Summer Survival Assistance for MilKids

The long, lazy, hazy days of summer are stretching out before us. For military families on the move, these days can be crazy, hectic and stressful.

There are tools out there to help military families!

Summer Learning

Moving so often can cause gaps in learning. It might be math or literacy or basic skills, but many military connected children are missing core content.

This summer, military families have opportunities to help cover those gaps.

Blue Star Museums is a program organized Blue Star Families. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, military families can access amazing museums around the country for free. This means that MilKids can access science, history, art, and just plain old fun all summer long.

For PCSing families, this is a great way to combine your road trip with learning. Many museums also offer discounts for veterans, Guard, and Reserve troops as well.

Our partner, MilKids Ed, is also offering a free 10 week Summer Learning Challenge. This is open to all families, with or without military connections. Over the course of the email series, families will learn fun and easy ways to build learning into everyday life. From making DIY ice cream to practical reading tips, families will be well on their way to avoiding any summer slide. By signing up, families will also find awesome advice to get ready for the first day of the 2017-2018 school year.

Reading Programs

On and off base, libraries in our communities are offering summer reading series. Enrollment is usually free and includes fun prizes for meeting milestones.

This is a great way to incentivize your child’s reading!

As a bonus, a lot of these programs feature online tracking. This means that you can log minutes from anywhere, even vacation.

If you are PCSing, check with your current home library to see if they would cover mailing your kiddos their rewards. You could offer to cover shipping. Or find a friend to pick up the prizes and send them on to you later.

Get Outside

Did your child just finish fourth grade? That means your family is eligible for Every Kid in a Park! You can access US National Parks all summer long, for free, as a family. For families with children heading into fourth grade, you can register for your year-long pass starting on September 1, 2017.

All active duty military families, as well as many members of the Guard and Reserve, qualify for free passes to US National Parks. This means that everyone in your family can access popular National Parks all the time, even if you don’t have a fourth grade student.

Our National Parks have beautiful hiking, biking, and riding trails. They also offer scenic camping and other recreation activities.

If you’re taking a road trip this summer, you could totally plan it just around National Parks and Blue Star Museums!

Find a New School

One of the biggest worries for military families on the move is finding a new school. Whether they are PCSing, moving as a result of changes in Guard or Reserve duty, or getting out of the military life, this is a huge stressor.

The Ultimate School Comparison Worksheet can help families dig through the different school ranking services to sort out what is most important to your family. Using sites like Niche, SchoolDigger, and Great Schools offers up a wealth of information, but can be overwhelming. Especially for families who are juggling other complex situations, like PCSing, having an easy way to compare schools on paper can be a lifesaver.

Luckily, this resource is free to download.

If you are still having a tough time, using the School Liaison Officers at your new duty station is another great tool to find the perfect school for your family. They can offer insights into military friendly districts, help transfer IEPs, and work with finding high school juniors and seniors paths to graduation.

Spread the Word

Military families, especially those located far from base or no longer on active duty, can be disconnected from the many resources and programs available to them. If you know a military, Guard, Reserve, or veteran family, send this post to them today! Share it all over your social media and with your local community groups.

One of the biggest ways that you can support the Kids of America’s Heroes is simply by sharing your knowledge and time with them. Letting your local libraries, schools, and community centers know about the awesome resources and programs in this post can help all families, even those without military connections.

By spreading the message, military connected children can have a super fun and productive summer vacation.

What are your favorite resources for military connected children during the summer? Tell us in the comments!

Meg Flanagan M.Ed and K.O.A.H. Military Education Specialist

I'm a teacher, blogger, writer, runner, mother, and military spouse. I am passionate about helping ALL children learn, offering tips to guide parents through the K-12 education world, and providing useful advice to teachers of all ages and stages.Visit Meg's Blog at MilKidsEd.com

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