While students think of summer as a freedom from their academic responsibilities, it is the best time to incorporate learning into their routine. Don’t let your child’s summer go to waste by engaging in non-essential activities, such as playing video games or watching movies. Although it’s fine if your child wants to do some of their leisure-related activities, they could use this time to learn and save themselves from headaches later on in school and in life.
Reasons Why Summer is the Best Time for Tutoring
Although parents like to enroll their child in a tutoring program during the school year, summer is the perfect opportunity to do so.
The first reason is that your child has more available time on their hands. They could use that time to do something productive that would benefit them as they enter a new school year. During the summer break, you can enroll your child in a summer tutoring program that lasts from six to eight weeks, depending on the course and subject.
They could use that time to learn and master a subject at their own pace, without the pressure of catching up with the rest of the class. It makes for a more effective learning approach because the pace is adjusted to their needs and not the other way around. Plus, your child can benefit from the expert guidance of a dedicated tutor.
Another reason why summer tutoring programs make sense is because they can focus on one subject at a time. For example, you can enroll your child into a summer math course because they struggle with math subjects most in terms of academic performance. They can dedicate their entire summer break learning and mastering math, instead of having to split their focus on learning other subjects throughout the school year.
And finally, enrolling your child in a summer tutor program keeps their mind active and engaged. Some kids become so detached from the classroom setting during the summer break that they experience anxiety at the start of each school year. But you can avoid this by maintaining your child’s study and learning routine so they can smoothly transition when school starts again.
How to Choose an Effective Summer Tutoring Program
Not all summer tutoring programs are made equal. It is your responsibility as a parent to ensure that the summer tutoring program you choose has the highest impact on their learning.
Choose Programs That Are Standard-Aligned
The best summer tutoring programs are developed based on existing educational standards applicable to the specific course type or subject. The best way to determine this is to choose courses that are certified by regulating bodies in your location. With a certification, you can guarantee that they have expert tutors and the course curriculum is developed in line with existing academic standards rather than being made up by the tutor who offers them.
Choosing courses that align with existing standards ensure that each session is fruitful and designed for maximum learning. They follow a natural progression as the learning moves from one concept to another with ease, ensuring that every session offers the building block for the next session. This approach benefits students because they follow a natural progression and they don’t miss out on the essential areas for learning.
Choose Expert Tutors
The tutor’s qualification is another important consideration when choosing a summer tutor program. Maximize your child’s learning by getting support from highly-qualified instructors who are experts in their fields. For example, if you enroll your child in a summer math course, make sure the instructors are STEM or math specialists.
In addition to their subject knowledge and expertise, the tutors must also have good communication skills and teaching ability. It is one thing to be an expert at a subject and another to effectively teach that subject.
Specialized One-on-One Tutoring
A one-on-one tutoring session offers the highest productivity as far as your child’s learning goes. It ensures that your child gets a personalized program that meets their specific needs, and that they can learn at their own pace. A personalized tutoring session also ensures the teacher can adapt to the child’s preferred learning style.
With the right fit, a specialized one-on-one tutoring program can accelerate growth and improve the student’s confidence. The tutor can also provide more personalized feedback that foster growth and learning.
Progress Monitoring
As mentioned above, feedback from tutors is crucial to facilitate a child’s learning and development in a specific subject. Therefore, you must choose summer tutoring programs with an excellent feedback system. It ensures they can address weak areas and allot more time toward those areas where they need most help.
That said, it is crucial to pick a summer tutor program that is flexible enough to adjust the pace and learning approach to accommodate your child’s needs.
Benefits of Summer Tutoring Programs
Is a summer tutoring program worth the time and money? These benefits make this program worthwhile, especially for your child:
- It bridges the gap in learning for your child during the summer break, especially if your child falls behind in class on a particular subject.
- It boosts your child’s academic performance by improving mastery of key concepts and familiarity with the subject.
- It helps cope with anxiety about the subject and improve their study habits.
- It builds a structured routine during the summer break to help students practice self-motivation and accountability.
- It enables a child to pick the best learning style that suits them.
- It makes students discover the fun in learning through varied activities designed to learn critical concepts and skills related to a specific subject.
The Bottom Line
Whether a high-achieving or struggling student, most tend to lose their interest in learning during the summer break. Some won’t even dare open a book nor study! However, it is important to instill the value of continued learning among young students and a summer tutoring program is the best way around it. Tutoring ensures that students get the proper guidance they need to learn a subject in an accelerated and dedicated manner.
