Looking for some fun, summer learning activities to close out the year? Want to send home some summer learning activities with your students? Do you teach summer school? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you’re in the right place. Today I’m bringing you a summer roundup of fun activities your students will love!
How To Use Summer Learning Activities
End of the Year Review
Summer might be my favorite time of year. And yes, I love summer break, but aside from that I just really love those summertime vibes. There’s something special about this time of year, and I love leaning into the magic in my classroom. For me, that typically means embracing a summer theme for the last month that school is in session. The kids LOVE this, and I think it’s a fun reminder of what’s to come as we review. Aside from this though, there are a couple of other ways to use summer learning activities too!
Summer Learning at Home
I really hate the Summer Slide. I don’t know about you, but my students work too hard during the year just to slide backward during the summer. That’s why I love sending home a few summer themed activities at the end of the school year. Students can use the activities on their own or with the help of a parent to do a little review during the summer holiday.
Summer School Lessons
As a primary teacher, we’re often given the opportunity to teach summer school. And while some teachers might say “No way!” I love being able to help support students over the summer. Teaching summer school doesn’t have to be a drag, I promise! With hands-on learning activities and engaging themes, I know you can enjoy this time of year too!
If you’re ready to mix it up in your room and layer on the fun, come along to see some of my favorite summer learning activities for math and literacy.
Snap Cube Summer Learning Activities
Let’s kick this list off with one of my favorites… snap cubes! If you’re not using these magical tools in your classroom, you’re missing out on an amazing opportunity to target math and literacy skills through hands-on learning. Not to mention, students LOVE them, which certainly makes summer learning a bit easier. I use a variety of these in my lessons.
Summer Math and Literacy Activities
First up, these Summer Math and Literacy Snap Cube Mats will be the multitasking hero you never knew you needed. As teachers, we all know what it’s like to have a LONG to-do list and a short amount of time to accomplish it. I love these mats because they’re quick and easy to prepare and target so many important skills. I like to print and laminate these ahead of time and then have students use them throughout the summer months.
These mats focus on letter and sound recognition, number recognition, and subitizing. These important skills are easy to forget over the summer, so using them in your classroom before summer break is a great way to brush up! They’re also perfect for reviewing during summer sessions, and as a bonus, you can easily use these during the first few weeks of school as students settle in. They’ll love the summer-themed pictures like ice cream and watermelon and you’ll love how simple they are to use!
More Snap Cube Games
Are your students working on data and graphing? If so, you’ll love this next idea on my list of summer learning activities! These mats are designed to focus on rolling, counting, and graphing in a fun way. Best of all, these mats are great for independent practice, making them the perfect candidate for your morning tubs!
To play, students will use dice to roll a colored snap cube. Next, they will then find a matching snap cube and place it on the mat. Finally, they color in one square on the graph recording sheet beside the matching color. Students will repeat this process until the mat is full and a summer shape is revealed.
Working on tens frames instead? No worries! Grab these Roll, Snap, and Frame mats that use the same general idea, but ask students to fill in a tens frame instead of graph paper. Both options are the perfect way to encourage hands-on learning and target critical thinking skills as students practice important math skills this summer!
Summer Pattern Block Activities
Aside from snap cubes, pattern blocks are another one of my favorite classroom manipulatives. Pairing these with engaging pattern block mats will capture student interest, and make for a super simple way to target important math skills this summer! These versatile summer learning activities can be used for center time, an emergency sub tub, and partner games.
The Roll and Match Mats focus on rolling a die, counting, and identifying pattern block shapes. To play, students will roll dice and count what they got. Next, they find and name the corresponding shape for the number they rolled, find a pattern block of the same shape, and place it on the mat. Students will continue this process until the mat is full. If you’ve assigned this activity as a partner game, kiddos can take turns doing this. After the mat is filled in, they will count how many of each shape and write it in the box. I have two options for this activity, a Summer theme as well as a set of Ocean Animals.
