SUMMER LEARNING LOSS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM
Our children are sponges full of information and summer does a really great job of wringing them out and pouring all of that information they soaked up down the drain! In the fall, they come to school rested, sun-tanned and…well…clueless! Getting back all of that lost information that they learned the previous year is a struggle.

TAKE A LOOK AT THESE STATISTICS:
The average child loses about two full years’ worth of information by the time he/she graduates from high school…if she’s not involved in academic summer camps and summer programs for kids.

  • Summer learning loss starts as young as age 6!
  • It take up to 6 weeks for teachers to re-teach students everything they forgot from last school year.
  • Children often don’t perform as well in the first quarter of the year if they haven’t participated in academic summer camps and summer programs for kids.

PROBLEMS CAUSED BY SUMMER LEARNING LOSS
Summer learning loss puts children behind in school compared to their friends who did learn during the summer. This causes frustration and stress…especially when they’re seen as the “slower ones” in class during the first quarter of the year.

Struggling and frustration leads to low self-esteem. Many kids who aren’t learning as quickly as their friends who studied over the summer just assume it’s because they aren’t as smart as their friends. This ruins their motivation to improve, they fall further behind and that reinforces this nasty I’m dumb attitude.

It’s one vicious cycle! Unfortunately, cheering our kids on, holding up a foam finger and telling them they’re brilliant doesn’t always break that cycle! What can break the cycle is summer learning.

We’re not talking about the traditional science, reading and math camps that are no different than a class during the school year. Academic summer camps, summer tutoring programs and summer programs for kids exist for that reason! Before we get into the types of programs that exist, we’ll explain why summer is such a great time to learn.

SUMMER IS BEST TIME FOR KIDS TO LEARN MORE, BUILD CONFIDENCE & BECOME MOTIVATED
Avoiding summer learning loss isn’t the only reason why kids need academic summer camps, tutoring summer programs for kids and top summer schools. They also need ways to learn during the summer because the summer environment is the best learning environment for kids. Why?

REDUCED MENTAL FATIGUE DURING SUMMER BOOSTS LEARNING ABILITY & MENTAL PERFORMANCE
Academic summer camps and tutoring summer programs for kids allow kids and teens to learn their most difficult subjects at a time when their minds are most rested instead of when they’re mentally exhausted. This way, they have the best chance at doing well….and when they learn those tough subjects again in the fall, it will be easy for them and will require less studying during the year. Less stress? Yes please!

WHY IS MENTAL FATIGUE SO PROMINENT DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR AS OPPOSED TO SUMMER?
During the year, children take 6-8 classes, plus, they’re involved in extra curricular. They spend every hour of every day learning something – whether it’s academic subjects, sports skills, music, chores, etc. Their jam packed schedules and the constant need to keep their brains fully turned on means that their minds are in desperate need of a rest and they can’t seem to get it. When this happens, learning ability, memory and problem solving ability all drop dramatically.

This is why academic summer camps, tutoring summer programs for kids are so popular. That’s also why there’s such high demand for subject specific programs like math camps, reading summer programs, summer writing programs for elementary students.

SUMMER MEANS MORE TIME TO SLEEP – MORE SLEEP IMPROVES MENTAL FUNCTION & MAKES LEARNING EASIER
When your child learns something during the summer, he’s more likely to excel in that subject and remember information because his brain is working with enough sleep! (Growing children and teens need 10 or more hours of sleep per night!) During the year, most children’s jam-packed school and extracurricular schedules lead to sleep deprivation. This makes their brains WORSE at thinking, problem solving, remembering, learning, time management and mental speed.

If you have kids who have studied at top summer schools or participated in academic summer camps and summer programs for kids, you’ve probably noticed that they do better during the summer than during the school year. Ah…see? There’s a method to the madness of summer learning…and reading, writing and math camps aren’t as evil as some may think!

