Unicorn Soup for the Soul

Surviving Summer… Fun Enrichment Ideas

Date Added: June 24, 2009
As school doors close and the summer is upon us, it is important to keep our children engaged through enrichment activities. There is no need to wrack your brain to come up with ideas. We have condensed the ideas from some popular websites for you to review and choose from.

Surviving Brain Drain:

Too many days with nothing to do but watch TV and IM friends can turn your child's school-trained brain to mush. Keep learning going with these teaching tips and tools.
+ Teach Your Child to Read
+ Teach Your Child Reading Comprehension
+ Start a Reading Routine
+ Teach Your Child Healthy Eating
+ Teach Your Child to Keep a Journal
+ Games for Fun and Learning
+ Educational Software
+ Five Ways to Keep Learning Going
+ Five Alternatives to Harry Potter
+ Ten Texts for Summer Learning

Surviving Travel:

Whether your child has medical or mobility challenges, or just can't behave in a cooped up place for more than five minutes, travel can be less than tranquil. These articles can show you where to find help, and help you pass the time.
+ Get Special-Needs Aid from Airlines
+ Reduce Child Turbulence on Plane Flights
+ Keep a Big 'Bag of Tricks'
+ Kill Time with the "Dots" Game

Surviving Idle Time:

You don't want to be the fun police, but unsupervised kids will undoubtedly find ways to get in trouble that you can't even imagine. Keep good times in bounds with activities and precautions that make you part of the action.
+ Teach Your Child to Cook
+ Be a Music Monitor
+ Work Out with Your Child
+ Inspire Reluctant Artists
+ Fun Things to Do Today

Surviving Therapy Breaks:

If your child gets PT, OT and speech at school, chances are summer marks a therapy vacation, too. These books will help you give your child some of what therapists offer.
+ The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun
+ How Does Your Engine Run?
+ Teach Me How to Say It Right
+ What Did You Say? What Do You Mean?
Sometimes the right equipment makes all the difference. Here's how to get the tools you'll need for at-home therapy.
+ Make Your Own Therapy Tools and Toys
+ Sensory Integration Tools and Toys

Surviving Bad Behavior:

Bored, stir-crazy kids can bring bad behavior to whole new levels, but with the right tools and tricks, you can turn the tide and end the summer with better behavior than ever. Here's how to:
+ Analyze Behavior
+ Build Better Behavior Charts
+ Choose Your Battles
+ Control Your Reactions
+ Count to 10
+ Ease Transitions
+ Find a Prime Time-Out Spot
+ Help your Child Listen
+ Issue Better Ultimatums
+ Keep It Calm
+ Say What You Mean
+ Set Attainable Goals
+ Teach Your Child to Succeed

Surviving Projects:

It's irresistible — take those carefree summer months and use them to finally get to those New Year's resolutions. If you've got a project you're just itching to tackle — and you're sure that itching's not sunburn or poison ivy — get a little organizational help from these articles.
+ Top 5 Summer Projects
+ Get a Healthy Weight for Your Child
+ Teach Your Child Self-Care Skills
+ The "No Pants" Toilet Training Method – Potty Training for Children with Special Needs
+ Before You Potty Train

Surviving Shopping:

Getting kids with special needs geared up for summer with cool equipment and clothes will get a lot easier if you forego the mall and visit some online retailers. Follow these links to find gear for:
+ Swimmers with Special Needs
+ Children with Autism and an Attitude
+ Children with Food Allergies
+ Children Who Use Sign Language
+ Those Who Love Someone with Autism

Surviving Stress:

The loss of school routine can hit children with special needs hard, as much as they may celebrate the end of school. Help your kids de-stress with these guides to relaxation and anxiety-prevention.
+ Breathing Techniques to Relax Your Child
+ Guided Relaxation for Children with Special Needs
+ 31 Ways to Tell Your Child "I Love You"
+ Hug Your Child
+ Make Your Child Into a Burrito
+ Use an iPod to Calm Your Child
+ Teach Your Child to Control Anxiety
+ Teach Your Child to Stay in Bed All Night
+ Five Ways to Boost Your Child's Self-Esteem

Summer Activities for Kids With Learning Disabilities: Making Wise Choices

Date Added: June 24, 2009
Figuring out the right balance of activities for your particular child is the key to a successful summer break.
As summer vacation gets closer, are you trying to decide between improving your child's academic study skills or developing her talents? Perhaps you'll want to do a little of each. Here are some ideas to discuss with your child.

