Summer is almost here!  If your kids are anything like mine, then they have a countdown going of how many days they have left in school.  I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to summer almost as much as they are.  It’s a great time of year for families to relax and not be so worried about schedules, homework, tests, packing lunches, projects, and making it to the bus stop on time.

But don’t get too comfortable.  Studies have shown that children demonstrate learning loss over the summer months across academic subjects, especially math and reading. For example, at the start of the school year, children perform on average two and a half months worse than they did at the end of the prior school year in math. That’s a lot of loss!

Wouldn’t it be great if we could help our kids start the school year at or above the level they were at when summer began? Well, the good news is that as parents we can help them do just that.  This month, my column in the Auburn-Opelika Parents Magazine provides a handful of tips and tricks on how you can  Keep Kids Learning All Summer Long.  The tips aren’t too difficult, but they’re good ways to keep your children focused on academics (in a fun way) until they go back to school in the fall.  Good luck and enjoy your summer!