Summer nights usually mean no homework, late night TV and midnight movies. No fixed bedtime. But one charlotte family says the homework didn't stop just because classes did.
"I was really excited that I got it really quickly and it made me feel good that he wrote a letter back to me," said Katie Kirsch.
This summer 10 year-old Katie wrote a letter to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
The fifth grader is also writing to President Barack Obama.
It's just one of the many summer projects she's accomplished.
"They work really hard during the year and I just hated for them to kind of lose what they had learned during the year," said her mother Debbie Kirsch.
Debbie was on a journey to help her kids avoid the summer reading slide.
First stop was the public library.
"Josh and Ben each had a tutor, which kind of helped us get to the library and check out books," said Debbie.
"But it also kept us reading, practicing and writing."
The children also read at night and to one another.
Keeping reading a priority over the summer has helped all three of Debbie's children get ready for school.
But parents who didn't follow the Kirsh's lead are not out of luck.
"It's ABC- A is adjust their schedule," said Rhonda Gonzalez the Principal at Endhaven Elementary School.
Experts recommend changing your kids' routines now, to make the school year schedule easier.
"Begin now and especially next week to adjusting the time they are waking up," recommended Gonzalez.
"And B is for bedtime. Move that bedtime back so that students are getting plenty of sleep."
And C is for conversation.
Have a talk with your kiddos to get them pumped up about the school year.
And those talks could spark discussion which is a way to keep them engaged.
"I love reading with my kids so I mean just even and sitting with your kids is great so we every night we read before bedtime," said Debbie.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg school administrators say enrichment doesn't have to be pricey or interfere with summer.
It just needs to be interesting, fun and diverse and it should be woven into the family's day-to-day activities.
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