Youth & Education - OUT THERE Summer Learning [CITYSunTimes July 2010]

Tackling Your Kids’ Summer Boredom
Practical financial lessons
By Jason Alderman

With millions of American schoolchildren on summer vacation, cries of “I’m bored” ring out across the nation. Swimming lessons and trips to the mall can fill only so many hours. Before you give up and hand over the TV remote, consider some activities that can be productive, safe and fun for kids of all ages.
Teach practical skills. We’ve all had friends who somehow reached adulthood never having washed their own socks or bought groceries. That’s why my wife and I are strong proponents of teaching our kids self sufficiency. We’ve come up with additional jobs they can tackle during vacation for extra spending money, over and above their modest allowances.
Along with routine age-appropriate tasks like washing the car, yard work and babysitting, look for more creative ideas like scrapbooking old photos or weeding through closets for garage sale items. Target activities that not only ease your own workload but also increase the amount of time you can spend together.

Boost financial abilities. As your kids get older, start sharing activities that teach them personal financial management skills. For example:

Involve them in balancing your checkbook and paying bills. They’ll probably be amazed to learn how much things like utilities, rent/mortgage and groceries cost.
Enlist their help planning vacations by researching travel costs online, calculating gas mileage, estimating hotel bills, etc.
When planning a major purchase like a house or car, engage their help researching and comparison shopping, and explain how sales tax, loans and real estate broker commissions work.

Provide safe online activities. Although you don’t want your kids spending all their time online, possessing strong computer skills is vital for today’s students and tomorrow’s employees. Fortunately, there are many family friendly websites where you can steer your children. The American Library Association has a clearinghouse of safe, appropriate websites for kids of all ages (ala.org/greatsites). You’ll find math and word games, specialty sites on animals, science, literature, history, current events, the arts and much more.
Some of the better financial education sites I've seen are:

You Are Here, an animated site offered by the Federal Trade Commission, where fifth- through 8th- graders wander through a virtual “mall,” playing games and learning key consumer concepts such as the impact of advertising, how to spot scams and protect personal information.
Money Smart, a financial education program developed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that includes contents for young adults.
MyMoney.gov, the U.S. government’s website dedicated to teaching people of all ages the basics of financial education.
Hands-on-Banking, a free, interactive program from Wells Fargo that teaches financial basics and smart money management skills.
Financial Soccer, a fast-paced, interactive video game created by Visa Inc. and the Federation Internationale de Football Association, which incorporates soccer’s structure and rules to teach children and young adults the knowledge and tools they’ll need to establish and maintain sound financial habits over a lifetime. Financial Soccer is free and can be played online or on CD-ROM.

Jason Alderman directs Visa’s financial education programs. Follow Jason at twitter.com/practicalmoney.

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CITYSunTimes Web Exclusives July 2010 | Read the full SECTION

YOUTH & EDUCATION

Out There: A place for kids and parents to find out what's going on and who's doing what

Feed Your Brain This Summer

Summer is here and for most kids it means leaving behind classes and homework. But, according to Sylvan Learning, summer should not be a learning-free time for kids.

The National Center for Summer Learning states, “Most students lose about two months of grade-level equivalency in mathematical computation skills over summer months.” Sylvan cautions that even the best students forget lessons they have learned during the school year. And that means that summer should not be an excuse to put kids’ brains on hiatus – in fact, it’s the perfect time for a different kind of learning.
Parents can play a key role in reinforcing learning on an ongoing basis.
Sylvan suggests the following tips for parents to ensure that summer time is a good balance of free discovery, play, leisure and learning for our kids.

Summer Math Tips for Kids: We’re surrounded by words and numbers every day. Here are a few ideas for summer math learning which can be adapted to a family’s needs:

Grocery Store Math – Counting, estimating and making change are good math exercises. What can we get for $10? Will you count the change for me, please? Let me know when we’ve reached 15 items in the cart, please.
Kitchen Math – Practice fractions by using recipes or reading cookbooks. Practice numbers by counting the cutlery needed for dinner. Measuring ingredients is a perfect math lesson. Don’t tell them, though.
Money Math – Teach about making change. Count change in a piggy bank.
How many ways can I make 45 cents? Open a savings account and watch the amount rise with deposits and interest. Talk about the advantages of saving for a big purchase or for a rainy day.
Calendar Math – Count down the days to special events like the first day of school, birthdays, holidays, vacations, assignments and appointments.
Game Math – Use cards, dominoes or dice to reinforce counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication or division skills. Play Chutes and Ladders, Monopoly and other games that encourage counting. Together, do the Sudoku puzzles in the daily paper.

Summer Reading: Reading is an adventure that begins early in a child’s life and should extend beyond the classroom. Summer months are the perfect time to make reading fun and inspire children to develop a lifelong friendship with books. Here are some tips that parents can use this summer:

Offer a variety of publications (magazines, newsletters, books, etc.) so kids can make their own literary choices. Keep books in each car, at the house, at the homes of family members, etc Availability is key.
Encourage your kids to read everything and read aloud, such as food labels, movie disclaimers, street signs, store names, music lyrics and restaurant menus.
Schedule Library time. Just as a family schedules swimming practice, set a specific time aside for visiting the library.
Create a book-on-tape. Encourage your child to read a book aloud and tape it. As a special gift or surprise, send the book-on-tape to a loved one with a special message.
Read before bedtime. Reading is relaxing. Allow your child to stay up 15 minutes later each night – as long as he/she is reading.
Read aloud to your children. No matter the age of the child, reading together can create a lasting family memory.

Summer Writing Tips: Summer writing can be fun, expressive, and skill-building. Give your child the confidence to be ready for school in the fall, and help her teacher get right down to business without spending precious time reviewing skills kids have forgotten in the summer. Here are some ideas to keep your kids writing this summer.

Collect interesting, amusing, thought-provoking summer pictures from magazines, the Internet or your own family albums. “Prompt” your children with ideas about writing, like a favorite summer memory or a poem about summer fun.
Go to bookadventure.com for cool reading ideas, and then write about the books and stories you’ve read together. Don’t call this a “book report,” even if that’s what it really is.
Keep a family photo journal and have the children write captions for the pictures or a short story summary. A variation of this is to keep a summer scrapbook with pictures and memorabilia of your favorite things.
Keep a personal or family “summer things I notice” journal. Every once in a while, everyone in the family contributes a short piece of descriptive writing, a drawing, a favorite poem or an original one, favorite memories, interesting observations, etc.
Yes, even in an electronic age, kids love getting letters in the mail. Help your child have a pen-pal and keep up a correspondence for the summer and beyond.

To help, Sylvan Learning is offering a free online Summer Fun & Learning Guide for Parents. The entire family can enjoy grade-specific activities that nurture reading, writing and math skills. Families can visit the “Parent Resources”" area of sylvanlearning.com and download or print the booklet that keeps children learning all summer long while still enjoying trips to the beach, summer camp, swimming and outdoor playtime.

To learn more about local Sylvan Learning Centers, contact: Candyce Burns, Scottsdale North, 480.473.7676, sylvan120@aol.com; Candyce Burns, Scottsdale West, 602.953.3070, sylvan70th@aol.com; Victoria Sherrard, Anthem, 623.551.3689, sylvan427@sylvananthem.com; or Victoria Sherrard, Phoenix, 602.548.2600, sylvan0413@sylvanphoenix.com. For additional educational resources for children in grades pre-K through 12, visit sylvanlearning.com or call 800.31.SUCCESS.

YOUTH & EDUCATION Web Exclusive | CITYSunTimes July 2010

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