Summertime, and the livin’s easy, right?  But as long as you’re lying around by the pool with all your friends, you can use some of that time to for summer math review.

What?!?  Summer math practice by the pool?!?  Who ever heard of such a thing?  Well, math is like a language of sorts, and if you don’t use it, you lose it.  We aren’t suggesting you bring the math book you forgot to turn back in, and practice math equations in between back flips.  But we are saying that you should do a few things to keep the brain nimble (especially that left brain hemisphere where a good deal of your math knowledge is stored).

So here are just a few light suggestions for ways to keep your math brain in gear, so next year’s math classes will start out easy-breezy.

 1.) Check out fun logic and brain puzzle websites.

There are a ton of great websites out there that are dedicated to logic problems and puzzles.  Your summer math review sessions don’t have to involve working out Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, they just have to keep that left brain lubricated so the gears don’t stick.  Take this problem, Car Theft, from the website Brainbashers.com.  It’s an “easy” one.  There are all kinds of logic problems, puzzles, illusions, Sudoku, and a dozen other fun ways to boost your math practice this summer and have fun at the same time.

2.) Sign up for a “Problem of the Week”.

Is one math problem a week too much to ask? We didn’t think so.  Head on over to www.theproblemsite.com for great summer math review ideas.  You can even sign up for a “Problem of the Week” and everything can be customized to your age and/or math grade level.  Pretty cool way to stay indoors, beat the heat, and practice math this summer.  There are even games you can play with other students all over the world!

3.) Don’t forget to practice your estimation skills!

Estimating is a great technique to help you figure out if your answers are in the right ballpark.  Estimating can be done anywhere: how many grains of sand on the beach? How many pretty girls in the pool? How many studly lifeguards can come to your rescue if you pretend to drown? Well, you get the point.  Practice estimation and your summer math practice will be happening simultaneously.

And of course, you can always work with a Boston Math Tutor to help you keep your skills sharp.  Your math tutor in Boston can figure out fun ways for you to be a math superhero without feeling like you are doing a ton of work.

Have a fun week, wear your sunscreen, and good luck with those logic puzzles!  We expect you to be working out the “Difficult” problems by the time Labor Day comes around.