Summer learning. It’s a great idea and it’s always filled with lots of great intentions, but lets face it: most of us don’t really plan for it in our homeschool budgets each year. That means we’re either overspending or ignoring learning opportunities altogether.
Spoiler alert: it doesn’t have to be that way. Today I’m sharing some easy and free summer learning ideas to add to your homeschool plans! 
*This post is sponsored by Homeschool Buyers Co-Op and contains referral links. See disclosure for details.*
Whether you’re taking a break for a few months or homeschooling year-round, summer is a great time to introduce new techniques and skills or to enjoy a relaxed approach to learning.
Unfortunately, the cost for all of that usually adds up pretty quickly. What’s worse is that all of those fun things can require a lot one-on-one attention, which makes it tough for homeschooling parents to get much downtime in the summer.
Easy & Free Summer Learning Ideas
I’ve shared before how the Homeschool Buyers Co-op is one of the ways I save money on homeschool curriculum, so it probably shouldn’t have surprised me to learn that they’ve got this easy and free summer learning thing planned out for us.
Here are some 100% free summer learning ideas from our friends at the Homeschool Buyers Co-op.
Learn How to Cook
I get it. No one wants to turn on the oven when it’s 100° degrees outside, much less teach the kids how to cook while it’s so stinking hot. It might sound counterintuitive to suggest cooking lessons over the summer, but Kids Cook Real Food uses some smart ways to teach cooking skills without heating up your kitchen: InstantPot and slow cooker recipes.
As much as I love the idea of my kids learning to cook dinner, I love that they can learn for free… without me being the one to lord over them and instruct every step! Since Kids Cook Real Food is part of Free for the Summer program from The Homeschool Buyers Co-op, I can cross life skills off my summer learning goals without dipping into my homeschool budget.
Get Artsy
Let Your Student Lead
Summer is a fantastic time to encourage child-led learning! One easy way to do this is through the video resources that are included in the Co-op’s Free for the Summer deal: Visual Latin and CCC! Streaming Media (you can select one CCC! program).
Keep Skills Fresh
- Keep math skills fresh with with DoodleMaths.
- Use MathHelp.com for older students preparing for SAT or ACT testing. It’s a wonderful tool to help ensure they continue to build mastery over the summer.
- Turn to Fix-It Grammar from IEW for a quick and easy way to ensure their writing skills don’t suffer during the summer months!
Make It A Game
Whether you call it gameschooling, funschooling, or sneaky learning, summer is a great time to introduce educational games into our homeschool classrooms.
The Co-op has awesome game-based learning programs that we can enjoy for free all summer long. Kids can learn to code with CodaKid and CompuScholar. Check out Q Wunder’s fun games that reinforce the skills we teach our children every day like responsibility, self-awareness, teamwork, and patience.
In closing, know that you don’t have to fall victim to summer brain-drain! Take advantage of these free opportunities at the Homeschool Buyers Co-op! As always, membership is free and comes with lots of exclusive year-round perks. JOIN NOW!