Explore Your Child’s Passions This Summer
Reading Time: 2 min
Summer is a great time for kids to explore and learn new things. One of our (and educators’) favorite ways to do this is through a Summer Passion Project.
Spending time on things that pique a child’s interest will enrich the summer months and help curb the inevitable boredom from having too much time and too little to do.
What is a summer passion project?
A Summer Passion Project is a child-led activity that includes choosing a topic of interest, learning more about it, and developing a final product to illustrate their research.
It’s designed to inspire creativity and gives kids a chance to take a deep dive to get answers to those burning questions that may be lingering in their minds.
Why should we do a summer passion project?
Educators encourage passion projects because they integrate reading comprehension and writing skills and ignite the desire to learn. Passion projects also promote creative and innovative thinking. As a result, children learn essential life skills such as planning, decision making, persistence in overcoming obstacles, problem-solving, and time management.
How do we get started?
Choose a Topic
Sit down together and make a list of passion project possibilities. This initial list can be long — whatever grabs the child’s attention should be on that list. Then, prioritize until you find their number one choice.
Some favorite topic suggestions from educators include puppetry, origami, movie making, archaeology, architecture, bugs, geology, and weather.
Gather Research
Find different ways to gather research. Ideas include books, interviews, and exploring. Take pictures, make copies, and write notes — encourage your child to try different ways of gathering their research. This makes the project more interactive and engaging and teaches them other ways to absorb information.
Create the Final Piece
Now it’s time to put all that knowledge and hard work into a final piece. This could be a collage, a presentation in google slides, a painting, or a short story — the possibilities are endless. And remember, the scope can be small or large; what’s important is they enjoyed themselves and learned something new.
However your child chooses to research and create their passion project, it’s important they make it their own. Adults should offer support and encouragement while the child leads their project.
When a child takes ownership of their passion project, it gives them a unique opportunity to become creators in their own learning journey. This will instill a sense of independence and responsibility that they may not have experienced before.
This summer, encourage your child to participate in a summer passion project. Then, sit back and watch them bloom 🌻 before your very eyes!
We hope this gives you a few ideas to keep those voracious and reluctant readers going all summer long! And if you’re looking for a new adventure in reading, try Lou Adventures’ A Mystery at the Lakehouse. Our very own interactive learning adventure for kids! Download on iPad and iPhone.
