Summer Resources – 2022

PK-12 Summer Activity/Learning Suggestions for Parents/Students

Learning happens all the time, not just during school. The intention of summer practice is to integrate school learning into home life. This can be done through playful activities that also reinforce academic skills, in a relaxed family environment. Given the continuing COVID situation, we have included online opportunities for learning over the summer. 

Wishing you a restful and restorative summer!

Early Childhood

Resources for Gecko, Iguana, & Kindergarten Parents

  • Enjoy Time in Nature
    Explore the wonderful wild spaces in our valley, enjoy nature walks, bike rides, morning hikes, trips to the beach, and time in your yard or neighborhood.
  • Real Work
    Children delight in real work. Include your child in cooking projects, sorting things, helping to set the table, washing dishes with warm soapy water, caring for a pet, working in your garden, washing windows, or fixing something.
  • Open Ended Play
    Help create a space in your house for your child to explore materials that offer many possibilities. Allow time for your child to engage in deep imaginative play, drawing, painting, and creating.
  • Read
    Enjoy reading books with your child on a daily basis. Audible books are a great option too!
    5 Tips for Introducing Audio Books to Your Toddler or Preschooler
  • Cultivate Independence – If you know that your child is capable of something, give them the space to do it for themselves. Let them manage their own shoes, or change clothes when possible. Create spaces in your house where your child can successfully access and put away their own belongings.
    Readiness for PK/K/1st grade
  • Read
    Enjoy reading books with your child on a daily basis. Audiobooks are a great option too!
     5 Tips for Introducing Audio Books to Your Toddler or Preschooler
  • Cultivate Independence
    Support your child with independence, allowing them to manage their own shoes or change clothes when possible. Create spaces in your house where your child can successfully access and put away their own belongings.
  • Play Simple Games Together
    Play cards, connect four, puzzles, pattern work, memory, guess who, I-spy, 20 questions, car bingo, and cooperative games.
     familypastimes.com
     coopboardgames.com
  • Enjoy Time in Nature
    Explore the wonderful wild spaces in our valley, enjoy nature walks, bike rides, morning hikes, trips to the beach, and time in your yard or neighborhood.
  • Real Work
    Children delight in real work. Include your child in cooking projects, sorting things, helping to set the table, washing dishes with warm soapy water, caring for a pet, working in your garden, washing windows, or fixing something.
     Readiness for PK/K/1st grade

Elementary

Resources for Elementary Students, Grades 1-5

  • Read, Read, Read!
    Read to your child before bedtime, have books out and available, including early readers if they are ready. Repeat the same book that they love over and over until you and your child can recite it by heart. Then read it backwards, word by word! Listening to audiobooks can also be an enjoyable exposure to literature.
  • Play Letter & Number Games
    For example, ask your child to guess a letter that you draw on their back. Play Go-Fish with number cards and alphabet cards. Form letters with your bodies. Look for letters and numbers on signs or license plates, or search for shapes in nature, in the clouds, or anywhere you go!
  • Play with Sounds (Phonemic Awareness)
    Auditory games help children understand how language is made up of sounds and is an important pre-reading skill. You can play word games, “I’m thinking of a word that rhymes with ____.” Have your child guess a word that you sound out slowly (“ssssssuuuuuunnnnnn”). Have a “Sound” scavenger hunt. Give children a bag and ask them to find as many things around the house that begin with a certain sound.
    Click here for more phonemic awareness games
  • Invite Your Child to Write
    Have blank journals and books available. Support them to sound out stories, grocery lists, recipes, and more. It’s important for children to be able to sound out words independently without worrying about “correct” spelling.
  • Math Is Everywhere if You Look For It!
    Patterning, counting, adding, subtracting, measuring, and sorting are all important concepts in math and can be practiced in daily activities such as setting the table, baking, cooking, building, and woodworking. Counting games, card games, and board games also allow your child to learn and practice these important math skills.
  • Cultivate Self-regulation & Self-care
    Help your children to help themselves. If you know that they are capable of something, give them the space to do it for themselves. Let them manage their own shoes and backpacks when possible. Create spaces in your house where your child can successfully access and put away their own belongings. 
  • Foster the Ability to Be in a Group
    Being at school means that children are obliged to balance group needs with their own needs. At times they need to be able to move at someone else’s timetable, stay together with a group, listen to and follow instructions. You could practice moving through transitions such as leaving a store or a playdate at a certain time or cleaning up all together after dinner.
  • Encourage Your Child to Make Mistakes & Take Risks
    Emphasize that not knowing is the first step to learning. Let them see you make mistakes.
  • Family & Nature Time
    Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together! Readiness for PK/K/1st grade

