5 Fun Ways to Reduce Summer Brain Drain

Summer is here, and for children, that means more free time to do what they want! On the other hand, free time may not always be a positive thing, as this could mean a time when children unlearn or forget what they just learned in school.

A 2017 Brookings Institute study concluded that ‘brain drain’ is actually a real thing, and that it is happening across all grade levels, in all subjects, irrespective of geographical location.

There are several simple ways in which children can keep their brains active to prevent losing the educational knowledge they’ve gained over the previous academic year. The real challenge, however, is – how does one create a ‘classroom learning environment’ outside of school?

Fret not! Learning isn’t just about burying your children in books and modules. They can still learn – and you can help encourage learning in the process – over the summer without making them feel like it’s ‘work’.

An effective approach is to provide children with learning activities that incorporate elements of STEAM — science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics, but in a fun and interesting way – like as part of a summer camp experience.

Here are five engaging activities to help reduce summer brain drain without taking out all the fun:

1. Introduce reading and writing into your daily activities

Reading and writing are formal learning activities, but you can make them fun and engaging. For example, you can ask your child to read as many signs as they can in the car or write the shopping list as you dictate what you need.

You can take it further by creating competitions, like a race to be able to read aloud the most words correctly or being able to put in the number of correct items from your shopping list.

Another activity you can incorporate is to turn off the sound of a movie and put the subtitles on. Then, ask your child to provide a quick synopsis of a selected scene.

2. Help your child create and curate their own blog or channel

This might be a double-edged sword considering the dangers of exposing your children to the Internet early on, but you can turn it into an opportunity for them to be more responsible both as Internet users and consumers.

Moreover, blogging is a great outlet for your children to express themselves and develop their writing, communication, basic coding and other digital skills they may need later.

It is important that you help and guide your child in the process of creating their own channel. From picking the right platform to establishing safety and privacy habits online, it is imperative that you are on top of things even post-creation of the channel.

Also, never turn over the account login credentials to your child. This way, you still have a sense of control and reduce the chances of them getting impulsive with their posts, streams, likes and browser searches.

3. Learn a practical skill or two

Does your child eat a lot? Or are they having difficulty organising a closet? How about washing the dishes or gardening? Or sewing clothes that needed to be mended?

Summer is a great time for them to learn some practical skills they can apply later on in life when they’re older. Many of these skills may involve using their hands and brains, so they can exercise both body and mind.

4. Incorporate some maths into your daily life

One of the subjects where children tend to lose skills quickly is mathematics. And if your child is already having a difficult time with the subject during formal learning, the ‘brain drain’ can be greater when summer comes. Some studies highlight that this may also be because there are other more readily available and/or ‘fun’ learning opportunities,as compared to maths.

So how does one introduce maths in a fun way?

One way is to ask your child what time it is and ask about the shape it forms or what degree angle it forms. Or you could give them a grocery budget and have them total it to determine whether they are over or under budget.

If your child is still very young, try to incorporate some simple maths. It can be as easy as pointing out the number of triangle shapes they see, or count the number of people in a car during a car ride.

5. Consider a summer camp

Struggling children can benefit greatly from these programmes. Summer camp can also enrich and accelerate learning in areas where children show a special interest.

Go Summer Camping!

A summer camp programme is a great way to provide your child with a fun and engaging summer as well as reduce the dreaded summer ‘brain drain’. XCL Camps has designed an exciting collection of summer camps that will challenge and engage every child and make sure that they learn in a structured manner that does not feel like a formal school.

Our programmes provide structure and routine for children in a safe environment, conducive to learning. We ensure that it’s not just somewhere your children are forced to go – but somewhere they will actually want to go – to have fun, learn, and make new friends along the way.

Each week-long camp is delivered in partnership with best-in-class instructor partners to ensure that children have access to the most fun, engaging, and innovative camp programmes on the island. Children attending our camps are able to continue their learning journeys through self-discovery, with opportunities to develop their potential and to forge strong social connections.

Our summer camps:

• The Techie
  This collection of The Techie summer camps is designed for children who love to code or would like to learn how to create online projects or programme robots.
• The Artist
  This collection of The Artist summer camps is designed to encourage children to explore their true capability either through art, acting or learning a culinary skill.
• The Scholar
  This collection of The Scholar summer camps is designed for children who either want to learn a language or explore how you can combine science, technology and maths.
• The All-Rounder
  This collection of summer camps is for children who are interested in a variety of activities to engage in all aspects of development and learning, including sports, performing and visual arts, teamwork, communications and leadership.

Why Enrol Your Child to a Summer Camp

Summer camp is the best of both worlds – a fun and engaging environment that allows children to learn, thrive, make mistakes and develop skills that will help them in the future.

XCL Camps understands that every child is unique and offers a wide range of summer camp programmes for children of all ages. We follow the Personalised Camp Model, which integrates three core approaches, mainly:

• Information and support – During the camps, the camp managers and teachers are dedicated to providing personalised support to the parents for each child.
• Personalised attention – While the camps are on, the camp managers and teachers are dedicated to providing 1-on-1 support for each child.
• Consistent feedback – XCL Camps is committed to boosting your child’s growth and development. So they don’t just stop interacting with you when the camp ends, they provide you with a summary of what your child achieved during the camp along with some pictures taken during camp.

Our strategic partnerships allow us to provide the best-in-class instructor partners available, and each has been carefully selected to ensure that we create a safe, fun and engaging environment for all children. Our partners include:

• Kodecoon
• Terraminds Education
• Future Ready Academy
• Singapore Repertory Theatre
• XLabs
• ESports Academy
• Coerver Coaching
• Impressions Art Studio

Thinking of How to Entertain Your Child/ren this Summer?

Keeping your child’s brain engaged and growing over the summer doesn’t mean that you need to subject your child to boring lectures or formal tutors. There are a number of things that children can do over the summer to fight the summer ‘brain drain’ that are both interesting and fun!

Summer camp is a great option because it can help your child explore their passions, learn new skills they will need in the future, and most importantly, hold on to that essential knowledge that took so long to learn during the academic year.

For more information about summer camps in Singapore, visit XCL Camps.