Having fun with science during the summer

Here are some ideas for keeping your kids engaged in learning about science during the summer vacation:

• Checkout fun science books at the children's section of Los Gatos library. Here are some great titles: The Magic School Bus Series, Weird But True Series, and How Does Is Work
• Visit the California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium. One day excursions to San Francisco are always a lot of fun. Other museums worthy of mention are: Tech Museum ,  Nasa Ames Exploration Center, Chabot Space And Science Museum and Lawrence Hall Of Science. It is always good after a museum outing to have your child describe some of their favorite exhibits. It is also nice to let them take pictures and videos of what they are seeing. After the visit you can have them create a book with pictures and descriptions.
• Start a project at home. One really great summer time project is starting a garden. As part of the planning, you can have your child learn about the different flowers and plants and keep track of their growth and watering (of course now with the water restrictions it might be wise to pick drought proof plants). Here's a really good site with wonderful suggestions for easy summer time science activities. 
• Checkout the engineering and coding camps offered through the Los Gatos Recreation Center.
• Youth Science Institute also offers camps and events during the summer.
• MysteryScience is a great website where you can learn about science concepts and do the experiments

Summer is definitely a time for kids to relax and have fun. It is also important to keep them engaged and make sure that learning continues during the many weeks of vacation.