September 29, 2022
September 29, 2022
As many students return to the halls of their schools in fall, they may be starting their academic year at a disadvantage. Why? Does giving kids the summer off help or hurt them? Does summer vacation affect student achievement? Is summer learning loss real?
The truth is that summer learning loss, summer slide, or summer setback is a real phenomenon, whatever you want to call it. Educational researchers have spent decades looking at how summers can impact kids’ learning. Of course, there are two sides to every educational coin. While summer break may set some kids back, there are also ways it can be super beneficial.
Read on to find out the pros and cons of summer breaks and what you can do to prevent your child from suffering from summer setbacks.
Why Do Kids Get A Summer Break?
The lore surrounding summer break is quite extensive. One of the most popular beliefs as to why children get summers off harkens back to the 19th century, when children had to help out on the family farm. But summer break actually has nothing to do with tilling fields.
Before the mid-19th century, children didn’t get summer breaks from school. In fact, if helping out on the family farm was needed, it was always in spring and fall when crops are planted and harvested, not during the hottest months of the year.
The truth behind summer breaks has more to do with the lack of air-conditioning than anything else. As cities across America grew, so did something called the urban heat island effect. Basically, all the brick and concrete made the heat of city dwellings unbearable, so more well-to-do families would head away to their country homes. Because it wasn’t mandatory for kids to attend school during this time, classrooms were empty for most of the summer. So, things had to change.
Legislators worked hard to create schedules for schoolchildren that gave them summers off, and many advocates also argued that children needed time off so as not to strain their brains. Hence the summer vacation was born.
What Is Summer Learning Loss?
If you want to understand if summer helps or hurts kids’ learning, it’s important to understand exactly what we’re talking about here. The phenomenon of summer learning loss has been researched for decades. Basically, it refers to the loss of learning children experience over the summer months when school is not in session and they are away from opportunities to learn.
Studies have found that the summer learning loss some children experience is equal to missing about one month of school during the year. It’s a phenomenon that tends to impact math and reading skills the most, and has a greater impact on children who come from low-to-moderate-income families or have certain learning disabilities.
How Does Summer Break Help Kids?
Let’s turn for a moment to some of the ways children benefit from summer break. Do students benefit from a two-month summer break? Yes, many do.
It is true that some children, typically those with intellectual or behavior issues, can experience overload when it comes to school, so having a little time off can help those kids relax and prepare for a new academic year in the fall.
Summer is also great for kids socially. Many children go to camps or spend their days playing outside, which lends itself to improved social skills that aren’t usually exercised in a classroom. If parents are worried that their child is losing knowledge, there are always more structured activities that can fill their days – and of course, the stability of a routine, even in the summer, has benefits for a child, both mentally and physically.
How Does Summer Break Impact A Child’s Learning?
An extended break from school often excites children, but it’s been found to have a negative impact on some kids in a few ways. Some students experience regression in their social skills and behavior when out of the classroom for an extended time. They may also struggle to handle a change in their routine.
Regression is one area that many parents are concerned about, especially for smaller kids. Without consistent instruction in the classroom, it can be difficult for children to retain the information they’ve learned, and they may have a relapse in some of the behaviors they’ve ironed out over the school year, such as not waiting their turn or being too impatient to sit at their desks for extended periods of time.
Children who struggle with learning disabilities may work hard during the school months on improving their skills, but the summer months can be a real setback. Without daily instruction, opportunities to use their skills, and guided practice, it’s almost certain that they will regress, if not lose some skills altogether.
What Can You Do To Avoid The Summer Slide?
As a parent, there are several things you can do to help your child fight against the so-called summer slide. Here are a few tips:
If you’re not sure where to turn, you can always ask your child’s teacher for ideas to help fight back against the summer slide. Each year you’ll get a little better in helping to keep your children on track throughout their vacation.
Featured image by Alexander Grey on Unsplash