When school lets out for the summer, you are placed in a unique position as a parent to
carry on the torch of advancing your child’s progress toward achieving their IEP goals and skills.
The time your child would ordinarily be in school is now shifted to you. Now the question is
how can you make the most of this time during the summer with your child.
One important way to make the most of the time during the summer is to involve your
child in routine reading activities. Literary skills and comprehension progress is strengthened
when a student is routinely reading and answering questions about what they read. The following
programs allow your child to practice this:
Reading is Fundamental (RIF) – Offers book suggestions,
printable materials & activities for children and families, including those
with special needs).
ASD Reading – Designed specifically for students with Autism
Spectrum Disorder and other learning challenges, this program teaches
reading, writing & comprehension).
Free or low-cost tutoring within the school district or community group.
Additionally, establishing reading and comprehension routines in daily tasks can help support
IEP goals. They can also be fun. Consider implementing the following activities during the
beginning, middle, or end of a nice summer day. Some activities could be done during a car ride.
● Have your student complete daily journal entries
● Informal book club with your child
● Cook with your child (Ask your child to write the grocery list, find items in the
store & read the recipe aloud during cooking time. Measuring ingredients can
also help keep math skills from getting rusty.)
The following link is a tool to help you organize the routine activities you would engage in with
your child by subject. You can create one similar depending on you and your child’s personal
routine. However, the goal is to organize activities that can be completed daily and can be
measured to assess your child’s progress. This tool can also be utilized as an element of your
child’s IEP that demonstrates where your child’s progress is before the school year begins. The
tool will thus allow you to provide your child’s teacher with tangible efforts and progress to be
further built on in the classroom.