3 Fun Summer Activities That Help Your Child Grow
Guest Post by Natalie Hagen from Take Lessons
As parents, it can be a challenge to fit in all of the fun that comes along with summer. There are so many activities to do and the long days tend to give you this sense of “I can do everything!” How do you fit in all of the fun but still make sure that your children are learning? Beyond the swimming pools and sleepovers, there are a few activities that will help your children learn and grow.
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Music
Music lessons are great for kids that love to sing along to the radio or drum at the dinner table. Summer is the perfect opportunity to learn an instrument or take singing lessons because of all the time available to practice. Plus, studies have shown that learning to play an instrument improves kids’ performance in school, giving them an advantage come fall!
Foreign Lanuage
Learning a language is a great skill to have, especially since it helps improve vocabulary and cognitive abilities. Help your child expand their knowledge by learning a new language this summer. They won’t become fluent in one summer, but they’ll get a grasp on new cultures and a head start on learning a new language. There are lots of free apps and online tools available as well, making it fun and practical.
Sports
Summer is the time to be outside! For those kids that can’t seem to stop moving, sports are just the thing to occupy some of that energy. Sports are an excellent way for kids to build their teamwork and leadership skills while getting some fun exercise outdoors.
Music Lessons, Learning a Foreign Language, & Sports Will Help Your Child
Click on Take Lessons to view the following statisitics in an infographic about why you and your children will love these activities! They’ll be having fun and you can relax knowing that they’re learning and building skills. Sounds like a perfect summer afternoon!
Source for Supporting Research Below: Take Lessons http://takelessons.com/blog/summer-activities-for-kids
Supporting Research on Music Lessons:
Based on a study from UCLA, students who learn to play a musical instrument exhibit improved test scores and higher reading proficiency.
The average SAT score of a student who takes music lessons is 41 points higher for the math portion and 57 points higher for the verbal portion.
Children who learn to play piano have better reasoning ability, particularly spatial-temporal reasoning, as well as a better understanding of proportions and fractions.
Just nine months of piano or voice lessons is enough to raise a child’s IQ scores by almost three percent.
Students who learn music over the course of their education are more frequently recognized with academic awards and honors.
Supporting Research on Learning a new Language
According to a 2000 study, students who learn a second language have improved cognitive abilities and perform better in school.
The more a student learns about other languages the better that student understands his or her own language. It also helps improve your child’s vocabulary.
Set your child up for future career success: bilingual workers typically earn 5 to 20% more than those who speak only one language.
According to a study from College Board, students who studied a foreign language for four or more years outscored other students on the verbal and math portions of the SAT.
Suppporting Research on the Importance of Playing Sports
Kids who play team sports develop friendships, teamwork skills, leadership skills, and goal-setting skills.
Those who play sports also have higher levels of social support, and higher levels of resilience.
Children who participate in sports are much more likely to make exercise and physical fitness a part of their adult life.
Academically, children who are physically active typically perform better than their more sedentary counterparts. High school students who play a sport are also less likely to drop out.
A survey of 400 female executives determined that over 90% of them played sports when they were young.
Another survey found that males who played a sport during their high school days earned between 12% and 31% more than those who didn’t.
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