Keeping critical thinking skills sharp during summer break can both be fun and educational. Here are some engaging activities and strategies to help maintain and develop these skills that are necessary for decision making, communication and life-long learning:
1. Education Board Games - games that require strategy and problem solving
Examples: A walk down an aisle in any toy store will give you some excellent inspiration. Look for ones that center around a simple set of rules and use images or icons as part of the strategy. Below are some great examples:
Qwirkle
SET
Suspend
Othello
How this Helps my Child: Games such as these offer numerous benefits including, increased engagement, opportunities for social interaction, positive reinforcement.
2. Nature Exploration - explore the world around you and conduct experiments
Examples: Measure plant growth and analyze the results under different conditions; use a blindfold and play a fun round of nature sounds guessing, take a notebook outside for some nature journaling or nature art using materials they find outdoors.
How this Helps my Child: This type of activity can help increase your child’s sensory development, environmental awareness and physical health. It also engages thinking curiously and imaginatively about the world around them.
3. Story Prompts - want your child to keep writing this summer? Start a creative writing session in a quick way
Examples: Keep it simple, use what your family is already doing for inspiration! -Write a story about a child who discovers a mysterious object washed up on the beach during their summer vacation.
-Imagine finding a seashell that grants wishes. What would you wish for, and how would it change your summer adventure?
-Create a story about a group of friends who stumble upon a hidden treasure while exploring the woods near their summer camp.
How this Helps my Child: Story prompts provide a topic for the child to write about without needing much thought. It sparks their creativity and helps develop their language through this opportunity of practice. This also helps increase childrens’ confidence in their writing ability, as well as motivation to write more as these tasks may be fun and exciting.
4. Debates and Discussions - hold these debates on a variety of topics and get the conversation flowing.
Examples: Use current events and other problem-solving scenarios and then make these kid-friendly.
“Do you think students should wear uniforms?”
“Should kids get paid for doing chores?”
“Should our family get a pet?”
How this Helps my Child: Similar to story prompts, debates and family discussions provide a framework to grow ideas off of. Providing a topic allows students to gain confidence in their ideas through this creative thinking opportunity. They also get to tell you their true feelings on some important issues!
5. Recipe Challenges - cooking requires following instructions, measuring and sometimes problem-solving.
Examples: challenge family members to create a dish using a specific set of ingredients, pick a new recipe to cook and have a blind taste test to identify the ingredients used, take a recipe and break the steps in half alternating who cooks each part of the dish.
How this Helps my Child: Not only are we growing some awesome life skills with these recipe challenges, it ties in healthy eating habits and math and science skills. It also provides great opportunities for family bonding, imagination and even cultural awareness through the recipes.
6. Scavenger Hunts - an easy outdoor activity that oftentimes require strategy and teamwork
Examples: look for items in nature, find certain colors, find certain shapes, find a number of items, have your child come up with their own scavenger hunt!
How this Helps my Child: This is a physical activity that relies heavily on a child’s observation skills. By adding slight variations to these examples, you can include teamwork and collaboration opportunities, as well as creativity and problem solving.
Incorporating these activities into summer schedules not only sustains, but also boosts critical thinking abilities. They are all screen-free alternatives that get your child thinking, all while making the summer learning enjoyable and engaging.
Resources and References:
https://www.timeforkids.com/g56/topics/debate/ https://www.afsusa.org/explore/recipes-from-around-the-world/
Other Blog Post Ideas I Have:
Let me know if you want these in a specific order or if any seem to be overdone
1. The Power of Storytelling: How to Encourage Creative Expression in Children 2. Exploring Nature: How Outdoor Adventures Foster Creative Thinking 3. The Art of Asking Questions: Developing Curiosity and Critical Thinking Skills in Children
4. Mindfulness and Creativity: Techniques for Cultivating a Creative Mindset in the Family 5. Embracing Mistakes: Teaching Resilience and Growth Mindset Through Creative Exploration
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