summertime. i don’t know about other parents out there, but the thought of summer, and tv, and electronics, and lack of time in the classroom, kind of brought on some anxiety. all i know is that walking into that first day of summer, we needed a game plan. 

first up for us: ymca summer day camp at the kishwaukee ymca. while little mr. re-nest #1 would be going to day care all day during the summer, we thought he needed something that would give him some variety this summer. we’re so fortunate that our local ymca is so close by, and that they do a great summer day camp with swimming + field trips + fun. we signed him up for that.

his weekly calendar. i *loved* getting out my sharpies! you can also find lots of the same examples over on pinterest too!

then, it was all about how we make sure that he still is getting in some great reading, math, and creative time this summer. with all of the summer reading loss statistics out there, and with how well he did in first grade, we needed to do something to help keep the loss at bay. our first step: signing him up for a summer reading program. a great friend of mine does a summer reading group through her usborne books + more business, so both boys got signed up! the daily goal for little mr. re-nest #1 is 20 minutes of reading a day; little mr. re-nest #2 has a goal of one book a day (you know, because he’s only three). 

next up: i got out my sharpies + decided to make him a weekly calendar. it’s super simple….each day he has some key things he is supposed to do – some days it’s math flash cards, or being creative, or writing in his journal. but every day, he is to read for his 20 minutes + make his bed….and when he does all of his daily tasks, he gets to add a sticker to our family calendar (y’all know how obsessed i am with our family calendar from paper source!). for every 10 stickers he accumulates, he gets a $5 target gift card. (yes, there’s some bribery involved…what can i say? the kid loves gift cards.)

our family calendar from paper source. it’s big + fun for little mr. re-nest #1 to put stickers all over!

week #1! i didn’t even have to buy new stickers… we have so many sticker books + sheets, we’re just digging into those!

we’re in week one right now, and he’s seeming pretty dedicated to his reading, writing, bed-making + learning! that makes me a happy mama!

tell me: how are you keeping your kiddos creative + growing + learning this summer? i’d love to hear in the comments below!