1- Draw up a proper summer holiday calendar. I know this might sound a little cliché, but a proper calendar will do you a whole lot of good. Have your child’s entire day and time planned, that way, there is no lagging behind. Your children will never have one bored moment whether you are a busy career mum, stay-at-home mum or a mumpreneur.
2-Stick to regular schedule or routine but make a few adjustments as you go. Rather than throw structure out of the window when the last day of school arrives, it is important to maintain it. Some children have difficulties with adjusting to sudden changes, so it may help to have them wake up at the same time as (school days) for the first couple of weeks of the vacation and then slowly allow them to sleep in for longer hours. You may also want to have your children eat around the same time he or she eats at school. One benefit of maintaining some sense of structure is that it makes getting them ready to go back to school much easier.
3- Liaise with your child’s Teacher – Well, this may sound a bit belated, that is if your children are already on holiday. But, even if they are, you can always call or contact your child’s teacher. So, the idea is basically for you to try to set aside some time to talk with your child’s teacher. Ask them if there are any areas your child is weak and what types of learning resources or fun activities he or she can recommend to help reinforce what they struggled to learn in school. Remember, you want to keep the activities or learning resources fun so your child doesn’t feel like they are still in school. The more aware you are of what areas your child needs some attention, the better your child will be prepared for the new school year.
4- Plan a family vacation: We know that the economy is not smiling so a family summer holiday may be far from it for you. But, if you can afford it, why not. Depending on your location, here are a few inexpensive ways and places where you can visit with your family this summer holiday. There are quite a number of affordable places you can visit with your family within Nigeria. A summer break with your family makes for a great bonding time with your spouse and children. You will be shocked at the things you will notice about them during this trip. Perhaps your family doesn’t usually take long, expensive vacations every year, it will mean a lot to your children. So at least, do take a trip to some fun parks close to your home.
Summer holiday is also a great time to instill some discipline in your child so you DONT have to oblige to every request they make.
5- Pick the right summer school: We understand that it is holiday season, and the kids want to have fun. But, it will make a whole lot of sense if they can have fun learning something new. Gone are the days when children say they want to become doctors, lawyers, etc. in future. Children, these days, want to be creative designers, bloggers, vloggers, etc. So, the summer school mustn’t be all about schoolwork or basic school courses. It could be learning how to make some pastries, dress making, etc. so, pick a summer school that will not only be of help academically, but vocationally.
6- Stock up on your food and pantry: So, there is this popular joke that children eat almost 10 times a day during summer holiday and it does take a toll on the family. But, it shouldn’t be if you are fully prepared. This is the right time to actually introduce your children to healthy foods and drinks. If you are a busy mum, you can actually make do with a family meal plan and experiment with new recipes especially during your spare time( weekends is actually your best bet.) You can read all about the busy mum hack to fast healthy meals for more insights and tips. That way, you wont be overwhelmed and the children will be the better for it.
That being said, the summer holiday is also a great time to instill some discipline in your child so you DONT have to oblige to every request they make.
Over to you mums, what do you think about these tips? Do tell us below or send us an email at fabmumng@gmail.com
