One of our family traditions is to set summer goals each year.
On a Sunday afternoon at the end of the school year or during the first week or two of summer, we all sit around the table together, pass out a small sheet of lined paper to everyone, and work on our goals for the summer.
The girls always know in advance that we are going to do this, so they have a few days or a week to think about what goals they might set for themselves.
Here are two things to know about setting our summer goals:
- These summer goals are kid-led. We don’t choose goals for them, although we can help them think if they ask. Summer is a great time to explore your own interests and think about what you want to accomplish and learn. We want these summer goals to be fun and engaging, not heavy and expensive.
- These summer goals are rather discreet. We have no rewards for meeting them (except for their revenue goals, which I’ll discuss below), there are no punishments for not meeting them, and we don’t have rigorous oversight over them. Again, we want summer goals to be exciting, not like an anchor that ruins the summer.
Once everyone has listed their goals, we go around and everyone shares which goals they want to share (usually it’s all of them, but there’s no obligation to do so – if you’d like to keep some private, you’re more than welcome).
The only goal everyone has is a goal of winning. We help each girl choose an act that seems reasonable for her to perform during the summer (this ranges from about $250 for our 9 year old to over $2,000 for our 15 year old).
At the end of summer, we have a fun family outing (usually a nice dinner out and pedicures or facials or something) for everyone who has reached that income goal.
Here are some of the goals we have set for this summer:
Some of my 9 year old son’s summer goals:
- Be able to do a front hand flip on the trampoline
- Cooking dinner with mom 3 times
- Be able to throw the rope while wake surfing
- Reach 80 words per minute typing
Some of my 11 year old son’s summer goals:
- Swim a 50-second 50m freestyle
- Learn to wake surf on the trick board
- Do 10 minutes of daily ASL practice
Some of my 13 year old son’s summer goals:
- Take a coding class and get your ears pierced
- Be able to do a 360 on the surfboard
- Beat all swim times from last season
Some of my 15 year old son’s summer goals:
Some of my summer goals:
- Catch up on my Goodreads reading goal (I’m currently 19 books behind!)
- Replace our front door (it’s in SUCH bad shape with peeling paint and bubbling texture)
- Clean the dryer vent (I did this a few years ago and unscrewed and cleaned the entire vent system)
- Start a new puzzle immediately every time I complete one
- Find all my travel videos (I have about 4 to do at the moment)
Everyone hangs their goals where they can see them (in their closet or on a mirror or something), then about once a month during the summer we review our goals and see how everyone is doing.
Sometimes goals are achieved early, some are adjusted, and others are discarded.
I feel like so many people have really bad experiences with New Year’s resolutions or goal setting and my goal is to impress upon my kids that goals are to help you have a clear understanding of where you’re trying to go and improve your life, not to be something that makes you feel ashamed or that can’t be adjusted as your life changes.
Questions about our summer goals? I’m happy to answer!
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