Are you like me?  Walking in circles because the clock is ticking?  What exactly do you need to do before school lets out? Summer break is almost here; We can’t get caught slipping parents!

When I was teaching this time of year was like crawling to the finish line. No more Sunday lesson plans, no more books! Then I’d spend the summer shopping, researching, planning, and organizing for my next class. But as a parent when summer approaches I’m like the wide open eyes emoji. Two months of being the primary, can be a bit overwhelming. 

What will we do? How will I wear the girl out? How can we keep those learning wheels churning? By the time school starts back, after all our time together, I’ll miss her being home with me. But I digress. The clock is ticking! And for some of you, the bell has already rung!

Here’s what I’m doing before school lets out!

1. Purge/Clean the Kids’ Room:  

Throw away all those tiny things that they won’t miss. All those little pieces from happy meals and party bags…good-bye. For the big kids have them go through their “stuff”’so they don’t feel invaded. Once you’ve given them the opportunity, then you can get up in there. The goal here is to get rid of all the scragglies. Yes, that’s what I said scragglies. Put all seasonal clothing in a bin or make room for it in the back of the closet. Wherever you put it, make sure it’s organized and out the way of what the children need right now. If you can, clean stuff out purge before the kids get out of school. If they are young, if you can make plans to get the children out the house. If you can use one of those last days of school to get your ENTIRE life together, DO IT! I know, I know. You don’t want to use that precious time dealing with the kiddie junk but I promise, the order and the decluttering is going to start the summer off right.

2. Paper Management:

Are you ready to receive the influx of papers? Where will they go?  Think ahead of time, what do you want to keep?  You want to be clear on this so can keep or toss upon arrival. So what do you keep? Good writing samples that show the child’s voice and personality. Artwork that’s impressive. Save only the most so special awards and notes from teachers, the rest….file 9, also known as the recycling bin! When it comes to workbooks, you could keep them until the end of summer. Only if you are going to actually use them to review concepts or finish blank pages. Many workbooks don’t make sense without the accompanying teacher lesson.  I can proudly say, I’m off to a great start.   I’ve already recycled one workbook!

3. Research + Plan Activities:

Nobody wants to sit in the house all summer and listen to bored kids whine, so,  be proactive.  Starting in the spring, I start to compile of summer resources. You know the Parks & Recs guide, the library summer schedule, notes from school and summer extracurricular activities. The library and Parks and Rec catalogs have so many reasonably priced activities for all ages. I read and flag things we really want to do so I don’t miss registration deadlines. This year, I’m compiled all my resources into a Summer Binder for easy referencing.  Here are some things you may want to consider too:

• Library (Summer Reading Programs, Games, Instruments, and Video rentals)
• Parks+Rec (Camps, Family Outings, Community Events)
• Fitness Center Activities and Programs
• Camp
• Play dates 
• Family Fun
• Pool Time 
• Vacation
• Outdoor time (Remember the little people have recess every day.)  They need to get outdoors and so do you.
• For the Big Kids, seek out courses for things that interest them. Your teen daughter loves baking sign her up for a cooking class. You have a gamer? Time to seek out a tech camp. 
• Learning Time  (Order and organize learning materials so you have a stash to grab from.  Big kids should have a Summer Learning Packet and/or Required Reading list. High Schoolers, summer is a great time for SAT and ACT prep.)

My fave most recommended summer workbook of all times is: Summer Bridge.  There is one for every grade level. It’s a one page front and back of a mixed bag of skills across the disciplines. There are checklists and logs and even awards. And it’s only$12!

4.  Write Down the Summer Schedule:

Creating and writing your summer schedule down will create some level of sanity.   Then post the schedule for the family.  Write in all the camps and classes.  What days are chill at home days?  What time is quiet reading time?  What day will you connect with friends and family?  Write.it.all.down.  I’ll share our summer schedule over on my Instagram stories.  I’d love you to follow along.

What kinds of things do you do before the kids get out for summer?