Online Resources

Language Arts:

  • Download the Khan Academy Kids app. This is a free educational game that reviews PK-K language arts and math skills.
  • Readworks: Sign up for a free parent account so your child can access online digital passages to keep reading/listening over the summer: 

Math (Khan Academy Math Review):

  • Read, Read, Read!
    Read by yourself, read to your teddy bear, read to your parents, read to your brothers and sisters.
  • Write, Write, Write!
    Write lists. Write letters to real people or to story characters. Write make-believe stories. Write secret messages. Write facts about your favorite animal and make a diagram with labels. Write descriptions of places or objects or even of your pet. Write about your hopes and dreams.
  • Sight Words
    Practice reading and writing sight words: Summer Sight Words
  • Summer Journal for Writing and Drawing Stories
    Keep a summer writing journal for trips, stories, poems, your feelings, etc.
  • Keep Adding to Your Nature Journal

Take nature walks and draw what you see.  Copy animals and other natural images from books in your nature journal.  Make sure each entry has numbers, words, pictures, and a date.

  • Talk about the books you are reading and share your writings with others. Remember that we writers and readers appreciate an audience!
  • Have regular family reading times.
  • Listen to audiobooks on car trips. 
  • Look into student magazines like Ranger Rick, Cricket, Spiders, etc.
  • Practice counting coins, making change, telling time to hour and half hour (with an analog and digital clock).
  • Play number dice games (Snakes & Ladders, Sum Swamp, 4-Way, etc.).
  • Play number games with cards (Allowance, Monopoly, More (like War but flipping two cards to find the sum).
  • Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

Online Resources

Language Arts:

  • Read Works: Sign up for a free parent account so your child can access online digital passages to keep reading/listening over the summer.
  • VC Library Online: https://www.vencolibrary.org/elibrary– Access the Ventura County Library eLibrary where you can download apps like Cloud Library to find free downloadable audiobooks and ebooks.The VC eLibrary page also provides links to numerous other free online reading resources.

Math (Khan Academy Math Review):

  • Read, Read, Read!
    Read by yourself, read to your teddy bear, read to your parents, read to your brothers and sisters.
  • Write, Write, Write!
    Write lists. Write letters to real people or to story characters. Write make-believe stories. Write secret messages. Write facts about your favorite animal and make a diagram with labels. Write descriptions of places or objects or even of your pet. Write about your hopes and dreams.
  • Portable Word Wall
    Have your child use the provided portable word wall whenever they write (letter, in a journal, making a list, etc.)
  • Sight Words
    Practice reading and writing your sight words.
  • Summer Writing Journal
    Keep a summer writing journal for trips, stories, poems, nature observations, your feelings, etc.
  • Talk about the books you are reading and share your writings with others. Remember that we writers and readers appreciate an audience!
  • Have regular family reading times.
  • Listen to audiobooks.
  • Look into student magazines like Ranger Rick, Cricket, Spiders, etc.
  • Take nature walks. Record the sketches you draw and observations you make in a nature journal.
  • Practice counting coins, making change, telling time to hour and half hour (with an analog clock).
  • Play number dice games (Snakes & Ladders, etc.)
  • Play number games with cards (Allowance, Monopoly, More (like War but flipping two cards to find the sum)
  • Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!
  • Look at face clocks to continue learning time to the hour and half hour and in five-minute intervals.
  • Practice basic math facts (addition and subtraction to 20) in fun ways such as with playing cards and with dice.
  • Create opportunities to identify and count coins.
  • Play hangman (we call it, ‘put the baby to bed’ where you must guess the correct word or else the baby wakes up!) to sharpen your spelling skills. Have them think of a word while you guess and then switch roles. 

