Emily Woodward PIC (00:02.895)

Summertime often brings a welcome shift, less structure, more flexibility, and a chance for families to reset their routines. Whether your days are filled with camps and programs or simply spent at home, there are countless ways to keep kids engaged and learning along the way. In this episode, we explore simple, meaningful ways families can spark curiosity, encourage creativity, and turn everyday moments into learning experiences. There’s no one right way to do summer.

Emily Woodward PIC (00:31.823)

However your family spends it, there is value in the experiences you’re creating together. Today we will hear from Joanne Grobecker, Literacy Initiatives and Family Engagement Facilitator at the Parent Information Center, who will walk us through some of these options available for families. Welcome, Joanne.

Joanne Grobecker (00:50.384)

Hi, Emily. Thank you so much for having me today. So like you said, I’m the literacy initiatives and family engagement facilitator at New Hampshire’s Parent Information Center. I’m so excited we’re discussing summer learning for families. Summertime can be a reset from the busyness of school year. As a parent, you want your child to continue their progress in academics over the summer. Well, you also really just want to give them time to be a kid.

Joanne Grobecker (01:15.05)

There’s so many options for family during the summer. Families may choose camps, ESY, summer programs at school, or really just take a break.

Emily Woodward PIC (01:26.081)

Excellent. Is there a recommendation you have for what is best for children to do over the summer to kind of maintain their skills?

Joanne Grobecker (01:33.3)

Honestly, there’s no one way to continue your child’s growth and development over the summer. It looks different family to family and even for different kids within a family, it really comes down to what will keep your kids engaged and happy while balancing the load of a family who also may be working, caregiving for other children. It’s really just what works best for your own family and your kids within your family.

Emily Woodward PIC (01:58.853)

That’s very true. And there are so many summer programs out there available for children. Can you walk us through some of the different types of families might be considering to continue their learning over the summer?

Joanne Grobecker (02:09.374)

So, there’s so many ways to continue learning over the summer. Most towns offer structured learning programs through the local public schools. Those do require advanced registration. So you can email your child’s teacher if you’re interested in your child’s attending school during the summer for one of the many programs schools offer, such as Extended School Year or ESY for students on IEPs.  Summer school reading or summer math programs for students who may or may not have IEPs, and school social emotional learning programs for students that also may or may not have IEPs. There’s a lot of things going on inside the school building during the summer, and sometimes those hours don’t work for a family, but you still want a structured program. And so there’s different things you can do like tutoring, special interest camps.

I have one that does theater, my other daughter does robotics, and really my favorite is the library. The library is just the best place to go during the summer. There’s, I like it myself too, our library has an adult summer reading program so I can learn earn prizes along the way which is really fun and track my own reading. But yeah, most you get incentives so the kids get little trinkets or rewards or entered into raffles. They’ll do fun story times and they might be in a park or at a playground. So it’s different than just sitting in a building. They have books, movies, audio books. A lot of libraries have a library of things, which is new. So you can check out Lego sets or cooking equipment or really anything that you want to try out and try something new without having the cost of investing in a project that your kids may or may not be interested in. A lot of libraries have clubs over the summer if your kid’s into drawing or Pokemon. There’s book groups. There’s a lot for teens. Most people think of libraries as a place for little kids or adults, but a lot of teens now have teen and tween programs and they might even do fun activities like Nerf gun wars or other things that you might not want in your own home, but they’ll do there. And also they have great passes for free or discounted to aquariums, planetariums, art museum.

It’s a fun way to take an outing, try out something new without the cost of playing full price. Also, if you’re into listening to audiobooks as a family, a lot of them have apps now, so you don’t have to physically go to the library. You can just download e-books or audiobooks right to your phone.

Emily Woodward PIC (04:47.685)

Awesome. Thank you for sharing all that information about the library. While we’re on the subject of the library, I was wondering if you had any tips for families who have never used their local library before?