My kids love these activities so much that I also created mats that focus on spinning a spinner instead of rolling a die. This is a simple way to mix it up and add a different kind of fine motor practice to the mix. I have mats for Summer and Ocean Animals for this option as well! And as one more added bonus, the print-and-go options included with each one allow you to do just that! No need to laminate these versions. Simply supply your students with crayons and have them color in the shapes instead of placing them on the mats.
Summer Learning Activities for the Writing Center
Primary writing activities are the best! I love watching students go from learning to print to writing words, to crafting their own sentences and stories! Aside from learning to read, it’s one of the most magical things to watch unfold! Because of this love for writing, I like to include thematic and seasonal writing materials in our writing center each month. When summer rolls around, it’s time to focus on fun themes like:
- July 4th
- Ocean Animals
- Beach
- Summer Treats
- Summer
- Cookout & BBQ
- Circus
- Travel & Vacation
Students love these themes, so it’s easy to capture engagement! They love the variety of activities included in the Summer Writing Center set and I love seeing what they come up with. Inside this resource, I’ve included activities for many different levels, making differentiation a breeze. You’ll find letter and word tracing activities, list-writing activities, simple writing prompts, and more advanced options as well. Not only do these make a great addition to an actual writing center, but they’re also perfect for whole-class lessons, writer’s workshops, or summer homework activities!
Summer Ocean Animals Lapbook
Have you tried lapbooks yet? No matter how many times I use them, they remain one of my absolute favorite tools for teaching young students about new topics. They’re versatile, easy to customize, engaging, and they make a great keepsake too! In the summer months, we use this Ocean Animals Lapbook to learn about some amazing creatures in the sea. Many different topics are covered inside including sharks, whales, crabs, dolphins, and more.
The idea behind these little wonders is that as students learn interesting facts about specific animals, they will be able to fill out foldable pieces and add them to their lapbooks. We use a manilla folder to make ours and the students add prompts and pieces as they create them. Once they’re finished, every child has a beautiful, colorful visual record of everything we’ve learned! The best part though is that you can use these as a whole-group learning activity, complete a few pieces each day, or work on these in small groups. The options are endless!
Summer Learning Activities for 2D Shapes
Learning 2D shapes can be a little tricky for primary students, so why not make it more fun and engaging with interactive games?! I’m a huge fan of learning games, and they come in especially handy to review shapes during the summer months.
What I love most about these Summer Shape Games is that they are so fun for students, that they hardly notice they’re learning! The wide variety of options means we can practice all summer without having to worry about kiddos checking out either! Some of my favorites include:
- BUMP
- BINGO
- Match It!
- Dominoes
- Spin and Cover
- Count and Graph and more!
You probably already guessed that I like to prep these ahead and laminate them for durability. I know it’s an extra step, but trust me- you will want to play these more than once! Doing this prep work ahead of time means you’ll have an easy-to-use summer learning game at the ready all through the season!
No Prep Summer Math Activities
Last, on this roundup of summer learning ideas, I have an easy, low-prep set of math activities your students will love! These Summer Counting Games for Numbers 0-10 will be your go-to option for math review this summer. Inside, you’ll find 5 different activities including:
- Count and Graph Worksheets
- Count and Tally Worksheets
- Task Clip Cards
- Cut and Paste Counting Worksheets
- Count and Color Worksheets
Students will use each of the activities to focus on counting objects to ten. These activities are the perfect way to focus on one-to-one correspondence and number sense skills this summer. Whether you use them for morning work, center time, or homework, they provide a simple and easy way to practice important math skills.
Summer Learning Activities for Everyone
I hope you found something fun and exciting to try in your classroom. Whether you’re looking for end-of-the-year review, summer school lessons, or fun learning activities to send home – I know your students will love them! Not to mention, their low-prep merits, ease of use, and hands-on format will make them a clear winner to you too! You can find all of these versatile summer learning activities in my TPT Shop. Have fun planning your own summer learning adventures.
Save These Summer Learning Activities
Not ready for summer learning activities just yet? No problem! Save them on your classroom Pinterest board so you remember to come back to them when you’re ready.
