When do schools break up where you are?

[MrsTerryPratchett]

Last day of school today here in BC, Canada.

When do the schools break up where you are? For the Southern hemisphererererers, when are the long holidays?

We did that last year, Rhubarb. It was pretty tough, as they then went from Eid to Christmas with one day off.

We've also got 2 weeks at Xmas, and 1 week at Easter, finishing before Eid again. It's going to be a long year, with minimal chances to go anywhere (which means no alcohol!)
I'm not used to more than 6 weeks in the summer, so this is a shock to the system. I'm also not used to having more than about 7 weeks without at least a week off.

Here in Brazil the summer holidays start around the second week of December but for children in year 3 up it can be the week before christmas if they need recuperation or preperation. They start back in the first week of February. They usually also have two weeks off in July and a week in October. Brazilian kids also usually only go to school for 4-5 hours a day as they don't have separate primary and secondary schools, they just have one school. Small schools split the day at Year 5 or 6 and larger sculls offer parents the option of either and morning or an afternoon slot.

Same as Ancienchateau. Only another week to go!

Ancienchateau - you may not remember me but I PM'd you about three years ago, just as we were moving to France. You gave me lots of invaluable advice! We are still near Toulouse. Are you moving abroad again?

morethanclueless yes I remember you, how are you getting on? After 4 and a half years, we are moving home, which we are very happy about

In Andalusia, southern Spain the summer is from about 21st June to 12th september depending on how the dates fall.

US here. My three have been off since the end of May! Not back until sometime in the second half of August - a total of 11 weeks in all. It's crazy, and yes they definitely regress academically over the summer. I'm trying to keep in top of it this year by doing an hour study every day, and thankfully they all read a lot for pleasure. But it really isn't a great system imo because they have very very long stretches of school without a proper break for the rest of the UK. Much preferred the UK system not the weather though

For the rest of the year, not for the rest golf the UK!

Ffs, of not golf! I'm going to bed now!

How do people in the USA balance very long school holidays with ridiculously tiny amounts of annual leave for most jobs? Do most families have a sahp or do most kids go to summer childcare or "camp" throughout the school holidays?

I've always wondered that!

Break up 21 July and back first week September.

Meant to say we're in the U.K. (South West)

drinkingtea - summer camp and other childcare is much better in the US than the UK. Lots more choice, residential options, etc etc (not cheap, though there are council and YMCA options which are more affordable)

Yes, using summer camps. Lots and lots of options provided both by the park district (equivalent of the local council I guess) and privately run. I would imagine it's actually slightly easier for working parents here (albeit with less annual vacation) to have all the time concentrated in such a big chunk.

The DC have been out for two weeks now. Our school district has a summer slide program which is free for low income families and $100 for everyone else. Kids go into school per their plan and have assigned homework. If your child is behind they attend summer school which is 8:30am-12:30pm four days a week. The schools are open Monday through Friday for any child to have lunch. It's free if you qualify for FSMs or $3.50 otherwise. DH took the kids today as he didn't want to cook and he used it as a chance to help DD figure out the cafeteria where she will have lunch next year.

I also have worksheets printed off and a reading list figured out with the library. The kids have a reading ladder which they are really enjoying at this point. It's a wonderful free activity.

US here - DD4 was off on June 2 and will go back iirc on 21 or 22 August. There is a break for Thanksgiving (Thursday, Friday plus the last weekend of November) and maybe a day off on Columbus Day (about 10 October iirc) and that is it from August to Christmas. She will have two weeks at Christmas and a week in spring plus a few single Mondays (president's day, Pulaski day, maybe one other).

Just about the same start date for my niece in Dublin but she won't go back until the first week of September.

Wrt childcare for the summer - lots of people around here hire a teenager to take care of children for the summer. Or they hire a teen to drive their children to camp daily (DD3 recently scored a job doing this on top of her late afternoon job in a local day care). Park District camp places are allocated by lottery here because there are fewer places than children. DD2 took care of a neighbour's children 5 days a week as a teen for a summer. I think American parents are less skittish about hiring teens to take care of children than British parents are.

There are lots of privately run camps too. A coding and robotics club opened up a block from me in the spring and it is packed with children daily. There is a gymnastics centre that runs daycamps, a YMCA (both day camp there and sleepaway camp out in the woods somewhere). The local library runs reading programmes - DD4 is currently a volunteer leading little groups in reading-related activities four afternoons a week. Children read a certain number of books and get tokens for prizes.
DD4 is doing summer school all morning for 6 weeks hoping to bump up a level in math.

The local elementary and high school districts operate free summer meals through three local church halls that are spread out throughout the districts, on a 'no questions asked' basis.