KIDS HAVE DIFFERENT LEARNING STYLES – IN THE SUMMER, KIDS CAN LEARN ACCORDING TO THEIR SPECIFIC LEARNING STYLES
This point is truer for one-on-one summer tutoring programs for kids than it is for than group-oriented academic summer camps and top summer schools. Tutoring summer programs for kids focus more on your child than math camps, reading summer programs and summer writing programs for elementary students. How?

One-on-one tutoring programs can teach your child information in the way he learns best. This will eliminate confusion, allow him to play to his strengths, and give him an advantage in any subject that he studies during the summer. Teachers of academic summer camps and top summer schools can’t focus on the individual when they have entire groups of students to teach.

SUMMER LEARNING ALLOWS KIDS TO PRACTICE HOW THEY LEARN BEST
This is another point that’s much truer for one-on-one summer tutoring programs for kids than it is for than top summer schools and group-oriented academic summer camps. Customized lesson plans and teaching are great for your child, but so is customized practice. Not all homework is created equal! One-on-one tutors can design practice homework that fits your child’s learning style.

TIME OF DAY HAS A MAJOR IMPACT ON LEARNING ABILITY – WITH SUMMER LEARNING, YOU CAN CONTROL THE TIME OF DAY THAT YOUR CHILD LEARNS

Some people are night owls, some function better in the morning and some function best in the afternoon. If you’ve ever try to wrestle a night owl teenager out of bed at 7:00 a.m. on a school day, you know this all too well! Summer learning allows for more schedule flexibility, so your child can learn when her mind is most alert.

You can find the most flexibility in summer programs for kids (those that are one-on-one) because you can schedule tutoring at any time you want…even 9:00 at night!

With standard academic summer camps and also with top summer schools, the most flexibility you’ll have is the ability to choose from a list of pre-set times and dates. Some math camps, summer writing programs for elementary students/teens and reading summer programs have separate morning and afternoon sessions. This kind of moderate flexibility works perfectly for some, while others need a bit more flexibility.

SUMMER LEARNING IS DONE IN A LOW-STRESS ENVIRONMENT. THIS IS THE PRIME ENVIRONMENT FOR LEARNING!

During the school year, your child has to stress about all types of things. There are upcoming tests, papers and projects, performances, games, etc. With all of these deadlines and major events, your child is under a heap of pressure!

Learning and retaining new information when stressed is much harder than when the mind is calm. It’s much easier for a calm mind to learn! If reduced stress is the reason you’re enrolling your child or teen in summer learning, any environment would be fine, whether it’s academic summer camps, top summer schools, individual OR group summer programs for kids.

You know your child best, so find out what the teacher/student ratio is in the reading summer programs, summer writing programs for elementary studentsteens and math camps.

THERE ARE PROS AND CONS TO EACH TYPE – TOP SUMMER SCHOOLS, INDIVIDUALIZED TUTORING SUMMER PROGRAMS FOR KIDS AND ACADEMIC SUMMER PROGRAMS

Whether you’re interested in top summer schools, academic summer camps or tutoring summer programs for kids, each can provide a different level of customization to your child’s needs. We’ll explain how one-on-one tutoring programs differ from other camps and summer schools and we’ll explain why summer is the best time to learn new information.

SOME SUMMER PROGRAMS FOR KIDS ARE ONE-ON-ONE – THESE DIFFER FROM GROUP-ORIENTED ACADEMIC SUMMER CAMPS AND TOP SUMMER SCHOOLS
Traditional summer schools are just like school during the year…only during the summer. Nowadays, there are different options than that.

TOP SUMMER SCHOOLS
There are top summer schools that have similar environments to traditional school, but they’re focused on one subject or one goal. For example, there are pre-college summer schools focused on college prep or getting used to the college experience.

There are also subject focused programs taught in a school setting, like group-oriented math and reading summer programs, and also summer writing programs for elementary students. Top summer schools are a great option, but they’re not designed to focus on the needs of one particular child.