Online Resources

Language Arts:

  • Read Works
    Sign up for a free parent account so your child can access online digital passages to keep reading/listening over the summer.
  • VC Library Online
    Access the Ventura County Library eLibrary where you can download apps like Cloud Library to find free downloadable audiobooks and ebooks. The VC eLibrary page also provides links to numerous other free online reading resources.

Math (Khan Academy Math Review):

  • Read, Read, Read!
    Daily reading fiction and nonfiction/discuss what you read with a family member. You may want to practice reading on Raz-Kids, your account will be accessible all summer (contact Serra, if you want to level up!).
  • Write, Write, Write!
    Weekly writing such as a story, report, letter, persuasive paragraph, poem, song, play, comic, journal entry, etc. Write a review of a restaurant, book, game, movie, etc. Practice typing on your school Typing Club account.
  • Math
    Practice with real life math problems such as measuring, money, time, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, etc. Do your Math Box card activities. Play a card game with a regular deck of cards, players each lay a card down at the same time & multiply the #s using mental math, the 1st person to say the answer gets both cards. Khan Academy math practice online such as Get Ready for 4th Grade.
  • Create
    Freebuild with Legos, create a Junk Trunk project, design something, do an art project, etc.
  • Connect
    Stay connected with peers in person or by phone, video calls, writing letters, etc.

Family & Nature Time
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

  • Read, Read, Read!
    Daily, with a few visits to the bookstore or local library (online or in-person) to retain reading skills and a love of reading. Join a kids’ book club (some of you already have one). Keep a log of your reading to show next year’s teacher. You may want to practice reading on  Raz-Kids.  Your account will be accessible all summer (email me, Louise,  if you want to level up!) 
  • Write, Write, Write!
    Keep a journal, write letters to friends and family, write stories, poems and songs. Become a pen pal with a cousin or friend who lives far away. Work in your cursive journal and your Rebecca Sitton spelling workbook until they are complete. Collect spelling words in your little book. Keep practicing your keyboarding skills on Typing Club (oakgroveschool220). You’ll need to log in using your OGS email domain and the same password you use to log into your iPads. This means logging in via Google.
  • Math
    Practice multiplication facts through the twelves. Practice telling time in context and as needed. Practice using money in real-life situations. The Khan Academy review listed below is very useful for keeping math skills sharp and introducing some new concepts found in 5th grade.

Go to Khan Academy for math review:

  • Organization
    When you buy classroom materials for fifth grade, have your child involved in the process, and familiar with the materials they bring in on the first day of school. Now is the time to think about your best working environment at home and set that space up with all the tools you need. A tidy and organized space can help set the tone. This can work for doing projects at home, doing home-school connections, and/or working remotely.
  • Social Studies & Science
    Museums are mostly open again. One suggestion for a field trip: Santa Barbara Mission to see where Karana (The Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island) is buried. For a trip further afield, there’s Ellis Island! Have your child try to identify primary and secondary sources during museum visits.
  • Social Skills
    Have play dates with different OGS students over the summer, especially next year’s fifth graders, (kids your child doesn’t usually play with).

