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• 25 Summer Homeschool Ideas To Keep The Learning Spark Alive

June 24, 2023 | 1 Comment This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy .

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Today, I’m sharing summer homeschool ideas to keep the learning spark burning. Also, grab more ideas on my How to Homeschool page.

Even if you school year-round, most of us need a change during summer.

Whether you’re looking to add a few hands-on ideas, a summer unit study or a fun workbook, you’ll love these ideas.

Also, summertime is a time to focus on those subjects like art, music, and maybe even science, which we would love to do more of.

Look at How to Incorporate Subjects into a Fun Homeschool Cooking Unit Study.

Table of Contents

Summer Homeschool Ideas

As I mentioned summer can be a mix of fun and learning.

Look at some of these classes we love to do during summer.

• It’s a great time to start learning music at home. Look at these self-paced Learn Music in our Homeschool courses . From 15 minutes lessons to 20th century music, there is something for all ages.
• And language arts doesn’t have to be boring or if you’re like me and have an independent learner, these online self-paced courses from Literary Adventures for Kids have so many fun books to choose from.
• Then if you’re looking for your kids to take formal but fun cooking lessons, do Kids Cook Real Food.

Then I’m not above a few fun workbooks especially when it’s hot outside.

• But a summer workbook where all subjects are included allows opportunity for review and easy days.

More Summer Homeschool Learning Activities

In addition, I have a few more ideas if you’re homeschooling multiple ages.

20 Fun Summer Learning Activities And Make A Rock Sundial

A to z list: 100 fun summer homeschool unit study ideas.

• 30+ Summer Activities for Middle School Kids
• 11 Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schooler
• How Do Sharks Float STEM Activity Free Shark Unit Study & Notebooking Pages
• Fun Kids Hands-on Egg Carton Sea Turtle Life Cycle Activity
• 10 Edible Beach Crafts For Teens and Make Edible Beach Glass
• 11 Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Finally, look at these fun summer learning ideas.

Summer Learning Ideas

Use one or two of these ideas to add to your summer learning program. Add a few hands-on projects to keep learning fun.

Fun Pineapple Candle

Squeeze in more fun summer activities for middle schoolers by making this fun pineapple candle. Plus, there is more to homeschool middle school than just academic subjects.

Sun Art – Cyanotype STEAM Project

Have a WOW moment with kids this summer making Sun Art using chemistry and sunlight to make cool art. This is a very inexpensive, easy project with lots of STEM lessons.

Summer Must-Do: Ice Cream in a Bag

Ice Cream in a bag is a delicious summer science experiment.

Fun Making Ocean Layers Soap | Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

If you’re diving into a study on the ocean layers, doing summer activities for middle schoolers, or want to do an ocean unit study and ocean lapbook, our kids will love this ocean layers soap. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school for more fun tips.

Jellyfish Name Craft For Kids [Editable Template]

This jellyfish name craft offers a delightful and engaging way for children to practice letter recognition and fine motor skills.

Build Vocabulary with a Summer Word Jar (Plus Tips and Ideas)

Boost your kids' vocabulary with a summer word jar

These summer unit study ideas will keep kids of all ages having fun learning with topics they will be eager to study. Summer is a perfect time to get in some relaxed themed learning with unit studies

Octopus Cutting Activity Pages For Kids [Free Printable]

These octopus cutting activity pages provide an entertaining and educational way for kids to improve their fine motor skills. They have adorable octopus pictures that will keep little ones engaged while they practice their scissor skills.

20 Fun Summer Ideas for a Teen

I may have a bit more than 20 fun summer ideas for a teen, but having some ideas to help out during the summer when hormones boredom hits will hopefully keep you and your teen getting along.

Decorate the Ice Cream Play Dough Mats

Set up your own ice cream shop pretend play with this fun printable playdough ice cream mat activity.

Shadow Names Outdoor Summer Activity

https://intheplayroom.co.uk/shadow-names-outdoor-summer-activity/

Super Easy and Fun Aquarium Jar Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Your kids will love this fun aquarium jar craft for summer activities for middle schoolers. Whether you’re diving into a study about the oceans or doing a shark unit study, hands-on activities are the way to go. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school for more fun tips.

Make An Adorable DIY Nature Explorer Kit (from a Shoebox!)

Turn a humble shoebox into an exciting DIY Nature Explorer Kit with your kids, sparking curiosity and fostering a love for the great outdoors right from your backyard

FREE Summer Word Scramble Printable Worksheet in Spanish

In this activity challenge your students and children’s mind as you unravel the letters to form summer-related words in Spanish.

I have 20 fun summer learning activities and we’re making a rock sundial. And look at 11 Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers for more summer fun.

Summer Coloring Pages in Spanish for Kids [Free Printables]

Let’s get children of all ages familiar with summer vocabulary in Spanish with these fun coloring pages which includes different summer clip art from a sandcastle, to summer fruit, to ice cream and flip flops.

Colorful Rainbow Fish Fine Motor Activity for Summer

Learn how to make a Rainbow Fish Peg Board out of simple craft supplies. This is a great way for toddlers and preschoolers to practice color matching and fine motor skills.

Easy DIY Math Fishing Game for Kids

Learn number recognition, counting, fine motor skills and more with this DIY fishing for numbers math game.

Free Carnivorous Plants Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

Besides, carnivorous plants are a fascinating topic for every age.

Learning about Shark Senses Activity and Free Printable

Summer is the perfect time to learn about sharks! Try these fun hands on learning activities with the accompanying free printables.

A Mini Sailboat Craft for Kids (With Secret Messages!)

Set sail on a fun adventure with your kids as you build secret message miniature sailboats, a creative and fun-filled way to learn about the intriguing world of codes!

Sun Roll and Cover Mat

Roll and cover mats are fantastic resources for kids to practice numbers in a playful way! This summer, add excitement with the Sun Roll and Cover Mat, featuring Dice Dots for subitizing skills.

Ocean Animal Phonics Activity: FREE Printable Clip Cards

 We are currently learning about the  Ocean  so this first set has adorable sea animals like a whale, turtle, seahorse, starfish, and more!

How To Make Ice Cream In A Bag (A Delicious STEM Activity)

DIY ice cream in a bag is fun STEM activity for kids that ends with a yummy treat! 

Free Coral Reef Printable Lapbook and Fun Hands-on Unit Study Ideas

I have a free coral reef printable lapbook. Grab more ideas on my Coral Reef, lapbook ideas, and on my best homeschool unit studies pages.

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Summer homework may start as early as elementary school, but you don’t have to do it the way it’s always been done! Veteran educators like third-grade teacher Alycia Zimmerman have spent time thinking about how to make summer homework meaningful and interesting enough that students buy in—and even want to do it.  

Read on for Zimmerman’s summer homework game plan and ideas for how to make summer assignments more fun for everyone.

1. Try a New Student Meet and Greet

If possible, meet your incoming students before summer break (even if it’s virtual!) to instill the importance of summer learning.

At the end of the school year, coordinate with the teachers of your incoming students to swap classes for a period. Introduce yourselves to your future students and build excitement for the fun and challenging learning ahead and the very “grown-up” summer homework you will assign.

“We’ve been far more successful in instilling the importance of our summer assignments when presenting about it face-to-face rather than just sending a packet of directions home cold,” says Zimmernan. “The students sit on the edges of their seats as we talk about the importance of summer reading and our certainty that they will do everything they can to 'keep their brains healthy, pink, and strong’ over the summer.”

2. Emphasize the Importance of Summer Reading

Talk about the best summer assignment of all: diving into books!

Reading should be a treat, not a menial assignment, so Zimmerman doesn’t feel guilty about making reading the bulk of her summer homework. Here are some of her most effective strategies for promoting summer reading:

Have students fill out a log  to keep track of the books and other texts they read over the summer. It isn’t necessary to require a certain number of books or specific titles. Simply ask that they find books they love and spend lots of time reading them.

Have your current students write book reviews of their favorite titles to send home with your rising students. Invite your current students to serve as reading ambassadors and speak to the younger students about the importance and joys of reading. When coming from slightly older peers, the message is very well received.

And of course: Sign your students up for the Scholastic Summer Reading Program ! From May 9 to August 19, your students can visit Scholastic Home Base to participate in the free, fun, and safe  summer reading program . As part of the program, kids can read e-books, attend author events, and keep Reading Streaks™ to help unlock a donation of 100K books from Scholastic – distributed to kids with limited or no access to books by Save the Children. 

3. Share Fun and Educational Activities

Direct your students to fun (and educational) activities.

When considering other homework, the best options are activities that students will be motivated to do because they’re entertaining. 

Give your incoming students the “everything is better in moderation” speech so they understand that they shouldn’t play hours of computer games every day this summer. If possible, send them home with printable and book-based packs to polish their skills for the year ahead (you can even pair these with your own assignments): 

4. Connect Through the Mail 

Stay connected with your students over the summer through cards.

Giving incoming students the opportunity to connect with you and with each other can motivate them to complete summer assignments. Here’s one plan for connecting via letters:

Have your incoming students mail you a letter of introduction. Explain that you want to hear about their summer activities, their hobbies, their families, and anything special they want you to know before the school year begins.

When you receive letters from your students, send a postcard back with a brief response. Tell them a bit about your summer plan, and let them know you can’t wait to see them in the fall. 

Encourage them to write again!

You can also pair up students and have them write to each other over the summer. In September, they can bring their pen pal letters to class to display on the bulletin board.

Take advantage of everyone’s increasing familiarity with virtual resources by connecting online, too! Post a short video, article, or question once a week on your classroom's online platform, and invite both incoming students and rising former students to write their thoughts in the comments section. Be sure to moderate their comments and enjoy their back-and-forth dialogues as they engage with each other.

Get started by shopping the best books for summer reading below! You can find all books and activities at The Teacher Store .

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How To Finish Summer Homework Assignments: 14 Tips To Save Your Child’s Summer

• July 19, 2018

Many schools assign homework for students to complete before they return to class in September. This results in both parents and students having to learn how to finish summer reading and homework while balancing fun summer activities.

This summer, school is out and homework is in.

If your child has been putting off a pile of summer homework and reading assignments—he or she is not alone.

Reading books and writing assignments during the summer may not sound appealing to many students—or parents. Students can also get UK homework help if they need the some help with completing their assignment! But summer assignments are a great way to combat the effects of Summer Learning Loss and keep your child’s brain active over the break.

The Facts On Summer Learning Loss

Six weeks in the fall are spent re-learning old material Two months of reading skills are lost over the summer One month of overall learning is lost after summer vacation

With the right mindset, goals, and structure, you’ll have no problem finishing summer reading and homework between BBQ’s, ball games, and beach trips.

Follow these 14 steps to learn how to complete summer homework—without sacrificing summer fun.

14 Tips For Finishing Your Summer Homework Assignments

Make a game plan, tip 1: take a (quick) break.

It’s hard to go from a full year of schoolwork to tackling summer homework right off the bat. Let your child take a week off of homework at the start of the summer. This will give his or her brain a chance to relax and reset, and enjoy taking part in fun summer activities like sports.

Tip 2: Review Project Requirements

Don’t have your child dive head-first into his or her homework assignments. Review the expectations of each project with your child and discuss how much time he or she will need to complete them.

It would be a shame to waste time redoing a project because your child didn’t understand it initially. Reviewing all requirements is an important first step to starting off on the right foot.

Tip 3: Break Down Each Project Into A Series of Goals

Think about which assignments will take the longest and what your child will need to complete them during the summer. Break these larger assignments into a series of goals that need to be met to complete the project.

Examples of goals include “read 2 chapters per week” or “write essay introduction by July 15th”.

Set Aside The Right Amount Of Time

Tip 4: plan a weekly summer homework schedule.

This should be similar to a school year homework schedule, but altered for the summer. T he ideal amount of time to spend doing summer homework per week is 2-3 hours , so figure out where that time fits into your child’s average summer week.

Tip 5: Make A List Of Supplies & Resources

Your summer adventures could take you and your child to a wide variety of places. Make sure you both know what to bring with you so your child can tackle homework when not at home.

Examples of supplies include:

• Textbooks or Assigned Novels

Tip 6: Choose Assignment Topics Based On Interest, Not Length

Sometimes students are given options when it comes to topics to research or books to read over the summer. Encourage your child to make these decisions based on the topics that interests him or her most—not which is “easiest”. This will result in your child enjoying his or her work, and allow him to benefit more from it.

