From spending time in the great outdoors, to chess camp, to sports. The choices for parents and kids during the summer can be overwhelming.
Jessica Martinez and her daughter Janice are at this fair looking for something exciting and educational. "Its kinda like a body in motion stays in motion, same thing with the brain...You have to keep active so its not so hard when school starts."
And that's exactly the idea. Experts say keeping kids mentally and physically active in the summer helps them hang on to the skills they learned during the school year.
If you're looking for a camp or program, there's a few things to keep in mind.
The national summer learning association recommends programs that run for at least six weeks. Kids should be learning by doing. And engaged in a wide variety of activities. Which ever you choose, having fun should be the main goal.
"In the summer try to focus on something that's high interest for my kids in my home."
While some families can afford extras like these, many others simply can't. But a tight budget doesn't have to keep kids from growing academically and socially during the summer. Randy Mehrten with the Fresno County Office of Education says there are free resources out there that can stimulate learning, like your neighborhood park, community center or library. In Fresno County alone there are all kinds of weekly activities at the library from reading groups, to music lessons, even movies.
"Let kids lead you to the library and find out what they love."
For more information on all kinds of summer programs; no cost, low cost and higher cost, click on "News Links" above.
TXT 24
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