (<< no. 2 just started guitar this summer! he’s so excited!) so far, they’ve been getting their daily learning stuff in each day, and surprisingly, they are happy about it. (phew!)

tell me: what are you doing to help keep the summer fun + educational? i’d love more ideas!

p.s. here’s a few of our usborne favorites that the boys love! coding, math, drawing and more!