The final bell rings, the school doors open, and a cheering throng of sweaty, heady kids races out of the school building and into the freedom of summer, their papers and pocket folders flung high in the warm air above.

Summertime is fun time, when kids can make and sell lemonade, read for fun, catch and release fireflies at twilight, and daydream. These last few weeks of the best time of the year can provide your child with rich opportunities to grow their brains while enjoying the traditional pastimes of the season.

As kids look forward to those shorter, crisper days, parents can still do more than buy supplies. When the first school bell rings, one initiative teachers across subject areas will likely launch, and that you can prepare your child for now, is STEM, or STEAM.