Help Your Child Do Work On-The-Go

Tip 7: adjust your homework schedule for trips & vacations.

Exploring new places is an amazing learning experience, so don’t feel like you should sacrifice them for more homework time. Instead, plan your child’s homework schedule around these day trips and vacations.

If you know your child won’t have time to complete work while you’re away on a longer trip, make up those hours in the weeks before and after your trip.

Tip 8: Tackle The Work Your Child Can Do On-The-Go

While writing an essay is a project to save for when you return home, there are assignments that your child can tackle from just about anywhere. Options for homework to do on vacation include projects that are doable in small chunks—like reading a book or completing a math worksheet.

Tip 9: Bring Your Child’s Supplies With You

Remember that supplies list you created? Make sure you pack that backpack and bring it with you on your trip! It’d be a waste to find a spare hour to finish that math assignment, only to realize your child left his or her calculator at home.

Tip 10: Capitalize On The Quiet Times

Even the busiest trips include some quiet time. If you’re early for a dinner reservation, have your child complete a chapter of reading while you wait. Or, encourage your child to wake up 20 minutes early to answer some math questions without disruption.

Build A Support Team For Your Child

Tip 11: schedule a weekly workdate for your child & a friend.

There’s no reason your child has to work through summer homework alone. Make a weekly work date with a friend where they can tackle summer assignments together. If that friend is in the same class as your child, they can even discuss questions and challenges together. Build A Support Team For Your Child

Tip 12: Review Your Child’s Progress Every Week

Each week, speak with your child about the work he or she accomplished, and what is planned for the week ahead. If you know your child will be busy soon, work together to reorganize his or her homework schedule.

Tip 13: Touch Base With a Tutor (Or Enrol In Summer Learning Program)

A new set of eyes can make all the difference in making sure your child gets his or her summer assignments done efficiently and effectively. Your child’s tutor will be able to give constructive feedback and turn this feedback into goals for the upcoming school year.

If you want an extra head start for your child this school year, enroll him or her in a Summer Learning tutoring program to get started on the right track.

And Most Importantly…

Tip 14: reward your child with summer fun.

While schoolwork is important during the summer, it doesn’t have to come at the sacrifice of having fun. Whenever your child completes a new project or achieves a goal, reward him or her with a treat or fun summer activity.

Work Hard—And Play Hard—This Summer

Summer might seem like it will last forever, but the school year will be here before you know it. Don’t let your child fall into the habit of procrastination—instead, make a plan together and stick to it.

If you follow these tips, your child will finish summer homework and summer reading in no time…and develop great learning and study habits that will already be in place for next year!

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8 Engaging Summer Assignments Your High Schoolers Will Actually Want To Do!

Have you ever assigned summer artmaking activities to your high schoolers only to come back in the fall to hastily thrown together, subpar work? Unfortunately, we have all been there!

One solution is to get rid of summer homework. While this makes our grading life a lot easier, it is not in the best interest of our students. Another solution is to accept crummy artworks, but compromising our standards is also not in the best interest of our students!

Summer assignments are beneficial for many reasons. They prepare students for the upcoming school year and course. The work keeps students’ creative critical-thinking brains fresh and their habits disciplined. It gives your students time to chew on certain ideas, even if it’s not the primary focus of their thinking all summer.

Let’s explore 8 low-pressure summer assignments your high school students will be pumped to complete!

As you read through the following ideas, think about which ones your students would be most excited about!

1. Visit a museum or gallery.

Nothing beats seeing art in person, especially for a generation of students used to viewing everything on a screen. Students can make a day trip to many large art museums —alone, as a group, or with their family. If you do not have any close by, smaller art galleries are another option. If in-person art viewing is not available, many museums are creating interactive virtual spaces where students can participate.

Provide students with a “cheat sheet” of museum choices, visitor information, and key artworks to investigate so they get the most out of their visit. Assign nothing but visiting the museum and looking at artwork. If you require “proof” from your students for a grade, have them take a selfie in front of their favorite piece.

Check out this podcast for  5 Ideas and 5 Museums for Virtual Tours. 

2. Interview an artist.

Students can reach out to an artist through a local gallery, college or university, email, or artist website. Students can also reach out to an artist via social media and direct messages! Let students select the communication channel to keep it stress-free.

Give students a list of tips for reaching out to an artist. As a class, students can brainstorm a list of suggested questions before parting for the summer. Students can present what they learned in various formats—video reflection, interview video, written format, podcast, or a formal presentation.

3. Destroy a canvas.

This is an unusual one, but it creates an opportunity for innovative artmaking in the future! Invite students to destroy a canvas, board, or piece of paper. Then, when students come back in the fall, they have to use the destroyed material and transform it into a new artwork.

Check out this portrait lesson that synthesizes media for ideas on incorporating and manipulating materials in new ways. Just make sure students practice safety when destroying their canvas!

4. Write a movie review.

Who doesn’t love sitting around and binge-watching a good movie or show? Students select an art-related movie or show to watch and write an informal movie review. Check out   24 Movies to Show in Your High School Art Room for title ideas.

Or peruse this list to get you started!

• Black Art: In the Absence of Light
• This is a Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist
• Saving Banksy
• Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

5. Participate in the Getty Challenge.

The Getty Challenge was an amusing form of entertainment and way of experiencing famous works of art during quarantine last year. People recreated artworks with household items, pets, and family members from the comfort of their own homes. The results were hilarious !

Prepare a list of famous artworks for your students. Alternatively, allow students to select their own artwork based on their body of work. Students recreate the artwork using found items in their homes. This is a great opportunity to discuss appropriation with your students!

6. Attend a conference.

While our students love us, sometimes they enjoy hearing from others, too. Other artists, teachers, and students can share things in new ways. They can also teach content outside our personal expertise. Ask students to attend a conference or workshop over the summer. They could also sign up for a class at a local community college, arts center, or arts council. Preemptively reach out to these institutions and see if they will offer your students a discount. It doesn’t hurt to ask!

Have you thought about hosting a few speakers for your students to learn from this summer? Listen to A Conference to Inspire Your Students to hear how Lena Rodriguez created a conference for her students.

7. Curate a virtual exhibit.

Virtual art shows are all the rage right now! Have students curate a virtual exhibit and then “tour” each others’ spaces when they return in the fall. Students often surprise themselves as they get sucked into designing their gallery spaces. It’s a lot of fun to see what quirky items and props they include.

The work showcased can fit one of these parameters:

• Student’s theme of their body of work
• A specific era, time period, or art movement
• Common subject matter
• A specific culture or group of people
• Student’s portfolio of artwork
• Similar mediums or use of materials

For more information on platforms to use, take a look at  Creating a Virtual Art Show: A Time Capsule of Student Success and 6 Online Platforms to Showcase Student Art .

8. Read 10 children’s books.

Many high school students do not enjoy reading—except when it comes to children’s books! They get excited when a children’s book gets pulled out in the middle of a lesson.

Invite students to find and read ten children’s books on a topic or theme of their choice. The topic or theme can be based on their artistic journey and interests. Students can create a reverse mind map showing how the books stem from the core concept. If that last step seems like a lot of homework, table it for when students come back to class in the fall. Have students snap photos of the books they read so they won’t forget. This activity introduces how to brainstorm with mind mapping. It also starts a conversation about creating a body of work that explores different facets of one focused intent.

As you plan, keep in mind that for summer assignments to be successful and beneficial, they must be fun, low-pressure, accessible to all, and allow choice. 

• Fun—We want students to be intrinsically motivated to get the most out of learning. The work shouldn’t feel like work but lean more into exploration and investigation.
• Low-pressure—When intensive homework is given over the summer, students do not have a chance to have a real break. Just like we want to prevent teacher burnout, we also want to prevent our students from burning out.
• Accessible—If assignments have too many requirements, not all students may have access to complete the work. Summer homework can also be optional instead of mandatory. Students should not be penalized for not having transportation, supplies, or the financial means to complete the assignments.
• Allow choice—One way to make summer assignments accessible to all is to provide choice. Students can select an assignment based on their resources. Choice also allows students to select what speaks to their interests and passions, tying it back to the fun component!

For even more summer assignment ideas, check out  Fantastic Summer Homework Ideas for High Schoolers . 

What is a summer assignment your students love doing each year? 

How can you use summer assignments to bridge the end of the school year with the start of the next one?

Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.

Lindsey McGinnis

Lindsey McGinnis is AOEU’s Media Content Manager and a former high school art educator. She is passionately equipping art teachers to be successful in their classrooms and firmly believes that art is a safe place for students to explore and process the challenging topics and concepts around them.

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Engaging Summer Math: Easy, Hands On & FUN Ideas

Looking for low-key ways to keep kids learning math over the summer? Find engaging summer math ideas below, including hands on practice, easy games, LEGO math and more!

Ahhh, summer.

A time for vacations and catching fireflies, trips to the pool and firing up the grill. While there are probably endless images and activities that come to mind when you think of summer, I’m willing to bet that doing math just isn’t one of them.

But the truth is, for most students, summer is a time when all the important math skills they worked so hard to learn throughout the year are completely lost . So here are some SUPER simple summer math activities that will keep your kids from being bored (and keep them learning!).

* Please note : Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and help support the work of this site. Thanks for understanding! Feel free to read our full disclosure here . *

Fun and Simple Summer Math Activities:

Read through the different types of ideas below to find some summer math activities that are right for your kids. There are ideas for games and puzzles that won’t even feel like learning, along with outdoor games, hands on activities, simple printable pages and more!

Play with Math Puzzles:

• Work on Sudoku puzzles. Kids too young for them? Check out Kidoku Puzzles  | Krazy Dad
• Try Magic Squares or a Magic Triangle | What Do We Do All Day
• Play with these Pattern Block Logic Puzzles
• Challenge each other to Mental Math Races
• Create Jumping Mazes (inside or outside!)
• Put together these Fraction Puzzles , Telling Time Puzzles or Money Puzzles

Take Math Outside:

• Have an even and odd number beanbag toss
• Practice important skills with Water Balloon Math | No Time for Flash Cards
• Make a hula hoop clock  to review time related problems | Creekside Learning
• Build 3D shapes with sticks | Creative Star Learning
• Play Marshmallow Shoot and Measure | No Time for Flash Cards
• Have a shapes scavenger hunt  (Want more of a challenge? Look for 3D shapes instead!)
• Play Sidewalk Chalk Number Line Race
• Practice measurement in your flower bed or garden | The Educator’s Spin On It
• Heading to the beach? Use sea shells for counting, sorting or a fun memory game | No Time for Flash Cards
• Try a fun twist on a classic: Skip Counting Hopscotch
• Play Puddle Jump , a simple, easily adaptable game

Related: 6 Little Known Benefits of Taking Math Outside

Learn Math with LEGO:

• Work on place value with LEGO | The Science Kiddo
• Explore addition & subtraction with LEGO
• Explore multiplication & division with LEGO
• Build a rocket powered Lego car | Frugal Fun 4 Boys
• Play LEGO Baseball (and discuss statistics!) | Teach Mama
• Practice double digit addition and subtraction | Real Life at Home
• Create LEGO Duplo Puzzles for your kids to put together
• Prove the Pythagorean Theorem with LEGO bricks

**Looking for more LEGO math ideas? Check out 30+ easy ways to learn with LEGO Math!

Play Math Games:

• Play with a Calculator ( hint: NOT to do math calculations ) or try these fun calculator riddles | And Next Comes L
• Play Strike it Out for adding and subtracting fun | Teach Mama
• Play Math Twister to review any and all math facts
• Use this simple game to review any math facts (all you need is a piece of paper!)
• Let the kids “play store” with their favorite books or toys to practice adding money and making change (Here’s a great Play Money Set )
• Play this “Jack and the Beanstalk” multiplication game | Relentlessly Fun, Deceptively Educational
• Play Multiplication Dash , another printable multiplication game
• Play a math card game
• Make a DIY Mancala Game and play together

Read Math Story Books:

• Learn with the “Sir Cumference” math story books
• Read and play with Ten Apples Up On Top
• Learn about money with Pigs will Be Pigs
• See math in real life with Math Curse
• Explore fractions and patterns with The Lion’s Share
• Learn about triangles with The Greedy Triangle
• Practice problem solving with The Grapes of Math
• Tell time with The Grouchy Ladybug

Looking for math books by topic? Check out the math read aloud lists below:

• Math books about counting
• Math books to explore place value and large numbers
• Math books to learn about addition & subtraction
• Math books to understand multiplication & division
• Math picture books to make sense of fractions
• Money math picture books
• Picture books about time and telling time

Math Around the House Ideas:

• Create a STEAM Bored Jar  for activities throughout the summer |  Left Brain Craft Brain
• Explore summer STEM Ideas specifically for middle school
• Practice counting with watermelon seeds (or other fruits)
• Have a weekly estimation jar challenge using small toys, balls or household items (encourage your kids to make educated guesses and work on estimating techniques)
• Get in the kitchen for fun with math and cooking
• Explore math with Q-Tips
• Play with math and Skittles in PreK-1 or math with Skittles in 3-5

Printable Summer Math Games & Practice:

Looking for some summer-themed worksheets? The activities below are a fun way to easily work on targeted math skills as kids work their way through the maze, solve the riddles or cut and paste numbers. The best part? Just print and play!

