Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street, talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.
DEUTERONOMY 6: 6-8

- Subscribe to magazines for your area like “Midwest Living”.  They have several road trips that could be fun for short trips.

- Contact universities near your hometown.  They may have special activities and or museums located on campus.

- Local Chamber of Commerce may offer lots of possibilities for things to do in your area.

- Check the schedule for your local Recreation Department. Look for State Parks and the activities they have planned.

- Rent a canoe or raft and float down a nearby river.

- Have a “progressive dinner picnic” which means pick your favorite burger or sandwich from one place; your fries, etc. from another place, and your ice cream from another.  Then gather the food and head for a picnic area -----close to the ice cream location!

- If you have a drive-in theater not too far away, plan a family movie night with popcorn and goodies.

- Have a neighborhood block party with each family responsible for one contest or activity that they plan and organize.  Everybody contributes food.  It becomes like a mini-street fair.

- Go to a farmer’s market and have the children help pick out the produce.  Then have them help make the meal you prepare with it.

- Check out your county fair.  It can be a fun outing.  Many fairs have various contests that your children might want to participate in; for example, vegetable sculptures, or hobby collections.  Get a schedule from your state’s fair board office.

- Plant a family garden.  Let the children pick out what to plant and help tend it.  It doesn’t have to be large, even a container garden would be fun.

By Ann Logsdon, About.com

www.learningdisabilities .about.com/od/learning disabilitybasics/qt/ graderetention.htm
©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times
Company.  All rights reserved.
Reprinted for non-commercial use.

Grade Retention - What is Grade Retention?
Grade retention refers to the practice of keeping a child in the same grade for more than one year, typically because of poor school performance.

What is the Purpose of Grade Retention?
In most cases, parents and educators retain students because they have not mastered skills needed to be successful at the next grade level. They believe that receiving the same instruction for another year will provide more time for the child to learn the skills and mature physically and intellectually.

Grade Retention - The Positives and Negatives of Grade Retention in Schools
Under certain circumstances, retention can have a positive impact on a child's learning. Generally, retention can help when:

• - A child has missed a lot of instruction because of absences.

• - Instruction has been inconsistent because of frequent family relocations and attendance at more than one school.
• - The child has a late birthday, which makes her actually a year younger than most other students at her grade level.
• - The child has experienced serious illnesses or emotional trauma that have impacted his ability to stay on task and maintain attention and stamina in the classroom...Read more

by Lynn McBrien

www.school.family education.com /developmental-delay/parents-and-school/38672.html
© 2000-2009 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Reprinted for non-commercial use.

When children perform below average in school, educators and parents may believe the best course is for them to repeat a grade. Research, however, indicates that this choice is often a mistake.

A study conducted by the University of Georgia, involving over 11,000 students, concluded that repeating a year had a negative effect on performance. In fact, students tended to fall further behind during their second year in the same grade. Studies on children held back for reasons such as immaturity have shown similar results.

Held-back children are 20 to 30 percent more likely to drop out of school when compared to low achievers who are allowed to move to the next grade level. The National Association of School Psychologists' 1991 position on this subject states, "Retention can negatively affect achievement and social/emotional adjustment."

Weighing the options
In recent years, the President, governors, and business leaders have come out strongly against "social promotion," the practice of passing students on to the next grade whether or not they are ready. Certainly it doesn't seem right to expect a child to move to harder material before he or she has mastered basics. But because of the evidence indicating many children will continue to fail if held back, parents must weigh all the options carefully and be very involved in the decision.

If a teacher suggests that your child be retained, ask for concrete reasons. What are the problem areas: gross or fine motor skills? Social interactions? Emotional behaviors? Test scores? Are these skills likely to improve by repeating a grade?

Request an evaluation of your child. Many children who have other difficulties, such as a visual or hearing impairment, a learning disability, an emotional problem, or a stressful home environment, would benefit from special services, not retention.
Know your rights. In your school district, who makes the final decision -- you or the school? If the school, what is the appeal process if you disagree?

Finally, support your child at home. Consider alternatives. Would a tutor make a difference, or a stress-releaser -- such as sports, painting, or a children's club? Talk together about school problems. Involving your child in solutions can create the best chance for success.

www.psparents.net /Retention.htm
Copyright © 2001-2004 by The Public School Parents Network  All Rights Reserved.
Reprinted for non-commercial use.

The academic success or failure of a child is a shared responsibility between parents, teachers, and the student. To reverse a path toward failure, parents that see their child having difficulties with course material must intervene swiftly, especially in elementary and middle school grades. These are the really tough battles for parents not only because of the time and energy that will be demanded, but because it is also a very stressful time for both you and your child. The parent of a failing child must become a mediator, a tutor, a motivator, and a supervisor.

