Plenty to keep kids busy this summer

That’s it … another school year under our belts. Summer is here, and kids are excited and eagerly anticipating all the typical summer activities — swimming and playing with friends during the long summer days. Teachers are heaving great sighs of utter exhaustion and taking a brief pause before looking towards their own summer plans. Some will launch into summer jobs, while many will be making plans for summer professional development opportunities. Parents who both work outside the home are scrambling for summer activities to keep their kids busy.

Fortunately, a lot is going on for kids during the summer. The Clovis Schools holds athletic camps and clinics all summer, for a wide range of ages, including preschoolers. Check this link periodically — http://www.clovis-schools.org/athletics/Camps.html — updated, as activities and events are added.

We are continuing with our Summer Reading Program, too, as we have in recent years. Swing by our Central Administration Office (1009 Main), which remains open year round to pick up the Summer Reading Logs. They are available for Pre-K, kindergarten through second grade, third through fifth grade, and sixth grade through eighth. If you’re unable to drop by in person, you can also download the logs from our school website at http://www.clovis-schools.org/instructional_resources/summer-reading.html.

It’s so important for students to continue reading during the summer months to keep those little brains active and growing so they do well during the next school year. The way it works is: read books, record them on the Summer Reading Log, and bring them by Central Office in exchange for summer treats, generously donated by our wonderful local businesses. Logs can be brought in one at a time, periodically, or altogether at the end to exchange for a treat coupon. Treats range from free ice cream cones to sodas to hamburgers, burritos and more.

Clovis Community College also offers Kids College http://www.clovis.edu/kidscollege/ with a wide range of amazing activities, some free, some with a minimum fee. From all sorts of physical activities, such as tennis, cheerleading, volleyball, weight training, tumbling, martial arts, creative dance, camping, archery, to name a few. How about wildlife tracking, astronomy, scavenger hunts at Oasis State Park, family summer science nights, and this is only a few of the activities. It just takes a little investigation, but there’s a ton of stuff going on this summer.

Whatever activities you line up, have a great and productive summer, and we’ll see you next year!

Cindy Kleyn-Kennedy is the Instructional Technology Coordinator for the Clovis Municipal Schools and can be reached at [email protected]