1. MonKEY– Monkeys like to play with friends and be silly at times. They don’t seem to need an excuse. You don’t, either. Be silly a little this summer.

2. Hackey SacKEY –It’s a ball to kick new ideas around with your friends. The ball falls now and then. That’s okay.

3. ArKEYology –  Take a little time to dig up your history, just to appreciate where you came from. Nurture your nature.

4. BlanKEY –  Remember how it feels to Sleep in, Take a Siesta, Doze on the Beach…If you DON’T remember, do some intensive horizontal research.

5. HierarKEY –  Keep sight of your 3 summer goals. Do one small thing a day to meet them. You don’t have 3 goals for this summer? Make them now!

6. MicKEY –  Cartoons are funny because unexpected things happen. You can be a cartoon now and then. It’s OK to be memorable.

7. NiKEY – Get those sneakers on. Sweat five times this week. Be creative (You can even skip it)!

8. SpooKEY –  Do something this summer that you’ve been afraid to try. After all–You’re older now.

9. SparKEY –  Get beside a campfire this summer. Sing, tell a story, roast marshmallows, hug whoever’s next to you, and stay long enough to stir the coals awhile.

10. HoKEY – PoKEY – Dance, dance, dance! Try to dance at least three times– once when there’s no music playing, once with a child under 5, and once in the rain. If you’re busy, combine all three.

HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!

Fractured Fairy Tales – Whether it’s The Princess and the Rutabaga or Big Blue Riding Hood, invite your students to turn familiar fairy tales upside down and inside out—and to have fun. This interactive tool gives students a choice of three fairy tales to read. They are then guided to choose a variety of changes, which they use to compose a fractured fairy tale to print off and illustrate. Useful for teaching point of view, setting, plot, as well as fairy tale conventions such as they lived happily ever after, this tool encourages students to use their imaginations and the writing process at the same time.

“Kid-Approved” Summer Reading Books – This is my list of fun books to read (or have read to you)  suggested by kids with reading difficulties. They suggest them, and I add them. If so much as one kid doesn’t like a book that I’ve suggested here, I remove the book from this list!

Reading Probe Generator – More for Teachers who often need to make informal “probes” of their students’ reading, and this works great. You can analyze the reading level of stories that you or your children create, or paste in any story you want on a topic your kids will like, and it tells you the level.

Because much of handwriting is about readiness, I urge you not to try and “push a rope”–if the child can’t yet visualize an uppercase cursive F, all he/she can do is copy or trace them. When the child’s visual cortex is fully developed (for boys as late as 5th-6th grade and for girls as late as 4th-5th), they will be able to picture that F in their mind’s eye.

The other hurdle is muscle memory. Pro golfers have such keen muscle memory they can know how hard to swing each club and know exactly how far it will go, even taking wind in as a factor. But they practice, and they don’t ever show you the practice on TV. Young learners may need 100-500 repetitions printing a lowercase “s” before they can automatically draw one. The only way you’ll get kids to do something 100-500 times is with fun drill and high feedback.

Roll out the whipped cream! Use a tray with sides 1″ high or more. Squirt a dollop of whipped cream (the size of a billiard ball)  into the middle of the tray and let your learner spread it out. You demonstrate the letter you work on, then they “erase yours” and try it immediately (muscle memory ebbs quickly at first). I would do letters in one group below.

For Lowercase Manuscript:

Most students can learn formations of all lower-case letters in just six weeks! Groups include—

• 2 O’Clock Letters—o, a, d, g, q, c, s
• Pull-Down Letters 1—i, t, j, l, k,
• Pull-Down Letters 2-b, p, h, r, n, m
• Loop Group— f, e, u,
• Hills and Valleys—v, w, x, y, z

Manuscript Capitals:

• Slim 7 Group—P, R, B, H, K
• Umbrella Tops and Eggs—C, E, A, O, Q
• High Hills and Deep Valleys—N, M, U, V, Y

Cursive:

• 2 O’Clock Letters—o, a, d, g, q, c
• Loopy Letters: l, e, b, h, k, f,
• Wavies: i, u, w, t,  j, r, p, s
• Bouncy Letters: n, m
• Rollercoasters: v, x, y, z

When you’re bored with whipped cream, try the Jello (TM) pudding cups (I suggest chocolate), or use sprinkles in a 3″ pan, or outdoors with sidewalk chalk.