As the mediator, you are the liaison between your child, and his or her teacher.  Most teachers only want what is best for their students.  They are encouraging, caring, motivating and positive participants in a child's academic success.  What needs to be underscored however is that this type of teacher should not be a parent's dream come true.  This kind of teacher needs to be demanded by all parents of public school children. Teachers accept the responsibility and should feel a sense of obligation to educate each and every child in their class.  Parents need to know that it is a teacher’s responsibility to find a way to help all of their students be successful academically. 

As parents we must hold our educators equally accountable in a child's academic success or failure and parents must demand that teachers and administrators participate fully in implementing a plan to effect a full reversal from a path toward failure.  Academic failure is typically viewed as a reflection of the child's inability to retain and process information, however that same incidence of failure can just as easily be reflective of a teacher's inability to motivate and stimulate the desire to learn in a student.  As parents we must investigate, and insist upon having the opportunity to evaluate what happens inside the classroom before we can begin to help our children...Read more

By Ellen Booth Church

http://www2.scholastic. com/browse/article.jsp ?id=866
© 2009-1996 Scholastic Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Reprinted for non-commercial use.

It's getting to be that time of year. Spring is giving way to summer warmth, which for many programs signals the end of the school year. For many preschool and kindergarten children it is time to say good-bye to their teacher and friends. Whereas older children can't wait for that last school bell to run out the door, younger children can be seen crying at the door! Not surprisingly, preschoolers make a deep connection to their classroom "family" and can have difficulty at this time of year. Don't be surprised if your child seems sad, but isn't able to verbalize what the problem is. Some children will even appear to regress to an old behavior, such as separation anxiety or childish misbehavior.

This is all quite normal and should be treated with compassion and sensitivity. The regressive behavior can arise because children are beginning to realize that they will be "graduating" to a new class and they are supposed to be more "grown-up." So what do they do? They try being "little" again just to be sure that they will always be your little one! This is a good time to reassure your child that in your heart he will always be your little one…no matter how big he gets! Just as ritual and celebration helped your child transition into this year's program, similar steps can help your child transition out. Of course, your child's teacher is doing many activities to prepare the class as well. But to further ease this time of change, you can "take a page out of the teacher's book" and do some of the same activities at home. Here are a few to try...Read more

Family Fun Vacation Guides by Disney Editions

Kids Summer Games Book, The: Official Book of Games to Play (Family Fun) by Jane Drake, Ann Love, and Heather Collins

Summer Bridge Activities: 1st to 2nd Grade by Julia Ann Hobbs and Carla Fisher

Summer Bridge Activities: 3rd to 4th Grade by Hobbs Ann Julia and Carla Fisher

Summer Bridge Activities: 4th to 5th Grade by Hobbs Ann Julia and Carla Fisher

Summer Bridge Activities: 5th to 6th Grade by Hobbs Ann Julia and Carla Fisher

Summer Bridge Activities: Kindergarten to 1st Grade by Julia Ann Hobbs and Carla Fisher

Summer Bridge Activities: Preschool to Kindergarten by Julia Ann Hobbs and Carla Fisher

Summer: A User's Guide by Suzanne Brown

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Backyard Adventure by Nancy Worrell

The Original Summer Bridge Activities: 2nd to 3rd Grade by Julia Ann Hobbs and Carla Fisher

Using Caldecotts Across the Curriculum (Grades K-2) by Joan Novelli

Fourth-Grade Fuss by Johanna Hurwitz and Andy Hammond [ages 9-12]

Grandma Summer  by Harley Jessup

Help! Somebody Get Me Out of Fourth Grade by Henry Winkler, Lin Oliver, and Jesse Joshua Watson [ages 9-12]

It's Summer! by Linda Glaser

Lemonade Sun: And Other Summer Poems by Rebecca Kai Dotlich and Jan Spivey Gilchrist

Maragold in Fifth by Bill Sheehan [ages 9-12]

Next to Mexico by Jennifer Nails [ages 9-12]

School's Out!  by Johanna Hurwitz [ages 9-12]

Summer (Beginner Books) by Alice Low and Roy McKie

Summer Fun: 60 Activities for a Kid – Perfect Summer by Susan Williamson

The Big Summer Activity Book by Anne Thomas

The Boy Who Loved Words by Roni Schotter  [ages 4-8]

The Night Before Summer Camp (Reading Railroad) by Natasha Wing and Mindy Pierce

The Night Before Summer Vacation (Reading Railroad Books) by Natasha Wing and Julie Durrell

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy (National Book Award for Young People's Literature) by Jeanne Birdsall

Wings of Change by Franklin Hill (suitable for young children)