Welcome to the 2019 edition of the Summer Challenge ! We are proposing some new and exciting activities that will keep our students entertained throughout the summer holidays. They will also be learning some valuable lessons but no need to emphasise that!
As parents, we encourage you to take an active role in this Summer Challenge and support the children to accomplish the tasks. In some cases the children will need some help and guidance, but the whole point of the challenge is that the children engage in these activities and become accountable for their own learning.
Still not convinced? Listen to what students, parents and teachers had to say about the activity in previous years. .
How it works…
All children will be provided with a new “Summer Tasks Sheet”. You can also find the tasks below, with ideas and links which will help the children to accomplish each one.
The children will also need a scrap book in which they will document their adventures. The scrap book will serve as a diary and proof that the children have actually completed the task. Co-incidentally, it will also make for a beautiful keepsake which you and the children can cherish in the future. There are numerous educational benefits to scrap booking. Check out 2 interesting websites here and here.
It is up to the children how to decorate and present the tasks they complete in the scrap book. There are plenty of ideas online, particularly on Youtube. The important thing is that for ever task that is accomplished, they document this in the scrap book. They can stick photos, drawings, decorations, tickets, leaflets or they can write and draw directly in the scrap book. Here is one video that gives you an idea about scrap booking. Remember, it doesn’t need to be anything elaborate but of course make it worthwhile.
Have the children start by decorating the scrap book cover, not forgetting to include their name. Then stick the “Summer Tasks Sheet” in the scrap book for easy reference.
As the children complete a task, they should “talk” about it in their scrap book, then cross it out from the sheet to indicate that it has been completed.
The Challenge
We are challenging the children to complete a different number of tasks depending on the year group as follows:
- Children starting Year 3 and Year 4 in September 2019 – 10 tasks
- Children starting Year 5 in September 2019 – 15 tasks
- Children starting Year 6 in September 2019 – 20 tasks
In Summary
- Get a scrap book (or file or anything that will work for you).
- Decorate the cover.
- Stick the “Summer Tasks Sheet” inside. You can download the sheet here – Summer Activity Challenge 2019.
- Choose a task and complete it.
- Add evidence about the activity in your scrap book.
- Cross out the task that has been completed.
- Complete the number of tasks required.
- Make it look good!
In October 2019, children are to hand in the scrap book to their teachers. Children who will have completed the challenge will receive a certificate and those children who manage to complete all activities will receive a special reward!
The Tasks
Here is the list of activities with some links and suggestions.
- Use your Heritage passport to visit a historic site. You can find more information about the passport here .
- Grow an avocado tree from the seed. It is actually easier than you think. Find out how here.
- Collect 10 pieces of rubbish from a beach. Next time you are on the beach pick up 10 (or more) pieces of litter and dispose of them properly. And make sure you do not leave any litter of your own behind.
- Survive for a whole day without any form of technology! No technology! No TV. No tablet. No mobile. No laptop. No internet!
No cheating! And yes, it can be done! And yes, you will survive. - Make pizza. Get the recipe for the dough from an adult and then top up with your favourite ingredients. Or check here for instructions.
- Learn how to find the North Star at night. The North Star appears to always be in the same place in the sky. To find it you need to find the Great Bear, also known as the “Big Dipper”. To find the Great Bear… well, it is easier if you check this website!
- Learn about a famous scientist. Here is a whole list to choose from!
- Watch a documentary on TV. You might actually learn something!
- Make a science experiment with eggs. Check this link for some ideas.
- Make as many words as you can using the letters in “holidays”. Using the letters in “holidays” you can make up to 184 new words…
- Do a random act of kindness. Be nice! Surprise someone!
- Watch sunrise on the beach. Get up early, go to the beach and enjoy one of the most beautiful spectacles that nature offers us every day.
- Learn to say “good morning”, “please” and “thank you” in 5 languages.
- Read for 15 minutes everyday for 10 consecutive days. Warning: this could become a habit!
- Find a fossil. Take a picture of it. Do some research….
- Recycle toilet paper tubes into something useful. Check this link for ideas.
- Complete the online course called “Beyond Bullying”. This online self-learning course will help you understand what bullying is and is not. It will help you develop what it takes to not be bullied. Click here and register to follow the course in your own time. (This activity is more suitable for older children, younger ones will need an adult’s help).
- Give up straws. Easy but you will be doing a lot in terms of saving the environment.
- Learn how to play Solitaire with a real deck of cards. Before computers and the internet, Solitaire was played with real cards! Learn how to play it!
- Learn how to say a tongue twister real fast!
- Make a papier mache bowl. Instructions here!
- Play “I spy”…
- Bake a cake.
- Play hopscotch (passju).
- Read a poem.
- Go to a fish market/shop and learn to identify 5 fish.
- Draw a picture of the same animal everyday for a week. Choose an animal. Look for instructions on how to draw it online. Compare your last picture with the first one…
- Leave water for stray animals. In the summer heat, stray animals struggle to find fresh water. Help them out!
- Write a short story.
- Make marbled paper. There are different ways of doing this and you can use all sorts of material. Here is an easy way of marbling paper with oil and food colouring.