Joy
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

Middle School

Resources for Middle School, Grades 6-8

  • Read, Read, Read! (Required Reading)
    Use this link to choose at least ONE chapter book to read and be ready to work on a Book Talk in class the first week of school (so the book needs to be read!)
  • Summer Bridge
    We would highly suggest a summer curriculum such as Summer Bridge to keep up with academic skills.
  • Summer Journal
    Keep a journal and record your summer experiences, write poetry, jot down life questions, reflect on what you are grateful for
  • Listen to Audio Books
  • Go to Khan Academy for math review! 
  • Create a Study Spot!
    Create a space in your house to work on home-school connections (your study spot! – this can be fun!)
  • Build a Tree House, a Fort, or Tend a Garden!
    Be in nature as much as possible as a means to develop your sensitivity and awareness of the world around you! 
  • Typing Club
    Practice keyboarding on Typing Club

“Needs-Nothing” Time
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

  • Read, Read, Read! (Required Reading)
    Please read AT LEAST one book by a non – American author, as our historical focus will be Medieval World History. Here is a Link to World Novels with some suggestions but please use your own discretion when reviewing books! Please have completed your book and be ready to do a book talk on your novel when we return to school in the fall (the instructions for the talk will be given during our first week).
  • Summer Bridge
    In these unprecedented times, we would highly suggest a summer curriculum such as Summer Bridge 6-7th grade to keep up with academic skills.
  • Grammar Skills
    Students have a Quill.org account for grammar-specific skills.
  • Math
    Khan Academy Math UNIT: Get Ready for 7th Grade or a review of 6th grade math concepts using a Summer Bridge Program.

“Needs-Nothing” Time
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

  • Read, Read, Read! (Required Reading)
    Please read AT LEAST one book by a non – American author, as our historical focus will be Medieval World History. Here is a Link to World Novels with some suggestions but please use your own discretion when reviewing books! Please have completed your book and be ready to do a book talk on your novel when we return to school in the fall (the instructions for the talk will be given during our first week).
  • Summer Bridge
    In these unprecedented times, we would highly suggest a summer curriculum such as Summer Bridge 7th-8th grade to keep up with academic skills.
  • Grammar Skills
    Students have a Quill.org account for grammar-specific skills.
  • Math
    Khan Academy Math UNIT: Get Ready for 8th Grade or a review of 7th grade math concepts using a Summer Bridge Program.

“Needs-Nothing” Time
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

High School

Resources for High School, Grades 9-12

  • English: Read, Annotate, Write!
    Here is a list of the required summer reading and assignments. You are encouraged to read books of your own choice as well!  Go on family trips to bookstores and libraries; read books as a whole family; talk about books with one another and with friends; swap your favorite book with family and friends.
  • Math
    Khan Academy for math review (8th grade math concepts) or a math Summer Bridge Program.
  • Science
    Read about current events related to science and technology or listen to Podcasts. Here are some suggested news sources, or download their associated apps!

  • “Needs-Nothing” Time
    Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

Current Events
Keep up with current events by reading the newspaper (online or on paper), listening to NPR, or using the news source of your choice.

  • English: Read, Annotate, Write! (Required Reading)
    Here is a list of the required summer reading and assignments. You are encouraged to read books of your own choice as well!  Go on family trips to bookstores and libraries; read books as a whole family; talk about books with one another and with friends; swap your favorite book with family and friends.
  • Spanish
    See and hear what you’ve learned come to life by watching movies and series in the original Spanish. Practice Quizlet sets from chapters 1 through 5.
  • Math
    Khan Academy for math review (Algebra 1 concepts)
  • Science
    Read about current events related to science and technology or listen to Podcasts. Here are some suggested news sources, or download their associated apps!

  • “Needs-Nothing” Time
    Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

Current Events
Keep up with current events by reading the newspaper (online or on paper), listening to NPR, or using the news source of your choice.

