How to Tackle “Summer Learning Loss”

July 2, 2016

The statistics surrounding “summer learning loss” are worrying, with students losing an average of two months worth of maths learning and one month’s worth of spelling over the course of the summer; teachers then spend between four to six weeks reteaching this “lost” material. With the summer holidays fast approaching, how can we tackle summer learning loss head on?

Read! This seems like obvious advice, but the effect of regular reading for a child’s vocabulary skills, communication, and indeed enjoyment of reading can not be undermined. Author Phillip Pullman, backed by the National Literacy Trust, has been vocal about his encouragement of regular summer reading for children’s development. Pullman also has advice for teachers: instead of just telling children to read, offer an advisory reading list to help them get started. Visiting your local library is also a great idea; libraries run great events and workshops for children throughout the summer which are specifically designed to enhance their summer in an educational way.
Hire a tutor to help keep your child on track. Just a couple of sessions with a tutor can help make the world of difference in terms of maintaining, or even improving, your child’s academic level.
Attempt to remain engaged with maths as well as literacy. Though this is more difficult, seek out games of sudoku or other mathematical puzzles. Try and find easy ways to incorporate mathematics into daily life.
Play! Board games may seem somewhat outdated in a world surrounded by technology, but games such as Scrabble (a good Scrabble champion requires a strong vocabulary, quick maths and strategy), Chess, or even Monopoly can be enjoyable ways to spend quality family time together whilst keeping brains ticking.
Don’t tackle it alone. Organise a group “study session”; this way children can enjoy spending time with their friends but they are also fighting off summer learning loss. Study sessions needn’t be replicas of a day at school; alongside “traditional” studying, perhaps watch an educational documentary, or hold a quiz, and provide snacks. The more engaging the session, the better.
Encourage children to keep a scrapbook that describes everything they have done during their breaks (books that they have read/ interesting places they have been/ something new they have learnt, and so on). Scrapbooking requires creativity, and also self-reflection. A scrapbook entry can be done in under half an hour, and can be a quick but effective way of keeping a child engaged.
Make holidays educational if you are planning to head abroad. Obviously you don’t need to squeeze daily lessons in between trips to the beach, but try and keep children stimulated. Ask children to undertake small tasks in a foreign language or visit local museums and enjoy the local culture.

However, just as important as keeping children engaged with their studies is allowing them to rest. If their summer holidays become too focused on keeping on top of schooling, children run the risk of being burnt out which can be just as damaging as spending the holidays doing nothing. Keeping the balance between fun and relaxation, and keeping education on track, is crucial.

What are your tips for fighting summer learning loss?

Websites Consulted

Independent article: Lincolnshire primary schools shortening summer holidays

Independent article: How to counter summer learning loss

TES article: Concerns over long summer holidays

Find a library

Oxford Mail: Philip Pullman encourages reading

Simply Learning Tuition: blog on summer learning loss

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