Summer holidays should be longer

[noblegiraffe]

Our kids have the shortest summer holidays in Europe, Italy have 13 weeks, even Ireland has 9.

They're under pressure so much at school they need more time to just be kids. Classrooms are so hot in the last few weeks of term that it's impossible to learn effectively anyway.

I think we should add at least an extra two weeks to the summer holidays, so break up near the start of July. This would bring us more into line with private schools too.

And with longer holidays it might help recruit and retain teachers, and reduce competition for summer annual leave slots for working parents. It could even reduce the cost of holidays as 'peak season' would be longer.

We now have 5 weeks in Nottinghamshire with 2 weeks in October . Its a nightmare due to Inset Day and phased starts, or building not being ready - it's always closer to 6 weeks and just as things are back to normal and work is ramping up, it's a two week rainy half term in October to cover. When I was with my partner, we took alternate leave - never had time off together. I work in the charity sector so not making mega bucks. Kids are now 10 and 14 so will mostly be hanging out at home and I work from home but I have to work so we won't be "making memories" it will be survival . When they were younger it was a mad juggle of kids clubs, my leave , Dad's leave, me staying with my Mum so they would cover but not be exhausted. Childcare is expensive or inaccessible I'd love there to be clubs they could go to but they aren't sporty so there aren't. My kids aren't unhappy due to the lack of holidays - they are unhappy because they go to crowded , badly maintained sometimes violent schools despite us living in a nice areas (potentially because it;s a nice areas we don;t get any deprivattion investments) , they are forced to be continuously asseesed against a terrible uninspiring curriculum . Teachers and the education system is so wiped out there is zero extracurricular unless you pay through the nose for it, and then they come home to a Mum slowly losing her mind trying to provide the basics who survived homeschooling while working full time. If you increase the Summer Holidays I will actually have a breakdown and stop work!

I have spent a couple of years in ROI and listen to Irish radio everyday, it’s not easy to cover at all, but they manage because they have to, it’s the same with school days. There is always talk on the radio about the difficulties around it.

There are pros and cons to each system.

When I lived there I had 3 children starting at 2 different times and finishing at 3 different times, Noon, 1.30pm and 2.25pm. One was in nursery but state funded hours, we could never get extra hours as they just didn’t have availability. There was very little in the way of afterschool clubs available, what was available had waiting lists. All children also had homework every day, not just a bit of spelling and reading but English, history, science, Irish, French etc… every single day! All workbooks were taken home each day, many kids had wheely suitcases instead of backpacks because they have so much to carry. And parents pay for these school books, they are not provided for free as in the UK, you must pay for the correct text and writing books in various sizes depending on subject. All stationary is also provided by the parents and there would be a strict list of what you could and couldn’t use. Some schools would request other equipment too. Parents also pay for insurance to ensure their children are covered for accidents in school. There was another payment but I can’t remember what it was.

There were no school lunches at my DCs school, though I’m not sure if this is all schools or just the one we attended, it was not a small school, roughly 450 pupils, the school did not have a kitchen or canteen, children had a snack in the morning and early afternoon that they brought in, no lunch break.

Also many schools in Ireland will not take children at 4yo even though the official rules are the September after they turn 4, many schools will say no, they prefer the children to start older, children there can start up to age 6yrs. The school we attended would not take children who turned 4 from June onwards, they had to wait until they turned 5.

There are also lots of single sex schools too so you have difficulties getting siblings to different schools at the same time, then there are events and holidays from multiple schools to juggle.

What I did find that was great, was there was a lot of summer camps, clubs and far more variety in extra curricular activities all together. The 2 summers we were there we paid for the 2 week summer camp offered by the school and run by the teachers, basically a normal school day but playing games and we paid for it. This was the cheapest summer camp. Then we paid 2/3 weeks of other camps but these were during school times, they did not cover a full working day so parents still had to arrange pickups. There was a whole range of things to book.

The GAA is amazing and dose camps throughout the whole country, lots of kids do these but I couldn’t tell you costs or times as we never did them. What I can tell you is Ireland is far more expensive than the UK.

But you go back in August.
Do you get extra in October or Christmas?

As PPs have said, lots of those countries have shorter holidays throughout the year. And everybody I know in those countries with children complains about how hideous the long summer holidays are - how bored the children are by the end of them. They often send them off to holiday camps for weeks at a time because they can't get the time off work. They are envious of our holiday schedule with more breaks throughout the year. The grass isn't always greener!

I agree the summer break feels short - my children don’t break up till 23 July this year which is ridiculously late! They need a long enough break to completely switch off and not even have to think about the looming return to school for a few weeks. There never seems enough time to fit in seeing family, catching up with friends, going on a holiday etc - my parents always want the children to stay for a week and a couple of days is all there’s ever time for.

