Summertime is just around the corner, and kids everywhere are rejoicing to be free of school for three whole months! However, did you know that there are tons of easy ways you can have learning experiences with your kids via everyday activities all summer long?

Work on Math Skills With a Lemonade Stand

Is it really summertime if a kid doesn’t launch a lemonade stand? Though your children might think that setting up a lemonade stand is just an easy way to make a little money, it’s also a great learning experience!

As your kids make sales, help them figure out how to make change for their customers. They’ll have to add and subtract, as well as hone their knowledge of coins and bills. Eventually it will become second nature, preparing your kids for their math classes this fall!

Practice Literacy While You’re Stuck in Traffic

Summertime errands are inevitable, and since the kids aren’t in school, you’ll have to take them along with you–whether they want to come or not. Fortunately, an easy way to make the trip both fun and subtly educational is to play word games!

Organizations such as the United Way and UNICEF are working tirelessly to improve children’s literacy, and frequently playing spelling, reading, and writing games with your kids, even just in the car, will help improve your own kids’ literacy skills immensely. One of our favorite games is a simple one: the alphabet game! While you’re driving around town and going from store to store, help your kids find every letter, A to Z, on signs, license plates, and labels. This will help young kids recognize letters and become more familiar with proper alphabetical order.

Another fun literacy game for car rides is to create silly stories. Someone, either you or your child, start a story with one sentence. Then the next person will continue the story by saying the second sentence, and so on. You never know where the story’s plot may go, and it can end up being hilarious! Creating these silly stories will not only provide hours of fun but will also help keep your kids writing and critical-thinking skills, as well as their creativity, fresh.

Keep Math Skills Fresh By Baking Together

Another easy, fun way to keep your kids’ minds from melting away all summer is to spend time in the kitchen baking with them, according to the experts at Parenting.com. This ends up being a good exercise for kids of all ages: for younger kids, have them help you count out ingredients, like eggs and scoops of flour. For

older kids, help them figure out how to double a recipe by adding or multiplying the fractions.

Not only will this help your kids stay on top of their math skills, but cooking together will encourage them to work together–and result in something delicious!

Strengthen Science Skills on a Nature Walk

Math and literacy aren’t the only skills that you can work on with your kids this summer; you can also flex their science muscles by going out into nature on a walk! Head to your local park or even just go on a walk down your street. Once you’re outside, ask your kids tons of questions about what they see: why do you think there are different birds here in the summer than in the winter? Do you see how different the trees are now from the fall? Get your kids in the habit of asking questions about what they are observing and making predictions about nature.

Another great idea for a science-centric nature walk is to create a nature scavenger hunt, say the experts at Decoded Parenting. This is great for kids of all ages–you can include objects of various difficulties, depending on your children’s ages. As they look for each animal or plant, your kids will keep the wheels in their heads turning all summer long, and the transition to their science classes this fall will be seamless!

Make Learning Fun This Summer!

Summertime is a break from school, but it doesn’t have to be a break from learning. The right activities will help keep your kids’ minds active even while they’re out of class!

About the Guest Author: Alexa Elheart is a writer based in Salt Lake City, Utah. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah and has a passion for volunteering and writing about childhood development.