How to prevent summer brain drain

The Canastota Teachers Association offers these hints to retain what you’ve learned.

We are the Canastota Teachers’ Association - the caring, dedicated professionals committed to supporting our students and the Canastota community.

Research shows that if children read a minimum of 6 books over the summer, they will be able to retain their reading skills.

Here are our Top 10 ways to prevent the Summer Brain Drain:

For an excellent, free resource, students can visit the Canastota Public Library at 102 W. Center Street. For more information visit www.canastotalibrary.org or call 315-697-7030. There are many exciting activities planned for all ages. Your children can get their very own library card - for FREE!

Find something to read every day. Your younger child can read the comics, cereal boxes, and street signs.

Read aloud to your child every day. This can expose them to higher level vocabulary and is a nice way to spend family time. You can also take turns reading with your children - they can read a paragraph or a page and then it’s your turn!

Bring books with you everywhere you go - doctors’ offices, picnics, and road trips.

Give your children some choices - let them pick books that interest them. For a list of books at your child’s reading level, you can visit www. the-best-childrens-books. org/guided-reading-levels.html. All children will benefit from reading over the summer, even if they’re reading below their instructional level.

If you travel for vacation, have your child read up on your destination. Maybe they can create an itinerary with interesting places to visit.

Strong reading skills encourage strong writing skills. Your child can keep a journal and write letters or emails to family and friends.

Join a book club or create one of your own.

Incorporate reading into everything you do - your children can read directions to assemble something, can follow a recipe with you, or they can help you research a purchase that you are going to make.

Remember to work on your math facts! Make flashcards, ask your child to recite facts in the car, do math in the grocery store (create a budget together and help your child do the shopping). You can also visit www. mathplayground.com to play some cool math fact games online.

Look for another informative CTA column focusing on “Back to School” next month!