Summer is not done yet
OPINION —
I can remember my son cherished his days out of school for summer when he was young. Being the child of a teacher, sometimes our summer vacation was cut short as I prepared to go back to the classroom. He would gently remind me, “Mom, summer is not done yet!”
I was the child of a teacher, and I can remember my mom heading back into the classroom to prepare for the new school year. Our family usually went on our summer vacation after July 4th, and I can remember we kids would beg our parents to stay an extra day at the beach so we could enjoy every moment of summer before going back to school. They always honored our summertime wishes.
James 1:17 — Every good and perfect gift comes from the Father above.
The perfect gifts from God’s hand are summer rains, which we see, feel and smell, and rainbows afterward. Even though we are in the middle of July, summer is not done yet.
We can have many more trips to the park. We can enjoy the moon and stars and fireflies as we stay out after dark. We can enjoy swimming, fishing, camping, biking, hiking, jumping in mud puddles after a afternoon rain, picnics, cooking out, baseball games, enjoying being outside with our neighbors, as well as sharing vegetables and fruits from our gardens, etc.
Summer is a time a parent can truly observe and get to know our children better. We are not on the treadmill of school and activity schedules. Summer provides a more laid-back time for our children.
As parents, you can begin to recognize your children’s natural talents and gifts at a young age. We never quit learning how to teach children how to learn. Over the many years I have taught, I deeply appreciate the mentoring I still receive from seasoned educators and child specialists who understand the importance of teaching the whole child. I would like to share ways to look at your child and encourage them in their growth and development.
- Language. Children love to express themselves with words and storytelling, puppets and role playing. I encourage all my students to express themselves through creative writing stories or poems with pictures. With younger students, don’t get hung up on the correct spelling or grammar. Correct spelling and grammar rules can be picked up later, but at an early age, the main focus is to encourage children to express themselves.
- Some children have the natural inclination toward reasoning, counting, quick math computation and quick logical reasoning of problems and systems. Of course, a teacher realizes that “practice makes perfect,” but some children are more prone to analyze things.
- Music. I love to hear my little students hum as they do their work. Children who are attracted to and fascinated by sounds and musical instruments usually have a natural tendency to perform music.
- Physical activity. At recess, as a teacher, I love to see my students run and play freely. As I have said in previous columns, play is a child’s work. Some children seem to be prone to participate and truly enjoy organized sports.
- Art. These are children in my classroom that are attuned to visual detail in everything they see and are able to draw what they see on paper. Many times these little artists are very good at illustrating stories they read. These children are attracted to painting, drawing on paper or making Kleenex sculptures. Children light up when they are praised for their art.
Another way for your children to enjoy summer is to prepare healthy treats to snack on. Coming inside to grasp anything cold out of the refrigerator to cool the forehead and to quench the thirst is truly enjoyed more when your children help make and prepare it. Snack art is a favorite way for children to artistically express themselves and eat healthy nutritious foods. Start out by gathering fruits and vegetables. Cut them in a variety of shapes such as circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, chunks and melon balls.
The cement to any food art project is peanut butter, cream cheese, cheese spread, yogurt, jam, pizza sauce, ranch dressing, etc., and seeds, nuts, grapes, raisins, olives and frozen peas or beans provide decorations for your projects.
I love to make food people: Start with a pear half as the face, raisins as the eyes, nuts placed to make a mouth and a grape as the nose, then add a lettuce leaf for a dress for a girl or pants for a boy, melon triangle for a shirt, shredded cheese for the hair, cucumber ears and celery or carrot arms and legs.
Another favorite is ants on a log, which is simply peanut butter spread on a banana and sprinkling raisins as the ants. This will entice your young children to eat healthy snacks.
For toddlers who are teething during this summer, providing cold treats help their hurting gums to feel better. Biting into a cold strawberry, orange slices, frozen juice drinks can be a pacifier as well as nutritious.
Another way to get children to eat a nutritious lunch is to get creative with sandwich making. Cut a plate full of sandwiches into jig-saw puzzle shapes or cut them into circles, squares, triangles then use the foods mentioned earlier to decorate.
During the summer we all love ice cream sundaes. Start out with your children’s favorite ice creams, then let them choose their favorite toppings such as chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, nuts, cherries, sprinkles, whipped cream, fruits, etc. Allow your children to decorate their ice cream in creative ways.
I hope these few fun-filled ideas are useful to you as we continue to celebrate the season because… summer is not done yet!
Ecclesiates 3:11 — There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.
Beth Pinyerd has taught many years and holds a master’s degree in early childhood education.