Joanne Grobecker (04:59.05)

Yeah, so this is a common thing. I know some schools like Manchester, they actually, the public library goes to the school and signs all the kids up for library cards. Other communities, you do it on your own. You do have to go usually in person the first time. Most libraries, the age limit is very low to get a library card. A lot, just have to be able to print your own name and you’re the proud owner of a card. A lot of parents will just get one card for the household, I’m the owner of the library cards here and I’m the one checking out all the books on my account. So you do have to go in person that one time typically. And then once you’re a library member, you just ask them what they have, a lot have a website, they’ll have different newsletters. So you tell them the ages of your child, if you have teens and tweens or kids or just adult programs you’re interested in, and then just keep looking at the newsletter, looking at the website, you can go in person. And really the easiest way is to go in person the first time and ask them, you know, what apps do you have? They’ll help you download them and ask them what other services do you have? I may not know about because a lot, I was surprised our library is a library of things and you can take out Lego sets or they’ll, if your kid wants to play a video game.  Some will rent the consoles and the video games. And a lot of times you can read magazines or newspapers. It’s just a fun way to find out really what’s there. I would recommend it in person trip. And then once you’re connected through the internet, you can do a lot through the apps and on the computer.

Emily Woodward PIC (06:41.241)

Those are excellent recommendations. And you just mentioned a lot of really cool things that, you know, children and families and even adults with the adult library programs, they would really benefit from all of those suggestions. A lot of parents listening want to choose the right way to prevent the summer slide, keep up their child skills during the summer. How do you suggest that families decide on the best options for their children given the large number of options they have available?

Joanne Grobecker (07:08.968)

I know it can feel so overwhelming and as a parent everyone just wants to do what’s best for their kids and they you kind of get nervous about the summer slide and is my kid gonna regress or not have their skills and will they be able to keep up with their peers in the fall? It’s like you kind of feel guilty if you take too much time off and it’s important just to remember that every child’s learning experience is going to look different in the summer and that’s okay. A lot of towns have parks and recreation departments that offer free and low-cost activities. So, if you’re looking to swim lessons, beach passes, movie nights, park activities, a lot of local bookstores have author events or summer programs. And I know a lot of the local sports teams have reading challenges and then you can earn tickets to go to games. There’s just a lot of different options. And the most important thing I think is just keeping your kid engaged and learning and into the world around them.

Emily Woodward PIC (08:11.353)

This sounds great from the parent perspective. I know sometimes kids have a different viewpoint on exactly how they want to spend their summers after being in school throughout the school year. I heard you asked some kids who have learning differences what their favorite ways to learn during the summers are. Can you share some of their feedback?

Joanne Grobecker (08:28.95)

I know it’s so funny because parents are so worried about their kids making progress and staying on top. And my kids, once it’s the last day of school, they want freeze pops in the pool and hanging out. So, there’s definitely a balance there and don’t feel guilty if you take a week or two and just reset from the grind of the school year. I actually interviewed some New Hampshire youth and got some real advice from real kids on what they think makes a difference in their summer.

So, I asked some kids that I know with learning disabilities, what’s their favorite way to keep learning over the summer that feels fun? And some of their answers really surprised me. Their biggest advice was to make it not feel like school and let it be a fun part of the everyday routine and not a chore to complete. I was picturing them saying they wanted just a free for all, but some of them actually are just like, go to summer school, get it done, and then, you know, we think of work, and then fun as adults, but they said, no, make the fun part of my day and a little bit every day instead of this daunting task. So some of their things, one said she likes playing word games with her family, like Scrabble, Boggle, word apps on her phones or tablets, older kids that have phones, you know, get them involved in Wordle or playing the Words with Friends games. And it’s a fun way if you’re on vacation with relatives to stay in touch after, add grandma to it and they can be playing. Some kids really enjoy taking trips to the library for their summer program. One kid was so excited that he can earn prizes and check out new books. Some, it cute. One girl was saying she likes writing in a way that’s fun and not like school, which really surprised her mom, because her mom thought she didn’t like to write. And she’s like, no, I love in the summer practicing writing postcards to her family when she’s on a trip and writing in her journal. And so as a parent, we’re picturing writing being like sitting down, writing a story. And for her, she loves writing over the summer, as long as it feels like fun. One of the favorites for one child really loved listening to audio books on road trips in the car and as a family.