ACADEMIC SUMMER CAMPS
Academic summer camps can be general. They can also focus on children with special needs, such as advanced/gifted (yes, that’s considered a special need!), autism, deafness, etc. Lastly, they can focus on a certain subject or group of subjects – science and math camps are very common subject-focused camps.

Camps can be very similar to summer school, but usually, camps allow more freedom for kids to explore the subject ways that they wouldn’t be able to during the school year. Academic summer camps (like summer schools) are not designed to fit the needs of one child.

For example, summer writing programs for elementary students will focus on writing skills in general…but what if your child is a visual learner, or dyslexic, or has great grammar but terrible idea organization? Teachers at the writing camps won’t be able to help with these individual issues.

INDIVIDUALIZED TUTORING SUMMER PROGRAMS FOR KIDS
Tutoring Summer Programs For Kids are designed to suit your child’s individual needs – from learning style to subject focus to schedule, etc. If you want to make sure that all of the time you’re paying for is focused on your child and only your child, this is the type of summer learning you need!

Aside from being individualized, this type of program can also give your child the same benefits as the traditional specialized math camps, science camps and reading summer programs.

BOTTOM LINE – CHOOSE THE SUMMER LEARNING OPTION THAT MEETS YOUR CHILD’S NEEDS
If you’re going to spend your money and your child’s time on a summer learning program, be fully committed. Choose the type of summer learning that most fits your child’s needs in every way.

If your child is standard/average in terms of learning ability, learning style, interest level and scheduling needs, look at group oriented academic summer camps and top summer schools. If your child’s performance and learning style is above or different than the average student, consider customized one-on-one tutoring. You have 3 months to make your child’s summer education count, so make sure it’s a productive one!

Ashcraft, M.H. (2002). Math anxiety: Personal, educational, and cognitive consequences. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 11, 181–185.

Beilock, S. L. (2008). Math performance in stressful situations. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17, 339-343.

Beilock, S. L. & Carr, T. H. (2005). When high-powered people fail: Working memory and “choking under pressure” in math. Psychological Science, 16, 101-105.

Beilock, S. L., & DeCaro, M. S. (2007). From poor performance to success under stress: Working memory, strategy selection, and mathematical problem solving under pressure. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, & Cognition, 33, 983-998.

Beilock, S.L., Kulp, C.A., Holt, L.E., & Carr, T.H. (2004). More on the fragility of performance: Choking under pressure in mathematical problem solving. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 133, 584–600.

Beilock, S. L., Rydell, R. J., & McConnell, A. R. (2007). Stereotype threat and working memory: Mechanisms, alleviation, and spill over. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 136, 256-276.

Cohen, G. L., Garcia, J., Apfel, N., & Master, A. (2006). Reducing the racial achievement gap: A social-psychological Intervention. Science, 313, 1307-1310.

Cohen, G. L., Garcia, J., Purdie-Vaugns, V., Apfel, N., & Brzustoski, P. (2009). Recursive processes in self-affirmation: Intervening to close the minority achievement gap. Science, 324, 400-403.

Engle, R.W. (2002). Working memory capacity as executive attention. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 11, 19–23.

Imbo, I., Vandierendonck, A., & Verguewe, E. (2007). The role of working memory in carrying and borrowing. Psychological Research, 71, 467–483.

Klein, K., & Boals, A. (2001). Expressive writing can increase working memory capacity. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 130, 520-533.

Mattarella-Micke, A., Mateo, J., Kozak, M. N., Foster, K., & Beilock, S. L. (in press). Choke or thrive? The relation between salivary cortisol and math performance depends on individual differences in working memory and math anxiety. Emotion.

Miyake, A., & Shah, P. (1999). Models of working memory: Mechanisms of active maintenance and executive control. New York: University Press.

Miyake, A. et al. (2010). Reducing the gender achievement gap in college science: A classroom study of values affirmation. Science, 330, 1234-1237.

