BEATING THE SUMMER SLUMP (and a freebie!)
April and May are some of my favourite months to be a teacher. By this point, I know each and every one of my students, and they know me. We’ve found our perfect rhythm and can work together as a fairly well-oiled machine.
I know which students need that ‘extra push’ to do their best, and which ones need to be gently coached with a hug and a smile of encouragement. I know how to correct behaviors in a way that encourages the best from my little ones, and doesn’t crush their spirits.
Each student needs such different things, and it often takes months to figure it all out.
Look at my little hard-working students Oh term three, how I love you!
So, for me, Term Three is the most blissful of the three.
They know what I expect in my classroom, and I (for the most part) know what they need to be successful. I still get small butterflies in my stomach when I look across the hall to the Grade Two class that will eventually be ‘mine’ next year.
I wonder how we will get to this point.
Academically, I find September to be one of the most challenging months as a teacher.
Is anyone else with me on that one?
All of those lovely, high-achieving students that walked out of the school in May or June, walk back in like tiny little zombies who have forgotten almost everything. (Or so it seems!)
Oh, the summer slump.
Teachers, you know what I mean.
It’s that phenomenon that happens over the summer where the 8+ weeks of summer vacation seem to erase our students’ brains… or at least the part that remembers how to ‘do’ school.
So we re-teach. Things that were a snap in June, are suddenly brand-new skills.
How to put your name on a piece of paper
Where to line up
How to use capital letters and punctuation
Working for more than 3 or 4 minutes at a time
How to open a thermos! (So, so many thermoses… side note: why has no one invented a thermos that will open itself?!)
I’ve tried all kinds of things to beat the Summer Slump.
I’ve sent home reading logs, writing journals, and extra science projects.
Some have had more success than others.
This year, I’m trying something different.
I’ve put together a “Stay Sharp Summer Packet” for my kiddos.
It covers most of the things that we have learned in Grade Three, plus a few skills from previous grades that I don’t want them to lose.
I’m spiral-binding it into a booklet and sending it home right before the break.
Purposeful practice: Summer practice pages specifically designed to practice the most important skills. (Try out a freebie - link below!)
It is my hope (and prayer!) that they will do one page every 2nd day. That should be about 15 minutes of work. Just enough to help to keep their minds sharp a little bit over the summer, and maybe, just maybe, prevent the summer slump from completely erasing their brain! ;)
I'd love for my blog readers to try this packet out! The full version is available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store, but I've put together a sample (9 full pages!) for you to try out for free. The full version (90+ pages is available for 5$).
Let me know what you think about it in the comments below.
How do you combat the Summer Slump in your classroom or in your school? I’d love to hear your tips!
- Rachel