So they would choose an audio book together and listen to it together. One little girl said she likes reading with her parents. She said they’ll all sit outside and read their own books while they sit together. Someone, let’s see here, having a family book during the summer where they take turns reading the same book out loud at bedtime. I know my kids really enjoyed this when we got the illustrated version of Harry Potter from the library and we would like read it every night and it’s just a fun way to bond and spend time together. One kid said they definitely like using their tablet and that’s, parents are so worried about screen time, but you know, it is a great motivator for kids. If you say, well, you can have the tablet now. If you play a math game first. So he liked that he gets extra screen time if he’s playing a learning game. So they had a few chosen learning games and he would get additional screen time if he got to play that.

Some kids like just learning how to do everyday things like laundry, cooking with their parents, and doing grown-up things over the summer that usually you’re just so rushed during the school year, like get it on, like get out the door, do all the things. They liked being part of the chores, which I thought was funny. I wouldn’t have expected kids to say they like what I consider work. And some kids really enjoyed practicing math and money by going with their parents to the bank, budgeting out back to school shopping, spending money at the store. And that’s, know like little debit cards are a big deal for kids nowadays, these little milestones. And we forget as adults that kids need to learn how to put it into the machine, how to say no to the prompts, how to go through and that, know, digital money is the same as paper money, and a lot of kids enjoy back to school shopping, but also doing their own budgets and the money skills.

So those were just a few. The kids had a lot of good advice, which I thought was great.

Emily Woodward PIC (12:44.183)

Yeah, that’s really good advice. I like hearing all those to make the fun part of the day and kind of do what you said of everyday things like going to the bank and cooking. It’s really great to hear from all those kids what they find beneficial during the summer ways they want to continue their learning and growing. Because as you have mentioned, there’s just so many different ways. You mentioned kids said they don’t want learning to feel like school for parents who are worried that fun activities aren’t rigorous enough. What would you say to reassure them?

Joanne Grobecker (13:16.65)

I would really say that adults want this rigorous set time, a workbook. Grownups want something that looks like school and their homes. And kids really want something that feels like home where they’re learning. And that looked almost like instead of one dedicated block of learning, just these little moments throughout the day. And they might not all be connected. Your kid may be really into baking and you’re spending a lot of time budgeting and shopping and getting ingredients.  A lot of you have to kind of adjust your adult expectations that your kid may be working on measurement and geometry and math, but it won’t look like them sitting down with a workbook. Sometimes you’re not able to say like, okay, now you got a 70 % on your worksheet. So this is how I feel. It’s really just letting the kids explore and adjusting your own expectations that kids also, I thought it was funny that they liked learning new things over the summer.  They weren’t against learning over the summer, but they wanted to learn things that it seemed like there just isn’t time for over the school year, because there’s so much busyness and after school activities, and having the time to really buy postcards and write them out and mail them to people and get mail back, or have your parent show you how you microwave a hot dog. How does this work? How do you go to the store?  Really being having, I think, grownups and kids having the time and the bandwidth to have those conversations were so impactful for kids. I was really surprised the number of kids that, and some of them are doing tutoring too, like doing weekly tutoring every week or structured things, but they really enjoyed the times that I think was spending with other adults or with kids, either virtually or in person, and being able to learn from grownups or other kids.

Emily Woodward PIC (15:13.539)

That’s great to kind of manage and adjust your adult expectations and try to try some different things because you mentioned the school year has so many structured programs and time is very limited for many families with the busy schedules.

Joanne Grobecker (15:30.571)

And I will say that some kids absolutely need the routines. Some kids need and thrive on the routine. And that’s why I said every family may look different and you may have one kid that needs to just be home, regulate, spend time, have some nature time. And you may have another kid that that is incredibly stressful and dysregulating for them. And they need that structure of the ESY or summer school or daycare or summer camp.  So that they have that predictable routine that helps them feel secure. It’s really gonna depend on what works. I don’t even say what works for your family, but sometimes each kid in your family needs something different and that’s, it’s okay. And don’t feel like you’re giving one kid less of an experience because you’re paying for camp for one kid all summer, but the other kid’s staying home or one kid’s in summer school all summer and the other one you made a different choice.

It really is what’s best for the kid and for your family.

Emily Woodward PIC (16:30.585)

That’s a really great point too. So it’s kind of a time to do a variety of things. You can pick up a hobby, you can do structured activities, unstructured activities. ESY is really not a one size fits all kind of thing for the summertime. Is there a set amount of time families should kind of dedicate to learning activities without it becoming too stressful?