Park, D., Ramirez, G., & Beilock, S. L. (manuscript in preparation). Expressive writing alleviates the negative impact of math anxiety on math achievement.

Pennebaker, J.W. & Graybeal, A. (2001). Patterns of natural language use: Disclosure, personality, and social integration. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10, 90-93.

Ramirez, G., & Beilock, S. L. (2011). Writing about testing worries boosts exam performance in the classroom. Science, 331, 211-213.

Rydell, B. J., McConnell, A. R., & Beilock, S. L. (2009). Multiple social identities and stereotype threat: Imbalance, accessibility, and working memory. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 96, 949-966.

2004 Sleep in America Poll. (2004). Retrieved December 8, 2013, from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/

Braun, D. (2009, August 6). Why do we Sleep? Scientists are Still Trying to Find Out. Nationalgeographic.com. Retrieved December 2, 2013, fromhttps://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2009/08/26/why_we_sleep_is_a_mystery/

Insufficient Sleep Is a Public Health Epidemic. (2013). Retrieved December 8, 2013 fromhttp:www.cdc.gov/features/dssleep

Jabr, F. (2013, October 15). Why Your Brain Needs More Downtime. Scientificamerican.com.Retrieved November 30, 2013, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=mental-downtime

Sabourin, J. Rowe, J.P, Mott, B.,W. & Lester, J.C. (2011). When Off-Task is On-Task: The Affective Role of Off-Task Behavior in Narrative-Centered Learning Environments. Artificial Intelligence in Education,6738, 534-536. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-21869-9_93

Welsh, J. (2013, October 17). Scientists Have Finally Found The First Real Reason We Need To Sleep.Businessinsider.com. Retrieved December 2, 2013, from https://www.businessinsider.com/the-first-real-reason-we-need-to-sleep-2013-10

Steele, C.M. (1997). A threat in the air: How stereotypes shape intellectual identity and performance. American Psychologist, 52, 613–629. The Danish National Centre for Social Research, 1052 Copenhagen, Denmark; b Harvard Business School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02163; and c Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark

Alexander, K., Entwisle, D., and Olson, L. (2007). Lasting consequences of the summer learning gap. American Sociological Review, 72, 167-180.

American Camp Association. (2009). 20/10 Vision – Our Preferred Future. Retrieved from https://www.acacamps.org/2020/. May 13, 2009.

Bialeschki, M. D., & Malinowski, J., (2009) Camper Enrollment: Time to Hold a Steady Course. Camping Magazine, March/April. Retrieved from https://www.acacamps.org/campmag/issues/0903/enrollment_tables.pdf, May 13, 2009.

Borman, G.D. (2001). Summers are for learning. Principal, 80(3), 26-29.

Capizzano, J., Adelman, S., and Stagner, M. (2002). What happens when the school year is over: The use and costs for child care for school age children during the summer months. Occasional Paper, 58. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute.

Cooper, H., Nye, B., Charlton, K., Lindsay, J., & Greathouse, S. (1996). The effects of summer vacation on achievement test scores: A narrative and meta-analytic review. Review of Educational Research, 66, 227-268.

Duffet, A., Johnson, J., Farkas, S., King, S., and Ott, A. (2004). All work and no play: Listening to what kids and parents really want from out-of-school time. Washington, DC: Public Agenda.

Food Research and Action Council (2008). Hunger doesn’t take a vacation: Summer nutrition status report 2008. Washington, DC: Author.

McLaughlin, B. and Smink, J. (2009). Summer Learning: Moving from the Periphery to the Core. Denver, Colorado: Education Commission of the States. Progress of Education Reform, Vol. 10, No. 3.

White, W. (1906). Reviews before and after vacation. American Education, 185-188. Wimer, C., Bouffard, S., Caronongan, P, Dearing, E., Simpkins, S., Little, P., and Weiss, H. (2006). What are kids getting into these days? Demographic differences in youth out-of-school time participation. Harvard, MA: Harvard Family Research Project.