Basic Academic Study Skills
Summer allows your child a chance to learn in a less structured setting where her needs can be addressed in unique and creative ways. Computer keyboarding, for example, is an important skill for all young kids to develop. Learning keyboarding skills can give her an alternative to the difficult process of writing.
Summer can also be a good time for your child to try out assistive technology. Many are specifically designed to help kids with learning disabilities (LD) work around their challenges.

Physical Activity
Physical activity is important for good health and energy. If your child is well coordinated and likes team sports, she may enjoy programs through local recreation departments. Group activities also may strengthen social interaction skills.
If your child doesn't like to compete or follow team rules, she may be more comfortable with individual sports, such as swimming, hiking, skating, miniature golfing, and bicycling. If she has problems with attention or self-control, karate can be a good choice.

Arts and Sciences
By participating in art, drama, or music classes, your child may discover and use special talents and build self-esteem. Look to your local recreation center and community theaters for class offerings.
Understanding her special interests can guide you in planning summer outings to enhance learning. Consider taking her to museums, libraries, art galleries, aquariums, planetariums, concerts, and plays.
Your backyard and local neighborhood open up a world of possibilities for science activities. Public library resources offer suggestions, as well.

Instruction
One of the biggest problems parents of a child with LD face is whether to continue basic instruction during summer vacation. She may need a break right away but could use a "jump start" from tutoring a few weeks before school begins in the fall. On the other hand, if she's just starting to make progress in a specific area when school lets out for the summer, it may be wise to continue instruction. Your child's teacher can give you suggestions for fun activities to strengthen skills she's learned.

Reading
If your child struggles with reading, there are many ways you can help build skills at home. Take advantage of summer reading programs at your local public library.
Whatever activities and programs you chose for your child, remember to read to her to build vocabulary and instill a love of literature. Older kids may enjoy listening to books on tape.
Time should set aside for her to read, as well. Her teacher or local library staff can help you find books or magazines of interest written at her independent reading level. Since reading aloud is one of the best ways for kids to improve reading skills, encourage her to read to younger children or older relatives.

The Choice is Yours
Your final decision should be based on a variety of factors, including family schedules, time, cost, and your child's feelings. Remember that summer should also be a time to enjoy your child, so find time to laugh and play together.

By Jan Baumel, M.S.

Five Ways to Keep Learning Going During School Breaks

Date Added: June 24, 2009
By Terri Mauro, About.com
When the kids are home for school vacation, they may want nothing more than to turn their brains to neutral and take a break from learning. If you want to keep them learning and growing over those precious days off, you'll need to be sneaky. These five articles from the Parenting Special Needs site will give you tips on making smart use of that idle time.

1. Play a game.
Card games and board games and games you make up can be great ways to sneak a little knowledge in when your child least suspects. Make War a calculating challenge, flash cards a competitive sport, and Candyland, dreaded Candyland, a chance to reinforce color learning. "Games for Fun and Learning" has more ideas and strategies. Let the games begin!

2. Start a reading routine.
An uninterrupted span of school-free days or weeks is a perfect time to get started on a routine of reading regularly with your child. It doesn't have to be a battle or something you send her to do in her room in sulking solitude. "How to Start a Reading Routine" can give you some ideas for turning reading time into tolerable, even enjoyable, together time.

3. Turn on the computer.
Stores and catalogs are full of educational computer games, but often they don't work well for children with special needs. Kids with language and learning problems may not be able to follow complicated storylines, or figure out what to do on screens cluttered with options. They may need reinforcement in more basic or more specialized skills than general-interest software can provide. Our list of Educational Software can help you find ones that will really turn the light on.

