Like most parents you’re concerned about your child’s academic growth during the long summer break
Recent Research by Harris Cooper, A university professor in association with the National Summer Learning Association, found that kids do forget information when school isn’t in session. “At best, students showed little or no academic growth over summer. At worst, students lost one to three months of learning,” the study reported.
For years teachers have noted that the beginning of the school year is a time to refresh the work that was done the previous year and that those students who recall the previous year more easily will do better at the current years studies.
Recall when you were a kid—what was better than being a kid in the summer? For me I was one of those overnight summer camp kids so I recall the warm breeze on the lake, making leather crafts, playing capture the flag, and making new friends. Traditional Summer camps do provide children with fun learning opportunities that engage their brain and can lead to academic success when classes resume in September.
Parents should look for opportunities to keep your child engaged and learning throughout the summer. This will allow them to continue building on their skills and foster their joy of learning. It is important for parents to keep this goal in mind when picking a summer camp program. Selecting a summer camp that immerses campers in experiential learning opportunities is a good choice. At Swift Nature Camp we provide just such an environment.
At SNC we work with children not in memorizing facts about science and nature but on the process. We create an atmosphere were children have fun and want to learn. When we guide them through the process, instead of simply giving them answers we fosters creativity, giving children skills to be critical thinkers and develop their own solutions to a problem.
The benefits of Experiential learning start at self-discovery by giving the children the tools to complete a task at hand, but leaves the steps to complete the task up to them. Children learn better and find more joy in learning when they do it themselves. When campers do this they better remember te experience.
In addition to learning traditional camp activities along with science campers build upon the social and emotional skills. Communal living helps children become more sensitive and caring toward others. Teamwork is what happens everyday at Swift Nature Camp.
Many of SNC parent avail themselves to the tutoring program offered. This program is more of a refresher class that keeps children "where they are" rather than teaching new concepts, slowing down the learning loss that happens during the summer. Maybe it might be an option to consider this summer.
