Does Your Child Need a Tutor This Summer?

The summer can be a wonderful time for students, but going back to school after three months of vacation can be miserable!  When your child goes from attending class five days a week to spending months away from school, summer learning loss starts to set in, which can make the transition back to school difficult.  The summer learning loss a student can suffer in math is especially pernicious; not only may your child have to play catch-up for the first weeks of school, but your child may fall so far behind that he or she cannot keep up with the pace of the teacher and classmates as the semester progresses. This is because each year of math depends on a solid foundation-and being able to recall and use that knowledge--from the year before.  If this foundation weakens over the summer, then your child could be at a disadvantage for each subsequent school year.  This extends to other subjects as well; teachers assume that students will read over the summer and keep literature skills sharp. Other quantitative subjects also depend on skill sets that students must retain from year to year.  If your child  does not do any academic work over the summer, he or she may be in danger of falling behind at the start of the next school year.

Academic support

Fortunately, summer learning loss is easy to eradicate. Extra math practice will keep your child's brain sharp, an hour or two of writing a week can make sure that your child's critical reading and writing abilities improve, and additional practice in other subjects will only help your child improve as a student.   Sometimes all your child may need is a tutor who can help guide him or her throughout the summer, making sure that your child retains vital knowledge until the next school year.

A tutor can work with your child for any period of time that suits your schedule and needs, with options ranging from an hour a week throughout the summer to a more intensive series of sessions toward the end of the summer.  As any amount of instruction that your child gets over the summer will be beneficial, you can work closely with a tutor to come up with a flexible schedule that is convenient for your family and a customized program of work that will help your child review challenging subjects, practice skills, and gain confidence.

The summer can also be a great time for your child to build up knowledge for the coming school year, and to work on any academic deficits he or she may have. It can be difficult for a student to manage school, homework, and academic enrichment outside of classes, but the summer presents an opportunity to focus on brief periods of learning and then relax.  As your child will have no other academic obligations, he or she will be able to focus exclusively on the target areas that you and a tutor choose.  Even something as minimal as an hour per week of working with a tutor can fix any misconceptions your child may have in a certain subject, preparing your child for the return to school in the fall.

A tutor can work closely with your child to pinpoint any problem areas in math, language arts, critical reading, and a variety of other subjects.  Once any difficulties in grasping subject matter become clear, a tutor will come up with an individualized plan of study for your child, which can continue into the school year if you feel that your child will continue to benefit from tutoring after the summer.  Since any amount of study that your child does over the summer will help hone his or her academic skills, summer tutoring is a wonderful opportunity to engage your child before the coming school year.

Summer Enrichment

Beyond working to improve specific academic subjects, a summer tutor can help your child grow in different ways.  There are all kinds of summer learning opportunities that would be too time-consuming to pursue during the school year, such as working on college applications, fine-tuning the writing process, strengthening an understanding of English grammar, or brushing up on a foreign language.  The flexibility and expertise that a summer tutor provides can give your child the opportunity to grow beyond the usual classes offered in high school, and without the pressure of normal school work, your child will enjoy diving into new areas of study.

Whether your child needs assistance improving in a certain subject or wants to learn something new that he or she has not yet encountered in school, a summer tutor can be a great choice.  As any kind of academic work over the summer will help keep your child's skills sharp, a tutor can be the best way to provide this kind of tailored learning.  If you haven't made plans for your child yet, consider a tutor based on what your child wants to excel in once school starts again.

If you are considering hiring a NYC tutor to improve your child’s learning this summer, Origins Tutoring can help. Whether your child’s goal is to prepare for algebra class in the Fall  or to maximize a score on the SAT or ACT, our hand-picked expert and experienced NYC tutors can help create a supportive, productive and stress-free learning environment.  Please call us at 917.287.7927 so we can begin to develop a personalized summer tutoring program for your child.