Joanne Grobecker (16:54.112)

I think some people would say, you know, like don’t do more than 30 minutes a day or don’t do, but I really think you just have to adjust your idea that learning isn’t sitting down doing rote work, that learning is kind of embedded throughout your summer and not try to meet a milestone of like 30 minutes a day, we’re gonna read a book together. It’s good to have those routines and a lot of kids and adults enjoy having, you know, that bedtime reading routine or everyone gets there, you know, before you can be on screens in the morning, everyone has to do their math facts game. There’s ways to build it in that may work for your family, but don’t feel like you’re failing your kids if you’re not doing 30 minutes a day of reading, or I feel like there’s a lot of pressure for people to meet arbitrary timeframes. And it’s really just most important that you’re doing what works for your family, for your kids, and your kids will be learning when you don’t realize that you’ll be budgeting out back to school clothes and they want the jeans that are $70 and you explain they’re $20 a target and what the budget is. Then the next thing you know, they’ve got their little iPhone out doing the math on it and that’s math. And it’s not, you didn’t sit down and say, we’re doing math for 30 minutes. So here’s the word problem about jeans, but these things are gonna naturally come up and you just have to kind of lean into them and not, like as my kids would say, not be cringe and be like, now it’s math time, we’re doing math, but just like let the kids experience it.

Emily Woodward PIC (18:33.217)

In closing today, Joanne, what’s the one thing you’d want every parent to kind of take away from this conversation?

Joanne Grobecker (18:40.054)

I just want families to know that you do what works for your family and that’s gonna look totally different. you might, people will say like, you know, I wish we were doing this or I wish we were doing that, but there’s no one right way to have a summer and there’s no one right way to make sure your kid’s prepared for summer and it’s okay to prioritize what your kid needs. And for some kids, they need structure, they need stability, they need…

To be able to anticipate what comes next. And that’s very important to them. And other kids really need a low demand summer where there aren’t a lot of demands, there aren’t a lot of expectations put on them. And it really is whatever works for your family. If you’re working and you need childcare, it’s gonna look like what’s in your budget and what your kids are willing to do, especially at certain ages.

You really have to do what works for your family and know that your kids are gonna be okay and they’re all gonna be back at school in September. And everyone will say like, you’re your child’s first teacher, but the reality is you’re not their teacher, you’re their parent and their caregiver. And you’re allowed to enjoy your time with them too and not feel pressure to have them be at some academic standard by the time they reach school in September. So my advice would just be to spend some time and enjoy your kids and not. Try not to worry about what other people are doing with their kids because what they’re doing is what works for them and their kids may be very different than yours. So just really enjoy the summer that you create with your kids.

Emily Woodward PIC (20:18.029)

Yeah, I really like that. Every kid is different. Every summer is different. Is there any final thoughts you had that you wanted to include for families on this podcast?

Joanne Grobecker (20:31.338)

Really just check out your local public library. It seems, it seems like there should be some great like program or subscription. feel like, you know, at the end of the podcast, people are like pitching some sort of magical product, but I really think checking out your local public library, making that one trip there as a family and leaning into everything they have to offer. Just knowing that it’s there.

Sometimes you might not even be using it, but knowing if there’s a rainy day or we get, you know you have a backup plan. You know you can rent passes. You know that you can bring your kids there to do a craft or sign up for a story time. It’s nice knowing that there’s options there and there’s a social place you can bring your kids. A lot of them have, they might have caring cupboards or food or snacks or water.

It’s nice knowing that that resource exists and nice knowing that it’s a way that you can access, really access a bunch of resources and fun experiences for your kid for free or at a low cost. And it’s something a lot of kids really enjoy. And it’s a really welcoming space and nice way to meet other families. So, I would definitely recommend checking out your local public library.

Emily Woodward PIC (21:55.215)

Great, thank you so much, Joanne. It’s been really great chatting with you and hearing a bunch about various options available to families since there really is a lot of different options available for the summer and every family is very different.

Joanne Grobecker (22:08.714)

Thank you so much for having me. This was great to talk about this! I think everyone loves talking about summer. We’re all ready.