4. Have a nice chat.
Young children soak up all the language you can give them, and benefit from being talked to in ways that help them talk more. That's especially true for children who are struggling with speech and language issues. In an excerpt from her book "Teach Me How to Say It Right," speech and language pathologist Dorothy Dougherty helps you find new ways to turn simple conversation and interaction into informal speech therapy for your child.

5. Get moving.
While you're focusing on education, don't forget about physical education. Finding ways to exercise together will be good for your health and your child's, and keep idleness from taking over those days off. Consult "10 Ways to Work Out with Your Child" for products that will get the two of you moving in ways that will be fun and fitness-promoting.

10 Weeks of Summer Reading Adventures for You and Your Kids

Date Added: June 24, 2009
By: Reading Is Fundamental (2000)

It's not hard to help your children keep their interest in reading and learning during the summer break. Here are ten weeks of suggestions to encourage your children to open books even after school doors close.

In this article:

Children acquire skills throughout the school year, but they can lose ground if learning stops during the summer break. Fortunately, learning never has to stop. Children who read throughout the summer gain skills, can start the new school year with a better understanding of language and the world around them, and discover the joy of reading. The more they like to read, the more they will read.
It's not hard to help your children keep their interest in reading and learning. Children learn through a variety of activities, and almost everything we do presents an opportunity to read. When you're eating breakfast, read the cereal box; if you're in a restaurant, read the menu. Read the newspaper with your children and discuss what's happening in the world.
Reading every day, even if it's for just a few minutes, improves children's ability to read and learn all year long. Here are 10 weeks of activities that involve reading and related skills. There's no special order, and you don't have to do everything listed in a particular week. Just pick the ones that look interesting and fun!

Week 1: Celebrate summer

Write a list of things you want to do this summer. Don't forget to include reading!
Make a chart to keep track of all the books you read this summer.
Write down on your calendar the time the sun sets today.
Start a summer scrapbook. Include souvenirs of any trips you take, photos, ticket stubs, and projects you work on during the summer.
List all the books by your favorite author. See how many you can read this summer.
Swap books with a friend. Keep sharing books throughout summer.
Take a walk. Write about or draw the things you see that show summer is here.

Week 2: Keep in touch

Make a personal phone book. List phone numbers and addresses of your friends and relatives.
Design your own stationery and write a letter to a friend.
Start a journal with a friend or relative. Take turns writing in it all summer long. You can even do this by mail or e-mail.
Write a letter to your favorite author. A librarian can help you find a postal or e-mail address.
Draw a picture postcard of an imaginary place. On the back, write a message. Mail it to a friend or relative or put it in your scrapbook.
The first U.S. postage stamps were designed in 1847. Be a philatelist. Design your own stamp.
Word game! Invent a code (A=1, B=2, for example). Send a message in code to a friend.

Week 3: Discover recipes for fun

List all the ice cream flavors you can think of. Now put them in A-BC order.
Invent a recipe for a cool summer drink. Write it on a recipe card. Serve the drink to your friends.
Go to the library and find a cookbook. Make the most interesting dish in the book.
Read the directions on a box of gelatin. Ask a parent if you can help make dessert tonight.
Work up an appetite by reading a story about food. Make and eat the food you read about.
Word game! How many smaller words can you find in the word watermelon?

Week 4: Travel the world

If you are going on a family vacation this summer, read about your trip. Mark your travel route on a map.
Pretend you are going to visit another city, state, or country with a friend or relative. Write to the tourist bureau for more information. If you plan to visit a foreign country, write to the embassy. Visit the library and find books about the place you want to visit. Or search online for information. Plan your itinerary – and don't forget to check the weather!
Pick an important news event from another city, state, or country. Find as much information on the topic as possible – read newspapers, listen to the radio, and watch TV news. Talk about what you learned.
Word game! Look for out-of-state license plates. Make a list of all the state names and slogans. Decide which ones you like the best. Ask friends and relatives which are their favorites.

