Summer Brain Drain

The end of the school year is certainly a busy time for students here at TMA, in a span of a few very short weeks they must finish out their end of the year lessons, intensely study for final exams, take final exams, and finally present their portfolio presentations. Come the last day of portfolio presentations, students are far more concerned with securing summer employment or the location of the nearest pool than they are with ways in which they can hone academic skills over the summer.

To the possible chagrin of our students, a recent Washington Post article discusses the important relationship between how students spend summer vacation and retention of material from the school year.

The study suggests that it is possible to retain all the academic skills one learned in the previous year. More importantly the study suggests that, with something as simple as reading 30 minutes a day, one can actually strengthen and improve upon the skills gained in the previous year.

In an effort to provide TMA students with opportunities to gain valuable experience over the summer, the TMA Programs Office publishes a summer opportunities guide that is full of great possibilities for our students. These opportunities cover areas of interest including Law, Politics, Writing, Arts, Science and other leadership opportunities. Many of these programs occur right here in DC and are a great way for students to gain professional experience as well as hone their academic and leadership skills. The Summer Opportunities Guide, as well as other resources for students, is published on our website.

Know of any exciting things our students should be doing this summer? Have any additions to our summer opportunities? We'd love to hear them, feel free to leave any ideas as comments.