They've been home for a few weeks now. What do you have planned for your children this summer? There’s camp, family vacations, visits to grandparents and other relatives, fun, games, SUMMER FUN!!

Summertime is a great opportunity to get to know your child better. If you’re a stay-at-home parent, it’s easy to plan all day activities with them. If you work outside the home, the best thing to do is to plan to spend time with them when you are relaxed and refreshed. Don’t do it when you get home from work and are in the midst of your “second job.” When you’re tired is not the ideal time to have together time with your child.

Take time now to plan some week-ends or several early evening dates with your child. Let them know that Mom or Dad wants to go to the park or for a walk with them and make a firm date and time.

Talk to them when you’re alone together and find out what their real interests are. One father I know thought his daughter was interested in playing soccer and baseball. He found out, from their evening walks that she really had a talent for, and was interested in, sports writing. He and his wife took their daughter to the library and found great books on sports writers and TV sportscasters.

A mother was pleasantly surprised to know that her twins were just as fascinated as she was with astronomy. They were also curious about weather patterns. One of the twins surprised her by declaring he wanted to be a meteorologist. A trip to a “weather tower” at a Children’s Science Museum became a fun family trip.

Spend good time with your children; they will surprise you. The child who likes ice cream may have an interest in becoming a pastry chef. One who loves the ocean may see a career as an oceanographer.

Learning doesn’t end in the classroom and it doesn’t need to be just the three “R’s.”A simple get-to-know-you outing may open up learning possibilities for both you and your child. Let their interests lead you to help them pursue the right educational path.

As a child, Jacques Cousteau liked to hold his breath under water for as long as he could. He saw the old-fashioned diving suits at an aquarium but thought they were clumsy and not good for swimming. He wanted to be free like his favorite marine mammal, the dolphin. Walking along the beach one day, he complained to his mother that he wished there was a “bubble” to help him stay under water like a dolphin. His mother said that maybe one day he would invent something that would do what he wished.

Mr. Cousteau invented the “self-contained underwater breathing apparatus” aka, SCUBA.Something to think about.