The summer holidays matter more than most families realise. Six weeks is a long time in a young learner’s life. Handled well, it’s a real chance to catch up on anything that slipped during the school year and to hit the ground running in September. Handled badly, it’s six weeks of forgetting, followed by a groggy first half-term spent getting back up to speed.
The good news is that the choice between “a proper summer” and “keeping learning going” is a false one. With a little planning, children can have both.
In theory there’s more time — in practice, there’s summer
On paper, the holidays are perfect for catching up: no school runs, no homework battles, no after-school tiredness. In reality, children want to enjoy their summer — playing out with friends, family days, holidays away — and they should. A child who spends August at a desk while their friends are in the park isn’t building a love of learning; they’re building resentment.
So the aim isn’t more work. It’s a small amount of the right work, done consistently, wrapped around a summer that still feels like a summer. Twenty minutes in the morning, most days, is genuinely enough to keep skills moving forward — and it’s done before friends come knocking.
We adjust the workload — just ask
This is the part many parents don’t realise: your child’s summer programme doesn’t have to look like their term-time programme. We’re happy to adjust the workload to fit your plans — lighter weeks when you’re busy, and easier, more independent work when it suits.
That’s especially useful for holidays. If your child is taking work away with them, tell us — we’ll swap in work they can do confidently without a tutor on hand. A campsite or a poolside is not the place to be wrestling with a brand-new topic; it’s the place for practice and consolidation your child can manage on their own, feel good about, and finish quickly.
The key to all of it is simple: communicate with your tutor. Tell us what your summer looks like, and we’ll shape the work around it.
Classes run through the summer — here’s how to make them work for you
Satchel classes continue over the holidays, and children who keep attending — even less often than usual — start September noticeably sharper than those who stop completely.
Three practical things to do:
- Check the class calendar for class dates over the summer, so you know exactly which weeks we’re running.
- Let us know in advance if you can’t make a class. Missing weeks for holidays is completely normal and completely fine — we just need to know.
- Ask about work to cover the gap. If you tell us before you go, I can bring extra work to the previous session, so your child leaves with everything they need for the weeks away. They stay ticking over, and there’s no lost ground to make up when they return.
September rewards the children who kept going
Teachers see it every year: the first few weeks of the autumn term separate the children who did nothing all summer from those who did a little. The “little” group settle faster, remember more, and pick up new topics more easily — and that early confidence tends to carry through the whole year.
That’s the real prize on offer this summer. Not hours of extra study, not a holiday sacrificed — just twenty minutes here, a class attended there, and a plan agreed with your tutor.
If your child had a tricky year and you’d like help catching up before September, we’d love to help. Call us on 01422 728145 or book a free assessment — we’ll work out exactly where the gaps are and build a summer plan that still leaves plenty of room for the paddling pool.