Week 5: Enjoy the great outdoors

Pick wildflowers and press them between the pages of a heavy book until the end of summer.
Plan a backyard camping trip with a friend. List all the things you will need to survive.
Plan a family 'booknic' at your favorite outdoor spot, such as the beach, a park, or the woods. Pack lunch and plenty to read.
Collect shells at the beach or rocks along a trail. Use a nature guide to identify them.
Find something small enough to put in your pocket. Write or tell a story about it.
Look for shapes and designs in the clouds. Draw them.
Word game! Make a list of words to describe fireworks.

Week 6: Visit fun places

An animal has escaped from the zoo! Make up a story about it. Tell it to a friend or family member – or write it down. Add pictures, if you'd like.
What museums are close to your house? Are there any old, historic buildings in the area? Find these places on a map. Find out what is on exhibit at the museums and why the old buildings are important.
Go back in time and pretend you lived in – or did business in – the oldest building in your area. Write a story about how you spent your time.
Make a list of zoo animals. Sort them by different categories, such as type of animal (mammals, fish, etc.) or coloring (green, brown, striped, etc.).
Visit the zoo with friends or relatives and find the animals on your list.
Visit a museum or historical building with friends or relatives. Write a list of things you see that you didn't expect.
Word game! Think of the softest animal or the oldest thing you've ever touched. Write a poem about it, but don't use the word soft or old.

Week 7: Become a publisher

Make your own joke book. Collect jokes and riddles from your family and friends.
Cut out pictures from an old magazine or catalog. Write a story about them.
Create a rebus story (a story that uses pictures to represent words). Write a short story, and then substitute pictures (that you draw or cut out) for some of the words.
Start a round-robin story. Write the beginning, then ask friends to add to it until it has an ending.

Week 8: Watch the skies

Learn what birds live in your area. (Birds are described in books called Field Guides.) Wake up early to go bird watching and list the birds you see.
Which constellations can you see on a clear summer night? Look at the sky using a star guide to help you find the constellations.
People have been looking at the skies for generations. Ask a grandparent or a much older friend to tell you a story about his or her childhood.
The first UFO was reported in 1947. Read a science fiction book in honor of it.
Word game! Baseballs also fly through the sky in summer. Find a list of baseball teams in the sports section of the newspaper. Put them in A-B-C order.

Week 9: Design something big

Invent a tool to help you do chores more easily. Draw a picture of it or make it from some old junk.
Read aloud the names of some of the cars in the classified section of your newspaper. Design a new car and name it.
Walk around your neighborhood and look at the houses. Design a house that would best suit your lifestyle.
Design your own board game and write the rules.
Everything we use was designed by someone. Start a collection of things you like, or add to a collection you already have. Use a guide to learn the value of your collection.

Week 10: Honor summer's end

Remember the wildflowers you pressed between the pages of a heavy book? Remove them, and put them in your summer scrapbook or paste them on heavy paper to make a bookmark.
Review the chart you made to track the books you read this summer. Pick new books to read.
Notice what time the sun sets today. Compare it to the time the sun set during week one.
Make a list of the supplies you need for school. Start shopping.
Plan an end-of-summer celebration. Write a list of the 10 best things you did this summer. Design a menu of your favorite summer treats.
Word game! Summer days are the longest days of the year. List the longest words you know.

You can also download these activities as a colorful two-page PDF (696 k)* called Summertime Reading Adventures from the Reading Is Fundamental site.

