Summer Learning
2021
Finally!
Summertime is here! It is time to rest, relax, and rejuvenate! Enjoy your summer! We will be busy preparing for you to return this fall and look forward to seeing all of you.
Warmest wishes from Grand Blanc Community Schools for a wonderful summer!
GRASP SUMMER ENRICHMENT
The GRASP program is a nine-week program in reading and math for grades K-8. The program helps students retain skills learned during the past school year and prevent that summer learning loss.
The cost is $38 for one subject or $68 for both Math and Reading, per child.
MAIL IN GRASP (GRADES K-8th)
Children may choose two different options to participate in GRASP. Children may choose the correspondence or mail-in version of GRASP. If choosing to participate by mail, children receive a packet of materials and mail in a lesson a week. The lessons are scored and returned to the student.
ONLINE GRASP (GRADES 4-8th ONLY)
Note that we have the online option only available for grades 4-8. When participating online, lessons are scored immediately. There are no books sent. Everything is done on the computer.
The children can earn awards for participating in GRASP.
Students who pass (70% or above) on 7 lessons are awarded a certificate. A medal is awarded for passing all 9 lessons.
For more information or to enroll your child in the GRASP program, click here.
ELEMENTARY ACTIVITIES FOR MUSIC, ART, TECH EX, & LIBRARY
- Art
- Library - Be sure to use the drop-down menu in the upper-right corner so you can view each library's page.
- Music
- Physical Education
- Tech Ex
SUMMER READING CHALLENGE
June 12 – August 7, 2021
Tails & Tales Online Reading Challenges
The Summer Reading Challenge is open to all ages, please participate in only one age group per reader.
- Babies (ages Birth-2)
- Kids (ages 2-8)
- Tweens (ages 9-12)
- Teens (ages 13-18)
- Adults (18+)
- Register by clicking here.
- Log your reading and activities to earn a prize
- Enter ticket drawings for even more chances to win prizes
- Visit your local branch to redeem prizes
Summer Reading Resources for Kids
1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
Read 1,000 books before your child starts Kindergarten and track your progress using Beanstack.
- Register by clicking here.
- Track the amount of books you read. Repeat titles count!
- For every 100 books you read, earn a sticker and a free book prize.
- Complete the challenge by reading 1,000 books. Visit your local branch to get a completion certificate.
Want to keep track of your reading progress on a paper then log your activity online? Click here to print a paper log.
Looking for book suggestions? Start with this booklist: Books Your Child Should Hear Before Kindergarten
Calling all Tweens & Teens!
Join our MiLibrary Quest Today!
The adventure begins June 1! Join the quest to find descriptions of unique, weird, or even endangered animals across Michigan library websites. Go to MiLibrary Quest’s Field Guide to look up your animals and add them to your personal digital field journal. For more information click here.
Your Clue: You find an eel with a long, thin body and large jaws which are often opened wide
A Magical Summer of Reading Challenge
The Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge
This year's Challenge theme, A Magical Summer of Reading, encourages students to join in the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the U.S. publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone while tracking their summer reading minutes. Participants can see the Challenge theme come to life with beautiful artwork by Jim Kay from the Harry Potter illustrated series.
Students who are registered for the Challenge by an educator, public librarian, or community literacy partner can:
- Log their reading minutes to earn digital prizes when they complete weekly reading challenges and gain access to 18 reading activities, including games, quizzes, and videos based on the Harry Potter series;
- Access videos featuring popular children's book authors reading aloud from their titles and illustrators bringing their characters to life;
- Use the new timer feature that acts as a stopwatch to track their personal reading time;
- Monitor their participating school, public library, or community literacy partner organization's reading progress by using the interactive map.
Tips to Make Summer Reading Happen
1. CHOICE: Let your kids choose the books that they read. Kids Need to Pick Out Books.
2. BOUNTY: Fill your house with lots of books. More books = more chances for your children to find a fantastic, amazing, very good book that they can’t put down.
3. LIBRARY: Use your library. Let your kids go WILD and check out lots of books!
4. TIME: Kids need opportunities for reading. So, make sure they’re not filling all their time with TV, video games, and iPad time.
5. TECHNOLOGY: Don’t forget about audiobooks, Kindles, iPads, and Nook reading. Ebooks and audiobooks count as reading, too. (See: audiobooks for tweens & audiobooks for teens.)
6. READABILITY: Make sure your child is reading books that he or she can actually comprehend. When choosing a book, use the 5 finger test to decide if it’s a just right book. During and after reading, ask your child to tell you a little bit about the story. If you haven’t read the story, read the back and ask questions pertaining to that summary. Make sure your child is understanding what he reads — and that he KNOWS IF HE DOESN’T. For more clarity about reading comprehension, visit this post.
7. COZY READING SPACE: Kids LOVE a Cozy Book Nook. It doesn’t have to be fancy but it does need to involve the kids. Find a corner – those work best. Let your child add pillows, lamps, books, stuffed animals, a headlamp or flashlight, and create a special space.
Read more tips on how to make an enticing book nook.
8. DOWN-TIME: Kids Need Margins Just Like We Do. We all need unscheduled time to rest and relax. Kids especially. Remember to make time during the day for rest and reading.
9. READING WHILE WATCHING: Do you want your child reading while they’re watching TV? Turn on closed captioning!
Summer Reading Lists for Kids
Does your child want to practice their letters, sounds, and sight words?
FAMILY ACTIVITIES
20+ Things to do in Michigan: Your Ultimate Summer Bucket List
Top 10 Family Vacation Ideas in Michigan
Fun and Healthy Summer Activities for Families
TAKE A BREAK OUTSIDE
Virtual Field Trips
Click on the links below to begin your travels!
The Nature Conservancy • Detroit Zoo
Ann Arbor Children’s Museum STEM Field Trips
MATH ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES & RESOURCES
Online Games
Games to play with Dice or Cards
Home Activities
Math at Home from the Bridges Curriculum Choice Boards First choose your grade level, then at the top of the next page, select a set to focus on.
Fun with Math at Home Activities
Mathies Home Support - Activities to do at Home. Home Connections is broken down by grade level and they are short activities that children can do at home.
Number Sense Activities
Splat - Number Sense activities any grade level
Which One Doesn’t Belong? - give students a picture of 4 items and they have to justify why one of the 4 doesn’t belong...There is no one right answer as long as they can give a reasonable explanation:
Same, but Different: Discuss how are the 2 images the same, and how are they different?
Worksheets