Some children go away to camps - I know one child who has gone to traditional camps in the woods and sport camps back to back all summer every summer from age 5. She is currently on a summer course in an English university (now a teen obv).

The public and private high schools and middle schools operate summer camps too, in sports, arts, and drama. You can do virtually any sport. This is for children aged 10/11 to 14.

There are also summer camps for 'highly motivated children' operating in the local small university, with themes like chess, bugs, aerodynamics, Rube Goldberg, robotics, 'Hunger Games; intro to genetics', chemical reactions, 'sudoku and such', physics and engineering, etc. They are basically day camps for children aged 7 to 14. You bring your own lunch and there is a daily swimming session too.

There are two public swimming pools and one year-round rink that occupy children very well from the end of May to the beginning of September (and all year for the rink). It's $50 for a season pass for the pool per person, or $9 for each visit without it. Waivers are available depending on income. Many children 9/10 and up spend most of their waking hours in the water or skating.

West coast of Scotland we broke up last Wednesday six weeks until they go back

mathanxiety
That is fascinating to read, lucky kids having all those options.

Wow those are a lot of options. I was assuming that most kids who didn't have a sahp went to residential camp or childcare all summer, which for some would be a busman's holiday at best.

We're in Germany, in the traditional south, and rural at that, so UK holiday provision even is far, far more comprehensive than what's available here. There is lots for kids to do in summer, but none of it is childcare - for example local clubs offer activities but the ones for my 6 year old are mostly only 2-3 hours long, after which the kids are simply set free to walk home or wait for their lift. Kindergarten opens for two weeks of the six, and primary school afternoon club opens for six full days (3 one week and 3 another), but for 4 weeks there is no childcare as such in our area.

On the other hand there is far more emphasis on teaching children indepence and self sufficiency, and even the equivalent of social services (who have a link to the primary school afternoon club) assumed a school mum was joking when she asked whether she could send her secondary aged 12 year old to the summer club on the days it's open, and said no, obviously she's too old to need childcare. In fact nobody bats an eyelid in the villages at 6 and 7 year olds staying home alone if one parent can be home by lunchtime.

Most teens around here who are considered half way responsible make a good deal of money babysitting or supervising children up to about age 10/11. Many teens escort children to and from camps (which might be from 9 to 3, so not coinciding with working hours). Teens learn to drive in high school here (it's an actual class in place of PE for a semester) and most will have a licence at age 16.

Many will be trusted with a family car equipped with carseats so that they can schlep kids around safely. DD3 gets to drive a much more salubrious jalopy than ours on weekday mornings for the next 6 weeks, dropping one child off in one camp and the older sister at another. A daily babysitter will pick the children up and occupy them for the afternoon until the parents come home.

I am fortunate to live in a well equipped suburb - there are children in the nearby large city who stay indoors most of the summer because enrichment and fun options are few and far between and the streets are far too dangerous.

What are accident rates like for 16/17 year olds driving cars full of young kids about maths? In some countries where kids can drive at 16 there are lots of limits put on them - no or only one passenger being one!

Living rurally kids reaching driving age is one of my biggest fears - a rash of 15-16 year olds die on their 50cc scooters and another rash of 16-20 year olds in cars crashed by recently licenced 18 year olds here every year, it's heart breaking.

I must say I'd rather leave my 6 yo home alone than have a 16 year old driving him about in a car with other kids twice per day . It's so hard for a new driver to cope with distracting passengers.

We're in Germany too but in a medium sized city and it seems there is quite a lot going on in the holidays but you have to be really quick because there aren't enough places to meet demand.

So over the six week holiday DS(8) is doing a week of afterschool type childcare, a week at a sleep away camp, a couple of odd days on day trips and then there were other afternoon or morning courses in things like coding, art, French etc with wraparound care but we decided to take holiday instead in the end.

This is what MetLife says about insurance:

"Q. My 19-year-old babysitter drives my children to school, soccer practice and dance lessons. Do I need to add her to my auto policy? Are there risks associated with her driving?

A. This is a situation many parents find themselves in. Your MetLife Auto & Home auto policy would cover you in the event of an accident, whether you’re driving the car, or your babysitter were driving the car with your permission. (See your policy for restrictions.) You don’t need to add her to your auto policy. However, you should be aware that drivers under the age of 25 have the highest rate of involvement in fatal crashes of any age group. So for safety’s sake, minimize distractions by insisting that your babysitter not talk or text on a cell phone while driving, and keep the radio turned down low or, better yet, off."

Teens are in the position of driving the family car with the family's permission.

The phone and radio are potentially bigger distractions than kids in their carseats - I must agree with MetLife there.