• Ice Cream Counting Mats: Play Dough Math Play | Numbers 1-20
• Summer Counting Cut & Paste | Count to 20
• Summer Math Mazes for Grades 3-4 | Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication & Division
• Camping themed Ratio & Proportion Challenges
• Summer Algebra: Solve Equations Riddle Pages

Reviewing important math skills doesn’t have to be boring, time-consuming or expensive! Use items you already have on hand, grab some books at the library or make up fun games to play outside to encourage young learners to keep thinking and problem solving all summer long!

Got any other FUN and simple summer math ideas to prevent learning loss and still have a fantastic summer?? Share in the comments! 🙂

Awesome list of activities! Definitely pinning this now… I think we might try the bean bag toss this afternoon, too. Thanks for including our STEAM Bored Jar!

You’re welcome! I thought your STEAM jar was a brilliant idea! Thanks for pinning and sharing this list! 🙂

What an awesome list of games. We love fun activities that double as learning!

My kiddos like our simple Make Ten math game. It’s nice because the game easily grows with them through the years. http://waddleeahchaa.com/2012/01/16/make-ten-math-game-book-of-the-week-giveaway/

We also have ThinkFun Math Dice Jr. Makes math practice fun!

Thanks for sharing, Jeannine! I enjoyed popping over to your site to check it out! I love simple math games with a deck of cards, so easy to set up and play! 🙂

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Wow, what a thorough list of great suggestions! I’m planning to homeschool my son for kindergarten next year, so I’ve been trying to think of ideas to keep his math skills growing without him getting bored. I’m definitely pinning this!

Thanks Michelle! I’ve been trying so hard to find things that are fun for my kids, and keep them from being bored, but do not require a week’s worth of prep on my part! 🙂 Hope you find some things here useful!

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i love that

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Sharing creative ideas and lessons to help children learn.

The 15 Best Summer Learning Workbooks for Kids

February 22, 2022 by Evan-Moor | 0 comments

This list of top summer learning workbooks for kids provides something for every type of learner. Tailor summer learning to fit your child’s personality and interests with activities and a format that works for your family.

Evan-Moor’s wide selection of colorful activity books provides learning activities that support the most current standards, while sparking children’s curiosity with interesting themes and topics. You can find skill-specific books to provide review or to challenge your child, or cross-curricular practice that is already paced for summer learning fun! Evan-Moor workbooks have clear directions and follow a consistent format, which makes it easy for children to complete independently.

Check out the best summer learning workbooks below to keep your children learning and growing all summer long.

#1 Recommendation for Summer Learning—Only 15 Minutes a Day

With just one or two activities per day over a 10-week period, Daily Summer Activities helps to keep skills sharp without getting in the way of vacation time. And, a weekly reading log will motivate your child to read during the summer. Fun reward stickers are included for grades PreK–5.

Take the guesswork out of summer learning with the paced practice in Daily Summer Activities ! Grades PreK–8

Daily Summer Activities books won the 2020 Parents’ Picks Award for Best Educational Products for Preschool and Elementary Kids.

The Jumbo Workbook for Summer Review

Top Student activity books won the 2020 Parents’ Picks Award for Best Educational Products for Preschool and Elementary Kids.

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Skill-Specific Practice for Grades PreK–6

Whether you’re looking to support your child in a specific skill area or to accelerate learning, the  Skill Sharpeners workbook series  for grades PreK–6 provides the perfect combination of skill practice and fun to spark kids’ interest! Select a topic in your children’s favorite subject area or an area they could use some extra practice, and watch their skills grow. Each Skill Sharpeners workbook includes a free downloadable teaching guide with additional lessons and teaching tips to enrich your child’s learning home.

Download free sample units for  Skill Sharpeners: STEAM   here .

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Fun and Free Summer Learning Resources

To help combat summer learning loss, here are a few fun, free education resources for students and parents.

Summer learning loss is a real problem. Alarmingly, research suggests students may lose more than one month of reading knowledge during the summer, and the losses in math may be even greater.

Here, we’ve compiled a few resources to keep students learning through the dog days of summer, with a particular focus on math and reading. For starters, the Edutopia blog post " Avoiding the Summer Slide in Reading and Writing " from Heather Wolpert-Gawron is chock-full of useful information and strategies for parents and students.

Fun! Fun! Fun! Summer Learning Sites

• Themed Books and Activities for Summer Reading and Learning : Start with a Book, a project from Reading Rockets, offers some great ideas for summer reading. This collection offers books and activities to help kids explore a variety of subjects like dinosaurs, money, and much more. Plus, be sure to check out their Summer Science collection for engaging in DIY summer science learning.
• Cool Summer Reading and Learning for Middle School Kids : Author Susan Curtis highlights some of the most useful websites, ideas, and strategies for helping middle school students stay active readers during the summer. Included are links to reading lists, online reading contests, and ideas for practicing reading with tech tools. Also check out  Awesome Apps for the Six Traits of Writing , from WeAreTeachers, for improving writing skills with apps during the summer.
• Calculation Nation From the NCTM : If you're looking for a fun, web-based game for students, Calculation Nation from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics is a wonderful resource. This is just one example; there are tons of awesome games. Also check out  Funbrain Math Arcade from Pearson, 10 Best Math Apps for Kids from Parents.com, and Cool Math .
• Summer Learning Resources for Parents From Colorín Colorado : This reading resource roundup for parents is awesome! You'll find guides, tips, and reading lesson ideas in Spanish and English. Another great resource from sister site Reading Rockets is Get Ready for Summer! Ideas for Teachers to Share With Families .
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• Simple Tips for Summer Math Learning From PBS Parents : These easy-to-implement ideas are perfect for summer learning. My favorites: Turn chores into math learning opportunities, or find math lessons in your child’s collection (sea shells, baseball cards, etc.). PBS Parents’ reading tips guide is also extremely useful.

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50 Summer Homeschooling Printable Activities

Take a look through our HUGE list of free homeschool printables. Cut down on your kid’s screen this summer and get ready for some awesome kid activities using these free printable resources. Of course, they include educational printables, worksheets, writing prompts, and tools to keep you organized and to keep your kids busy this summer! Indeed, these free summer printables are just what you need to entertain your kids on a hot summer day or maybe even on a rainy summer day. In fact, they are a great way to keep the “Mom, I’m bored” at bay. 

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20+ creative alternative homework ideas for teachers

When giving homework, it must always be based on learning goals your students have to reach, just like in your lessons. But it’s sad to see that lots of teachers are using homework as extra lesson time. Of course, as a teacher, you’re on a clock. But that doesn’t mean your students have to suffer from it and keep working on those boring textbooks and worksheets at home.

Consider goals like attitudes, real-life experiences, and practice, physical exercise, social encounters, creative solutions, and philanthropy as crucial as your lesson goals. These are things students don’t just pick up in your classroom. These are things they pick up in life.

In this blog post, I’ll give you some innovative homework ideas that will engage your students more. These alternatives to traditional homework will thereby also teach your students new things that can’t be taught in the classroom. You will find a variety of homework ideas: online and offline.

I will mention homework alternatives for primary school and high school. Some of these ideas can be changed a little bit, so they are the perfect fit for the right audience.

20 Creative homework ideas

You can divide homework tasks into the following themes or categories:

• Crafts & arts
• Outdoor activities & outings
• Games and activities
• Physical activities
• Digital or computer activities
• Philanthropy & social work

💡 Good to know : all the ready-to-use homework activities are created with BookWidgets . You can easily create activities like these yourself or duplicate an activity below for free, edit it if needed, and share it with your students. You can do so in the examples separately, or you can find all the homework examples in the BookWidgets Blog group folder .

Crafts and arts homework

1. prepare a dish from a recipe book.

2. Make a board game

3. Create a birdhouse

4. Transform a fictional book character into a hand puppet

Outdoor homework activities and outings

5. coupon game.

Students can also go grocery shopping with their parents. Here, they have to read the ingredients of the products and help their parents choose the healthiest products for the best prices, figure out the best deal between the sizes of items, …

6. Visit the zoo

7. Visit the local dumping ground or container park

8. Build a tree house

Games and activities as homework

9. bookwidgets games.

10. Minecraft

11. Play Cards

12. Play Zoo Tycoon or Rollercoaster Tycoon

Physical homework activities

13. rope skipping.

Many rope-skipping songs let your students do different tricks while rope-skipping. This is an excellent opportunity for homework as well. Ask your students to transform a rope skipping song into a song with lesson content. Let them count or spell or even sum up the different states or capitals. To engage their lifestyles even harder, you can additionally give them the assignment to create a TikTok in which they are jumping and singing.

Click here to see how you can get Tiktok more involved in the classroom.

14. Walking quest

If there aren’t any walking quests in the neighborhood, you could ask your students to create a walking quest like this for their fellow students. What a fun day it will be!

15. Obstacle Quiz

In order for students to answer the questions, they have to run and pass a challenging parkour. This is a fun homework exercise, and in the end, it’s a great lesson starter or lesson end.

16. Swimming games

After the activity, they can fill out an Exit Slip:

Digital or computer homework activities

17. create a picture album.

This teaches them to handle the online software, add pictures and write without spelling mistakes. And of course, creating memories is so much fun!

18. Video job application

19. Your life in 10 minutes - video

20. Email pen-pals

Is it still too complicated? Read the messages from your students, before they send them, and provide them with some feedback.

Philanthropy and social homework

21. grow a community garden.

22. Help in a retirement home

23. Help at a homeless shelter

24. Collect litter

Here’s another homework tip: Don’t call homework “homework”. Call it a challenge. Homework has become a negative word for students, and I bet they start rolling their eyes as you even mention the word.

Still looking for more inspiration? Check out the blog on short films and lesson activities that spice up your Google Classroom . Tip: even if you don’t use Google Classroom, there is a lot of inspiration back here.

Above you have read single assignments. But, you also have the option to involve your homework in a project. Find out more here .

So, as I mentioned earlier, there are many fun alternatives to traditional homework. Now it’s up to you to apply this in the classroom as well. In this folder , you will find all the examples you have come across.

Which idea do you or perhaps your students like the most? Let us know on Twitter . Of course, there are many more alternatives. If you have other ideas, you are always welcome to share it with other teachers in our Facebook group .

One more thing: don’t forget to say hi👋 on LikedIn .

Join hundreds of thousands of subscribers, and get the best content on technology in education.

BookWidgets enables teachers to create fun and interactive lessons for tablets, smartphones, and computers.

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15 Innovative School Homework Ideas to Make Learning Fun

Aashita Pillai

Aashita is a writer here at Suraasa and has formerly worked as a Teacher Mentor for a couple of years. She wields words like weapons to help readers get clear and concise information.

Introduction

General tips to keep students hooked to school homework, 15 innovative school homework ideas to engage your students, theme a: arts and crafts, theme b: physical and outside activities, theme c: digital activities, theme d: games, theme e: entrepreneurship.

“Hi teachers! I am your old friend, School Homework. Over time as education changed, so have I— thanks to the endless innovations that happened to me.  Let me take you through my life and the various innovations that made me your best friend- I was born in the 1920s to help students reinforce what they learned in class. Until the 1980s, I was basically just pen-and-paper-based assignments.  The Internet was born in 1983. From there onwards, I made my stride into the ‘digital era’.