  • English: Read, Annotate, Write! (Required Reading)
    Here is a list of the required summer reading and assignments. You are encouraged to read books of your own choice as well!  Go on family trips to bookstores and libraries; read books as a whole family; talk about books with one another and with friends; swap your favorite book with family and friends.
  • Spanish
     See and hear what you’ve learned come to life by watching movies and series in the original Spanish. Practice Quizlet sets from chapters 1-10.
  • Math
    Khan Academy for math review (Algebra 2 concepts)
  • Science
    Read about current events related to science and technology or listen to Podcasts. Here are some suggested news sources, or download their associated apps!

  • “Needs-Nothing” Time
    Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together

Current Events
Keep up with current events by reading the newspaper (online or on paper), listening to NPR, or using the news source of your choice.

  • English: Read, Annotate, Write! (Required Reading)
    Here is a list of the required summer reading and assignments. You are encouraged to read books of your own choice as well! Go on family trips to bookstores and libraries; read books as a whole family; talk about books with one another and with friends; swap your favorite book with family and friends.
  • Math
    Khan Academy for math review (Precalculus concepts)
  • Life After High School
    Talk about life after high school. Visit colleges and workplaces.
  • College Applications!
    Review the Common App Essay Prompts and UC Personal Insight Questions, and support your student in writing their essay drafts over the summer.
  • Consider providing your student with this college application guide.
  • Consider signing your student up for college essay/application workshops over the summer.
  • Encourage your student to explore different colleges that they might be interested in attending. Students can explore:
    • Majors & minors that different colleges offer
    • Application requirements for each college
    • Class sizes
    • Location (city vs. rural)
    • Study abroad opportunities
    • Language offerings
    • Graduation requirements
  • Spanish
    See and hear what you’ve learned come to life by watching movies and series in the original Spanish. Practice Quizlet sets from chapters 1-15.
  • Science
    Read about current events related to science and technology or listen to Podcasts. Here are some suggested news sources, or download their associated apps!

“Needs-Nothing” Time
Schedule lots of “needs-nothing” time, with open space and no agenda. The summer is a time to connect as a family in a relaxed environment, enjoying being together!

Families & Parents

Pastoral Care Summer Reset

  • Process and Release Feelings:
    Take time, both individually and as a family, to process some feelings of the past school year. The key components of releasing pent up emotion are naming experiences or feelings, and then releasing them in some intentional way.
    For example, each person could reflect individually on 1-3 things that they struggled with and 3-5 things they are proud of from the past year. These reflections are most powerful when being made explicit – Writing them down or representing them through art. Depending on comfort level maybe each person shares one thing. Then you can have an evening fire, where all of the reflections are put into the flame and released.
    Regardless of whether or not you choose to do this as a family or in a formal manner, take the time to reflect, for yourself, and to let those emotions or experiences dissolve from your body and mind. Taking a moment to acknowledge all of our growth and the immense effort that is put into making every day happen can help boost feelings of self-esteem, self-compassion, connectedness, and more.
  • Define a goal for the summer, individually and as a family
    Think of something that you want to grow for yourself over the summer. Maybe it’s an explicit goal of learning a new game or building a new hobby, or maybe it’s creating a mantra for internal peace or ease. This can be a great way to connect as a family and settle into the summer plan. Depending on what your goal is, you can micro-step your way there. Micro-stepping is choosing small, easily accomplished size steps to achieving something. An example is
  • Digital Detox Reflection & Challenge
    Why it’s Hard, Setting Goals & How to Follow Through
    Media Usage Ideas for Children 
  • First Ten Minutes
    How do I want to start my day? The importance of connecting to myself FIRST
  • Gratitude Workouts 
  • 10 Minute Mood-Boosters
    Gratitude Workout (above)
    Take a walk, noticing all that is around you
    Conscious act of kindness for a stranger
    Do something for a friend
    Write a quick message or send a video to a loved one
    Mindfulness exercise (Apps that are great: Headspace, Calm, Smiling Mind)
    Toe to head stretches, sending love to tense areas
    Jump and shake it out
    Dance and sing (like no one is watching!)
  • How to Do Nothing and the power of ‘being bored’
    Forbes.com