Summer Vacation

The weather has finally changed for the better and May’s flowers are now in full bloom. Another school year will come to a close and there will be thousands of youth looking for things to do. There will be another group of youth who would have completed the kindergarten through twelfth grade journey and will now be entering college or the workforce.

Let me be the first to say that just because school is out that doesn’t mean learning has to stop. For the group of students who have not graduated and are still enrolled in school there are plenty of opportunities for you to engage in academic summer programs throughout the city and county. As parents we have to make sure we go out and get access to every opportunity available for our children. Often times it is just a matter of signing up. It is significantly important that we do not allow our students to take a break academically because more often then not our students spend the summer months engaging in little-to-no academic behavior. As a parent or guardian it is your job to continue to hold your child to the expectation that they will continue to learn new things even when school is not in session. Parents must look for summer programs that continue to promote and expose their child to high levels of literacy and math. Particularly important is the exposure to literacy as many of our youth do not read or write enough during the summer months, which often places them behind at the start of the following school year. Even as an adult and college graduate literacy is still my weakest area, which is why I continue to read and write as much as possible. I know I will never be the best at it, but it won’t be due to a lack of effort. If your child is not enrolled in a program, then take him or her to your local community library and have them sign out a book or two of interests that both of you could read together. I can’t think of a better way to improve your child’s reading ability while still spending time together.

Now, for those students who are completing high school let me be the first to congratulate you on your upcoming graduation. Congratulations you made it! For many of you, you are the first in your family to obtain a high school diploma. Enjoy and treasure this moment but don’t get overly excited because your work is far from over. In today’s economic condition it is critically important that you prepare yourself for college or trade school. I encourage you to not necessarily take this summer as a break but to use it as a transition period to prepare yourself for the “real world.” What you do this summer will setup your path down the road of life, therefore make sure you take advantage of every networking and academic opportunity available. If you are going away for college make sure you spend this summer with friends and family while still engaging and learning new things. In retrospect I wish I had prepared myself better for the rigor of college and spent some time reading more about my major or about topics that intrigued me.

Lastly, summer time has been meant as a time to break away from the normal challenges of the school environment but given the poor educational achievement of many that break can no longer be afforded. I challenge you and your parents to make the most of your summer and my hope is that by the end you would have become more knowledgeable then when it began.

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¡Viviendo el Sueño! (Living the Dream!)
Mr. Anibal Soler, Jr.
http://www.anibalsoler.com
http://anibalsoler.blogspot.com