8 Reasons to Keep Your Child LEARNING This Summer

You might be thinking you need to do something academically for your child this summer but you’re not sure what. It’s true our students have made lots of strides, but there's still work to be done to catch up from the past few years of disruption.

Take a proactive approach to your child’s academic future by including learning as part of your summer schedule this year. A few hours a week with Sylvan can help your child catch up in the academic areas where they might have fallen behind or with skills they just didn’t fully grasp during the school year.

Here are 8 reasons why a summer at Sylvan will make all the difference in the fall!

1. Help Your Child Make up for Learning Loss.
   State and provincial testing continues to paint grim pictures of the much-written-about increase in learning loss, skill gaps and stalled development. Schools have made huge strides in doing what they can, but test scores place many students potentially years behind. As time has elapsed, gaps in education have only grown and the longer issues remain unaddressed, the longer it will take students to catch up.
   
   Bottom line: What experts say students need the most right now is high-dosage personalized tutoring. That’s not new to us. Sylvan has been championing this approach for 40+ years. It’s what we’re known for. In fact, we guarantee results.
   
   
2. Avoid Summer Brain Drain … And Head Into the Fall With Momentum.
   Academic skills are like other skills. You have to use them—or you lose them. It’s been reported that students can lose about 2+ months of learning over the summer if they do not stay engaged in learning. Combined with the cumulative deficits from the last few years, summer learning loss could make back-to-school time really difficult next fall.
   
   And you know what that sounds like at home: More stress. More arguments. More unnecessary struggle.
   
   When you team up with Sylvan tutors during the summer, your child will strengthen skills and confidence AND keep learning habits up. Staying engaged and learning will make it a MUCH smoother transition at back-to-school time.
   
   
3. Fill In Skill Gaps While Moving at Your Child’s Pace.
   During the school year, teachers need to move quickly, whether your child fully understands a topic or not. Your child is constantly chasing a moving target.
   
   Over the summer, though, your child can move at their own pace. There’s no chasing other students. You don’t have to worry about the class getting way ahead.
   
   This summer your child can spend the time needed to fill in gaps in learning from the school year and build a strong foundation for the next grade level—or better yet, get ahead!
   
   
4. Head into Big Transition Years With Confidence.
   Throughout your child’s academic journey, there are certain grade transitions that represent BIG jumps in responsibility and independence.
   
   These big transitions include going from:
   
   -2nd grade into 3rd grade
   -Elementary to middle school
   -Middle school to high school
   -High school to college/university
   
   Why 2nd to 3rd grade, you wonder? 3rd grade is the year that the training wheels come off. Your child will go from learning to read, to starting to read to learn. If your child isn’t ready for that transition, he or she will have trouble making that jump with the rest of the class.
   
   We’ve seen that the challenges with remote learning hit young students the hardest, so getting our elementary schooler ready for the new challenges and harder concepts will be critical.
   
   For older kids, the transition to high school and college/university academics can be a shock, particularly the rigors of advanced-level reading and writing assignments.
   
   With a tutor focused on exactly what your child needs to learn for their grade level, they’ll be well prepared and can eliminate the risk of stumbling.


5. Get a Jump on Higher-Level Math Skills
   If you know your child is going to be digging into higher-level math skills in the new school year (such as fractions, pre-algebra or algebra), use a summer tutor to get a jump on these subjects.
   
   Algebra, in particular, offers a whole new way of thinking for kids.
   
   If your child isn’t used to the critical thinking skills that are used for this type of math, it can take longer to get on the algebra train.
   
   A tutor will introduce your child to higher-level math concepts and to thinking in new ways. When the new school year arrives, your child will be comfortably on the math train at the start of the school year, not left behind at the station.
   
   
6. Learn How to Tackle Ever-Growing Workloads
   If you know your child is going to be digging into higher-level math skills in the new school year (such as fractions, pre-algebra or algebra), use a summer tutor to get a jump on these subjects.
   
   Over the summer, a Sylvan tutor can help your child develop and master skills to become a more efficient and effective student, including:
   
   -Time management and organization
   -Study skills
   -Test-taking strategies
   -Research skills
   -Effective presentation skills
   -Note taking
   
   Imagine heading into the fall knowing that your child will take ownership of schoolwork (yes!), feel more in control and resilient, even with all the challenges of a tougher school year. Imagine a school year without last minute scrambles and nagging over schoolwork.
   
   Summer is the perfect time to build these skills for school—and for life!
   
   
7. Raise ACT® or SAT® Scores With Summer Help
   Summer is the most popular time to get a tutor for SAT or ACT preparation!
   
   While many schools are going the test optional route, it’s important to note that test optional does not mean test blind.
   
   Test optional means students can decide if they want to send SAT/ACT scores or not, while test blind means the school won’t consider the tests at all.
   
   Most test-optional schools will utilize the scores in their decision-making process if they are sent, or they’ll provide an alternative option if a student is not sending scores. It’s important to have a clear understanding of what the alternative is before deciding whether to include test scores. If your teen’s score can help set them apart—send it!
   
   There are good reasons to prep for the test this summer!
   
   -Over the summer, your teen can focus on test-taking strategies and fine-tuning skills without all the stresses and distractions of school.
   
   -If you have a soon-to-be senior, your teen has likely taken the exam already. Your tutor will be able to look at the results and know exactly where focus to help them improve results on the next exam.
   
   -One of the subjects that we see teens struggle with on the ACT and SAT is algebra. Why? Their skills get rusty. (Use it or lose it, right?) Your tutor can make sure your teen gets an awesome refresher before the big test in the late summer or early fall.
   
   
8. Avoid Paying Extra Fees for Remedial Courses in College/University
   When your teen transitions from high school to college/university, you may get a surprise.
   
   Approximately 30% to 40% of incoming freshmen aren’t performing up to standards in basic English and math.
   
   Often times, these students have to take remedial courses in college. You’re paying tuition money, but they’re not getting any credit for these courses, but rather simply taking prerequisites.
   
   Investing in a summer tutor can help your child get on track with college/university standards, so you don’t have to pay unnecessary fees later.
   
   

Discover the Sylvan Difference This Summer

Our caring teachers are EXPERTS at encouraging and motivating kids to learn, grow and flourish. Plus, we also have cool activities to help kids stay engaged, make new friends and have F-U-N! (No complaints or moans about coming to Sylvan!)

See the difference Sylvan can make this summer … and watch your child head into the new school year with new skills, a fresh outlook and big-time confidence!