Summer Holiday Learning Opportunities

Summer is almost here and it’s the perfect time to relax, recharge and enjoy freedom from routine! 

But did you know that during the summer break, many students can experience a ‘summer slide’ and be at risk of losing their school-year gains in reading and maths? We’ve written a guide before to help you determine whether your child may need summer tuition, especially if intensive support might be desired. 

That being said, learning opportunities over the summer holidays doesn’t have to only focus on strictly academic work or past paper revisions. When the sun is out and summer is in full swing, sitting at a desk and studying to make up for lost gains doesn’t sound at all appealing! 

Our tip? Summer can still be a golden opportunity for meaningful learning without sacrificing fun. It’s the same idea as why the Grand Tour was seen as an essential journey of personal growth and intellectual enrichment for European nobles in the 18th century. 

Read on to discover some sure-fire ideas that will help you incorporate something more educationally focused yet enjoyable for this year’s summer holiday travels with your young learner!

Travel as a learning adventure

Family trips provide an excellent opportunity for informal learning; this especially rings true for excursions to cultural attractions or even sports-related activities where children can practise their counting, vocabulary skills, and more. In fact, holidays and excellent academic achievement in your child go hand-in-hand.

Plan a visit to a historical site or natural landmark this summer. Turning your upcoming visit into a mini project for your child will also help the trip feel purposeful. The key is to integrate learning into the rhythm of the holiday rather than setting aside separate time for schoolwork, which isn’t always possible on the French Riviera or a cruise on the Nile! This can be as simple as having your child research a particular site and having them write their own guided tour for the family. Creative formats like a digital slideshow, handmade brochure, or short video documentary will also keep the activity fun and engaging.

To develop your child’s language skills, download a free language app for your children and learn a few key words or phrases prior to your holiday. Using euros or another currency? Have your child practise their maths by converting what they’re buying to pounds. Exploring a new country? Read and mark a map with your child and navigate key symbols in the legend. 

Remember: learning moments are everywhere! Get your child involved and develop skills which can be applied to all manner of real-life scenarios!

Make room for storytelling

From enhanced imagination to improved vocabulary and refined communication skills, the benefits of storytelling on a child’s development are endless, so why not exercise this literary muscle on vacation as well?

Storytelling during travel downtime, like on extended car rides or flights, can boost creativity and listening skills whilst keeping your child entertained. Why not play a word association game with your child where the goal is to think of words related to a given word based on synonyms, antonyms, categories or more! Round robin storytelling is another type of collaborative game which can be done orally or in written form. Encourage your child to keep a holiday journal to capture moments from each day in their own words, which will help maintain their recount and writing skills. Let them use drawings, tickets, found objects to enhance their work and make their journey into a keepsake scrapbook!

Next time, prior to heading off on your holiday destination, invest in a few books associated with your place of travel and read them with your children. According to the BBC, the benefits children get from having stories read to them are hugely increased when parents talk and ask questions too! 

Seize the summer holiday as an opportunity to hire a Tutor to craft a personalised summer learning plan

Finding an experienced tutor can be a great strategy if you would like a more professional approach or even better ideas for how best to engage your young learner over the holidays. 

Your choices are endless: maybe you’d like a tutor who can design a flexible learning plan that aligns with your travel schedule; a tutor who can target your child’s specific goals without adding pressure or cramming; or a tutor who can offer a crash course to creatively prepare them for their 11+ exams before the summer’s out. At Titanium Tutors, our tutors can offer online or in person, regular or occasional lessons!

With a little creativity, travel becomes the classroom where your children can flourish.

---

Blog Post Crafted by Cheryl

Cheryl manages our Admin Team, and is a qualified teacher with 5 years' experience in schools across England and Canada.

Cheryl graduated from University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Education. She tutored secondary school students in English for over nine years in Canada.

Cheryl speaks Cantonese, English and French, and in her spare time, she can be found illustrating and reading children’s books for inspiration.