Until the beginning of 2020, I was slowly being integrated within online platforms and technology to help students learn better. Then at the onset of 2020, the world plunged into the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools shifted to a ‘remote learning’ mode of education. During this pandemic, you and I became very crucial in ensuring the continuity of our students’ learning. You all embraced creative approaches to keep the students engaged. You leveraged interactive games, virtual simulations, & more to make me engaging. Gone are the days when you, my dear teachers, would limit your homework to worksheets, textbook questions, literature reviews, and reports. Today as we stand here in 2023, there is no limit to innovative and exciting homework formats! Well, that’s from me. See you in the classrooms!”

So teachers, we heard from homework about how it has evolved over time. As it said, many innovative ways have come up to reinforce our students' learning. So, are you ready to make your students fall in love with these new school homework ideas? Let’s begin with understanding some general tips to keep your students engaged with their school homework.

1. Make it Relevant and Meaningful 

Connect the school homework to their lives, interests, or current events to make it more meaningful and relatable. For example, if it’s Christmas time, you can ask your students to explore the themes of charity, storytelling, etc.

2. Give Them a Choice

Allow students to have some choice and autonomy in their assignments. Ask them to select the format (e.g. written format in the online medium, oral format in the offline medium) in which they want to submit their homework. When they feel a sense of ownership, they are more likely to be motivated and engaged. This is how you become a 21st-century teacher who uses differentiated learning. 

3. Celebrate Their Achievements

When children get appreciated for their achievements or good behaviour, it boosts their self-confidence. It encourages them to repeat those actions. This creates a positive learning environment. They are more likely to deliver results when appreciated for their actions. Hence, you can celebrate their achievements via small rewards, recognition or a display of their work in class.

Let's move to the next part of this blog, where we will share innovative school homework ideas that will turn mundane homework into engaging learning sessions!  After assigning any of these innovative homework ideas, you might never hear students’ innovative excuses to avoid homework! To give you a quick run-through, these ideas have been grouped under some common themes. Under each theme, you will learn how to use 3 ideas listed alongside relevant examples to comprehend it completely. Come along as we give the ratty old homework a MAKEOVER!

By infusing the joy of arts and crafts into school homework, you can tap into the innate curiosity and imagination of your students. And you never know, you might end up being the person that shaped the next Da Vinci! So, let’s get right into it:

1. Create Your Storybook

We all have heard stories. We have loved them and adored them. So why not give our students a chance to write one?  After the students submit their storybooks, you can review their stories and give personalised feedback. Such feedback addresses each student’s individual needs, strengths, and areas for improvement. This fosters a student-centric learning environment.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Create a storybook on their favourite fictional characters from their English Literature Syllabus, such as Harry Potter or Matilda.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Design a narrative-based comic book retelling a classic play like "To Kill a Mockingbird".
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Craft a novella inspired by a chosen literary work from the English Literature syllabus.

2. Make Your Own Board Game

Do you remember the joy of gathering around a table, rolling a dice, and playing Snakes & Ladders? As kids and even as adults, many of us love spending our time playing board games.  Now, picture becoming the teacher that integrates school homework with a board game! Students can design board games and incorporate artistic elements into their theme, board layout, cards, etc. They can become architects of fun and learning!

Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Design a board game on animals with jungle-themed cards. Add tasks like imitating the animal or guessing the animal’s habitat.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Create a board game depicting important events from World War 2. Add tasks like creating game cards with historical information.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Develop a strategic board game centred around a complex social issue or global challenge. Add tasks like creating a board journey of a historical event.

3. Construct a Birdhouse

Now, let’s tap into the sweet nostalgia of DIY(Do it Yourself) Projects. It could be something as simple as bedsheet forts or something a little more complex like a birdhouse 🙂 Won’t it be wonderful to watch your students feel a sense of accomplishment when they build their own handmade creations?  Let’s focus on the idea of constructing a birdhouse. By assigning students this homework, you’ll additionally be encouraging kinesthetic learning . 

Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Draw a birdhouse on cardboard or on paper.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Construct a birdhouse from scratch, following specific dimensions and incorporating elements that attract certain bird species. Research and create a guide on local bird species and their habitats.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Design and build an elaborate birdhouse that incorporates sustainable materials and advanced woodworking techniques. Conduct a study on nesting preferences and document findings.

Students love spending their time outdoors. Assigning school homework that requires them to be outside is a big plus! It will also help them apply what’s taught in class in real-life situations and promote active learning.

4. Participate in a Scavenger Hunt

Everyone loves a good old mystery! Give your students the chance to be modern-day ‘Sherlock Holmes’ as they set out on scavenger hunts.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Join a geometry-themed scavenger hunt and search for items of different shapes in their neighbourhood.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Join a historical scavenger hunt in the community, where students discover landmarks related to local history.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Join a technology-based scavenger hunt using smartphones or tablets. Students can incorporate QR codes and online resources.

5. Maintain a Physical Activity Journal

In this digital age, where mobile and laptop screens often dominate, the majority of the students lead sedentary lifestyles. School homework which encourages physical activity, can be a game-changer! And what better than maintaining a physical activity journal that helps with it? Additionally, it will also promote the healthy habit of having an active lifestyle among students.  Getting students to journal can seem tough, but with the right motivation & incentives, it can be done. Additionally, this can also be a fun summer holiday homework, where students can keep track of their activities all summer! Encourage them to document their daily exercise triumphs. Push them to go beyond their own records! Ask them to explore science concepts- BMI, heart and pulse rates, diet, and nutrition! Once you do this, exercise will not just be about breaking a sweat anymore. It will also be something that incorporates learning! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Keep a daily journal of physical activities, such as playing sports or riding a bike. Students can record the duration, type of activity, and how it made them feel.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Maintain a weekly activity log. Students can set fitness goals, track their progress, and reflect on the benefits of regular physical activity.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Create a comprehensive fitness and wellness journal, tracking not only physical activities but also nutrition, sleep patterns, and mental well-being.

6. Conduct a Survey at a Local Supermarket

This outdoor activity is an extremely fun option for school homework. Most kids love running through the different aisles in a supermarket. Introducing a concept like surveys here gives them a chance to do some ‘real-life’ work and also provides much-needed relief to their parents!  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Ask students to talk to a supermarket owner about the number of chocolates they stock v/s the number of chocolates they sell.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Design a multiple-choice questionnaire to survey shoppers about their shopping preferences.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Conduct a comprehensive survey on consumer behaviour, market trends, or sustainable practices at the local supermarket. Analyse the data using statistical methods.

In the age of tech-savvy students, we often find parents complaining about the excess screen time with their kids. But what if you could harness the untapped potential in technology? Today's kids are already immersed in the digital world, so why not tap into their enthusiasm and merge it with learning?  Let’s look at some innovative methods of assigning digital activities for school homework:

7. Record a Virtual Job Application

This can be a fun homework assignment for students of all grades. One thing that we often forget as teachers is that school is not just about the present; it's also about the future. But often, we don’t discuss the future. This results in students being almost lost when it comes to their future career opportunities.  This is exactly where this school homework activity helps. Assigning school homework related to professions is a great chance for students to explore their career options. This, in turn, will help them be better prepared for life after school.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Create a video where students share their aspirations and talk about their role models. They can dress up as that person and talk about their profession.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Students prepare a resume and cover letter for a fictional job and create a brief introduction video.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Research the companies or leaders students want to work with in the future. Record an elevator pitch describing their strengths and weaknesses and why they are perfect for a job role!

8. Participate in Online Collaborative Projects

Online projects are a catalyst for active learning and student engagement. They can be a tool for you to create a dynamic learning environment that goes beyond traditional classroom boundaries. Additionally, these activities enhance digital literacy and empower students to leverage technology for learning. Working on online collaborative projects will also help students learn how to function together as a team. This is something that also prepares them for life beyond school, where it’s crucial to learn to work together.

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Collaborate with classmates on a digital art project using online drawing tools.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Engage in an online group discussion or debate with students from other schools on a specific topic.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Join a global online collaborative project, such as a virtual science fair or a collaborative writing initiative.

9. Virtual Cultural Exchange

Cultural exchange events open doors to new horizons, offering students a unique chance to explore diverse cultures. By immersing them in new traditions, you develop acceptance, and empathy in your students. You give them a chance to have a broad and more inclusive perspective of the world. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Buddy pair students and encourage them to engage in conversations while donning traditional costumes.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Create a presentation that explores similarities and differences between the cultures of their peers.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Engage in virtual cultural exchange programmes with students from various countries. Conduct virtual interviews and share experiences.

Game-based school homework is one of the best ways to engage your students. Integrating learning within games creates a powerful synergy where education and entertainment merge seamlessly.  It’s time to tap into your students’ natural love for games and leverage it!

10. Use Minecraft as a Learning Tool

Ah, Minecraft! A name that brings back memories of endless adventures in pixelated landscapes. It’s a game that is a nostalgic reminder of our childhood.  But did you know that Minecraft can be more than just a game? It can be a powerful learning tool to level up the educational experience of your students.  💡Learn how to leverage Minecraft to make your classrooms more engaging! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Create a Minecraft world that represents a historical monument like the Taj Mahal.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Design a virtual science experiment within Minecraft.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Utilize Minecraft as a platform for architectural design and build virtual structures using architectural principles.

11. Encourage Role-Playing Games

Lights, camera, action! Role-playing games(RPGs) let students step into the shoes of a character and bring lessons to life. Even though RPGs are not typically classified as games, their unique blend of learning and fun makes them ideal for educational purposes.  You can assign students to act out roleplays based on a historical event, scientific concept or work of literature. They can develop characters, write dialogues, and present this to the class. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Spend a day as your favourite character and write your experience.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Students can design a setting based on a science concept and enact simple scripts to explain the concept.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Engage in a literary role-playing game where students assume the roles of characters from a play.

12. Online Challenges

You can introduce online challenges like coding of varying difficulties for different grade levels. Platforms like Scratch or Code.org can be helpful for this purpose. Coding challenges offer hands-on experience to students. It allows them to practice coding concepts and algorithms in a practical and engaging manner.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Participate in online math challenges or puzzles.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Engage in coding challenges on platforms like Scratch or Code.org.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Join coding competitions or hackathons, either individually or as part of a team, to solve complex programming problems.

In today's competitive world, students who embrace innovative thinking and an entrepreneurial mindset stand out. As a teacher, you can nurture these qualities in your students via thought-provoking school homework. Such assignments can ignite students' passion for problem-solving, creative thinking, and strategic planning. Let’s look at some of the ideas below.

13. Pitch Your Business Idea

Have you watched shows like Shark Tank or Billion Dollar Buyer? Have you been completely captivated by the business pitches on these shows? Now, imagine doing the same for your students— unleashing their entrepreneurial spirit. It’s time to bring the hustle of the business world into your classrooms! Encourage students to develop a business idea and create a persuasive pitch. They should research their target market, competitors, and unique selling points. In fact, students can present their pitch using multimedia tools, such as slides or videos, highlighting the problem they're solving and the value their business brings. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Give some business ideas to students like a craft business or lemonade stand and ask them to choose one and why.
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Present a solution for a problem in the school or community. Students can brainstorm and then present their creative solutions.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Challenge students to create a detailed business proposal, including market analysis, financial projections, and marketing strategies, for a unique business concept.

14. Design a Mobile App

Smartphones have become an integral part of our lives. Think about the countless hours that you spend on your smartphone, exploring different apps that make your life easier. This is a practice growing like fire amongst kids as well and is cause for serious concern! What if they spend time on their phone and learn at the same time? This homework assignment encourages students to apply their creativity and technical skills to develop a concept for a mobile application. Additionally, you can also assign this as a holiday homework assignment and let students go wild with learning during summer! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	*
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Divide students into teams and ask to come up with app ideas after market research.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Create wireframes and prototypes for a mobile app using basic coding and UI/UX.

*Technologies like designing mobile applications can be too complex for the primary school. Hence, we focus on this idea only for middle and high school students.

