As we gear up for a summer full of fun, as moms and dads we are also thinking about how to keep our children engaged, learning, and continuing their education, even while they are on break. This can be a daunting task, but it really doesn’t have to be! We can keep it fun but also educational!
There are lots of fun summer activities and books for kids to enjoy throughout the summer and we’ve rounded up some of our absolute favs! We also love the price point on these as they won’t break the bank.
Shine-A-Light
Oh, how we LOVE this book series! It’s fun all year round but especially in the summer! Take these books outside when you go camping in the backyard, to a friends for a sleepover or to grandma and grandpa’s house for the weekend. Adults and kids alike enjoy these books!
The Shine-A-Light series takes all the burning questions young readers have about animals, space, the human body, hospitals, doctors’ office visits and more and turns them into a fun and interactive read and learn event. All you need is the book and a flashlight! Shine the light behind the pages to reveal the story!
Sticker and Workbooks
Don’t let your elementary and Pre-K kiddos regress and forget too much over their fun summer break. We found some fun “workbooks” that your little students can practice their skills in throughout the summer. Easy to take with you on-the-go or squeeze in some “school” time throughout the week, your littles won’t even know it’s work because they will be having fun doing mazes, puzzles, stickers and science! All ages and grade-based books are available from Scholastic.
Flash Cards
We know, we said this blog was all about the best summer reads for your kiddos, but we can’t leave these fun flash cards off the list! Another easy activity for kiddos of all ages (even infants can get in on the fun with these Infant High Contrast Flash Cards!) to keep their skills sharp. A quick 20-30 min review of these flash cards a week and we know your little scholars will keep on track for the coming school year.
Wipe Clean Activity Pads
Another great learning item that we think your kiddos will love not just in the summer, but all year long are wipe clean activity books and pads. With learning-based activity pads, young ones can practice their writing, drawing, math and reading with reusable pages and a dry erase marker. We are really partial to the On-The-Go series from Melissa & Doug® as not only are they learning-based, but they are creative and fun as well. Kids get to be detectives, spies and even secret decoders. I’ve never met a kiddo that didn’t want to take part in that! They are the perfect size for little hands and come with everything you need to have some fun. The only problem is deciding which book to get!
Learning Cards
With a combo of learning and fun sounds, these Learning Cards from Melisa & Doug® are another great on-the-go learning activity. Kids get to poke the irresistible buttons on the cards as they practice counting and learning their alphabet letters. And they come is an easy carrying case to keep everything together. We bet your kiddos will not want to put these down.
Slide and See Books
Along with push button flash cards, your kids will love these Slide and See books from Usborne books. These books make learning math not only a fun challenge but an easy way for kiddos to “do it themselves”. They can self-check their own work by sliding the small doors to reveal the answers. Another great interactive book we can’t recommend enough!
Now that you know some of our favs, tell us in the comments some of yours! What books and games do your kids love? Share them with our community in the comments!
We hope you have a fun and blessed summer!
Team Simply Blessed Kids