Published in the Democrat and Chronicle on July 7, 2010
Summer is here and the question for many families now is, “What will my child do this summer?” This is actually a vital question. Some children are what we call “summer children.” They are children whose strengths do not show up in the day-to-day activity of school. However, they come to life when given sunshine, free time and a chance to explore. The quiet child in the classroom blossoms into the suntanned, raspberry-eating, star-gazing child with a smile on his or her face. That is if we let them.
Unfortunately, we often continue the same schedule during the summer that we do over the school year.
As a result, children simply replace school with more time in daycare or more time on their own at home. This can be counterproductive for your child in the long run, particularly if you have a summer child.
Children need “I did it!” experiences. These are the experiences that have challenged them mentally, spiritually or physically. These are the experiences where a child can look back and say “If I did that, then I can do this!”
“That” can be climbing a mountain, camping out in the woods, white-water rafting or going to a sleep-away camp for the first time. Some of these activities can be planned for, like a sleep-away camp, and others occur naturally when a child has the chance to explore nature with his or her family at hand.
Regardless of the activity, “I did it!” experiences come from times where the child has been pushed a little past his or her safety zone. These are the experiences that help children become adults.
These moments won’t happen without planning. If a child’s summer is structured in a way that he or she is never pushed a bit, they will not happen.
“I did it!” experiences are best experienced with family at hand. That way, we can remind the child later about how they survived the experience. This means that families must take some time off and get away from the house, even if it is only going camping in the backyard for a weekend, taking a walk in a state park, or spending that week at Grandma and Grandpa’s house learning how to bake a blueberry pie.
Of course, white-water rafting and climbing a mountain are also possibilities.