15. Set up a Stall at the School Fair

This homework acts as an Introduction to Business 101 class for students of all grade levels. Students get to decide what stall to put up, then work on the logistics and finally manage the stall and finances on D-Day. This will teach students real-world skills and give them a feeling of ownership. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

Grade	School Homework to Assign Your Students
Homework for classes 1 to 5(or Primary School)	Set up lemonade stands, make posters, and have some light-hearted and healthy competition to see who makes the most money at an internal class fair!
Homework for classes 6 to 8(or Middle School)	Plan and execute a stall that offers a service, such as face painting, a photo booth, or a mini arcade game.
Homework for classes 9 to 12(or High School)	Set up a stall, selling products or services that they have created or sourced.

Grade-Specific Tips to follow while Preparing School Homework ‍

1. primary school students ‍.

• Keep it Interactive and Hands-on Younger children thrive on tactile and interactive experiences. Incorporate more of arts and crafts, storytelling, etc., to make homework enjoyable for them.
• Use Visuals Vibrant colours will capture their attention and make tasks visually appealing.
• Keep it Short Primary school students have limited attention spans. Give them small tasks that they can accomplish in a limited timeframe. ‍

2. Middle School students ‍

• Offer More Choices Middle schoolers are often teenagers already on the precipice of changes beyond their control. They will appreciate having some control over their learning. Allow them to choose topics or formats that align with their interests.
• Incorporate Technology Middle school students are often technologically savvy. Utilise online resources, interactive platforms, and digital tools to make homework more engaging and relevant to their interests.
• Encourage Independent Research Foster their curiosity by assigning research-based projects. Encourage them to explore various sources and present their findings in creative ways. ‍

3. High School Students ‍

• Encourage Critical Thinking and Analysis High schoolers are capable of higher-order thinking skills. Assign tasks that require critical thinking, problem-solving and analytical thinking.
• Encourage Self-expression Offer creative assignments that allow them to express their thoughts, opinions and ideas. Remember that they are young adults finding their voice in a loud world. Encourage them to write essays, create multimedia presentations, or engage in spirited debates.
• Push for Practical Application Assign tasks that connect to real-world situations, allowing them to see the relevance and importance of their learning. ‍

How to Improve Your Homework and Other Teaching Strategies?

Do you want to learn about more strategies to improve school homework? What if you could upskill and improve all your teaching strategies- classroom management, assessment, and lesson planning, among many others? Book a call with a mentor to get dedicated teacher counselling on upskilling and improving your teaching strategies.

In a world where school homework is generally met with students’ whining, you can use these approaches to turn it into a gateway for innovation! By infusing ideas such as game-based learning, digital activities, and arts and crafts, you can help students engage with school homework meaningfully. This will foster a lifelong love for learning among your students, ultimately helping them succeed in and beyond the classroom. Want a short compilation of all the amazing school homework ideas? Click the button below

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Summer holiday homework ideas that encourage creativity and foster a thirst for knowledge

Autor: Cătălina Iordache 

Summer holiday homework - beneficial or superfluous?

When it comes to holiday homework, teachers, parents and students divide into two antagonistic camps: some argue that homework keeps children learning at a beneficial pace, reducing the loss of subject matter that is typical of holiday periods, and helps them consolidate the information they have accumulated during the school year. The other camp believes that youngsters should take a total break from school activities and enjoy a well-deserved holiday.

Study: Vacation homework lessens knowledge loss, a phenomenon typical of long school breaks

Pupils who are actively involved in their own educational process acquire valuable collaboration, planning and leadership skills, learning by doing - the most effective way to retain knowledge.

The summer holidays can be a good opportunity to tackle the topics covered during school in a practical and non-disciplinary way. Children can practice working with numbers by calculating the restaurant bill or how many seashells fit on the sole of a beach slipper or what day the half-term holiday falls on, for example.  They can practise their reading skills by trying to look at the menu themselves and ordering, or by reading explanations of the different sights they visit. They can do the same in a foreign language if they go on holiday abroad. To get them to learn more about animals, pupils can be encouraged to design a board game based on animal habitats and characteristics.

Engaging reading is more beneficial than endless notebooks of holiday homework

Books inspire children and make their holidays more enjoyable. When teachers approach reading creatively and with a holiday spirit, students are captivated.  A list of questions about the action in the book will pique their curiosity. A first chapter read togethe in class can encourage them to read further. The prospect of a whole-class play will persuade them to discover the story.

Assignments that have a positive influence on education are short, simple, involve the family and are tailored to pupils' interests

The benefits of the digital learning era - microlearning and collaborative learning.

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• 10 Tips for Teachers: Creative Summer Holiday Homework

Imaginative activities and projects to pack your students' summer holidays with creativity

13 July 2022

Bonus: Homework for teachers. Take some time over the summer to look after your own wellbeing (although maybe wait until just before the new term starts!) with these Dreamachine Teacher Wellbeing CPD videos and creative activities .

1. Dreamachine Resources At Home Pack

Print off the entire pack or just one or two from this collection of activities from the Dreamachine Schools resources, specially picked out for families at home. They include science, global citizenship and wellbeing activities suitable for all ages, but will need adults to support the delivery as they are written in a lesson plan style. The activities include an interactive science survey into the senses: Life’s Big Questions – with videos to watch presented by Newsround’s Martin Dougan and fun illusions to try out.

2. British Science Week Activity Packs

For child-facing activities that are print off and go try this year’s British Science Week activity packs , which include a Dreamachine optical illusion challenge.

3. Summer Reading Challenge 2022

This year’s summer reading challenge is online and even if your school didn’t sign—up, children can still register to join in online and get books form the library: www.summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/

You could print out this resource from StoryTrails and Unboxed Learning , with lots of ideas for storytelling.

4. The Poetry Society and Stemettes About Us Competition

About Us is all about exploring the many ways life across the universe is connected. Young people aged 4-18 can enter their poems and/ or Scratch projects on the theme of ‘connectivity and the universe‘, to win books and tech goodies, talent development opportunities, and free workshops for their school. All entrants will receive an e-certificate for participating and the competition closes on 31 August 2022. www.aboutus.earth/about-the-competition

5. Teaching for Creativity Taster Cards

Our Teaching for Creativity Taster Card activities are short and simple so could easily be facilitated by a parent or carer!

6. Keep an alternative journal

Document your summer break in a diary, but try to do it without writing a word! Create a scrapbook (or box!) of your summer, to remind you of what you did and how you felt. Try to include something for every week, but you can include as many entries as you like. How many different types of entries can you do? Some ideas are:

• Draw or paint a picture of what you did
• Draw the weather that day
• Close your eyes and draw how you feel
• Take a photo
• Collect a memento e.g. a ticket, a receipt, a food packet, newspaper, a leaf, a stone
• Draw a list of the music you listened to / books you read / games you played
• Make a collage of something you are looking forward to
• Make a picture of the tastiest food you ate – try using something unusual in a collage like pasta, lentils or cut up food packaging
• Listen to the noises outside and draw what you think you can hear

7. Design a new invention

Invent something to solve the problem of ____________.

Draw your invention and label it or make a model of it and a short video explaining how it will work. Think about: How does it work? What size will it be if you made it for real? What material is it made of? Where does it get power or energy from to work? What will you call it?

Check out Little Inventors for inspiration: www.littleinventors.org/ideas

Insert a problem to solve that you think your students will know about / connects to your learning this year or look on www.littleinventors.org/mini-challenges/

Some ideas are: plastic food packaging, ocean pollution, keeping cool in the heatwave, keeping house plants alive, how to stay dry when camping, learning times tables, getting to school on time.

8. Put on an art exhibition

Visit Tate Kids and choose some of the activities to create your own artwork: www.tate.org.uk/kids/make

Once you have enough pieces, stage an art exhibition in your home or garden and invite families and friends. Think about how you want them to feel when they are in the exhibition. Do you want them to feel excited/calm/intrigued or think about issues you care about? How can you display your work to try and achieve this? Take photos and collect some quotes of how they found the experience!

9. Learn some origami

Learn to make something out of origami, the art of paper folding. Maths on Toast have some how-to-videos: www.mathsontoast.org.uk/activity-category/videos/

All you need is some squares of paper – even newspaper will do (an easy way to make a square of paper is to fold one corner over to the bottom edge and then cut along ).

10. Write a cultural review

Write a review of a film/book/computer game/album/podcast /play/day out/experience – anything cultural that interests you! How did it make you feel? What were the best bits? What could improve? What surprised you?

You could provide them with a quick list of family days out (preferably free and local) to spark ideas. If your students are London based, here is a list of some free goings on in the capital to get you started:

Greenwich + Docklands - International Festival 2022 (FREE) 26 August – 11 September / Festival - free theatre, art, dance and circus.

Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster: Alienarium 5 at Serpentine South Gallery (FREE) until 4 September / Art exhibition - a speculative environment that invites us to imagine possible encounters with extraterrestrials.

Covent Garden Cool Down – August Bank Holiday weekend / Experience - an annual ice cream festival on the streets of Covent Garden.

Take One Picture 2022 at the National Gallery (FREE) until 11 September / Art exhibition - primary schools from across the UK have responded creatively to 'The Finding of Moses' by Orazio Gentileschi.

Hew Locke: The Procession at Tate Britain (FREE) until January 2023 / Art exhibition – an installation of sculptures of people gathering and moving together to and ‘to celebrate, worship, protest, mourn, escape or even to better themselves’.

Kids Week – throughout August / Theatre - children 17 and under can go to theatre shows for free when accompanied by a full price paying adult.

Brent Biennial 2022: In The House Of My Love (FREE) until 11 September / Art exhibition - artists and community groups whose works explore the many meanings of homemaking.

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17 Best Online Summer Reading Challenge Ideas for Kids

17 summer reading challenge ideas & summer reading programs for kids.

Ah, the dog days of summer. Memories of long, luxurious days in the warm sunshine with the pool sparkling and ready. I'm ready for popsicles, watermelon, and a beach vacation. Are you?

The nice thing about a day at the beach, by the pool, or inside with the air conditioner blasting is - they all go very well with a good book, and a summer reading challenge for our kids!

Here are some great ideas for summer reading programs - I hope one or all of them will work for you and your family as they have mine. Enjoy!

• Do summer reading programs work?

The dreaded summer reading slide is a big deal and yes - it's a real thing. When kids are not exposed to reading and learning over long breaks of school, such as over the summer months, they can backslide.

But the great thing about the summer months is the amazing amount of great learning opportunity all around you!

When you are on vacation, learn about the places around you. Search for facts about places you haven't been, even in your own hometown.

And of course - READ! Make sure your child's summer is full of reading and great books. This will give your child such a boost in their growth and education.

Here is a video I found on YouTube about a great mom who is not letting her kiddos take a vacation from learning, even though they are on vacation from school!

Planning a summer reading program  

Start in May or earlier to really have a great, solid reading plan in place to make your child's summer reading more successful. But of course, if you are reading this in June or July, just start today!

There are so many options for getting creative with summer reading challenges. You really only have to pick the program (or programs you want to do, print out whatever information is need, and go for it!)

If there are several programs you and your child choose to do, you can either do them at the same time and have books count for the same reading challenges, or plan to work the programs consecutively. You can't go wrong either way!

Don't forget your local public library for the reading programs they will put on, and you can always join or create a Kid's Reading Club too, for some added fun!

Get your Reading Summer Challenge here, plus all kinds of bookish freebies, like Popsicle bookmarks and Fourth of July bookmarks!

Online summer reading programs

I did a little research looking for online programs to get kids reading. Here is a list of options for choosing reading programs, although I'm sure you can find more! Lots of companies host reading programs as an incentive for customers and also to boost communities. 

• Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Program

The Barnes and Noble Summer Program is a great option to earn a free book! You can fill out this form to earn your book, and then take it into a Barnes and Noble store to redeem.

This is a great way to get your child reading this summer!

- Go here for more details.

• Feed Your Brain Summer Reading Program from Half Price Books.

Half Price Books has a great 15-minutes-a-day reading program to get kids and teens reading through the summer. Available are reading logs, online storytimes, weekly social giveaways, and free coloring sheets.

- Go here to find out more details.

• Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge

Here's a great way to keep kids engaged in summer reading - The Scholastic Summer Read-a-Palooza! Kids are encouraged to track their reading in a free online Scholastic-provided resource with books, games and events. As kids reach tracking goals, they receive rewards and unlock book donations for others. Double win!