Fun Things to Do Today

Date Added: June 24, 2009
By Terri Mauro, About.com
Need something fun to keep the kids occupied? Try one of these activities you can do together.
Alphabet Biscuits
Alphabet Lacing Card
Altered Notebooks
AMC Summer Movie Camp
Apple Print Craft
Artwork Holder Magnet
Autumn Sensory Play
Backpack Tag
Backyard Adventure
Baking Soda Volcano
Beaded Safety Pins
Biological Rhythms
Bird Bookmark
Blooming Necklace
Boredom Busters
Butterfly Garden
Calculator Games
Calendar
Candy Corn Bingo
Cardboard Castle
Cardboard Roll Puppets
Cat-in-the-Hat Treat
CD Animal
CD Daisy Puppet
CD Fish
Certificates
Chia Tatos
Clothing Design
Coffee Filter Butterflies
Coffee Filter Easter Egg
Collecting
Cookie-Cutter Bird Feeder
Cooking With Kids
"Count Your Blessings" Ornaments
Crayon Candle
Crayon Cookies
Crayon Window Art
Creative Gift-Wrapping
Creative Travel Activities
Crushed Soda-Pop Can Crafts
Customized Word Games
Diaper-Box Tunnel
Easy Bird Feeder
Daylight Saving Time Online scavenger Hunt
Dinosaur Downloads
Density Column
DIY Cash Register and Money
Easter Craft Ideas
Easy Gifts
Edible Space Shuttle
Educational Picture Ring
Egg Carton Sea Creatures
Egg-Free Pumpkin Muffins
Fall Placemats
Film Container Parachutes
Finger Painting for the Tactile Defensive Child
First-Aid Kit Necklace
Five Minute Chocolate Mug Cake
Flannel Boards and Stories
Flubber
Football crafts
Football Team Placemat
Foot Print Chicks
Friendship Wreath
GFCF Crafts
Giant Panda Mask
Gift Wrap Memory Game
Gingerbread House
Glook
Greeting Card Lacing Toy
Halloween Activity Book
Hanukkah Crafts
Handmade Toys
Handprint Fish
Harvest Blessing Snack
Heart-Healthy Worksheets
Heart Mobile
Homemade Applesauce
Homemade Bubbles
Hungarian Beer Breadsticks
Ice Cream From Snow
Ice Cube Paintings
Indoor S'mores
I Spy Bottle
Jan Brett Bookmark
Jump-Rope Rhymes
Kazoo
Kitchen Science
Leprechaun Pudding
Lift-the-Flap Books
Listening to Nature Activities
Magic Wand Pencil
Make Your Child Into a Burrito
Make Your Own Olympics
May Day Crafts
Melting Snowman
Nature Rambling
Newspaper Bowl
Newspaper Hut
New Year's Noisemaker
99 Sensory Activities
Orange Prints
Paper Bag Apple
Paper Ornaments
Paper Pinwheels
Paper Plate Frog
Paper Plate Lamb's Face
Paper Toys 1
Paper Toys 2
Papier Mache
Peek-a-Boo Barn
Pencil Carrier
Pencil Pennant
Photo Ornaments
"Pin the Nose on the Snowman"
Play Dough
Playdate Cards
Play a Game
Popcorn Garland
Popcorn Pictures
Printable Play Checks
Pumpkin Cookies
Puzzle-Piece Candy-Cane Ornament
Q-Tip Dandelion
Rainstick
Reading Routine
Reluctant Artists
Reindeer Cards
RePlayground
Rice Tub
Rock Mosaic
Scrap Paper Masterpiece
Scratch Art
Shake Painting
Sharpie Pen Tie Die
Shaving Cream Painting
Snakes and Ladders
Soft Collage Shamrock
Sound Memory Game
Spray Painting
Styrofoam Cup Flowers
Sun Clock
Teacher Thank-You Card
Texture Rubbling Landscapes
Thanksgiving Card
Thanksgiving Centerpiece
Thanksgiving Paper Chain
Thanksgiving Woven Placemat
"30 Things to Do Before Summer Ends"
TP Christmas Tree
Travel Games
Tube Sock Snowmen
Two-Page Plays
Valentine Placemats
Valentines
Veteran's Day
Water Fun
Wind Chime Magic
Winter Crafts
Word Chain
Wrapping Paper Placemats
ZOOMgames
Time Out for Mom & DadNot for nothing, but your routine gets pretty messed up by school-free summers, too. If you're feeling the stress, grab a little "me" time to surf the Web, read a book, play a game, organize a project, or just relax.
+ Give Yourself a Time-Out
+ Parenting Special Needs Site of the Day
+ Special-Needs Beach Reads
+ Harried Parent's Book Club
+ Special Needs in the News
+ Question of the Day
+ Love Notes for Special Parents
+ Weekly Quiz
+ Alphabet Soup Quiz
+ Eight Quick Ways to Get Inspired