I hope you are enjoying a great summer. We are thankful for a wonderful 2016-17 school year. While the last few weeks are always a whirl of activity, they are also precious times together as a school community. The sports banquet, field trips, field day, headmaster’s dinner, graduation, class parties, and awards assembly were all special events. The year went by so fast. I often must stop to remind myself to cherish the days –for they are numbered –for all of us.
The same is true of our summer break. The next nine weeks will go by quickly. Get some rest. Take some time off. Let the children be children and enjoy carefree days. Enjoy a nice vacation or a few days at Tybee. Have a fun summer, but let me encourage you to cherish the days and be intentional with your family’s time this summer. A few weeks ago, there was a helpful article for students on the Gospel Coalition Blog, Students, Don’t Waste Your Summer. The principle applies to parents and families, as well as students. Set some summer goals for your family and children. Have a purposeful summer. Here are a few suggestions:
• Set reading goals for the family and/or children. Get a head start on the Veritas Reading Lists. Here is a great list of recommended books for summer reading (for parents and high schoolers) from Al Mohler. Maybe you can’t read 3-4 books per week like Dr. Mohler (He is incredible!), but you can be inspired by him to read 2-3 books over the summer.
• Take 20-30 minutes a day for 3-5 days/week and have your children learn keyboarding/typing. This is essential for students entering Logic School. Summer is a great time to knock this out. Donna and I did this one summer and had all three of ours typing well in no time. (Here are some recommended and inexpensive programs. My family used Mavis Beacon.)
• Visit area parks, nature centers, and historic sites. The Savannah area has many great places to see.
• If you have a rising third grader get a jump start on their insect collection (contact Mrs. Taylor, dtaylor@VeritasSavannah.org for details.) The critters will keep nicely in your freezer -woohoo!
• Have your rising 9th and 10th grader listen to this short story from Flannery O’Connor. She is an author they will study during the second semester in American Literature. This a rare audio of this author reading her own story. Great stuff!
• Have your children exchange letters (Letter? What’s that?) with far-away cousins, friends, or grandparents.
• Do several half-day service projects. Mow and clean-up an elderly neighbor’s yard. Help grandparents with a project. Ask your church for ideas and suggestions.
• Parents, please read these two articles. 1) A Theology of the Home is a fine discussion of the importance of home life. While we must not idolize our homes, we must also be careful not to underestimate the value of healthy home life. 2) You may not agree with all of the ideas in The Case for Free-Range Children, but I do think it will challenge some of your assumptions. There is much research that links healthy benefits for children who are not cooped up in the house all day or locked inside a fenced backyard. I often wonder if fear (often unfounded) has caused parents to be over protective and restrictive.