Head here to find out more about this fun program.

• Coaching for Literacy Summer Reading Program

Not only does this one get your kiddo reading, but you are making an impact to increase literacy rates. Coaching for Literacy exists to raise awareness about the problem of illiteracy and funds for literacy programs serving students in grades K-3. They are connectors bringing individuals closer to the issue of illiteracy, with a core belief that literacy is a fundamental right of every individual. Here are the points to know about their summer reading program..

• This summer, Coaching for Literacy is challenging readers – young, old and in-between – to push their reading habits by committing to read as many books as they can having started May 31st – September 7th.
• Readers are invited to ask friends and family to support them by pledging per book read or by making a donation. This campaign is free and fundraising is optional.
• Everyone who signs up to challenge their reading habits automatically gets entered into a drawing for a Barnes & Noble gift card. PLUS, every 2 books a reader completes throughout the summer, their name automatically gets re-entered into the drawing!
• Every donation made will be matched 3x up to $5,000!
• Readers can join at any time and do not have to commit to the entire summer.

Go here to find out more.

• Join the Ultimate Book Adventure

Want your child to be independently reading? Then sign him up for this Ultimate Book Adventure - virtual delights await with this fun, free program.

Sort of a fun "gaming system" where kids who read at home log their reading, take little quizzes and make their way further into the game. A great positive reinforcement platform for encouraging kids to read. I particularly like the "virtual reading pet". Looks fun!

• Broncos Bookworms Summer Reading Program

Calling all football fans! The Denver Broncos have a fun summer reading program where kids get to log 10 books they read over the summer in their playbook.

Rewards include a certificate, bookmark, attendance at an event at Empower Field, plus other prize possibilities, presented by IHOP!

• Read Your Way to Fenway

Or.. maybe you are a Boston Red Sox fan? If you live in the area, or are traveling to the Boston area this summer, check out this deal for kids to read books and earn the chance to be entered into a drawing to win tickets to a baseball game!

This is a golden opportunity for baseball fans. Details look to be released in June.

Go here to find out more at the Boston Public Library.

• Books A Million Summer Reading Adventures

You know those funny Dog Man and Captain Underpants books that kids love? Well, last year the author Dave Pilkey teamed up with Books A Million to get kids reading in summertime. It will be interesting to see what they come up with in the summer of 2021~

• HEBuddy Summer Reading Club

I think you can do this one, even if you aren't from the great state of Texas! 

Use the available reading log on their website to record 10 books that your child reads, mail it in and get an awesome t-shirt!

Go here for more info.

• SYNC Summer Audiobooks for Teens

For teens ages 13+, this fun program gets teens reading with one free audiobook a week. That is a GREAT deal!

Go here to sign up and get more info.

• Showcase Cinema Bookworm Wednesdays

If you live near or will be by a Showcase Cinema, check out their Bookworm Wednesdays! Kids can show up with a written book report on Wednesdays to get a free movie ticket.

Movie lovers, this one is perfect for you!

• Free Online Outschool Summer Camps

Consider these amazing virtual (and free!) summer camps for your kids. There are just a ton to look over, and find out which one would fit your child.

This is a great way to keep learning over the summer, and to have fun doing it. 

• Lifeway Summer Reading Program

Get a free Bible and a free book with this summer reading program! 

Check out the page to find out when they update information for 2021.

• DOGObooks Summer Reading Adventure

This fun website is all about kids reading books and giving kid's book reviews. Join in on the fun by reading books, and giving as many book reviews as you can to be eligible to receive prizes.

Go here to find out more info.

• Reading Horizons Summer Reading

Check out the Reading Horizons summer reading program! Perfect for not only beginning readers, but older readers. Also great for anyone who struggles with reading to learn how or focus on strengthening skills.

Information for 2021 yet to be posted, but keep this page bookmarked for info soon!

• The Pizza Hut Book It Program

This program has been around for many years - I can even remember working on getting my pizza coupon as a kid back in the 80's! So you know it's a good program - and let's face it - pizza will never go out of style.

I'm calling this one a bonus because it's actually a Spring and Fall program. They also have a "Give Me 20" program for early readers to look into.

Go here to find out more about this deal.

• Braums Book Buddy Reading Program

Not a summer program, but a school-year program, like the Pizza Hut Book-It, the Braums Book Buddy Program is a great idea to keep kids reading, providing wonderful goal incentives to get lots of reading in, and being proud of book-reading accomplishments.

A great way to read good books, and enjoy up to 6 ice cream treats while doing it!

Go here for more info about the Braums Book Buddy Program.

• Local summer reading programs

Want to find a local summer reading challenge idea or program? Head over to your local public library to see what is available (or look for them online), or you can even Google it.

I can almost guarantee that your local library is going to have something fun planned for the summer, even if it is digital only!

Type it into the search bar of Google, check the map below, or click here >> Summer Reading Programs Near Me

More fun summer reading ideas:

~~ Reading Rewards Chart - Monthly Rewards Charts for the year!

~~ 1 2 Ways and Benefits of Reading with your Child - A Parent's MUST-READ!

• Summer reading challenge ideas

Come up with your own incentives at home to make up your own reading challenges, and/or try some of the local or online reading programs that you can find!

• Summer reading challenge printable

Come up with a challenge for your kiddo that is tailored to what she might like. Put up a reading chart or some kind of incentive to have a goal for reading a certain number of books or amounts of time.

The Great Summer Reading Challenge that I put together is sort of an "all the places you can read" challenge. It's free! Just print it out, tweak it, and use it to motivate your reader. That link signs you up for all sorts of free bookish goodies for your kids.

I also found a few other fun printable reading challenges for you! Check out:

25 Day Reading Challenge for Kids

Summer Reading Challenge

Highlights Summer Reading Bingo

Get your creative juices flowing to come up with your own ideas for a summer reading program!

As you can see there are lots of options that you can use for your own to create a reading program for your child. You can make one up at home, tape it onto the fridge and go for it, you can join online programs that help kids make great reading progress, or you can join local programs in your own community!

Whatever you choose for your summer reading challenges, be sure to MAKE IT FUN!

Let me know what your summer reading goals are in the comments and remember to download your Great Summer Reading Challenge printable for FREE!

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3 Low-Prep Summer Speech Homework Ideas

05/03/2021 by Jenna 1 Comment

Are you constantly looking for low-prep summer speech homework ideas at this time of year? Are you worried that your students might not retain all of the hard work that you’ve taught them throughout the year? If students have a long break from speech therapy during summer time, there is a chance that they could regress on their skills. Communication skills are extremely important to keep working on, even when there is a break during speech therapy sessions. Students need to retain the skills that they were taught and in addition, work on carryover of skills outside of the therapy room. Sometimes it can be tough to get families to work on their speech goals over summer break. Today, I have 3 LOW-PREP summer speech homework ideas for you to send home with your speech students. Besides being low-prep, they are also FUN and engaging!

#1 Parent Handouts

I have created a ton of parent handouts over different topics to send home with students. I have a recent blog post all about Learning Through Play Using Household Items that would be great for parents to use during summer with their children. It discusses different ways that you can use simple household items to work on speech sounds. Let me show you how a box can be more than a box through these learning through play handouts .  They are available in a spanish version as well!

This Water Investigations Learning Through Play Parent Handout is also perfect for the summer months! There are 10 handouts that focus on water and ice investigations that parents and caregivers can do at home to encourage speech and language skills with their students. Many of these are simple science experiments for speech therapy that are perfect to use with preschool-1st grade students. 

Topics Included in Water Investigations:  Candy Rainbow, Drip Race, Scoop & Transfer, Boat Race, Water Instrument, Bubble Foam, Ice Excavation, Fizzy Ice, Ice Painting, Ice Smash, Keep it Cold

This set also includes a parent introduction letter and 11 Learning through Play activity sheets! A Spanish version is also available!

Finally, this Summer Preschool Speech and Language Packet was made for this exact use-to send home with caregivers of students to work on speech and language skills over summer! Young children learn through play and these handouts focus on showing parents a few easy ways to target communication while doing normal summer activities. Topics include: Ice Cream, Making Cards (Father’s Day), Grilling, Baseball, Sandbox, Sprinkler, Camping, S’mores, Garden, Water balloon fight

#2 Boardmaker 7

I just made a blog post all about how you can create digital summer speech homework with Boardmaker Student Center. When your district purchases Boardmaker 7, you can create Student Center logins for each student on your caseload. This is how you will make digital summer speech homework.

You can also check out how I use their visuals for AAC resources and how I teach basic concepts with their visuals .

#3 Tear Off One Sheet Homework 

There’s nothing more simple than 1 page of homework to use all summer long, am I right? Simple is definitely what I had in mind when I created these Summer Speech and Language Tear-off Packets . There is both a preschool version and a school-aged version .

Give yourself a break and utilize these no-prep packets to assign homework programs. These activities are designed like a tear-off paper. Your student will pick one word and complete a different three minute activity each day with the word. At the end of the week he/she will rip it off the bottom. The program includes 12 words in the initial and final positions for 12 weeks of practice! You can use the included parent letter and speech and language homework pages to create a summer packet for each child on your caseload. At the bottom of the introduction letter, I just add a blurb to remind parents of the current IEP goals of their child. I keep it as simple as ‘Keep practicing your s-blends and categories this summer!’ 

Here’s what’s included in the 

Preschool Summer Speech & Language Tear-Off Packet:

*1 Parent Letter 

*20 articulation worksheets: P, B, T, D, M, N, L, L blends, S, Z, S blends, F, V, K, G, CH, SH, TH, J,R, 3-4 syllable

*3 language (nouns, verbs, adjectives) worksheets

School-Aged Summer Speech & Language Tear-Off Packet :

*23 articulation worksheets: P, B, T, D, M, N, L, L blends, S, Z, S blends, F, V, K, G, CH, SH, TH, J,R initial, EAR/AIR, OR/ER, AR/IRE, 3-4 syllable

*3 grammar worksheets (pronouns, irregular past tense, irregular plural)

*1 social skills page (2-5th grade appropriate)

*8 vocabulary worksheets (two levels of multiple meaning words, K-5th grade Tier 2 vocabulary). Each vocabulary worksheet is grade equivalent but labeled with “sheet 2” instead of “grade 2”. This allows you to give students any worksheet at their level without the grade labeled. 

Make sure to keep your students engaged and practicing their communication goals and carry-over during the summer months so that they do not lose skills already taught to them!

Let us know if you plan to use any of these low-prep summer speech homework ideas or if you have different activities that you send home for summer speech homework below!

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07/12/2022 at 11:08 pm

I ordered the school-aged packet and sent it home for summer reinforcement the past two years. I love this product! Great for artic and language students.

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Fun Summer Activities Checklist

Need inspiration for summer fun? Check out our ultimate summer list and see how many you can cross off before Labor Day hits.

Eat and Drink

The great outdoors, just because.

Even if you don't have any vacation plans yet, we've got the perfect list of summer activities that'll help you relax, refresh, and enjoy every single moment of the season. Whether you want to spend more time in the great outdoors , have a little throwback fun, or just savor every bit of summer flavor out there, you'll find something to cross off your summer bucket list.

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Everyone loves a throwback—and doing these summer activities that you may have loved as a kid will definitely bring some joy to your summer.

• See a movie at the drive-in.
• Walk on the boardwalk and listen to the boards creak under your feet.
• Blow bubbles.
• Play tag, hopscotch, or one of your favorite childhood games.
• Ride a roller coaster.
• Play miniature golf.
• Win a prize at the fair.
• Catch fireflies at night.
• Build a sandcastle at the beach .
• Cruise around town on a bike, roller skates, or a skateboard.
• Do a cannonball into the pool.
• Enjoy the view from the Ferris Wheel.
• Run through the sprinklers.
• Have a water balloon fight.
• Help your kids host a lemonade stand.
• Tie dye a t-shirt.
• Climb a tree.
• Build a fort (indoors or out!)
• Jump in puddles after a rainstorm.
• Wear cut-off jeans and flip-flops.

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With all that gorgeous summer produce out there, there's plenty to enjoy and savor (and either grow your own or pick at the farm). But don't forget to indulge in a few more decadent summertime treats—like s'mores or frozen cocktails.