But while I’m envious of the longer summers in other countries I do like the more regular half terms and proper breaks for Christmas and Easter we have here so I wouldn’t want to be shortchanged of that balance by putting it all onto summer. I went to a private school where we had nine weeks in the summer, four at Christmas, three at Easter and the usual half terms, so all my children’s holidays feel a bit measly to me.

I agree! Adults need to have more annual leave to accommodate this

The children need the long break from school, so yeah it is preferable because otherwise they don't get enough of a break. The children aren't home alone all day though, they're out playing with friends, going to each other's houses, going to the park, going swimming in the lake (older ones).

In my country primary school children will often be home alone, its just accepted that that's how it must be sometimes.
My DS is in his last summer at nursery, next summer when he's 8 he'll have to stay home. I'm lucky in that I also have a 14 year old (will be 15 then) and she will be sort of looking after him - I don't expect her to stay home with him all the time but to be around at least some of them, and she has offered to do summer school with him for a few hours a day (for pay, of course). But she'll also be applying for a two week summer job, and sometimes she'll be going away with her friends, so at least some of the time he'll be all alone except for the 4 weeks I get off.

YABVU and I don't have kids.
They are on holidays more than at school.

6 weeks seems long enough to me. I don't like the very occasional years when the new school year starts in August, but other than that it's fine. When DC at primary school I organised the hols on the basis of a ten day hol in the middle and various activities for the rest of the time. Art Club, a week of marshal arts, tennis, cricket. Playdates, cinema trips. Used most of mine and DHs leave over the summer with days off around the main summer holiday. DC did go to an independent school f oh rca while and the extra 2 weeks at the beginning would have been impossible without schools own clubs. Ultimately, those clubs were pretty rubbish and quite boring compared with the more mainstream holiday clubs.

@noblegiraffe
I think we know that you are a teacher. I suspect you just want a longer summer holiday. It is a funny way to look at it to say we are bottom of the league table for holidays. Some people might think we are top. A long break in the summer can disrupt learning.
It is really difficult for parents to find childcare in the summer and as a grandparent I certainly know that as I have the grandchildren for a few weeks. Some kids will be left on their own and spend all their time on their phones or gaming. This is not good for mental health. Yes it would be lovely if there were free holiday clubs for everyone but there are so many others things in this country to fix. It is not going to happen anytime soon.

School isn't to facilitate childcare though. It's for the benefit of the children.

Definitely.
Around here at least independent schools are 32 weeks long, yet state educated children have an additional 4 weeks. I’m sure this is detrimental to their wellbeing / mental health.
I think 3 weeks off for Christmas and Easter, and 8 for summer would be the most sensible , keeping the half terms.

Because thr school days are longer at independent schools! DD finishes at 5pm hence longer holidays

All adults or just parents?

I went to School in the late 60s /70s .There has been a dispute about the 6 week break for years!As far as I know there are discussions about kids getting behind ,and having to catch up /No idea if true or not.I feel 6 weeks is just right really .They start to get bored before School begins ,Working parents have abig enough headache as it is . Extra weeks would be a problem

Yabu.

They should lose a week or two and add them to Xmas and Feb half term. Those months are miserable and everyone gets ill. I'd rather slow down in the dark winter and rush around in summer. Kids can play out after school in summer, they can't do that from Nov - Feb.

I disagree. It is childcare as well. Before the Second World War children went home for lunch but schools had to take on lunch time cover during the war and afterwards because often both parents were working.

Would it benefit my children if I was unable to work due to increased school holidays and therefore had to sell my house and live off benefits? Don’t think so.

the trouble with changing NOW would be that people have based their lives around what is currently in place, so to change that would cause absolute chaos and disadvantage many , many families AND their children.

Growing up in another country, we had whole 3 months. Though i hated my school, i think what we had there was pretty much heaven.

All adults. There are lots of experiments atm over the four day week not being less productive. Thats 80%. I know
someone who has worked 80% since her child started school but done it by working f/t in term time and working far less in holidays.

businesses need to be thinking more outside the box since they no longer pay enough to allow for only one adult in a household working.

My state sixth form college finished at 5. We also only attended four days.

I accept the 2nd part of your comment. But education needs a massive shake up, whether it be school holidays or some other aspect. As it is at the moment, it fails too many children.

But as for the first part, that's on you.

But you said that was because they have clubs til 5 but finish lessons at 4. The state school I teach in, and the school my children attend, finish at 3.45 so not that much earlier that your child’s independent.

There is a state school near me that finishes at 3 but they start at 8.20.

Does your DD attend school on a Saturday?

I bloody wish - and I’m sure teaching would be a highly competitive career to enter into if we were on holiday more than working!