It’s hard to believe, but spring break is right around the corner. Two weeks can be a long time for our students to be without school or Teton Literacy Center. Whether you’re staycationing in Jackson or going on a roadtrip there are a lot of fun ways to keep your student reading and learning during the break!
Staycation Ideas
There are so many wonderful activities available in the area over spring break, check out a museum, go to the library, or explore the outdoors! When you need some at home downtime, here are some literacy inspired entertainment ideas:
Make reading an exciting competition. Set aside time each day for your child to read. Track the books they read and reward them with a special activity or treat when they reach certain milestones! Bonus tip: create a punch card reading chart, learn how here.
Spice up reading aloud by having them record their own audiobook. First, have your child select a book they would like to record themselves reading. Then, have them read the book to you a couple of times. Encourage them to change the voices of the characters or the way they use expression when reading the sentences. Once rehearsals are over, record your child reading, using a tape recorder or a smartphone. They will be so excited to share their recording with friends and loved ones!
Plan a trip! Have your student brainstorm their dream vacation location, ie Hawaii, Fiji, Paris, etc. Then help them use the Internet, travel guidebooks, brochures, and maps to research climate/weather and activities to do there. They can be their own travel agents and plan their dream day, weekend, week, or month-long trip.
Road Trip Ideas
Just because you’re stuck in the car or on an airplane doesn’t mean the learning has to stop! Combat the boredom with fun ways to practice literacy on the road. Have your child read signs, billboards, and listen to audiobooks. Also, you can collect brochures at rest stops, and then practice reading as you check out the fun stuff to do in the area. Road trip games are also a great way to sneak literacy in as a fun way to pass the time. Here are some of our favorites:
The alphabet game: One player chooses the right side of the road, and the other chooses the left. Call out objects that you see in alphabetical order (you can use a sign only for one letter). The first player to get to the letter "z" wins.
I’m Going on a Picnic. Another great alphabet-based game. Plus you don’t need a game board or any materials! The first player says “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing...” followed by something that begins with A, such as apples. The next player repeats what the first person said, but adds something that begins with B. So they might say “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing apples and bananas.” Continue this with the rest of the alphabet. If someone forgets an item, they are out. The last player to be able to recite all the items on the list wins.
Stickman. There’s no better game for spelling and letter recognition than stickman, and all you need is a notebook and pen. First think of a person, place, movie or book title—it could be anything. Then, instead of writing out the saying, leave an underscore for each letter in each word. Have everyone guess one letter at a time. If the mystery saying contains the letter, it is written in the correct place. If not, draw the stickman’s head and write the incorrect letter so you remember which letters have already been guessed. Once a stickman is fully formed (head, body, legs, arms), the game is complete. If the guesser solves the puzzle before the stickman is formed, they win!
Wherever you find yourselves this break, we hope you have a great one!
There are so many wonderful activities available in the area over spring break, check out a museum, go to the library, or explore the outdoors! When you need some at home downtime, here are some literacy inspired entertainment ideas:
Make reading an exciting competition. Set aside time each day for your child to read. Track the books they read and reward them with a special activity or treat when they reach certain milestones! Bonus tip: create a punch card reading chart, learn how here.
Spice up reading aloud by having them record their own audiobook. First, have your child select a book they would like to record themselves reading. Then, have them read the book to you a couple of times. Encourage them to change the voices of the characters or the way they use expression when reading the sentences. Once rehearsals are over, record your child reading, using a tape recorder or a smartphone. They will be so excited to share their recording with friends and loved ones!
Plan a trip! Have your student brainstorm their dream vacation location, ie Hawaii, Fiji, Paris, etc. Then help them use the Internet, travel guidebooks, brochures, and maps to research climate/weather and activities to do there. They can be their own travel agents and plan their dream day, weekend, week, or month-long trip.
Road Trip Ideas
Just because you’re stuck in the car or on an airplane doesn’t mean the learning has to stop! Combat the boredom with fun ways to practice literacy on the road. Have your child read signs, billboards, and listen to audiobooks. Also, you can collect brochures at rest stops, and then practice reading as you check out the fun stuff to do in the area. Road trip games are also a great way to sneak literacy in as a fun way to pass the time. Here are some of our favorites:
The alphabet game: One player chooses the right side of the road, and the other chooses the left. Call out objects that you see in alphabetical order (you can use a sign only for one letter). The first player to get to the letter "z" wins.
I’m Going on a Picnic. Another great alphabet-based game. Plus you don’t need a game board or any materials! The first player says “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing...” followed by something that begins with A, such as apples. The next player repeats what the first person said, but adds something that begins with B. So they might say “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing apples and bananas.” Continue this with the rest of the alphabet. If someone forgets an item, they are out. The last player to be able to recite all the items on the list wins.
Stickman. There’s no better game for spelling and letter recognition than stickman, and all you need is a notebook and pen. First think of a person, place, movie or book title—it could be anything. Then, instead of writing out the saying, leave an underscore for each letter in each word. Have everyone guess one letter at a time. If the mystery saying contains the letter, it is written in the correct place. If not, draw the stickman’s head and write the incorrect letter so you remember which letters have already been guessed. Once a stickman is fully formed (head, body, legs, arms), the game is complete. If the guesser solves the puzzle before the stickman is formed, they win!
Wherever you find yourselves this break, we hope you have a great one!
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