• Eat a whole lobster with your hands
• Pick berries and peaches at a farm.
• Make pesto.
• Buy a Creamsicle from the neighborhood ice cream truck.
• Roast marshmallows over a fire and make s'mores.
• Make lemonade from scratch.
• Eat corn on the cob.
• Sip a sweating glass of iced tea.
• Eat a slice of watermelon.
• Buy fresh produce at the farmers' market .
• Mix up a pitcher of sangria .
• Eat a soft-serve vanilla ice cream cone with rainbow sprinkles.
• Dig your own clams.
• Make your own iced coffee .
• Make homemade ice cream .
• Have a barbecue .
• Eat cucumber sandwiches.
• Plant a mini herb garden.
• Drink a frozen cocktail . (Add a fun umbrella to it, too!)
• Eat something fried at a carnival or fair.
• Make your own ice pops .
• Make a fruit pie.
• Go to a local food festival.
• Host an old-fashioned ice cream social.
• Grill everything (including dessert!).

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Those warm summer days are custom made for taking time to chill. Add a few of these relaxing summer activities to your must-do list this summer.

• Nap in a hammock.
• Have a picnic in the park.
• Sit on a porch swing.
• Stargaze while lying in the grass.
• Watch the sunset from a beach.
• Dangle your feet off a dock.
• Bring a blanket and picnic at an outdoor concert.
• Watch the clouds go by.
• Go river tubing.
• Go to a Renaissance fair or a Shakespeare in the park performance.
• Paint rocks to decorate your garden.
• Lounge under a tree and read a book.

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Long days and plenty of sunshine make spending time outdoors even more enticing in the summer. Even if you're not exactly "outdoorsy," you'll probably find something on this list that'll get you out to enjoy some fresh air.

• Pick wildflowers.
• Swim in a lake.
• Rent a bike .
• Go fishing.
• Go camping.
• Play tennis.
• Go for a hike .
• Go kayaking or canoeing.
• Toss a Frisbee.
• Try bodyboarding or surfing.
• Seek out birds and butterflies.
• Plant wildflower seeds.
• Visit a national park or state park.
• Try out pickleball.
• Learn to skip stones.

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These little mindful, joyful summer activities will definitely add a lot more fun to your life this season—so make sure you set aside time to enjoy them.

• Collect seashells at the beach.
• Take a last-minute road trip .
• See a summer blockbuster.
• Read a trashy novel .
• Walk barefoot in the grass.
• Get caught in a summer rainstorm.
• Sleep with the windows open.
• Make a summer playlist.
• Smell freshly-cut grass.
• Feel the sun on your back.
• Roll up your pant legs and go wading.
• Go to a baseball game.
• Give yourself a pedicure in the perfect summer shade.
• Buy a big sun hat.
• Put out a hummingbird feeder or a bee and butterfly water dish.
• Create sidewalk chalk art (or share a cheerful message with your neighbors).
• Wear a pretty sundress.
• Make a fairy house.
• Dye your hair a fun, summery shade.
• Hang wind chimes in the breeze.
• Look for treasure at a garage sale.
• Host a lawn game tournament .

Related Articles

56 Easy Summer Crafts To Crank Up the Creativity

For summer fun without being under the sun!

Every item on this page was chosen by a The Pioneer Woman editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.

There are plenty of crafts you can create alongside your kids, like sand art terrariums, seashell necklaces, or glow-in-the-dark "fireflies" made from pasta noodles. Many of these projects can also double as activities to keep the whole family entertained, including plenty of DIY outdoor games . Perhaps you’re searching for crafts that’ll make your summer memories even more special, like a watermelon blanket to hold all of your picnic side dishes , or punchy decals to add to your cooler . Or maybe you'd like to freshen up your summer style with a handmade straw clutch or a colorful beach hat. There are even options that could count as DIY 4th of July decorations . No matter which craft idea you choose, it's sure to make your summer that much more fun for everyone involved!

For more ways to unleash your creativity this summer:

• DIY the Most Beautiful Wreaths for Your Door This Summer
• Decorate Your Home This Summer With These Bright Ideas
• These Fun Summer Nail Ideas Will Bring the Heat All Season Long

Glitter Sea Shell Picture Frame

Looking for the perfect frame to display your favorite summer snap? This nautical one made of sea shells is just the thing! It's so easy to make using Mod Podge, shells (either from your own collection or the dollar store), glitter, and a plain wooden frame.

Get the tutorial at One Little Project .

Paper Roll Hyacinth Flowers

Sure, you could let the kids pluck a few flowers from your garden, but you could also make paper versions that'll last forever! These genius hyacinth flowers made from paper rolls and tissue paper are so fun to make, plus they make a cute and colorful summer decoration!

Get the tutorial at The Resourceful Mama .

Watermelon Resin Dominoes

Up your dominoes game (literally!) with this watermelon-inspired resin domino craft. Using green and pink resin and glitter, you can craft your own handmade set of dominoes that look just like the summer fruit you know and love!

Get the tutorial at Artsy Fartsy Mama .

Sea Shell Creatures

Take inspiration from the creatures of the sea by making a colony of cute underwater figurines from sea shells, air-dry clay, paint, and glue! It's also a great way to use up shells from a past summer beach vacation!

Get the tutorial at Crafts by Amanda .

Pop Bottle Firefly

Even if you haven't had much luck catching real fireflies this summer, you can still experience the glowing beauty of the iconic insects with these inventive pop-bottle fireflies! Made from water bottles, tissue paper, glow sticks, pipe cleaners, and googly eyes, they're the perfect activity for any summer birthday party or campout!

SHOP GLOW STICKS

Shark Cootie Catcher

This shark version of the foldable fortune tellers from your childhood is so fitting for summer! It's also a great way to introduce the kids to origami.

Get the tutorial at Easy Peasy and Fun .

Beaded Fruit Earrings

You can have your summer fruit and wear them, too, thanks to this adorable DIY. This wearable craft takes inspiration from the bright fruits of the season to yield little beaded gems reminiscent of apples, oranges, and pineapples!

Get the tutorial at The House That Lars Built .

Painted Monstera Leaf Wreath

Luscious, tropical monstera leaves are a telltale symbol of summer that'll make the perfect addition to your new favorite warm weather wreath. To create this fun craft, all you need to do is spray paint faux monstera leaves in bright shades and hot glue them to a ribbon-wrapped wreath form!

Get the tutorial at The Craft Patch .

Pushpin Travel Map

Feed your summer travel bug with an easy DIY pushpin travel map to document all the places you've visited! To start, glue your choice of map (either of the world or the U.S.) to a corkboard. Then, add pins to your map to mark your destinations.

Get the tutorial at Lovely Indeed .

Pom Pom Ice Cream Cones

Commemorate the gleeful summer sweet with these precious pom-pom ice cream cones. All you need for this colorful craft is a few balls of yarn for the ice cream scoops, burlap and construction paper for the cone, and red pom poms and a cotton ball for the whipped cream and cherry on top!

Seashell Decor Cones

If your ideal summer looks like selling (or collecting) sea shells by the seashore, why not add these ocean-inspired decor cones to your home? Made up of shells glued to styrofoam cones, it's the perfect way to put use to your coveted seashell collection.

Get the tutorial at Design Improvised .

Watermelon Soap

This vibrant bar soap shaped like the tasty summer fruit looks almost good enough to eat! The colorful watermelon-shaped soaps are made of glycerin and goat milk soaps and infused with a healthy dose of watermelon fragrance oil.

Get the tutorial at A Pumpkin and a Princess .

Coastal Wood Slice Coasters

These beautiful and beachy coasters are the perfect way to infuse the essence of the sea into your home! All you need for these coastal coasters are round wood slices and nautical-colored acrylic paints.

Glitter Luggage Tags

Gone are the days of guessing which suitcase is yours at baggage claim when you make these gorgeous glitter luggage tags. Using wood tags, glitter and acrylic paints, vinyl or letter stickers, and book rings, this useful craft is so easy to construct!

Get the tutorial at Average But Inspired .

Water Gun Painting

This creative and colorful craft combines two fun summer activities—water gun wars and painting—to yield an adorable, personalized art project. The kiddos can use painter's tape to make their desired design on a canvas and then go crazy with tempera paint-filled water guns, spritzing it with an array of different colors.

Get the tutorial at Somewhat Simple .

SHOP WATER GUNS

Beaded Wind Chime

Upgrade your porch decor with a light and sound-catching beaded wind chime. Gorgeous glass beads are strung through wind chime tubes, which are attached to a wood slice base in this simple yet stunning craft.

Rainbow Stacking Game

What better way to ring in summer than with a lively backyard game? This DIY rainbow stacking game is as bright and fun as the summer sun.

Get the tutorial at A Kailo Chic Life .

Watermelon Lip Scrub

While you might typically enjoy this hydrating summer fruit straight off the rind, it also makes a great beauty product additive! Combine juicy watermelon flavoring, coconut oil, and sugar to make a grainy lip scrub you’ll use all summer long.

Get the tutorial at A Cultivated Nest .

Pressed Flower Lanterns

Channel the natural beauty of twinkling fireflies and beautiful blooms with these pressed flower lanterns. All you need is Mod Podge, pressed flowers, and twine to adorn your glass jar. Press your own flowers (or purchase some), place a tea light in the jar, and there you have it!

Crepe Paper Flowers

Even if you don't have a green thumb, you can still enjoy the colorful blooms of summer with this fun crepe paper craft! Kids and adults will love crafting these colorful tropical flowers.

Get the tutorial at Abbi Kirsten Collections .

SHOP SCISSORS

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NEW: Classroom Clean-Up/Set-Up Email Course! 🧽

200 Summer Words for Writing, Vocab, and More (Free Printable)

The hottest word list of the year!

Summer vocabulary is hot! Use our list of summer words to write end-of-year summer to-do lists, write poems about what makes summer special, or create jokes to tell around the campfire. The words in these lists are all about fun in the sun, activities that can only be done in warm weather, and all the things that remind us of summer. If students want to research summer sports, describe summer weather, or write a story that takes place in summer, we’ve got you covered.  

Just fill out the form on this page to grab a free printable with all these words to share with your students.

Summer Weather Words

• rainbow 
• thunderstorm
• UV protection

Summer Travel Words

• amusement park

Summer Activity Words

• backpacking
• beachcombing
• berry picking
• fishing 
• garage sale
• inline skating
• lifeguard  
• roller coaster
• shell collecting
• skateboarding

Summer Food Words

• raspberries
• strawberries

Summer Clothing Words

Summer nature words.

• grasshopper
• Mother Nature
• shooting star

More Summer Words

• air-conditioning
• convertible
• Independence Day
• perspiration

Get Your Free Summer Word List Printable

Print copies of this summer word list and hand them out to students to use for writing assignments, vocabulary practice, and more! Click the button below to share your email address and get instant access to the list.

Plus, check out Summer Poems for Kids of All Ages and end-of-year bulletin board ideas .

You might also like.

Summer Word Search Bundle: 12 Easy, Medium, and Hard Puzzles With Answer Keys

Get into summer mode with these fun puzzles! Continue Reading

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Summer Holiday Homework Ideas

Subject: Cross-curricular topics

Age range: 7-11

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

22 January 2024

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20 home learning ideas for the summer break. Tasks are varied, including: writing, math, creative and social-emotional skills.

Provide as a handout for children to select from. Why not challenge children to complete 3, 4 or 5 of their choosing?

Some tasks could be useful for new term display or presentation.

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Use with caution - in this current financial climate, this pack of homework ideas could potentially exclude families that do not go on holiday or have do not relationships with their (extended) families. Not all children have a 'good' summer break. For those that do, it is great.

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2024 Summer Reading Clubs for Kids and Teens

Kelly Jensen

Kelly is a former librarian and a long-time blogger at STACKED. She's the editor/author of (DON'T) CALL ME CRAZY: 33 VOICES START THE CONVERSATION ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH and the editor/author of HERE WE ARE: FEMINISM FOR THE REAL WORLD. Her next book, BODY TALK, will publish in Fall 2020. Follow her on Instagram @heykellyjensen .

