7 everyday ways to foster children's math and literacy skills to avoid 'summer slide' learning loss

• Some psychologists and educators refer to the “summer slide” as the loss of learning that can happen over the summer months, when children are out of school.
• This loss in learning mostly affects math and literacy skills.
• Their performance is likely to “slide” without constant practice, and the same applies to many academic skills, including math and reading.

Strategies to enhance everyday learning

• When playing sports, you can integrate numbers, for example, by counting the number of passes with a soccer ball or baseball.
• Having children share stories and talking with adults helps support their language learning.
• Libraries often organize free learning activities that can take some burden off of parents and caregivers.
• Going to museums, the zoo or a science centre is a great way to engage in fun learning.
• When you are there, engage children’s critical thinking and observation skills by asking questions and participating in learning activities with them.
• Asking open-ended questions and engaging in meaningful conversations fosters children’s learning.