{"id":61759,"date":"2020-06-09T09:39:21","date_gmt":"2020-06-09T13:39:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/?p=61759"},"modified":"2026-02-12T10:14:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T15:14:13","slug":"summer-and-the-struggling-reader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/summer-and-the-struggling-reader\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer and the struggling reader"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/summer-and-the-struggling-reader\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-61764\" src=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-23.png\" alt=\"summer and struggling readers Shawna Wingert, Different By Design Learning\" width=\"575\" height=\"419\" srcset=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-23.png 480w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-23-300x219.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 575px) 100vw, 575px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/differentbydesignlearning.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s June.<\/p>\n<p>The end of another school year. The beginning of summer.<\/p>\n<p>For my family, it means transitioning to a &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/summerlearning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">summer learning plan<\/a>.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>At least that&#8217;s what it means for us this year. The truth is, in past years, summer was a less than ideal season in our homeschool, especially for my struggling reader.<\/p>\n<p>After hearing the same from more than one mom in my <a href=\"https:\/\/differentbydesignlearning.com\/sessions-with-shawna-different-by-design-learning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">homeschool support sessions<\/a>, I realize now that it was not just me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Summer can be stressful when you are homeschooling a struggling reader.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Would you rather listen to this post?<\/em><br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none;\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/14933558\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/backward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/3ebdc0\/\" width=\"100%\" height=\"90\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Looking back, I can see why summer was always such an anxiety producing time for me and my son.<\/p>\n<p>I was worried about the &#8220;summer slide.&#8221; Would he forget the little progress we made this year? Should I use the summer to only focus on reading and help him finally master those sight words? Will he be able to move up a level in his reading program next year if I don&#8217;t take action all summer?<\/p>\n<p>My son&#8217;s experience of summer was even worse. His mom now required him to do more of something that was a constant struggle.<\/p>\n<p>Summer became synonymous with more reading practice and was not at all what either of us wanted.<\/p>\n<p>I knew it was not working, but I worried and wondered what we should do instead. Even worse, we never really made much progress anyway, no matter how hard I pushed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A resistant, anxious learner always learns a lot less.<\/strong> I knew this, but struggled with what to do next.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-61763\" src=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-22.png\" alt=\"summer and struggling readers Shawna Wingert, Different By Design Learning\" width=\"575\" height=\"419\" srcset=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-22.png 480w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/If-your-child-struggles-with-writing-its-the-worst-right-now-22-300x219.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 575px) 100vw, 575px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Summer and the Struggling Reader<\/h2>\n<p>In a moment of inspiration, or maybe desperation, I made the decision a few summers ago to completely change my approach. With every subsequent summer, I have found more and more success in helping my struggling reader.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s how.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Add movement to reading.<\/h3>\n<p><strong>For any struggling learner, movement can help with learning.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Whether a child needs sensory input, or his\/her brain needs a little extra movement to get the synapses flowing, studies have shown over and over again that moving the body while learning makes a difference in overall comprehension and retention.<\/p>\n<p>I have found this to be true for my son, especially with reading. The good news is, summer lends itself to far more outdoor activities that make learning fun.<\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;ve created &#8220;water balloon flashcards&#8221; where I write sight words on water balloons in a bucket. He picks each one up, reads it and throws it at a target (or me if we decide to duel). I have also written practice sounds and words on a beach ball and we throw it back and forth to each other in the pool.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Adding movement to reading practice makes it far more fun and engaging. It&#8217;s a bonus that it is also so much more effective.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-61760\" src=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pool.5.png\" alt=\"summer and struggling readers Shawna Wingert, Different By Design Learning\" width=\"520\" height=\"520\" srcset=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pool.5.png 575w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pool.5-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pool.5-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pool.5-80x80.png 80w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 520px) 100vw, 520px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>2. Make it even more interest-led.<\/h3>\n<p>Although we practice an eclectic, interest-led approach all year long, we really lean in for the summer. One year, we did an entire &#8220;Summer at Hogwarts&#8221; with all Harry Potter based learning activities and reading practice. This summer, my boys have opted to do only <a href=\"https:\/\/differentbydesignlearning.com\/its-odd-but-this-is-how-we-are-getting-ready-for-summer-learning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">science and history projects<\/a> of their own choosing.<\/p>\n<p>By turning up the level of interest, I find my son has even more opportunities to practice reading throughout the summer than he would with me pulling out the old flashcards. And, because he is so motivated, I find he is able to make more progress as well.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Focus on strengths.<\/h3>\n<p>When our children struggle with a certain subject, it&#8217;s easy to get super focused on what&#8217;s not working. <em>(I am the queen of freaking out and deciding to do a whole new reading program because my child couldn&#8217;t read the word &#8220;the&#8221; in our book. Take my word for it.)<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The problem is,<strong> when we are focused on the area of struggle, we lose sight of our kids&#8217; natural talents and strengths.<\/strong> Not only is this a little sad, it also gets in the way of helping our children learn.<\/p>\n<p>When I <a href=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/strengths\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">homeschool to my child&#8217;s strengths<\/a>,\u00a0 it not only builds his confidence as a learner, it teaches him how to learn in general. For the struggling reader, this is critical to overall success.<\/p>\n<p>Incorporating what my child naturally excels at into our summer learning not only supports his reading ability, it gives him a sense of mastery and capability across all tasks and subjects.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/The-Strength-Based-Homeschool-10.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-61776\" src=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/The-Strength-Based-Homeschool-10.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"467\" height=\"701\" srcset=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/The-Strength-Based-Homeschool-10.jpg 600w, https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/The-Strength-Based-Homeschool-10-200x300.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 467px) 100vw, 467px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>4. Have fun!<\/h3>\n<p>As I look at this list, I realize this is pretty much what I have found makes a difference in our learning all year long. The only difference is that in summer, we do it at pool, sometimes with snacks, and it&#8217;s a lot more fun!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Yes, my child is a struggling reader, but he is a child first.<\/strong> I want him to have the same fond memories of summer that I do and support his reading skills at the same time.<\/p>\n<p>The good news is, we are planning to do just that. I hope you will too.<\/p>\n<h4>What are your best ideas for summer reading practice?<\/h4>\n<p><em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/quiz\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What&#8217;s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie&#8217;s quiz now<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!<\/em><\/p>\n<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning It&#8217;s June. The end of another school year. The beginning of summer. For my family, it means transitioning to a &#8220;summer learning plan.&#8221; At least that&#8217;s what it means for us this year. The truth is, in past years, summer was a less than ideal season&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":88,"featured_media":61764,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[331,360,329,352,333],"tags":[13,224],"class_list":["post-61759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-curriculum-resources","category-language-arts","category-learning-curriculum","category-special-needs","category-subject-guides","tag-reading-skills","tag-summer"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Summer and the struggling reader - Simple Homeschool<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Summer can be stressful when you are homeschooling a struggling reader. 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