View All posts by Kelly Jensen

‘Tis the season of long days, warm weather, and — for some! — kids and teens talking about how bored they are. But whether you’ve got a summer of fun planned or are juggling the realities of being a full-time working parent/guardian without the benefit of school or child care to help ease the burden of doing the impossible, there are plenty of opportunities for young people to find a good book to dive into. It is the season of summer reading clubs for kids and teens, and the 2024 options out there offer something for every kind of young reader.

Let’s take a look at several options to help children and teens discover new-to-them books to read for pleasure. All of the summer reading clubs for 2024 below are free to join or participate in, and many of them come with the added bonus of having prizes or incentives for reading (and many of those prizes happen to be the best kind of prizes: more books!).

Your Local Public Library

For some, this will be the most obvious inclusion on the list, but it might not be for everyone!

If you are lucky enough to have a public library near you, chances are strong that they have some kind of summer reading club for children and/or teens ready and waiting. These programs range from being challenges, such as reading a variety of books across different themes or topics, or they might involve counting pages, time, or number of books read.

My local library, for example, has different challenges depending on the age of the child. The youngest complete logs that track books read and various literacy-related activities, while older readers are encouraged to track how many books they read. As those logs and trackers fill up, young people are encouraged to bring those logs back into the library and pick up any number of prizes. The biggest prizes for children and teens include free books and entries into various raffles for bigger prizes.

Bonus: a lot of public libraries also have adult reading programs you can take part in as well. Sign up your kids, then see if you can sign yourself up for a challenge. One year, I won what was one of my all-time favorite prizes for participating in summer reading: a cruise of a local lake that included an ice cream sundae. It was such a fun thing to take my best friend to and all because I read a few books I was going to read anyway.

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Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program

For readers who live near a Barnes & Noble, why not take part in their Summer Reading Program ? It is free to join, and it includes free books as prizes.

Geared to those in grades 1-6, readers will complete a reading journal (available  here in English  and  here in Spanish ). Once a reader finishes eight books, they can take that journal to their local Barnes & Noble and pick out one free book from the linked lists between July and August. The free titles this year are not bad at all!

There is a limit on this program, meaning that young readers can only redeem their logs for one free book. But this is where you can get clever and creative — there’s no reason that you cannot double up the books read in this program with those read for a local library’s summer reading club. Read eight books for the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Club, redeem your free book, and then count those eight books (and/or any additional books read during the time!) for your library’s club.

Half Price Books Summer Reading Camp

Whether or not you’re near a Half Price Books, your young readers can take part in the company’s Summer Reading Camp, which launches June 1 and runs through the end of July. You can register for it right here .

The program encourages reading through a series of book lists, a reading log, activities, and coloring pages all summer long. In addition, those who take part can earn $5 in “Bookworm Bucks” in both June and July, which equates to $5 that can be spent on books in stores during those books. Reading to earn more books? What a win.

Although the program is for children and teens, anyone can participate. That includes teachers, educators, and book lovers nationwide. All you need to do is sign up, and you, too, can be eligible for those sweet little $5 rewards in June and July.

Grab all of the information you need over on the Summer Reading Camp website .

Camp BOOK IT!

Adult readers of a certain generation likely remember the thrill of reading and being rewarded for it with a delicious personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut. Although not exactly the same, Camp BOOK IT! is a parent-led summer reading program that encourages young people from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade to read books toward, well, a free personal pan pizza.

With Camp BOOK IT!, children and their parents set a reading goal for the months of June, July, and August. As more books and other reading materials are consumed during the summer, keep track of the progress. When children meet their goal, they’ll be rewarded with a certificate for that yummy pizza.

Camp BOOK IT! has a wealth of resources and tools for a summer of reading. To sign up, you’ll go through the enrollment, selecting the option for enrolling in the summer program (yellow), followed by “sign up for Camp BOOK IT!”

There’s nothing against doubling up your reading from other programs with this one to reach a goal and end your summer with free pizza!

Read With Jenna Jr

Jenna Bush’s book club picks might be popular among adults, but during the summer, young readers can select from dozens of books that have earned the Jenna seal of approval, too. Bush is a big reader and has been an advocate for good books for kids, as she loves to read with her three kids, ages 11, 8, and 4.

There’s no formal challenge or prizes to be redeemed, but this list is a treasure trove of modern reads, from picture book to young adult. The criteria for the list, which was created in conjunction with the Collaborative Summer Library Program — one of the organizations behind the themes you might see at your local library’s summer reading program — is simply “books that are impossible to put down.”

Check out the full list below and/or download a copy for yourself .

You could easily use this list to help guide what to pick up at the library/bookstore for your respective prize earning.

Jenna’s picks offer a wide range of titles, and she herself has talked about how sometimes, her oldest chooses books that might make her, as a parent, slightly uncomfortable because of their themes. But instead of refusing to let her daughter read them or insisting that those books be banned or inaccessible, Jenna instead reads those books with her daughter and discusses them.

As she said to Today.com following the release of her Read With Jenna Jr. list, “I would so much rather my kids read something and get to come to their mom’s bedside and say, ‘Hey Mom, I didn’t quite get this,’ and me be able to lead the conversation than her having ‘influencers’ do that for her.”

Summer of Action-Packed Pages from Reading Is Fundamental

Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) is the largest literacy nonprofit for children in the U.S., and its summer reading club is one that encourages children and their adults to read and experience books together. The club offers dozens of book recommendations and pairs them with activities perfect for filling those long summer afternoons. You can download a reading log to track all of the books your young readers enjoy.

Book recommendations are collected in eight categories on their website, including on-the-go books featuring travel and movement, fun in-the-kitchen books featuring food and cooking, and books that take place under the stars and/or in space. Each category includes an activity corresponding to it. For travel and movement, young people and their adults are invited to watch a video about dune buggies; for food and cooking, they’re encouraged to create a new recipe and plan a week of meals; and for under the stars, they’re able to create their own constellation.

Check out all of the lists, activities, and events–including weekly read aloud times from RIF staff — over on the Reading Is Fundamental website . Note that this program is geared toward younger readers, rather than teen readers.

Scholastic Summer Reading Home Base

Also geared toward the younger crowd is Scholastic’s Summer Reading program, dubbed Home Base . From mid-May until mid-September, young readers are welcome to play around in Scholastic’s Home Base, a digital space moderated for safety and that encourages reading and creative exploration tied to some of the publisher’s most beloved properties.

Home Base includes opportunities for reading books and stories, playing games based on some of their favorite books, getting to engage with some of their favorite authors, and more.

There is also a reading challenge embedded in Home Base. Kids are encouraged to track their reading and as they build up reading streaks, they’re able to earn digital rewards through the program. This can help them earn more digital experiences in Home Base.

Home Base is available through the App store, through Google Play, or right in browser. It is arguably the least angled on reading books among the clubs listed here, but it will likely have huge appeal for those readers who might be a little more reluctant and/or who simply prefer to play around in the worlds of the stories they love. There’s nothing wrong with educational and enriching digital fun!

One other summer reading club that might offer up more information soon is one through Showcase Cinema, called Bookworm Wednesdays. It entitles young readers and their parent/guardians to a free movie showing on Wednesday mornings by showing off a short book report on their reading. Information about that program on their website is from 2023, though it indicates it will be back in 2024. Keep your eyes here for more information .

Looking for more summer fun with the young people in your life? Here are 15 excellent summer reading program ideas you can try out this upcoming season.

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USA TODAY 10Best

10 Father's Day ideas, from the best golf courses to beer spots and more

June 6, 2024 // By Lesley Balla

By Lesley Balla June 6, 2024

Go beyond the sappy greeting card and the "World's Best Dad" mugs for Father's Day. Show the special dad in your life how much he means to you with activities for the whole family or a solo, quiet day at home. These 10 Father's Day ideas and thoughtful suggestions will make the day extra special.

Whether he's an adventure-loving dad, a grillmaster interested in good food and drinks, or someone who loves hiking in the woods, we've got you covered with our list of things to do on Father's Day.

Hit a public golf course with dad

Who needs a swanky golf resort or private club? Make it easier on everyone and snag a tee time at one of the top public golf courses in the country, from the West Coast to the eastern coastline, the Great Lakes to the desert. Many of our favorite public golf courses designed by renowned architects have killer views; some even host prestigious events. The best part? They're open to anyone.

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Read more: Snag a tee time at these 10 best public golf courses

Head out to the water for sport fishing

Whether it's about heading offshore for his next big catch or angling for trout on the nearest river, fishing with Dad is a rite of passage. Give him a day on the water he'll never forget with one of our USA TODAY Reader's Choice winners for Best Fishing Charters.

Read more: Reel in the big one with the 10 best fishing charters

Go stargazing in a dark sky park

Enjoying the great outdoors with your pop is one of life's greatest pleasures. One of our favorite Father's Day ideas is to head to a dark sky park for stargazing.

These national and state parks, sanctuaries, and nature reserves restrict artificial light to preserve the sky's natural darkness. Without light pollution, you can see stars, constellations, and planets with the naked eye.

Read more: Visit these 10 dreamy dark sky parks

Let him pick the rides at the amusement park

Spending the day at one of the country's best theme parks is an excellent idea for Father's Day. Instead of pulling Dad to your must-hit rides, let him pick his favorites — even if it's just the Ferris wheel.

From Cedar Point in Ohio to Tampa Bay's Busch Gardens, our readers narrowed down the list of the 10 best theme parks in the country, perfect for a day with Dad.

Read more: Readers' Choice Award winners for Best Theme Parks

Get revved up at a car museum

If he's a car fanatic, there are plenty of places where Dad can ogle these engineering marvels. From car museums celebrating the innovation and ingenuity of automobile history and design to behind-the-wheel driving experiences, visit one of the country's top attractions for car lovers to rev up your Father's Day.

Read more: 10 must-visit attractions in the U.S. for car lovers

Spend the day immersed in the arts

If your dad is a fan of the arts, we have some perfect Father's Day ideas. Maybe he's interested in a new exhibit at the art museum, or he wants to stroll a new small-town art scene.

You can take him to one of the cool art districts in the city or zoom by some of the best street art and grab a bite for lunch afterward. Anyway you look at it, art can only enrich his day.

Read more: Explore the best art destinations in the country, from museums to city streets

Take him out to the ballgame

It's called America's pastime for a reason. An afternoon or evening at one of America's best major and minor league stadiums and ballparks to root for a favorite team, eat mouthwatering food, and cheer with fans (and quirky mascots) — there's nothing like it. It's one of the best things to do for Father's Day.

Our readers voted for the best of baseball (you only want the best for Dad) for an unforgettable season.

Read more: Top baseball stadiums, ballparks, mascots, and more for the 2024 season

Go beer tasting

Sometimes, spending time with Dad over a good beer is all he wants for a perfect Father's Day. And since we have almost 10,000 craft breweries and thousands of beer bars and brewpubs in the U.S., you won't have to go far.

We have some sudsy ideas for Father's Day, from brewery tours to mail-order beer clubs, beer gardens, and small-town beer scenes.

Read more: Tap into the best of the U.S. beer scene with these winners

Grill out or cook him a great dinner

Summer is all about grilling steaks, serving fresh summer salads, and cool cocktails. For Father's Day, make sure Dad doesn't lift a finger and cook him one of his favorite summer meals , like crab cakes and a big salad.

Or show him how much you love him with the grilling tool of all grilling tools: a Big Green Egg. We have lots of great ideas for breaking it in.

Read more: 10 favorite Big Green Egg recipes to grill and smoke

Go on a hike with Dad

Father's Day ideas don't have to cost much. You can get outside and breathe fresh air, take in the scenery, and ponder the grand magnificence of nature from a hiking trail. Our picks for easy-to-moderate hikes around the country are just the starting point.

Whether for some one-on-one time with your pop or you want to hit the trails with the whole family, we have you covered.

Read more: 10 best hiking trails for all levels

About Lesley Balla

Based on the West Coast, Lesley has covered the food and beverage, travel, entertainment and lifestyle beat for more than 20 years. She's written for numerous digital and print publications, including Taste of Home, Resy, Food Fanatics, Eater, Los Angeles magazine, Zagat, Angeleno, The Hollywood Reporter, Skift, The Seattle Times, and many more. When she's not road tripping with her husband and pup, she's planning her next bucket-list vacation. Some all-time favorites: Tokyo, Amsterdam, San Sebastian, Paris, Cabo, and the San Juan Islands.

Read more about Lesley Balla here.

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