There are numerous activities parents can do with their children to keep the focus on learning. The best part is the children will have so much fun doing them, they won’t even realize they are learning. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Read, Read and Read Some More: Read to your child every day. Reading levels improve more quickly when parents ask questions about the material and true discussions occur over the content. Set an example and make sure your child sees you reading.

Road Trip: While traveling, play “I Spy” with road signs/license plates for words, numbers, colors and shapes. Turn the inevitable question, “are we there yet?” into problem solving games involving elapsed time, distance traveled, and estimation.

The Great Outdoors: Go to parks and trails to walk or ride bicycles. Plant a garden or flowers together. Turn each outing into a biology or botany lesson. No need to pretend you know it all, go to the library and get books to help your child identify the animals, bugs, insects, plants, flowers, trees, and weeds. Outdoor community music festivals are a great way to experience a wide variety of music.

In the City: Visit your local museum during free admission days. Find free or inexpensive camps or events through your city’s parks and recreation department, local schools, or houses of worship.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game: A great place for math: learn how to calculate stats such as RBIs or ERA. Time the innings to calculate an average inning length. Come up with a strategy for estimating the number of seats in the stadium. Read a book about a baseball superstar before going to a game.

Volunteer: Contact a local service group or house of worship for volunteer opportunities. Contact a local soup kitchen or senior center to see how your family can help out.

Back Home: Make a meal together. Have each family member pick a favorite recipe and work together measuring ingredients and reading recipes. Talk about conversions: cups/pints/quarts/gallons, ounces/pounds, etc.

Using Technology: readingrocket.org can give parents reading tips for various ages. Starfall.com is a great site for young readers. For older students, look for free on-line classes offered through colleges and universities.

Move It: sign your child up for summer swimming lessons or other athletic events. Consider coaching your child’s team so you can spend that time together.