Summer Holidays

How to have an educational holiday

By Jemma Z Smith Holidays are all about swimming, having fun and playing games, all past bedtime, aren’t they? Living in the UK, our ‘big annual holiday’ often takes place in the summer and whether you are jetting off abroad or staying in a tent at home, this break is generally considered to be a time that is free from the demands of school and everything that comes along with it.

What does it mean then to have an educational holiday? Do you have to stay inside and read books all day? Well, no. Holidays can be fun AND educational. You can use these tips to make sure that your child comes back from their summer break knowing a little bit more than they did before.

Get kids involved with planning

Whether you are choosing to go to Spain or Salcombe, get your child to look up the location on a map or on Google Earth. They can find out how many kilometres you will travel to get there, how long it will take to drive, walk or fly. This will help them contextualise the place they are visiting, hopefully avoiding the ‘are we nearly there yet?’ questions as well.

Learn a bit of the local language

Regardless of where you are travelling to, the locals will have a specific vernacular. Learning hello, goodbye and thank you is not just a way to introduce a new language to your child, it is also a great way to get along with the locals. Discuss any similarities between English and the local language, for example, in French the word for ‘dance’ is ‘danse.’

Take an immersive class

If you are travelling to Italy, how about learning how to make pizza or pasta? If you’re on holiday in France, learn how to play boules; in Spain, try a bit of flamenco! It is a great way to celebrate a local culture and learn a new skill; after all, not all learning happens in the classroom.

If you’re holidaying by the beach and your child likes being in the water, consider scuba diving, fishing or surfing tuition.

Waiting games

Instead of handing your child your phone when you’re in a queue for an attraction, try some simple word games. See how many words you can think of that are … a type of hat? Trilby, sombrero, cap, bowler! You could even bring along a pocket quiz game to keep you all occupied.

Jemma Zoe Smith is Director of The Education Hotel (www.educationhotel.co.uk).

FREE* TREASURE HUNT ON A TRAIN

on the North Downs Railway Line between Reading and Redhill

For more information and to download the free* Treasure Hunt trail, please go to our website:

www.southeastcrp.org/ TreasureHunt

Sat 23rd July - Sun 4th September 2022

In partnership with

* You will need to buy your train tickets from Great Western Railway

Educational travel activities

Here are some ideas to keep your kids ticking over whilst on holiday.

Using currency and converting between pounds and local currency; Using a map and scales; Writing letters/postcards home; Writing a scrapbook/keeping a journal.

There are also some longer projects that older kids can embark on and many of these relate to the school curriculum. I use these when I accompany students on their trips as a full-time tutor.

Creating a vlog or website for friends and family; Getting involved with local conservation efforts; Learning about volcanoes or Egyptians by visiting key places and then creating a poster or presentation; Putting together a talk or a short video which will teach the class about the place you’re visiting; Writing a story for kids about the area that you are visiting.

Holiday Clubs Directory

Holiday clubs are great places for children to try new activities and make friends with people outside their normal social circle. There is a growing number of holiday clubs in the area; here are a few that sound exciting!

Apollo Sports: A fantastic variety of sports from an affordable and friendly provider. apollosports.co.uk

Camp Beaumont Adventure Day

Camps: Childcare from Just £43 a day. Award-winning day camps delivering confidence-building adventures throughout the school holidays with 50 activities across 45 locations. Rated excellent on Trustpilot. Enter your postcode and find your nearest camp today! campbeaumont.co.uk

Jubilee Jets: We are looking forward to a fantastic few weeks offering a wide variety of exciting and fun activities. jubileejets.co.uk

Kennylands Gymnastics: With 3-hour sessions or full days available for all school-aged children, we’re confident our fun-filled sessions will be a welcome relief for your children to come and enjoy the sport of gymnastics! kennylandsgymnastics.co.uk

Multi-sport and Creative Camp: Our exciting sports and craft sessions are led by fully qualified and experienced teachers and run by our Director of Sport. stedwardsprep.com/holiday-club

Peter Pan: Your 4-10-year-old can fly away to Neverland with Peter Pan, Tinkerbell and friends on an unforgettable, confidence-building adventure. perform.org.uk/peterpan

Premier Education: Great value sports, performing arts, and games to enjoy each half term, and plenty for your children to get stuck into in the school break. premier-education.com/holiday-camps

StageAbility: Fun, creative drama camps across most of the school holidays across Wokingham and Reading for all skill levels and abilities. stageability.co.uk/holiday-projects

St Joseph’s College: A variety of camps, including gymnastics camp, tech summer camp and Brickies LEGO summer camp. sjcr.org.uk/for-our-community/holidayclub Summer Project 22: For 6-10 year olds who will learn new skills, build confidence and form new friendships as they work towards staging a musical theatre showcase. southhillpark.org.uk

Summer School: Young performers and technicians aged 11-17 come together for Summer School to perform this full length, original musical with just 9 days’ rehearsal. southhillpark.org.uk

Summer Workshop: Make friends, have fun and develop some great new skills at our fabulous Stagecoach Wokingham Holiday Workshop. stagecoach.co.uk/holiday-workshops

We Don’t Talk About Bruno!: FIVE days of dance, drama and singing with a show at the end! 1–5 August. steppinoutstars.co.uk

Wild Days at Dinton Pastures: Join our exciting Wild Sessions this Summer holidays! These take place every morning and afternoon. dinton-pastures.co.uk/activities/ holiday-clubs-junior-8/wild-days

Zoo Academy at Beale Park: With an immersive zookeeper experience and a hands-on conservation project, this is the perfect summer holiday treat. Bealepark.org.uk/zoo-academy

summer festivals

23-4 jul & 27-29 Aug plus daily activities - Animal experiences, meet the bugs, pedaloes, nonstop play!

Summer Holiday Courses

Book at watermill.org.uk/take-part

Create, play and make new friends this summer at The Watermill Theatre!

Thursday 28 July Silly Stories 9am-12pm Creative Crafts 1-4pm For ages 4-7. Each session is £20 Friday 29 July Magical Myths 9am-12pm Spectacular Singing 1-4pm For ages 4-7. Each session is £20 Book all four sessions on 28 and 29 July for just £75

Monday 1 to Friday 5 August

Play in a Week

Ages 8-11, 9am-12pm Ages 12-16, 1-4pm Price: £95 Monday 8 to Friday 12 August

Musical in a Week

Ages 12-16, 9am-4pm Price: £165