Ways to help your child go up a grade during the summer break

The summer holidays are the ideal time for students to take a break from studying and relax. However, with recent studies showing that up to two months’ worth of academic abilities can be lost during the summer, it’s vital to keep your kids brains active and learning. Here at Tutor Doctor we know how important it is that your children retain their academic gains, which is why we’ve put together some ways to help them stay ahead and maybe even move up a grade by the time the new school term arrives!

Dedicate just a few hours a week
Keeping your child’s grades up during the summer doesn’t mean they have to study every day. Dedicating just a couple of hours per week is more than enough time to retain their academic gains from the previous semester and even go up a grade! Do this by encouraging them to spend time completing homework and summer projects, doing practice tests or just reading over subject notes. There are also a wide range of apps that kids can play on and learn at the same time. See our top educational apps here.

Enjoy Learning
Schoolwork during the holidays doesn’t need to be boring. One of the most enjoyable ways to learn is by reading. Whether this is magazines, comics, books or blogs; it’s all great practice.  You could even get the kids to keep a summer journal, documenting their day-to-day activities, which will help keep up their writing skills. Alternatively, why not get your child to take part in the Tutor Doctor summer reading challenge? Find out more information on our website– they could even start the challenge with one of our four must-read books for teens this summer!

Get the whole family involved
Get the whole family involved in learning by planning an educational trip to a museum, zoo, historical site or somewhere where they can discover new information but have fun at the same time.  For some great ideas head over to the Visit England site and check out their family holidays section.

Get a Tutor!
A really easy way to keep your child’s brain working over the summer holidays is to invest in a private tutor for a couple of hours a week- it really can make all the difference.
Here at Tutor Doctor we offer an affordable, one-on-one home tutoring service that is tailored to suit your child’s abilities, learning style and personality. More importantly we aim to help students grow into independent learners as well as teach them key X-skills such as organisation and time management that will be sure to stay with them when they enter adulthood.  Find out more about our programmes here.

Use this Summer Holiday to Get Ahead of the Curriculum

The summer is a great time for students to take a rest from their busy schedules. And while this is good for them, their lack of learning over the summer leads to a phenomenon known as summer learning loss. The National Summer Learning Association at Johns Hopkins University in America found that students lose as much as two months of reading and maths ability they gained from the previous term over the summer holidays.

Not only do students lose skills over the summer, they also waste four to six weeks at the beginning of the new term trying to catch up. If your student utilises just a couple of hours a week to brush up on their maths and reading abilities, they will not only retain the academic gains they made over the previous term, they will also be able to move ahead. This is especially helpful for those students who are struggling to keep up.

Learning can be Fun

You don’t have to do serious schoolwork to keep their brains sharp over the summer. Get your student to read books they actually enjoy. Buy books, order them online or borrow them from the library. Encourage reading, no matter what form that takes. If your student is more interested in manga, anime, comics and magazines, that can be a good source of practice too.

You can also practice other kinds of reading like recipes or instructions for DIY projects or manuals for new equipment in the home.

Work with a tutor

This is a wonderful way to help your child to keep their brain working over the summer, but it can really help those who are struggling to fill in the missing building blocks. Students who want to go up a grade or improve their marks to get into college / university can also utilise this time to expand their knowledge.

At Tutor Doctor we can come to your home, at a time that is convenient to you, and help your child to learn in a fun and interesting way. Tutors should not only help with the curriculum work, but should also develop your child’s executive skills.

These are skills like organization, time management, task initiation and the ability to focus that will be invaluable in their academic careers. This will help them to be independent learners for life.

When student’s grades improve, their confidence does too and this means they are more likely to pay attention in class and participate in the classroom experience. They are more likely to try new things and allow their natural curiosity to find new ways for them to learn.

Four must-read books for teens this summer

The summer is fast approaching, which means it’s crucial for your teens to maintain their academic gains from the previous term. One of the easiest ways to do this is by encouraging reading as it’s great for helping students stay on top of their spelling, grammar and creative writing skills. Here at Tutor Doctor we know that there are way too many books to choose from and it’s difficult to know which ones are the best. That’s why we’ve narrowed it down to our four must-read books for teens this summer.

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
All the Bright Places follows the story of Finch and Violet, who are both dealing with different mental health issues. When the two meet on top of their school bell tower, they find themselves both considering jumping off, but somehow manage to save one another from doing so. When they then pair up for a project, they both find themselves feeling comfortable being their true selves around each other. However, as Violet’s world begins to grow, Finch’s starts to get darker. How far will Violet go to help save the boy she has grown to love? This novel is not only gripping but a powerful read about the effects of mental illness and how it impacts the people around those suffering.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird is a truly fantastic read that is sure to have any teen hooked right from the word go! Harper Lee explores the radical tensions in a tired old town called Maycomb, Alabama across three years (1933–35). What’s really mesmerising about this tale is that it’s told thought the eyes of 6-year-old Scout Finch. Whilst her lawyer father, Atticus, defends a black man accused of rape, Scout learns about the unfair treatment of African-Americans alongside some fascinating secrets about their mysterious neighbour, Boo Radley. A timeless classic!

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
This book follows the story of freshman Charlie, who is a ‘wallflower,’ which means he stands back timidly watching others live life, too scared to participate. Throughout the novel we watch Charlie really come out of his shell as he realises he can’t stay on the sidelines forever. He starts to make new friends, goes to parties and even falls in love. However along the way Charlie finds himself dealing with the confusions of sex and love, the temptations of drugs and the pain of losing loved ones.  A thought-provoking, coming-of-age story that many older teens will be able to identify with and learn from.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
This beautifully written book follows the life of mathematically gifted Christopher John Francis Boone. Christopher’s autism means that he has an overwhelming fear of interacting with others, meaning his day-to-day life can be challenging. When he discovers that his neighbor’s dog is mysteriously murdered, he starts to overcomes his fears and begins to investigate the murder, uncovering some surprising secrets about his mother on the way.